Fashion brands such as Versace, Saint Laurent and Gucci have posted messages pledging solidarity with the Black Lives Matter

movement after a number of luxury boutiques suffered looting in recent days in top locations such as California’s Rodeo Drive and New York’s SoHo.

“It is imperative for these brands to be sensitive to cultural differences and respect each and every one,”

Luca Solca, an analyst at Sanford C. Bernstein, wrote in an email. “Failure to do so, even involuntarily and by accident, exposes brands to severe consequences.”

H&M has shuttered 95 of about 600 stores in the US due to the unrest. That brings the global tally of shop closures to more than 1 300.

The Covid-19 outbreak has already led to almost a third of H&M’s network shutting down.

The company also said it’s donating half a million dollars to organizations such as Color of Change and the American Civil Liberties Union.

Kering said Tuesday it’s making a donation to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and Campaign Zero, an organization that’s trying to reduce police violence in the US.

Some were quick to describe the industry’s latest social media postings as hypocritical, including UK model Munroe Bergdorf.

She was dropped by L’Oreal in 2017 after making comments against racism and white supremacy in the wake of the protest in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Bergdorf said brands are taking advantage of a public-relations opportunity.

“Where was my support when I spoke out?” she tweeted in an expletive-laden response to the French cosmetics maker.

L’Oreal couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.

H&M Chief Executive Officer Helena Helmersson said in a statement released Monday in response to the latest unrest.

“As a company, we are growing, but we can and must do better.”

Bloomberg