It appears the humble sports shoe is the latest to come under attack after Donald Trump’s victory on Tuesday.
Americans are reportedly setting their New Balance trainers on fire after the sportswear manufacturer’s vice president sent out a tweet that appeared to endorse Trump.
On Wednesday, The Wall Street Journal’s Sarah Germano tweeted the following quote from Matt LeBretton, New Balance’s vice president of public affairs:
And many owners of New Balance shoes were none to happy with LeBretton’s comments, subsequently posting photos of them burning or trashing their New Balance shoes.
“You’re over. Thanks for stating who’s side you’re on,” one person tweeted to the company.
“You just lost a lot of shoe sales,” another said.
However, New Balance quickly went into damage control, insisting the tweet was referencing Trump’s stance against the free trade agreement known as the Trans-Pacific Partnership and not an endorsement of the man or his politics.
New Balance released a statement via Twitter that read: