Arc’teryx is taking full responsibility for any possible damage associated with a fireworks display it sponsored in Relong, a small village in Tibet, on Friday.
The brand, part of Amer Sports, sponsored acclaimed artist Cai Guo-Qiang, who created a three-part fireworks display called “Ascending Dragon” that used gunpowder and fireworks to create a rainbow dragon that twirled around the mountain, a water dragon that interacted with the audience that viewed the show, and a 2,500-meter golden dragon that reached toward the peaks.
But the spectacle, in a region dubbed “the hometown of Mount Everest,” backfired, causing an uproar among locals and on social media, with critics characterizing the event as “blowing up the mountains” and criticizing the impact on the environment and lack of respect for the mountains.
In an exclusive interview with WWD, Stuart Haselden, chief executive officer of Arc’teryx, said the company was “really troubled” by the spectacle. He said Arc’teryx has a team on the ground assessing any potential damage to the mountains and is “committed to taking whatever corrective measures are necessary. We want to move forward and make it right. This is so against our values. It should not have happened and we’re going to make sure it never happens again.”
Because Arc’teryx was the sponsor, he believes the company is “accountable,” he said. “Our name is associated with it and we will take responsibility to make it right.” He said the team in Tibet will remain there until any issues are resolved.
Haselden also pointed to a statement of apology that the brand posted on its Instagram account that read: “The recent fireworks display on the Tibetan Plateau was out of line with Arc’teryx’s values. We’ve heard your concerns, and we share them. This event was in direct opposition to our commitment to outdoor spaces, who we are and who we want to be for our people and our community. We are deeply disappointed that this happened, and apologize, full stop. We’re addressing this directly with the local artist involved, our team in China, and will change the way we work to ensure this doesn’t happen again. Our expectation is that everything we do reflects our environmental ethos, and we have no tolerance for actions that do not align. We have already begun efforts to mitigate the environmental and social impacts of this event. We are grateful to our community for holding us accountable.”
The brouhaha in Tibet also caused Arc’teryx to postpone a press event it had planned during Climate Week in New York on Monday morning to unveil the latest chapter in its sustainability efforts, a zero-waste initiative entitled System 0. That event will be rescheduled for a later date.