#KimOhNo

Have you heard of “Kimono?” Do you mean SKIMS? Kim Kardashian West launched her seamless shapewear line on September 10th, but this isn’t where the story of her new business endeavor began.

Originally, Kim announced the name of her new line would be “KIMONO” back in June. Almost immediately, she received criticism for the name. Many said it was inappropriate and offensive to Japanese culture, as it was a play on words for the traditional Japanese garment.  

Kim said, "We ran it by retailers, we ran it by a bunch of people we respected. Everyone seemed to really like the name." 

I don’t understand how an alarm didn’t go off for one person who was introduced to the name, but if it had perhaps Kim would not have found herself in this situation. By the time all of the controversies came rolling in, Kim had already made products with the name printed on the inside of the fabric.

And it was not an easy fix. She did not want to be wasteful, but clearly something needed to be done—the name had to be changed. In typical Kim fashion, she came up with a spunky new name and a creative way to cover the old name without having to waste the garments. Behind the SKIMS logo, when peeled, reveals the original “Kimono” emblem. She also sincerely apologized for the miscommunication by saying…

“I’m so inspired by the Japanese culture. I didn’t understand that it would’ve been offensive… I would never want to intentionally disrespect a culture.” She owned up to her mistake and took several steps to fix it.

Kim’s line consists of shorts, bras, underwear, bodysuits, and other types of undergarments. Her main goal was to make the line inclusive. All of the pieces are offered in various colors and sizes ranging from XXS to 5XL.

While acknowledging the oversight, let’s not let this mistake define SKIMS. The line is designed to be inclusive and seems to be comfortable but still sexy. It has already been rolled out and introduced to stores such as Nordstrom, and it has received a lot of positive feedback.

We’re excited to see where the line goes from here and if the name controversy will tint its success. The social media campaign created to promote SKIMS is creative and intimate with a vintage feel, which we absolutely love. Check out @SKIMS to see for yourself!  

But what’s the lesson here? Mind your words! On a large scale, such as with the name of a new product line, to a small scale with your everyday language, we all could benefit from putting more thought into our words and how they are going to be accepted by others. Although they may seem harmless, they can be insulting or hurtful to others. Props to Kim for realizing her mistake and making a positive change. P.S. We love the new name even more!