Skittles faces backlash after it partners with GLAAD and puts ‘Black Trans Lives Matter’ on its packaging
- Skittles is facing backlash after altering its designs for a GLAAD partnership
- The limited edition Pride Packs ditched the signature color wheel
- Some packets are white with an illustration and wording such as ‘express urself’
Candy brand Skittles is facing backlash after partnering with GLAAD and altering some of its packaging to include ‘Black Trans Lives Matter’ messaging.
Images of the packet on social media prompted an outpouring of criticism on Twitter today, with many likening the ‘woke’ marketing to Dylan Mulvaney being used in Bud Light advertising.
It’s the fourth year Skittles has teamed up with GLAAD (the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) to ‘support the LGBTQ+ community by amplifying and celebrating their stories’, according to Skittles’ official website.
In a series of limited edition Pride Packs, the candy company has ditched its staple color wheel and opted for a toned-down packet with an illustration.
Skittles is facing backlash after altering its designs for a GLAAD partnership which includes the messaging ‘Black Trans Lives Matter’
The limited edition Pride Packs ditched the signature color wheel
In previous years, the packets were all-gray to ‘represent the brand’s cemented efforts of support’, however last year the concept was changed to include work from five LGBTQ+ artists.
They were asked to create original designs which represented how they “see the rainbow” every day.
One example says ‘express urself’, while another includes the text ‘Black Trans Lives Matter’.
‘Bruh anytime a company does this it seems in-genuine when their only goal is maximizing profit for shareholders,’ another claimed.
‘I didn’t want to have to do this skittles.. bye,’ a disappointed customer added.
‘This stuff is no longer funny,’ another person shared.
Some Twitter users compared the collaboration to the Bud Light marketing disaster which saw Anheuser-Busch lose a whopping $390 million in US sales in the wake of its partnership with Mulvaney.
The parent company blamed the ‘volume decline’ of Bud Light for the drop in revenue in its second quarter – with figures showing that total US revenue dropped by 10.5 percent in the April-to-June period compared to a year earlier.
The world’s largest brewer said Thursday that sales to US retailers had plunged 14 percent, adding that it had been ‘underperforming the industry.’
‘More Bud Light moments… Will it ever end…?’ one person suggested on Twitter, referencing Skittles’ packaging.
‘So giving them the Bud Light treatment,’ another stated.
While consumers can still find the standard Skittle packaging in stores, the Pride Pack series is available at selected retailers.
In a statement at the time of last year’s Pride Pack announcement, Skittles Senior Director Justin Hollyn-Taub said the brand was committed to advocating for the LGBTQ+ community.
Images of the packet on social media prompted an outpouring of criticism on Twitter today, with many likening the ‘woke’ marketing to Dylan Mulvaney being used in Bud Light advertising
‘While Pride Month is a time to reflect, self-educate and celebrate, we know that long-term sustained support and allyship is key in building a more inclusive and diverse society.’
One dollar is donated, up to $100,000, to GLAAD’s work and programs to combat discrimination.
DailyMail.com has contacted Mars Inc. for comment.
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