Marks and Spencer (M&S) has sent a stern warning to customers after a picture of one of its lingerie models was subject to major backlash. M&S was forced to remind its followers that it will not tolerate hateful comments, when a photograph of one model wearing the brand's bra and knickers saw an influx of body shaming comments.
The backlash started when Marks and Spencer shared a photograph of the gorgeous model posing in its Boutique Linea white-mix plunge bra and matching thong on Instagram. In other pictures, the model could be seen wearing other pieces from M&S' lingerie collection.
But Marks and Spencer was forced to step in after it noticed several people complaining that the model was 'too slim'. Others moaned that they wanted to see a bigger model who represented more 'realistic' beauty standards.
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But many of the people complaining failed to remember that slim women need representation too. Marks and Spencer prides itself on showing a diverse range of models - something which can be seen both on its website and social media channels.
The post caused a row amongst shoppers. While some slammed the choice of model, others stood up for M&S' choice to use somebody with a slimmer figure.
A Marks and Spencer fan called Kate wrote: "Judging by the immediate, hyperbolic comments underneath any clothing ad showing a woman smaller than a size 14, it will come as news that slim women do exist, and do have spending power which companies wish to tap into. Not every model is going to look like you, nor is every model going to look like me, or like my friend, or your cousin.
"Personally, I manage perfectly well to imagine what a bra and knickers will look like on me, even if it isn't being modelled on my body type. None of this stuff should be difficult."
Somebody else called Cull asked: "What happened to a variety of shapes and sizes? I was so impressed with your previous advertising campaigns. Yes this model is very slim but it would be useful to see the lingerie on different size models as well. Beautiful lingerie should be shown on everyone - slim is not the only gorgeous shape woman come in. X"
Aggie said: "Very nice but I wish there was a bigger range of sizes as there is not many nice bras cap F and above in M&S." Aimee defended the chain, writing: "They are fab at showing a variety of body shapes unfortunately people seem to have an issue when the models are slim and praise larger models."
Writing in the comments section, M&S said: "We’d like to kindly remind our followers that we use our platforms positively. We’re proud to represent and celebrate people of all sizes and we won’t tolerate any unkind comments. All comments are monitored and anything unacceptable will be deleted. Let’s continue to uplift one another. Love, M&S x."
A spokesperson for M&S said: "We use a variety of models in our advertising campaigns and know our customers like to see a range of different people. We regularly create multiple campaigns that celebrate women, men, and children of all shapes, ages, and ethnicities. We're always interested to hear what our customers think about our campaigns and we'll make sure your feedback is heard."
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