Is Bath & Body Works Cruelty-Free?
Recently I posted that Bath & Body Works had changed their animal testing stance and was no longer a cruelty-free company. The brand had been able to answer my detailed questions about their animal testing stance for several years and, on the most recent outreach, they stated that they did test on animals when required by law.
Earlier this week I had a call with the Vice President of External Communications for Limited Brands about the Bath & Body Works stance on animal testing. It helped to clarify the situation and give me a bit more background into things. Now, before you start reading this hoping that it means the brand is still cruelty-free – they are still stating that they test as required by law.
Update on January 24, 2016 – While some Bath & Body Works customers are being told that the brand is now cruelty-free, they still maintain that they do test on animals when required by law. From the FAQ on their website – “
“What is your policy regarding animal testing?
Bath & Body Works policy prohibits the testing of our branded products, formulations and ingredients on animals except in rare cases when required by government regulations. Through our involvement in the Institute for In Vitro Sciences, we are supporting research to develop additional non-animal alternative methods which we believe will ultimately result in the elimination of animal testing worldwide.”
A lot of confusion was caused after the post here on Logical Harmony when the Bath & Body Works customer service team began telling people that they had not changed their stance on animal testing. As you can see in the response that Phyrra received, the brand was replying to some stating, “Thank you for reaching out to us. Despite the recent report on Logical Harmony, we have not changed our policy.”
Many consumers believed that this was Bath & Body Works stating that they did not change to a required by law animal testing stance. Many people took this to mean that the brand was still cruelty-free.
What I learned after talked to a representative of the company is that Bath & Body Works was supposed to have switched to a required by law animal testing stance some time ago. When they state that they have not changed their policy, what they meant was that required by law testing was not a new addition to the policy. They stated that they were not aware that the FAQ page did not include this statement, nor were they aware that customer service reps were not telling consumers this.
The Bath & Body Works representative also stated that while they currently do not sell in markets that require animal testing by law, if a market they are in now, or in the future, required animal testing they would allow this testing to occur. Bath & Body Works’ sister company, Victoria’s Secret, will be expanding into China in 2015. The rep told me that there is no official announcement at this time to move Bath & Body Works into China, but that this may or may not change in the future.
Bath & Body Works themselves does not test their ingredients, products, or finished products on animals. They are unsure if their ingredient suppliers take part in any testing that may be required by law. If they were selling, now or in the future, in a market that required animal testing they would allow animal testing on Bath & Body Works products. They also stated that they cannot say that they will never test on animals in any way because of this.
Due to all of this, Logical Harmony will be leaving Bath & Body Works on the list of Brands to Avoid.
I appreciate that they reached out to me and wanted to talk about this. Bath & Body Works was very professional in this conversation and I appreciate that they answered my questions to best of their ability. No matter what a brands animal testing stance is, I always appreciate when they want to communicate.
That being said, I personally find it surprising that their internal communication about their animal testing policy was so poor. I was told, as far back as three years ago and as recently as a couple of months ago, that Bath & Body Works ingredients, products during production, and finished products were not tested on animals. Nor did they test when required by law. A required by law statement was not included in any communication that I received. Their FAQ page does not say that they will test when required by law and I am surprised that if this has been the companies policy for some time, that this was not updated to reflect those changes. I have dealt with a few companies who did have internal miscommunication about their stance on animal testing, but it never appeared to be a long-term issue as it appears to be with Bath & Body Works.
I am also surprised by the brands lack of response on social media. My personal Facebook account is still blocked from the brands page, but I can view it when I am signed out. So many people have posted on their Facebook wall about this issue, and so many people have tweeted at the brand. I see on Facebook that they are replying to some people saying they have been sent a message about things (likely similar to the one Phyrra received), but there is no public response.
I hope that Bath & Body Works will soon issue a clear and direct public statement about this matter. If their animal testing stance is that they do or will test when required by law, the company should be transparent about that. Especially if, as I was told, this is not a new policy for Bath & Body Works. If this was not being effectively communicated to consumers earlier on, than instead of saying that their stance has not changed, Bath & Body Works should just apologize for the internal miscommunication that caused their correct required by law testing stance to not be going to consumers.
Throughout this, it’s been truly amazing to see how many people care about the welfare of animals and realize that animal testing is completely unnecessary. Thank you to everyone who has brought this up in conversation, on social media or in person, and spread awareness to this issue. Thank you for caring about our furry friends!
