Mac New Collection – Cancelled

Afternoon guys,

I was just reading up on some new products coming out from some top make-up brands and looking what new companies have come out lately when I came across an article in the Daily Mail from yesterday. The headline was Top Make-up branded forced to cancel new range after industry backlash. Now this caught my attention from the start but I then find that the top brand in question is none other than Mac.

Mac were due to release a collection called Rodarte next month, inspired by designers Kate and Laura Mulleavy. Kate and Laura Mulleavy are sisters and named their designer label from the mothers maiden name. The new Mac Collection inspired by the designers has inspiration taken from a road-trip they took through Texas.

But the collection caused backlash in the make-up industry with products such as a nail varnish called ‘Juarez’ named after the border town in Mexico which is well known for its history of sexual violence. Other items of the collection that also came under scrutiny were lipstick called ‘Ghost Town’ and another nail vanish called ‘Factory’. The collection was branded ‘tatseless’ which left Mac with no option but to cancel the collection.

They issued this statment on the facebook page:

” Out of respect for the people of Mexico, the women and girls of Juarez and their families, as well as our MAC Mexican staff and colleagues, MAC has made the decision not to ship the MAC Rodarte limited-edition make-up collection.

‘This decision will have no impact on MAC’s commitment to donate all of its projected global profits from this collection to local and international groups that work to improve the lives of the women and girls of Juarez … MAC and Rodarte are deeply and sincerely sorry and we apologize to everyone we offended.”


As soon as online bloggers heard of the new collection things seemed to go down hill, while everyone understands that Mac raises awareness for issues like aids and other causes nobody could understand why this collection had been brought about in such bad taste. Before Mac cancelled the collection alltogether the palns were to change the names and they also pledged $100,000 to an organisation that supports women in Juarez but it seemed the damage had already been done and the collection got cancelled completely.

This seems to have caused quite a storm with no-one understanding how two big labels didn’t see the media storm this would bring.