Recently, outdoor brand Arc'teryx teamed up with artist Cai Guoqiang to set off artistic fireworks in the Himalayas. At present, Cai Guoqiang and Arc'teryx have apologized for the fireworks show respectively, saying that they will do their best to take remedial and recovery measures. Arc'teryx said in its apology letter: The Cai Guo-Qiang - "Rising Dragon" art project recently "sponsored" by the brand has triggered widespread public discussion, and expresses its most sincere apology to everyone. Its overseas team also said in a statement that this behavior runs counter to the environmental values upheld by the brand for a long time, and is also inconsistent with what we want to be.
However, it is worth noting that in previous publicity, Arc'teryx used the wording "joint hands" with Cai Guoqiang's team, while the apology letter was changed to "sponsorship." Some netizens pointed out, "The apology letter secretly changed the concept and wording, which is not very sincere! It throws away not only responsibility, but also the awe that outdoor brands rely on for their survival."
As we all know, Arc'teryx is the core brand of Amer Sports acquired by Anta Group in 2019. As the founder and chairman of the board of directors of Anta Group, Ding Shizhong is the leader of this acquisition and the core decision-maker of the group's strategy. Previously, Ding Shizhong repeatedly emphasized the need for "long-termism."
Industry insiders believe that the appearance of the plateau fireworks show not only brought Archaeopteryx to an extremely low level, but also violated Ding Shizhong's original intention. Arc'teryx really ignores the belief that the core of the outdoor brand is "symbiosis with nature". Compared with Patagonia (which invests 1% of sales into environmental protection), Arc'teryx's environmental commitment is more like a marketing behavior.
A failed "show"
On September 19, outdoor brand Arc'teryx teamed up with artist Cai Guoqiang to set off fireworks in the Himalayas, sparking controversy. In the evening of that day, Cai Guoqiang set off artistic fireworks in the Relong area of Gyantse in the Himalayas (about 5,500 meters above sea level), letting the flames explode along the ridge to form a dynamic landscape of "rising dragon".
Cai Guoqiang himself explained at the scene: "This is 145 fan-shaped colored smoke, forming a 3,000-meter-long blue, white, red, green and yellow rainbow."
The organizer said that the fireworks color powder selected for the "Rising Dragon" art project are all biodegradable materials, and the discharge verification by the International Olympic Committee and Japan, the United States, Europe and other places has confirmed that its pollutant emissions comply with environmental standards. The level of this display is Level V (the lowest risk level), and the noise and light pollution are much lower than night fireworks, avoiding additional interference to the environment and the public. The organizer also said that because it was created in a snowy plateau area, the project team developed a full-chain plan of "prevention, monitoring, and recovery" in terms of ecological protection.
However, some environmental protection practitioners pointed out: "The plateau ecosystem is complex and fragile. Large explosions will destroy the fungi on the stones. It is the fungi and moss that create the plateau soil, and a large number of plants and fungi form symbiotic root systems to survive."
Hua Dancairang, associate professor at the School of Ethnology and Sociology at Qinghai University for Nationalities and researcher at the school's Nomadic Research Center, believes that "biodegradable materials may not necessarily be degraded in the plateau environment, and this will cause harm to the local ecological environment."
Hua Dancairang said that the Himalayas belong to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, and the ecological environment inside the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is very fragile. Even biodegradable materials can cause damage to the ecological environment, and fireworks residues are chemical substances. Such chemical substances can cause harm to alpine meadow soil, water sources, and even animals and plants. "This is not a change that will be discovered in a day or two, but requires long-term monitoring."
In response, many netizens posted questions about lighting large fireworks in the Himalayas, regardless of the fragile ecological barriers of the Himalayas, and causing environmental pollution in the area. Arc'teryx subsequently deleted all promotional materials related to "Rising Dragon".
“Arc’teryx’s environmental commitment is more like a marketing behavior”
Arc'teryx is the core brand of Amer Sports acquired by Anta Group in 2019. As the founder and chairman of the board of directors of Anta Group, Ding Shizhong is the leader of this acquisition and the core decision-maker of the group's strategy. Previously, Ding Shizhong had repeatedly emphasized "long-termism" in Anta's development.