Hi Tashina,
Today I was reviewing Bath and Bothy Works website and see that their statement has changed.
Could you please let us know if this actually means that they are cruelty-free now?
Thank you very much for all you have done, I don’t have the words to explain how important your work is, your website is my Bible!
Copy and past from their website:
“Bath & Body Works does not test any of our branded products, formulations or ingredients on animals. Period. The brand is expecting to pilot selling products in China during the summer of 2019. Any personal care products sold in China will be produced in China, which eliminates the Chinese government’s requirement for animal testing as that only applies to imported personal care products. Personal care products sold in the rest of the world are produced in North America, Europe and South Korea.
Our company continues to support the Institute for In Vitro Sciences (IIVS) – a non-profit research and testing laboratory dedicated to the implementation and regulatory acceptance of non-animal methods. We share their mission to eliminate animal testing worldwide. As part of their work, IIVS is collaborating with the Chinese government to assist them in adopting non-animal methods.”
Hi Veronica, I don’t think an updated is needed as this confirms that they are selling in China. Animal testing is still required by law there. It has been reduced in some ways on products produced there, but it is not eliminated completely.
Thank you Tashina! We need more people like you. I literally went through 20 sites just to find actually information on bath and body works and most sites were just click bait to affiliate links. It’s so frustrating to find information WE NEED nowadays. I will be cutting all ties with bath and body works . I’m surprised they try to trick there customers with the cruelty free claim on there bottles. They need to be exposed for this unethical nonsense in an attempt to attract and retain a certain niche of consumers. Some of us genuinely care that a company doesn’t practice or give into animal and human cruelty practices.
Thank you for clearing this up for me. I rarely ever subscribe to websites but im subbed to yours now. Keep up the great work and kudos for being transparent and clear in your post. 🙂
Deos anyone know where a girl could get a nice cruelty free body mist? Not a perfume just a small spray I can keep in my bag.
Pacifica is 100 percent vegan front what I know and they have recently implemented mists. Which smell divine. They aren’t small in size but you could by a smaller spray bottle and just out some of it into it. There are so many booming vegan brands. I live in the USA depending on where u reside u may have more or less access to some brands. Best of luck!
try the body shop?
Thanks for this insightful and informative site. I have never trusted B&BW brands to the point that when I received a gift set for Christmas from an unknowing family member, I promptly gave it away. No thanks. An aware consumer is a smart one. Good day all.
So glad that I came across this website. Sad to see that they are going into China which we all know is the worst place in the world to be an animal. I too was really let down by Bath and Body Works misleading me into thinking that I was buying a product in which no animal was FORCED to suffer pain and agony. They just lost a long time customer. So did Victoria Secret. I used to by many bottles of their lotions but that was yesterday. Today I will be looking for an alternative. Thank you for you dedicated service to those of us who respect and love animals and do not wish to participate in cruelty for vanity.
Thank you for letting me know such valuable information. Since I was 20, I purchased the product last week without any doubt, but I just found out. Thank you and I’m glad to know you now.
I looked on B&BW’s site and China isn’t listed under their “Global Locations” tab! So that means they are technically cruelty free until they start selling in China… Correct?
Hi Eden,
Unfortunately, required by law testing can happen in a lot of places other than China. It could also mean that even though they don’t have stores there yet, they have started the process (which is what they have indicated to me), are testing there, and have just not announced it yet.
I would suggest that we all go to their facebook page and register our unhappiness with B&B Works new – old policy. I find that FACEBOOK is the fastest way to get attention from any company. I’ve accomplished quite a bit of change by using it – respectfully – but strongly by making honest statements.
If the brand is not cruelty free how can they label their products as cruelty free ? I just got a Diamond shimmer mist from them and i ask in the store if it was cruelty free and the lady said “oh yes i couldn’t work here if the weren’t cruelty free I feel you” and show me the label they have in their products and it says NOT TESTED ON ANIMALS.
There is no regulation on the term and no legal definition, so brands are able to decide what they think it means and then add the term to their packaging or FAQ pages. It’s very misleading.
Thank you for clearing this up. I was on the point of purchasing a couple of products from them yesterday, but desisted because one said it wasn’t tested on animals and the other said nothing. I worked in the beauty industry for several years and know what such an omission may mean, so I decided to do some research before buying. The information on your website has proved invaluable. Thanks again!