Japan’s cosmetics giant Pola has apologized for an “inappropriate” poster, filmed hanging on one of its stores. The offending sign warned Chinese nationals not to enter the shop.

The picture of the handwritten poster hanging on a door of a Pola cosmetics store emerged on Chinese social media and promptly went viral over the weekend. The poster, photographed at an unspecified location, reads “Entry by Chinese people prohibited.”

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The cosmetics giant, which boasts some 4,600 stores across Japan, promptly apologized for the “unpleasant feelings and inconvenience to many people.” The company said it identified the offending shop and removed the sign and even promised to suspend the operation of the store altogether since it “takes the situation gravely.”

“As soon as we confirm the facts, we will suspend operations at the store and implement strict punishment,” the company said in a statement in both Japanese and Chinese.