I made a mistake of going into Lush and trying to buy...

[Underthestairsbears]

Something for a guy...!!!

I just popped into my local Lush, they used to have a 'bloke section' so I kept wandering around looking for it...
Of course one of the helpful assistants came over and asked if she could help.
I said "oh I can't find your bloke section "

Poor young woman looked rather pale and launched into her "oh we don't have a men's section. It's all inclusive "
Lovely, so I asked where I might find something that might appeal to a teenage boy.

The only thing she could point me towards was a "beard cream" and I explained he didn't have a beard!

She then dragged another more senior young lady over... who then started on and on about being inclusive and how everything in LUSH us for everyone....it as I tried to escape....!

I tried to see if they had gift sets that might appeal to him....

Ok, it didn't need to be masculine per se but honestly it's like they've eradicated men from LUSH...

I'm not sure if that's the look they were going for...and also isn't it usually the other way round 🙄

Couldn't make head nor tail of it but I didn't escape easily.... literally had to hot foot it out of there quickly to avoid another encounter!

Does anyone else find it's getting harder to shop efficiently for what you want because things have to be so woke...

I'm not a huge fan of Lush, but i do like some of their products (the solid skin lotion and their solid hair conditioner are lovely).

If LUSH are so desperate to be inclusive, maybe they should try being inclusive of people who want to browse in peace and don't want to be followed around the store, grabbed and have things rubbed on them without so much as a by-your-leave. hmm

As soon as anyone approaches me in the shop i say, no thank you and they leave me alone. I've shopped in several different cities, in several different countries and it has not been an issue. I don't have any issues around telling people "no" though. I know other people aren't assertive.

The kisses thing: that was appalling and i hope they learned from it. Ditto the spy cops. I find them overpriced, but some of their products are very very good.

@PurgatoryOfPotholes

I went off Lush after this.

extract

I was part of Lush’s ‘Cruelty Free Kisses’ campaign this Saturday and I want to write up what I saw and experienced on that day, because I want the public to understand just how dangerous and unethical the entire day was.

The concept is simple. Promote the use of cosmetics not tested on animals in a ‘fun’ and ‘quirky’ way whilst simultaneously pushing sales on all lip related products (there’s a competition for the winning store to have an all expenses paid trip to Poole to make lip products as a reward for whoever sells the most). So far, so good. The problem occurs when staff members are required to wear t-shirts that serve not only to promote the day, but also to act as evidence for the Guinness World Record attempt. What this meant was that the customers would be kissing our bodies for the entirety of the day. I could have opted out, but I would have been the only one to refuse and would have stuck out like a sore thumb on top of not participating in the store’s effort to win. Interestingly, the stores were only sent medium and large size t-shirts, so larger members of staff (they do exist, Lush) were spared the ordeal.

It was a busy Saturday and we had many people willing to help out. The majority were lovely. Unfortunately, as time went on, the mood changed. Large groups of drunken men were passing through the city centre on their way to the local bars and were drawn in by our display. From then on, they donned lipstick and kissed the most inappropriate places they could find – our breasts, our buttocks and our crotches (the t-shirts were quite long). I was asked for my mobile phone number, what time I finished work, if I had a boyfriend, if I was sexually excited by all of this, if I would give one of them a blow job… I plastered my fake grin on to my face, as I was one step away from either telling them all to fuck off, or bursting into tears and going home. I was very conscious of the fact that I was representing Lush, and I felt like I couldn’t defend myself to the same extent that I would if I weren’t in store. There were some points were I was definitely fearful, especially when some groups wouldn’t leave the store and stood waiting outside. I tried to swallow down my feelings of disgust as men pawed at me, forcefully grabbing parts of me to kiss and touch as if they’d been given carte blanche by Lush.

I felt helpless and exploited, and that’s because I was. Lush know that their staff are mostly young women, and they knew exactly how this type of campaign would play out amongst the general public. I’ve lost count of how many campaigns they’ve had that’ve sexualised and dehumanised women, and all of my complaints have fallen on deaf ears. I want everyone to know exactly what happened at Lush stores across the globe on Saturday. Animal testing isn’t acceptable, but the sexual exploitation of their workforce is actively encouraged.

Continues: mitheringsfrommorningside.wordpress.com/2013/07/08/the-smell-of-bullshit-part-22-sexual-harassment-is-part-of-the-job/

Glad to hear others think that they're inclusive though.

Fucking hell.

I've never liked the overpowering stench of the Lush shops, but I almost wish I'd been a customer so I could tell them to fuck off for doing this to young girls and women.

Like previous posters, just walking near a Lush shop makes me feel sick and dizzy and ill from the stink of their products.

Did this get moved from a different board onto FWR? Bizarre...

I have stopped shopping there too though, used to be a huge fan but between all the stories about how they treated women staff/models etc and the promotion of anti-women policies and attacks on JKR, I couldn't support the misogyny any more.

