To wonder what happened to Body Shop?

[Handbaghag]

Where have they gone wrong? Why are their shops so dead on the high Street. They were buzzing in the 80s. Is it online shopping? Lush?

I used to buy the shaving cream there about twenty years ago. It was good quality and lasted a long time but still on the pricey side. I've been using the Morrison's (Nutmeg) shaving foam for years now and I can't fault it. Only a quid.

The body yoghurt is almost edible and it goes on so well.

L’Oréal years killed it I think but it’s coming back. I enjoy shopping there again and do so quite often.

I love their body butters and they are one of the few body lotions moisturising enough for me - BUT - they are so bloody expensive! I got myself a Superdrug dupe the other day to try and save some money

Ah. Fond memories of White Musk perfume, peppermint foot lotion and the smell of the Japanese face scrub with aduki beans.
I used to go to the one in Canterbury as a teen with almost no spare cash and i could still manage a little treat every so often.
But then they sold out to L'Oreal, and started to sell expensive over packaged gift sets :(

As a teen I wore the vanilla scent and walked about smelling of custard.

@TrollTheRespawnJeremy OMG yes!! I'd totally forgotten about those!!!

#BRINGBACKBODYSHOPSRETROHIPPYIMAGE!!!

I used to buy their eye make up remover and then micellar water came along and is much cheaper. They haven’t moved with times - should be more eco/refill as people want these products

I use the make up. Long live the All in One Face Base. Used it for more years than I care to count up! It's infuriating that they keep doing away with the best colours in their lipstick and blusher range though and changing all the numbers. Grrrrr.

Body Shop really could cash in on this recent Vegan Plant based trend that's going on right now. They don't seem to have bothered though 🤷🏼‍♀️

We have a fab local rep and often get 25-40% off. I love the tin of make up remover which is gentle and also good for face paint! I tried the new banana shampoo and conditioner but it’s not like the old stuff! Shower gels are nice but expensive.

I’d love to get the ice blue shampoo back, the bath pearls and refillable tubs. I don’t miss the jasmine scented oil though, made me smell of cats piss 😂😂😂

I wouldn't buy anything from there because I associate it with VERY annoying MLM people, whom I don't wish to support. It seems an odd route to go down for a company which started out the way Body Shop did

If any one wants a dupe for the banana shampoo pound land and savers do a banana vegan and clean shampoo and conditioner
Comes in a square bottle and is very good.
They also do a ginger one

Body shop banana hair mask is brilliant to and no more expensive than a supermarket one or other known products

@ChardonnaysPrettySister

Totally agree. I hate being pounced on when I'm browsing. If I need help, I'll ask. I just need a sales assistant floating around the shop floor and nothing else!

I work in retail, too, and I absolutely hate when the ones in Head Office go on and on at us to approach customers. Honestly, no one needs pounced on as soon as they step in the door, it drives me insane that they think this is "excellent customer service". The day they realise everyone hates it will be the best day of my life

At secondary school in the 90s every girl had their PE kit in a body shop cotton bag that had a slogan on. I think they cost £1.50 and lasted really well.

Those recommending going to to a rep - they are offering discounts because it is they only way they can make a sale (especially in areas near to a shop or an outlet shop). They are likely to be only just breaking even, or possibly making a loss on their 'business'. MLMs as a business model, even when backed by a traditional business, result in the majority of reps making no profit. The fact the the Body Shop are willing to run this business model makes me reluctant to shop there.

(I also have fond memories of making up gift baskets and buying those shaped bath pearl things - it was somewhere you could get gifts for friends with pocket money).

Hair salad conditioner. For some reason remembering that made me feel really sad

@lotusbell My daughter loves loves loves the Body Shop for it's ginger shampoo and conditioner because it doesn't itch her scalp like many do. But it is sooo expensive.

I remember being a teen in the early 90s and always being in there. They used to have some great tea tree products which helped my teenage spit breakouts a lot but I couldn't afford them now.

I hate Lush. It all irritates my skin, and DD's. It's too strong.

We default to Superdrug now. Their fruity range is amazing, and the tea tree stuff really helps DDs skin. Very reasonably priced too. I also like their "posher" body sprays.

I went to a body shop party 20 years ago - it’s not new. It’s nowhere near as bad as Poonique lol.

I do ignore all the consultants asking for sign ups that being said. It just doesn’t seem as pushy as some others? Maybe I just don’t see them as often!

I remember when it first opened in Brighton, we could take old containers there and get them re-filled with shampoo, conditioner etc. Other shops do and it's new and saves plastic, but at a time when that would go down really well, they've stopped doing it!

The bottles used to be very plain, with hand written labels, and the staff were friendly, not pushy like they are now.

It just feels over manufactured now - the banana shampoo I used to get (with banana seeds still visible) has now turned into just another banana shampoo. It doesn't smell quite the same either.

And while they haven't kept the things I used to like, they also haven't brought anything particularly new either. So I very rarely go in, and if I do I wander around unexcitedly and then leave.

I used to love their white musk.

The Body Shop rely on the fact they've been doing parties for decades and that they are a brand with shops to come across as not as bad as Younique/Arbonne/Forever Living etc but the reality for a lot of reps is not much different from those MLMs. This is the story from one Body Shop at Home rep in Australia: mlmtruth.org/2018/03/26/sues-dalliance-with-the-body-shop-at-home/

I loved it as a teen, especially the animal shaped soaps, and taking my bottles back to be refilled. I also loved getting unscented products flavoured at the perfume bar. If you got dewberry that way the smell was far stronger. I was awesome!

Now I have daughters aged 20 and 18 and we all love it. When the girls were younger they were more into designer brands, but thankfully prefer Body Shop now. Its more affordable, as I look for discounts.

Personally I only buy online as we don’t have a branch locally, but my eldest shops in store, so i’ll ask her about pushy salespeople.

I agree that Body Shop needs an overhaul. We’re trying to go more plastic free, so if they sold solid shampoo and conditioner bars i’d definitely buy them. I’d also like to refill my bottles again. Its an ideal time for them to go back to basics.

I love their body butter. Its the only thing mousturising for my legs and feet before bed. I use body yogurt in the morning and its brilliant.

I used to love their pineapple face wash and raspberry foam bath.

The fact that she died was sad, but she sold her company and her ethical stance to a cosmetics company that were as opposite in beliefs and practice as it was possible to be 18 months before that.
That was the sell-out that shocked people like me who’d been buying her stuff and refilling bottles since the late 70s. I never went back.

DH likes a few of their shaving products, but they keep changing his favorites so that I can't get them anymore. And others have caught up and offered more competition.