Moana Bikini: Karina Irby's brand comes under fire for using male model Jake Young to promote women's swimwear after that Seafolly saga: 'Men seem to want to take over everything'

An Australian bikini brand has come under fire after sharing a video of a male model posing in a women's swimsuit, almost a year after Seafolly suffered a similar fate for its partnership with non-binary influencer Deni Todorovič.

Moana Bikini, a swimsuit brand from body positive influencer Karina Irby, shared an Instagram video Saturday of model Jake Young strutting around in a $130 white one-piece swimsuit.

“Obsessed with this look,” the account captioned the post, adding that “Moana babe” Jake modeled a size smaller.

Dozens of disgruntled customers have since responded to the video, with many accusing Moana Bikini of “allowing men to invade women's spaces.”

'Is that a human? I thought you were about empowering women? It seems that men try to take over everything that women hold sacred. Our safe spaces, our identity and now our fashion,” one user wrote.

“Sorry, but Moana, this is not how you empower women. This puts men back in power over us and tells them to do better,” someone else added.

'Horrible marketing. Why is everyone trying so hard to 'wake up'? The model is beautiful but this isn't it,” another added.

Many commenters simply said they had 'unfollowed' the page and would no longer purchase Moana products.

Dozens of disgruntled customers have since responded to the video, with many accusing Moana Bikini of 'allowing men to invade women's spaces'

Moana Bikini has doubled down on her decision to share the video.

“If Jake in our bikini upsets you this much, we think this is your problem,” the brand wrote in a response to a disgruntled follower.

Jake has also defended himself, insisting his position “empowers a minority.”

However, instead of apologizing, the Moana page has doubled down on its decision to share the video. In the photo: Karina Irby, founder of Moana Bikini and body positive influencer

Jake has also defended himself, insisting his position 'empowers a minority'

'There are many different types of women. Women with a different anatomy than what you consider 'normal,'” the model wrote in a response.

'I am not a woman, and I have never claimed to be. This post simply empowers a minority and I am forever grateful for that. Your hatred is a reflection of your own insecurities, not mine.”

Several followers also rushed to defend the video and praise Moana for its “commitment to inclusivity,” with one commenting: “Obsessed! Thank you for always being inclusive in your sizes and styles! Number one reason I will always support your brand.”

'The perfect amount of masculine beauty and feminine beauty combined!' another enthused, as someone else added: 'Swimsuits are for anyone who wants to wear them. Why is someone in a bathing suit bothering you so much?'

When contacted for comment, Moana Bikini stood by the video.

“We find it completely absurd that people would single out this individual post from our twelve years of activity to make a wild statement about our failure to empower women,” a spokesperson said.

“Moana Bikini is – and always has been – one of the most inclusive and powerful brands around. This is true not only in terms of our size and style range for women, but – most importantly – in our love and acceptance of all races, ethnicities, body shapes and sizes, genders and sexual orientations. This has not changed and will never change.”

They continued: 'Many commentators use the excuse that they think it is 'offensive to women', when in reality it is very clear that they are homophobic and have a problem with someone proudly and confidently expressing their sexuality.'

'We are happy to receive and hear people's feedback, both negative and positive. But we are not here to please everyone. That is an impossible task. If people don't like this individual post from a proud, gay man wearing a piece of clothing he feels confident in, they can just keep scrolling or unfollow, right?”

“Imagine living a life where you choose to be offended by something and stick around, commenting and engaging, only to make yourself angrier. Frankly, this sounds like a them problem and not a us problem.”

The saga is strikingly similar to the row that arose in March last year when swimwear brand Seafolly collaborated with non-binary influencer Deni Todorovič.

Deni, who uses their pronouns and identifies as non-binary, caused controversy after taking to Instagram with a photo of themselves posing in lime green bikini bottoms and a matching cover-up near Bondi Beach.

“This is the first time iconic Australian swimming giants @seafollyaustralia have collaborated with a trans ambassador/brand partner,” Deni innocently wrote beneath the image.

They later edited their caption to read: “Today we made history. This is the first time iconic Australian swimming giants @seafollyaustralia have collaborated with a transgender person.”

The photo sparked widespread backlash, including calls to boycott the brand, which has used models such as Miranda Kerr and Gigi Hadid in its glamorous campaigns in the past.

Writer Alexandra Marshall was among those who spoke out against the campaign, saying the swimwear brand was “ridiculing women.”

'Hi @seafolly. Never again. I have been buying swimwear from you for years. Never again,” she wrote on Twitter.

Seafolly later denied that Todorovič was an ambassador for the brand, saying they were a “special guest” at the brand's World Pride event in Sydney.

The story is very similar to the row that arose in March last year when swimwear brand Seafolly collaborated with non-binary influencer Deni Todorovič (photo)