Soooo according to most posts in this section of mumsnet, gender and sex are the same, there are no differences except biology, its all just a myth driven by Stonewall etc . And now somebody complains that there are no male fragrances in LUSH? It would be funny if it wouldn’t be so tragic

I've been boycotting them for years now. The shops stink, they force their female employees into situations where they get sexually harassed, they think a "keep prisons single-sex" sticker is hate.
No thank you.

Soooo according to most posts in this section of mumsnet, gender and sex are the same
Incorrect. Gender roles aren't innate.
The OP sounds like it came from S&B rather than FWR though.

@Itsanewdah

Soooo according to most posts in this section of mumsnet, gender and sex are the same, there are no differences except biology, its all just a myth driven by Stonewall etc . And now somebody complains that there are no male fragrances in LUSH? It would be funny if it wouldn’t be so tragic

Only I didn't complain there were no male fragrances in LUSH...?

@Itsanewdah

Soooo according to most posts in this section of mumsnet, gender and sex are the same, there are no differences except biology, its all just a myth driven by Stonewall etc . And now somebody complains that there are no male fragrances in LUSH? It would be funny if it wouldn’t be so tragic

No, we don't think gender and sex are the same. That's the point. That's why we want single sex spaces, not single "gender" spaces.

Stopped reading there because if you made that giant a strawman in your first sentence, the rest is a waste of time reading.

They used to have some soap with a spanner on it.

You should have gone to The Body Shop instead. Not only do they have a men's section but the staff after an initial 'hello can I help you & then a if you need me I will be over here' they leave you alone.
Plus I've also seen them point out products that aren't in the men's section that would be appealing to the male sex such as the Hemp range, soaps, shower gels, fragrances etc.
My DF loves their normal White Musk range (the one that's usually worn by women) as he says it reminds him of YSL Kouros but is a darn site cheaper.
Also in my local BS one of the sales assistants was helping a bloke choose the best concealer for him.
They're a darn sight more inclusive & nicer than Lush but do need to apologise to JK Rowling or explain that they didn't mean to have a go at her.

I will never forgive them for making that post to JKR while she was getting death and rape threats.

It's a shame about BS but I won't shop there until they stop throwing women under the bus and apologize

They've always been shit at catering for men. DH likes a bath bomb but they don't make a single one without some sort of glitter or iridescence, funnily enough DH isn't keen on sparkling.

They have always been too woke for their own good.

This is quite the reach.

Bloody Lush. I was once given by the DC a bathbomb that contain raisins. It was a Christmas pudding monstrosity. I never want to experience the the surprise of raisins lurking and at the bottom of a cloudy bath ever again. It was most uncomfortable.

Plus the overpowering smell of the shop and hardcore sales tactics and the politics now

honestly it's like they've eradicated men from LUSH...

I won’t spend any money with them until they put the same effort into eradicating men from women’s spaces.

Soooo according to most posts in this section of mumsnet, gender and sex are the same

Ummm nope. Sex is a scientific reality. Gender is a bunch of outdated stereotypes.

@HowardNoir

I want to support them more because of their inclusivity and anti-jkr stuff but the last time I went the assistant recommended a rose scented face mask for my husband, despite me saying "he'll use anything but a face mask as it gets in his beard.". The stores are always as accessible as a turnip with all the shite on the floor and mini stands all over the place. Damn it!

Inclusive of whom? Men, who want to see almost naked women or kiss their body in intimate places? Lovely.

I won’t shop there or the Body Shop. Awful.

Haha you “anti-woke” idiots are disappearing up your own arses.

Haha you “anti-woke” idiots are disappearing up your own arses.

If you say so...

@CSJobseeker

Tbf, I'm not sure why you needed a 'bloke' section? I mean, choose a scent you know he likes, and get something in that scent.

Exactly!!!!!

Never been in or bought from them since the JKR stuff and then reading about how they had treated some of their staff. They can get stuffed.

@WomaninBoots

Last time I was in a Lush I ended up getting getting my arm washed and I wasnt sure how I had got there... so I haven't been back since.

This is so funny😂😂

I was once given by the DC a bathbomb that contain raisins. It was a Christmas pudding monstrosity. I never want to experience the the surprise of raisins lurking and at the bottom of a cloudy bath ever again. It was most uncomfortable.

🤣 how bizarre! I sometimes put oats in my bath as I have eczema and allergies - the next step for Lush is clearly to market a bowl of porridge complete with flavourings, as bubble bath

@TuftyMarmoset

I was once given by the DC a bathbomb that contain raisins. It was a Christmas pudding monstrosity. I never want to experience the the surprise of raisins lurking and at the bottom of a cloudy bath ever again. It was most uncomfortable.

🤣 how bizarre! I sometimes put oats in my bath as I have eczema and allergies - the next step for Lush is clearly to market a bowl of porridge complete with flavourings, as bubble bath

They used to do a bath melt called Ceridwen's Cauldron which had oats in it, in a little muslin bag to stop them clogging up your drain.