UK/CHINA. The furious Chinese consumer backlash against World Duty Free’s allegedly “discriminatory” promotion at Heathrow Airport shows no sign of easing despite the retailer issuing a fulsome apology.
As reported, the promotion required Chinese travellers to spend more than other nationalities to qualify for a -20% discount voucher. The matter quickly escalated into a public relations crisis for the Dufry-owned retailer, especially after its initial response added fuel to the fire. On Monday evening UK time, it issued a fulsome apology on Weibo, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram in both English and Chinese.
However, high-profile Mainland publications have continued to criticise World Duty Free and in some cases have called for a boycott of its stores. The retailer’s social media sites also continue to be inundated with angry comments. Of 379 reviews on the site, 361 give World Duty Free the lowest one-star ranking, most of them accompanied by severe criticism of the retailer.
Chinese state-run media outlet Xinhua pointed out a discrepancy in the Chinese and English language versions of World Duty Free’s apology.
In a commentary piece, it said: “Although the statement contained the term ‘sincere apologies’ in both the English and Chinese versions, the striking difference is that unlike its Chinese text, the word ‘Chinese’ is missing from the English version.
“The Chinese version of the statement mentioned such explicit words as ‘the Chinese public’, ‘the emotion of indignation and doubts about this company’, as well as pledges that ‘there will be no recurrence of this kind of incident in the future’.”
Xinhua said the equivalents could not be found in the English version of the apology.
“The Chinese text was obviously intended to iron out the outrage of the Chinese people both in China and in Britain, but its obscure and ambiguous English version revealed the true attitude of the company as it omitted key wording in the Chinese version,” it continued.
A promotional disaster, a public relations fiasco and a lesson learned |
“The duty free retailer’s promotional rules are neither clear nor transparent to customers. Nothing was mentioned at this stage about whether the company would punish those who are responsible, and no specific measures were given to solve the problem.
“Chinese customers have all the reason to doubt the company’s sincerity. If the company is really serious about its ‘sincere apology’, it should take more concrete actions instead of merely playing with words.”
According to the South China Morning Post, Chinese state newspaper People’s Daily demanded compensation for affected consumers and “urged Chinese consumers to fight back against discrimination”.
State-controlled People’s Daily report stated: “When it comes to business owners who are dishonest and do not respect regulations and the rule of law, the victims should bravely use the law as a weapon to defend their rights.
“As the shop treats customers differently [based on their nationality], should we vote with our feet and stop buying foreign products?”
People’s Daily’s initial report [published 12 February] demanding World Duty Free issue an apology is currently among its ‘Most Read’ articles, while the story also features prominently on English-language daily newspaper China Daily’s European homepage.
Social media backlash
World Duty Free’s Facebook page has attracted many more 1-star reviews and critical comments since the retailer issued its apology on Monday night. Facebook users have expressed doubts about the apology, and several said they would boycott the retailer.
World Duty Free’s page on Chinese micro-blogging site Weibo has also attracted many negative comments. The retailer’s original statement has [at time of writing] been commented on 2,960 times and shared 2,540 times. Its subsequent official apology has been commented on 1,391 times and shared 856 times.