Nordstrom pulls Moschino for drug-themed collection

Specialty retailer Nordstrom recently saved itself from a controversy by pulling a high-end designer’s collection. The department store made an announcement that it would no longer sell Moschino’s latest Spring/Summer 2017 due to its drug-induced aesthetic.

The controversy started with Randy Anderson, men’s program counselor at Eden House Recovery Services in Minneapolis, wrote a petition entitled “Boycott Saks Fifth Avenue & Moschino” about the collection. Because of its heavy use of pills and drug-inspired graphics, Anderson took the collection as offensive towards past drug addicts and recovering addicts. On his change.org account, he states, “I’m a person in long term recovery and what that means to me is I haven’t had to use drugs or alcohol or any mind or mood altering substance since January 9th 2005.” The petition pleas for Moschino and its buyers to understand their moral responsibility with fashion, citing facts and figures of those who have died of accidental drug overdose-related incidents. As of October 10, there are approximately 1,644 supporters of the petition.

In response to this outrage, Nordstrom pulled Moschino’s collection with a statement. “We appreciate all the constructive feedback we received from concerned customers and ultimately decided to remove the collection from our site and the three stores where we offered it,” a spokeswoman told WWD. Currently, there is no public comment on whether or not Saks Fifth Avenue will do the same.