M&S insists its bra fitting services are trans inclusive despite previous statements
M&S apologised after the ‘trans’ employee asked two customers if they needed help. (Getty)
M&S apologised after the 'trans' employee asked two customers if they needed help. (Getty)
Marks & Spencer has insisted its bra fitting services are inclusive to trans and non-binary customers following recent controversy over its inclusion policies.
A spokesperson for the British retailer told PinkNews that its bra fitting policy “has not changed” and remains inclusive to everyone, including trans and non-binary people.
“[M&S’s bra fitting service] is inclusive to customers, be that nursing mothers looking for the right nursing bra, to teenagers looking for their first bra to post-surgery, non-binary and transgender customers,” they said.
The statement appears to contradict claims reported by The Scottish Sun, which states that M&S bra fitting services are designed for “biological females” only.
The Scottish Sun reported a spokesperson saying: “Our bra-fitting service has been developed for our female customers, and claimed the spokesperson also confirmed they were referring only to “biological females.”
It comes after the 141-year-old retailer apologised to a mother and her daughter after they complained that an employee, who the mother insisted was transgender, asked them if they needed help.
The mother said the pair had gone into an M&S branch to arrange a bra fitting when the member of staff, who she claimed was a “biological male,” had approached the pair in the clothing section and asked if they needed any assistance in finding the bra fitting section.
Asked why she believed the employee was trans, the mother said it was “obviously the case” because they were “at least 6ft 2in” tall.
A customer service spokesperson initially said that M&S was “truly sorry” for the “distress” while assuring the mother that her daughter would “receive assistance from a female colleague” in the future.
The complainant said the response fell short of what she expected and insisted that M&S implement a policy preventing trans employees from speaking to young girls entirely, failing to justify the reason for such a policy.
‘Gender-critical’ activists vowed to boycott M&S over the controversy, seemingly forgetting that they had already demanded a boycott of the retailer several times already in the past.
Trans woman goes for M&S bra fitting and faced ‘no drama whatsoever’
Writing for PinkNews, activist and trans woman Sophie Molly recently went to an M&S branch for a bra fitting, which she said took place with “no drama whatsoever.”
In a column detailing her experience, Molly announced on social media that she had arranged a bra fitting earlier in the week and, while she faced “nasty and threatening comments” from anti-trans social media users, her appointment went through without a hitch.
“My chest and cup size was quickly measured using a tape measure,” she recalled.” All I had to do was lift my arms up – so easy! I was then brought a bunch of bras in different styles to try on. [The bra fitter] looked away each time I changed my bra. It was all very respectful.”
She was then asked a few questions about how each size felt and chose a few bras to buy, describing it as “just a quiet afternoon at M&S.”
“That was it! Done,” she said. “No drama whatsoever.
“People in the store were just getting on with their lives. Shoppers looking for clothes, staff members helping them. Not a single person stared at me. Nobody was alarmed or shocked by my presence.”
