Fashion retailer Zara has come under fire for denying entry to a woman in a headscarf.
The woman tried to enter one of the chain’s Paris stores only for a security guard to block her way.
Footage of the incident was uploaded to YouTube the day after last week’s Paris terrorist attacks.
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The woman asks if she may go inside, but the guard says: “If things change, they’ll change, but I don’t make the rules.”
The vision prompted a big reaction on social media, with users taking to Zara’s Facebook page to criticise the company, while the hashtag #BoycottZara began circulating on Twitter.
The store released a statement saying the guard in question had been disciplined.
“We can confirm that regrettably such an incident took place with one customer in one store in Paris over the weekend,” the statement said.
“Above all, we would like to sincerely apologise for what has happened. Our country head in France has personally contacted this customer to apologise for the incident and to express our utter disagreement with such actions, which are completely opposite to the principles of our company.
“Both the security staff and the store manager involved with this specific incident have been sanctioned.
“Zara is a diverse and multicultural company that has employees and customers of many different nationalities, orientations, cultures, languages and beliefs.
“We do not tolerate any form of discrimination.”
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