

H&M also notes the following in its inclusion and diversity statement: “In an inclusive and diverse environment, everyone can contribute to optimising decision-making and team performance by reflecting, respecting and relating to our employees, customers and communities.”

The clothing brand states that diversity strengthens the company and that it values “diversity in people and ideas, as much as in personal style.” At the time, H&M owned stores in 69 countries on six continents. H&M, a fashion retailer based in Sweden, has 51 markets with online shopping and 5,000 stores in 74 markets across the globe, according to its website. The term monkey is considered a degrading stereotype of people of African descent. H&M faced backlash across the globe in January 2018, when it advertised an image of Liam Mango, a 5-year-old Black male, modeling a green hoodie sweatshirt emblazoned with the words “coolest monkey in the jungle” in white capital letters. Case Study: H&M’s Coolest Monkey in the Jungle