Industry insiders believe that Ding Shizhong has clearly stated the goal of "building a world-class multi-brand group", in which Arc'teryx is positioned as "high-end professional + lifestyle". The fireworks show can be regarded as an experiment to "bring high-end brands into public life", trying to lower the consumption threshold through immersive experience, while strengthening the brand gene of "craftsmanship".
The fireworks behavior this time is essentially a continuation of Ding Shizhong's "high-end strategy", but it triggered a tsunami of public opinion due to misaligned values - the brand tried to package business behavior with environmental protection concepts, but it exposed a lack of respect for nature. Netizens commented: "Exploding mountains is worse than frying fish. Ding Shizhong's original intention was to make money, but Archaeopteryx should not forget why it set out."
In fact, Arc'teryx, led by Ding Shizhong, has been promoting "symbiosis with the outdoors and giving back to nature" in its external publicity. Many events this year have “nature” as their theme.
But in the eyes of industry insiders, Arc'teryx has indeed ignored the belief that the core of outdoor brands is "symbiosis with nature." Compared with Patagonia (which invests 1% of sales into environmental protection), Arc'teryx's environmental commitment is more like a marketing behavior.
Apology statement, secretly changing the concept?
In the early morning of September 21, the Shigatse City Internet Information Office’s WeChat public account “Cloud Everest” released a situation report. The report stated that the Shigatse Municipal Party Committee and Municipal Government attach great importance to it and have set up an investigation team to rush to the site for verification as soon as possible. Follow-up will be handled in accordance with the law and regulations based on the verification results.
Also on the same day, Cai Guoqiang Studio issued a statement about the "Rising Dragon" art project: The studio and I attach great importance to it, and with awe, we humbly accept all criticisms about the implementation of artistic creation on the snowy plateau, and sincerely thank everyone for their concern and reminders. "We do have many inconsiderations, and I deeply apologize."
Cai Guoqiang's studio said, "Next, we will proactively cooperate with third-party organizations and relevant departments to conduct a multi-faceted assessment of the impact of this matter on the natural ecology, and will take practical actions to protect the ecological environment of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Specific work measures include but are not limited to accepting in-depth inspections by independent organizations invited by the government. , if there is an environmental impact, we are willing to do our best to take remedial and restoration measures, and will take practical actions to support the ecology and cultural tourism of Gyantse County and protect the ecological environment of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. In the future, we will be more cautious and strictly assess the impact of artistic activities on the environment."
Later, Archaeopteryx also issued an apology for the matter: We sincerely thank everyone for your concern and supervision of the ecological environment of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, and sincerely accept all criticisms and suggestions. We deeply recognize and respect everyone's protection. Here, I would like to express my most sincere apologies to everyone.
Arc'teryx said that the project originally hoped to raise awareness of local mountain culture through the artists' creations. Despite such original intentions, deviations or even deviations occurred during the presentation of the work. Everyone's heartfelt words remind us that the assessment of the boundaries of artistic expression needs to be more professional, and the reverence for nature needs to be more humble. "We know that just apologizing is far from enough. We have the responsibility to cooperate with the artist team to review the environmental and ecological impacts of the entire project under the supervision of government departments, and invite third-party professional environmental protection agencies to carry out rigorous and transparent assessment work."
Arc'teryx promises, "We will carry out timely and effective remedial actions based on the assessment results and feedback from all sectors of society. At the same time, we will accelerate the established Tibetan environmental protection plan and fully promote public welfare projects that contribute to the development of local culture."
It is worth noting that the "BUG" column observed that in Arc'teryx's latest apology statement, the previous "hand in hand" with Cai Guoqiang's team has been changed to "sponsored." Some netizens pointed out that the apology changed "hand in hand" into "sponsorship", which not only throws away responsibility, but also the awe that outdoor brands rely on for their survival.