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Viral Pinay teen who got hate over her excitement for Charles & Keith bag gets to visit brand HQ
A Filipina teenager based in Singapore has gone viral for her classy response to haters who mocked her for calling Charles & Keith a luxury brand.
Zoe Gabriel, 17, made a TikTok video of her unboxing her "first luxury bag" and excitedly modeling it. She also thanked her dad for gifting it to her.
In the comments, however, some people made fun of her, saying that Charles & Keith is not a luxury brand.
"Who's gonna tell her?" one commenter said, adding the cry-laughing emoji.
@zohtaco thank you dad ????
? Glitch - Just audios
In response, Zoe made another TikTok video talking about her family's humble beginnings when she was growing up.
"My family did not have a lot. We couldn't buy new things as simple as bread from Bread Talk," she said. "Every time we passed by a store my parents would just say next time, but next time would never come."
Zoe then became more emotional as she pointed out how the concept of "luxury" can be relative.
"Your comment spoke volumes on how ignorant you seem because of your wealth. To you an $80 bag may not be a luxury but for me and my family it is a lot," she said.
"And I'm so grateful that my dad was able to get me one. He worked so hard for that money," she said. "I can't believe I got hate over a bag that I was so excited to have."
@zohtaco Replying to @cressy ? original sound - zoe ????
As of writing, her original video has nearly 10 million views on TikTok while her response to the commenter has over three million views.
The incident caught the attention of Charles & Keith, which then invited Zoe and her dad to visit its headquarters.
According to a report by The Straits Times, they also had lunch with the brand's founders.
"Our heart really went out to Zoe, but we were so impressed with (how gracefully) she handled the situation, displaying wisdom far beyond her years and values that resonated with us greatly," the company spokesperson told The Straits Times in an email.
Zoe said she was thankful for the opportunity and shared two photos from their visit on Instagram.
"It was so fun, everybody was so nice and accommodating. we had the chance to sit down with Keith and get to know their company a little better," she said.
"Thank you to everybody who has shown their support! Without you, we would never be here."
Charles & Keith is a Singaporean fashion brand founded in 1996. It has over 600 stores worldwide.
—MGP, GMA Integrated News
