Mood:
happyNow Playing: Daniel Barenboim-
Topic: Elisabeth's Entries
Here is a copy of a letter I am sending to The Body Shop with the pieces of my "Love Your Body" customer card:
April 16 2006
Mrs. Elisabeth Allin
31 Dorchester Court
Oriental Road
Woking, Surrey
GU22 7DN
To Whom It May Concern:
I have been a customer of the Body Shop for eleven years. I have always relied on the Body Shop as a trustworthy alternative to other cosmetic companies for many reasons. I was first attracted to The Body Shop because of its position on animal testing and recycling/refilling of the plastic bottles. In addition the products seemed more natural and reliable than other leading brands.
Through the years I’ve heard rumours that the Body Shop, while not testing its products on animals directly, doesn’t actually exclude ingredients that have been tested on animals. Yet, due to the quality of the products as well as the fair-deal campaign, I believed I was purchasing a more ethical product.
I also enjoyed using your products. Please check my “Love Your Body” customer number 600403622. I happily used up the 8 purchases on my first card and enjoyed the resulting free gift. I have now used my second card twice. But as you can see from the enclosed contents, I will never be using it again.
What’s the straw that broke the camel’s back? The Body Shop selling out to L’Oreal.
I believe people like me are getting very tired of multinational corporations dominating the market, and blurring the lines between their own competing brands. I now find myself going further and further underground for my cosmetics, clothes, food and holidays as a result.
Just to give you an idea of what kind of customer you are losing, here is a current inventory of The Body Shop products in my bathroom that I will happily use up and never repurchase:
1. All in One Face Base 03 *
2. Almond Oil Conditioning Hand Wash
3. Aloe Vera Daily Moisturizing Lotion SPF 15 *
4. Brazil Nut Moisture Mask
5. Camomile Gentle Eyemake-up remover
6. Enhancer (silver) from the Colourings range
7. Hemp Body Butter
8. Lemongrass deodorizing foot polish
9. Lip Butter *
10. Lip Palette
11. Warming Mineral Mask
12. Lip Scuff
13. Corrective Prebase 04 White
14. Mascara VO2 *
15. Eye Definer 05
16. Blush
17. Eyeliner-Bright Blue (Liquid)
18. Corrective Prebase 02-Green
19. Eye shadow
20. Eyeliner smudger (tool)
21. Foundation Brush
22. Mini hair brush
23. Decorative bobby pins
24. Perfume Oil-vanilla *
25. Tea Tree Oil (10ml) *
26. Home Fragrance Oil (Tropical Crush)
27. Shea Body Butter *
28. Mango Body Butter *
29. Foot exfoliator pad
30. Body Brush
*Indicates a repeat/regular purchase
In addition I have purchased from time to time products from your For Men range, as well as your gift packages.
My suggestion and purpose of writing this letter is to suggest some changes you could make to win customers back:
1. Offer a fair-trade, organic range that is toxin free.
2. If you must stick with L’Oreal, then I suggest that you are seen to be putting pressure on their purchasing and manufacturing habits.
3. Offer a recycle/refill point at ALL your stores for your product containers.
4. Embark on high-profile fair-trade and environmental conservation campaigns.
5. Consider introducing a do-it-yourself range where customers are invited to purchase the raw-materials to make their own ethical cosmetics, and perhaps offer workshops in select branches.
Until something changes, I will actively campaign against The Body Shop.
Thank you for your time, I hope I haven’t wasted it.
Sincerely,
Elisabeth Allin
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I've also done a Toxic Inventory of all the cosmetics in the house, and it's not a very pretty picture. But perhaps more on that another time.
Happy Easter!