Beautiful Virgin Islands

Monday, Sep 01, 2025

‘Does the bra double as a bulletproof vest?’ M&S ridiculed for launch of ‘inclusive’ lingerie range inspired by George Floyd

‘Does the bra double as a bulletproof vest?’ M&S ridiculed for launch of ‘inclusive’ lingerie range inspired by George Floyd

Marks & Spencer, the UK’s biggest underwear retailer, has been mocked after claiming its latest “inclusive” range of lingerie was inspired by the death of the black man George Floyd at the hands of a US police officer.

In a press statement on Monday, the retailer proudly unveiled its new “nothing neutral about it” lingerie range, claiming to offer its customers “more colours, more sizes and more choice."

It boasted that it had always led the way on “inclusivity”, offering sizes from six to 24 and employing “representative models”, but said it was time to do more.

This new collection, the statement said, was partially inspired by the “global conversation on racial inequality, following the horrific death of George Floyd”, who died at the hands of a police officer in Minneapolis last year.

The “truly inclusive range” features five new ‘nude’ shades, named Opaline, Rich Amber, Rich Quartz, Rose Quartz & Topaz, in order to appeal to those with a range of darker skin tones.

Rather than garnering praise, the decision to launch a new range inspired by Floyd, who had many run-ins with the law and was a drug addict, sparked outrage online among many, while others were quick to make light of the announcement.

“Surely being inspired by its customers’ needs would have been a significantly better PR approach?” one person wrote, questioning why the firm had found it necessary to bring Floyd into its marketing strategy.

One person blasted the retailer for its “corporate divisiveness”, telling the high-street giant that there was nothing positive or “edgy” about supporting what they called “violence reborn as victimhood”.

Some suggested it was time for M&S to sack its marketing team, while others complained it had taken too long for the store to come out with the darker shades of underwear.


A few people even expressed their intention to stop shopping at the retailer, one of Britain’s oldest and most loved brands, blasting the PR faux pas. “I think it’s goodbye M&S now.”

Most Brits on social media were happy to simply joke about M&S’s move, however, wondering what the company would do next, with one adding an image of bank robbers with stockings covering their faces.


“Is M&S going to make bulletproof maternity wear “inspired by George Floyd” too?” one person said, referencing the fact that Floyd once allegedly held a gun to a woman’s abdomen during an armed robbery.

Another joked that M&S could produce a new range of men’s socks inspired by Winston Silcott, a black man who was wrongly convicted in 1987 of the murder of a policeman.

While M&S is not the first company to claim inspiration from the aftermath of Floyd’s murder, which prompted discourse on race as well as sometimes violent protests in the name of Black Lives Matter (BLM), the firm’s core customers are arguably not commonly associated with the BLM movement. Instead, the brand is better known as a safe bet for good quality and good service.

Numerous big brands released statements in the wake of Floyd'd death and some took further action, like Rihanna’s Fenty range, which stopped selling items in its shop on Blackout Tuesday.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Chinese and Indian Leaders Pursue Amity Amid Global Shifts
European Union Plans for Ukraine Deployment
ECB Warns Against Inflation Complacency
Concerns Over North Cyprus Casino Development
Shipping Companies Look Beyond Chinese Finance
Rural Exodus Fueling European Wildfires
China Hosts Major Security Meeting
Chinese Police Successfully Recover Family's Savings from Livestream Purchases
Germany Marks a Decade Since Migrant Wave with Divisions, Success Stories, and Political Shifts
Liverpool Defeat Arsenal 1–0 with Szoboszlai Free-Kick to Stay Top of Premier League
Prince Harry and King Charles to Meet in First Reunion After 20 Months
Chinese Stock Market Rally Fueled by Domestic Investors
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
Ukrainian Nationalist Politician Andriy Parubiy Assassinated in Lviv
Corporate America Cuts Middle Management as Bosses Take On Triple the Workload
Parents Sue OpenAI After Teen’s Death, Alleging ChatGPT Encouraged Suicide
Amazon Faces Lawsuit Over 'Buy' Label on Digital Streaming Content
Federal Reserve Independence Questioned Amid Trump’s Push to Reshape Central Bank
British Politics Faces Tumultuous Autumn After Summer of Rebellions and Rising Farage Momentum
US Appeals Court Rules Against Most Trump-Era Tariffs
UK Sought Broad Access to Apple Users’ Data, Court Filing Reveals
UK Bank Shares Dive Over Potential Tax on Sector
Germany’s Auto Industry Sheds 51,500 Jobs in First Half of 2025 Amid Deepening Crisis
Bruce Willis Relocated Due to Advanced Dementia
French and Korean Nuclear Majors Clash As EU Launches Foreign Subsidy Probe
EU Stands Firm on Digital Rules as Trump Warns of Retaliation
Getting Ready for the 3rd Time in Its History, Germany Approves Voluntary Military Service for Teenagers
Argentine President Javier Milei Evacuated After Stones Thrown During Campaign Event
Denmark Confronts U.S. Diplomat Over Covert Trump-Linked Influence in Greenland
Starmer Should Back Away from ECHR, Says Jack Straw
Trump Demands RICO Charges Against George Soros and Son for Funding Violent Protests
Taylor Swift Announces Engagement to NFL Star Travis Kelce
France May Need IMF Bailout, Warns Finance Minister
Chinese AI Chipmaker Cambricon Posts Record Profit as Beijing Pushes Pivot from Nvidia
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
Ukraine Finally Allows Young Men Aged Eighteen to Twenty-Two to Leave the Country
The Porn Remains, Privacy Disappears: How Britain Broke the Internet in Ten Days
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Welcome to The Definition of Insanity: Germany Edition
Just a reminder, this is Michael Jackson's daughter, Paris.
Spotify’s Strange Move: The Feature Nobody Asked For – Returns
Manhunt in Australia: Armed Anti-Government Suspect Kills Police Officers Sent to Arrest Him
China Launches World’s Most Powerful Neutrino Detector
How Beijing-Linked Networks Shape Elections in New York City
Ukrainian Refugee Iryna Zarutska Fled War To US, Stabbed To Death
Elon Musk Sues Apple and OpenAI Over Alleged App Store Monopoly
2 Australian Police Shot Dead In Encounter In Rural Victoria State
Vietnam Evacuates Hundreds of Thousands as Typhoon Kajiki Strikes; China’s Sanya Shuts Down
UK Government Delays Decision on China’s Proposed London Embassy Amid Concerns Over Redacted Plans
A 150-Year Tradition to Be Abolished? Uproar Over the Popular Central Park Attraction
×