Is anyone else just finished with The Body Shop?

[QuimReaper]

I "rediscovered" TBS about 5 years ago (having had them firmly pegged in my head as '90s purveyors of elephant-shaped soaps and "bath pearls") and found I really liked their stuff, have used them pretty consistently since then. I order several times a year, whenever they have a good offer on (which recently is all the time - as another poster put it earlier this year, soon they'll be paying us to use their products. Not a good omen) and buy people presents from there.

However, in the last year or so they have:

• Changed the eyebrow pencil I liked from a good stiff one to a useless smudgy crayon which literally looks like you've finger-painted your brows on with clay, and half the pencil is this gold "highlighter" thing which is a waste as it gets used at about 10% the rate of the eyebrow bit
• Discontinued my favourite Honey & Oat face mask, which they always touted as an OMG-bestseller and were frequently sold out of, until they abruptly discontinued it to usher in an inferior and much more expensive product
• Discontinued the Rainforest Volume shampoo & conditioner which I used to buy.

But the most recent and weirdest thing they've done is to the plain flannel headbands. I accidentally left mine in a hotel bathroom so nipped into my nearest Body Shop to buy a replacement, and found that they've changed it so that it's a bizarre, tiny little thing with no stretch, so you more or less break your nose and garrotte yourself trying to get it over your head That's such a basic product to get wrong, it suggests to me that they literally don't care any more. I was so cross about the headband that I actually marched it back into the store the next day for my £4 back on a matter of principle, and the shop staff passed it around amongst themselves in disbelief at the change. One of them was so convinced it must be a mistake that she took another one from the shelf out of its packet, but of course it was the same.

It's not even that I'm boycotting them (although I am) so much as that I've literally run out of products to buy from them. Every single thing I was loyal to has been changed or discontinued, the only thing left in their whole offering which appeals to me is shower gel, which I can get absolutely anywhere.

Is it just me?

I stopped using body shop products after my friend had a bad experience with Body Shop at Home (multilevel marketing). She did parties at people's houses where you invite your friends and they buy stuff so you get ano free allowance of products. I had one party but it was weird inviting people to come and spend their money in my house so I could get free stuff. She ended up spending all her free time doing paperwork, had to buy loads of products herself to meet her monthly targets and after a year of working constantly on her 'business' she only made £1000 profit! Hourly rate would be pennies.
I still buy hemp hand cream on eBay though. Mostly from ex Body Hop consultants trying to flog their old stock, I imagine.

Boycotted them since c.2001 when they discontinued not one but four favourite make-up items. I assume that anything nice will be either changed beyond redemption or just got rid off so don't even bother looking any more.

I used to love their products but I'm sorry I just hate being pounced on as soon as I enter s store. Puts me off.

I love the camomile cleansing butter.

When I as at school, they were the only place that sold canvas shopping bags.

All the cool kids (and some of us less cool kids) had our PE kit in Body Shop bags.

They used to do a brilliant after sun shower gel and a deep moisturising cream called elbow grease - both discontinued I tend to buy things for gifts now but only at Christmas time.

Trills
All the cool kids (and some of us less cool kids) had our PE kit in Body Shop bags.
Wow! I'd totally forgotten! But yes, now I remember those days. I had one. Then I switched to a maroon Benetton duffel bag.

I've still got my Benetton duffle bag, I was using it at the swimming pool and then thought I'd better stop as it was aging me

I like the tea tree skincare stuff. And the cocoa butter shower cream reminds me of when I had my son because my mum bought me some as a treat. I never buy it myself though, I'm given it as a gift a lot and it lasts ages.

White musk and Dewberry! The 1980s in a bottle

I used to love their honey lip balm too. Burt's Bees is similar, but not as nice.

I use their tea tree face wash (makes my dodgy skin a bit less dodgy), but rarely buy anything else from them these days.

Their best strategy would be to go totally retro - bring back the likes of kiwi and rum&raisin lip balms, and dewberry perfume spray.

I totall agree, Cao!

I used to like their baby shampoo but they stopped the range and didn't replace it with anything. I seem to remember green shampoo (seaweed and mint?) too.

I miss the ananya perfume. Didn't really go back after that.

Why do these stores change their products so frequently? Chanel no. 5 and elizabeth Ardens 8 hour cream are still going strong. Make a good product and we will buy them for generations.

CaoNiMartacus and the bath pearls!

I like the following:
Ginger shampoo
Bouncy sleep mask
Drops of youth liquid peel and various bits from the range.

I like the staff in our store . I only buy in a sale though

I miss passion fruit cleansing gel !! Agree with the idea of them bringing all the retro products back
However I'm still a fan and just this month have discovered the vit e face wash has a similar smell to passion fruit and I bought a mascara that is brilliant
It does always seem really quiet in store though

I miss the perfume stand - it was so nice smelling all the different scents and then choosing dewberry anyway

I prefer Lush these days, although their very public stance on badger culling (at least in this shire) has put me off them too

Who on earth would pay full price? There are always codes and offers for the body shop

Benetton duffel bag... It was another life!
Loved The Body Shop in my teens & twenties (90s / 00s). Haven't shopped their for years, now, unless for gifts.
But, I recently saw a nice gift box on offer in their Debenhams concession & it had a much cheaper feel than previous products. I didn't fancy it. L'Occitane is much nicer!
Browsing, I don't like the pushy staff. And I don't shop online, so I like mooching around a nice store (L'Occitane). Neal's Yard is nice too. Although, recently had a look at M&S cosmetic section. The prices!

There, obvs.

I haven't been in there since I was about 15 no plans to return as there is a space NK across the way 💸

I rediscovered TBS a year or so again thanks to its amazing SPF which I love. I also adore the honey and almond range, the chamomile cleansing balm and toner too.
However I refuse to pay the hiked-up € prices here in stores here in Ireland and they refuse to take part in any of the promotions (they are franchised).
So the SPF would cost me €27 here (£24.40) compared to £9.60 during the 40% off promotions. Yeah....no.

To add insult to injury I can no longer order online from the UK and have stuff sent to my forwarding service because the bstrds won't accept paypal or credit cards registered outside of the UK.
So yeah, they are dead to me :) :)

Having loads of stores isn't a new thing for them, though. Way back in the late 80s, there were at least 3 stores in and around Newcastle Eldon Square and at least another couple not far away in the Metrocentre. They're down to one in each location, now. I think Lush knocked them on the head a bit.

I find BS staff quite stressful so I rarely go in as you get pounced on the second you go in.

I do fancy trying their new Amazonian balm though for dry skin / scars etc. Don't suppose anyone has tried it?