The holidays are one of the most anticipated times of the year for Bath & Body Works shoppers. Beginning in September, the home fragrance retailer turns into a part apple orchard, part pumpkin patch before transforming into a winter wonderland around Christmastime. From mix-and-match gift sets to stocking stuffers galore, Bath & Body Works becomes a one-stop shop for Santa’s little helpers—but that might not be the case this year after what shoppers called a “creepy” and “beyond odd” product controversy.
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Just when revenue sales were expected to peak, Bath & Body Works has found itself in hot water. The company has issued an apology for its “Snowed In” winter candle, which many argue closely resembles the attire worn by the Klu Klux Klan (KKK).
As the Snowed In candle's name alludes, the design was meant to resemble a homemade paper snowflake. However, its cone-shaped edges and hole-punched cutouts look eerily similar to a white-hooded figure with cutouts for eyes.
Bath & Body Works’ candle controversy has made a lot of noise on the internet, with shoppers quick to voice their unfiltered opinions about the "interesting design" on Reddit.
“Did no one look at these before sending them out?” questioned one user.
Another added, “Out of all the 'paper snowflake' designs to go with, they go with this one? i've made a lot of paper snowflakes as a kid and none of them ever had two eye holes in the point.”
“This is beyond odd,” wrote a third person. “Who even makes a snowflake like that!? I didn’t even realize it was supposed to be a snowflake at first.”
Elsewhere in the thread, one Reddit user called out Bath & Body Works’ design team for not catching the candle’s offensive artwork from the start. “It worries me that multiple people saw this and were like ‘yup! That’s what we’re going with!’”
“I cannot unsee this!” another quipped.
In response to the uproar, Bath & Body Works reiterated that the situation was “unintentional.”
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“At Bath & Body Works, we are committed to listening to our teams and customers, and committed to fixing any mistakes we make—even those that are unintentional like this one,” a company spokesperson said in a statement to People.
Created with notes of creamy buttermint, sweet musk, and cozy vanilla, the Snowed In candle has been scrubbed from the Bath & Body Works website. Additionally, the three-wick candle is no longer available for in-store purchase, either.
“We apologize to anyone we’ve offended,” said the company, also adding that “[we] are evaluating our process going forward.”
