Smells like racism? Bath & Body Works apologizes for accidental KKK candles

Retail specialty chain Bath & Body Works may have unintentionally wished us all a very “White Christmas” with the release of their newest line of holiday scents. A candle in the collection called “Snowed In” is sparking controversy thanks to its label, which many feel closely resembles the hoods worn by members of the Ku Klux Klan.

These candles were briefly available on the company’s website and in the more than 1,850 company-run retail stores across the United States and Canada. Within a week, however, Bath & Body Works management learned about the viral chatter surrounding the label design and removed all Snowed In candles from retail and online stores.

Smells like … racism?

In case you missed them, Snowed In candles contain notes of vanilla, musk, and buttermilk, and the label pictures a paper snowflake like the holiday crafts children cut out in elementary school. Yet for a lot of buyers, the snowflakes looked more like hooded Klansmen than paper snowflakes, and they weren’t shy about voicing their opinions on social media.

Redditor u/SkyOk6341 shared a photo of Snowed In with the caption, “Interesting design.” Some commenters speculated that the design is an A.I. creation gone wrong. Others wondered if it was some sort of racist dog whistle from the company, and still others complained that only true “snowflakes” would get offended by a candle label. “The Klan Krismas Kandle?!? No thank you ma’am,” wrote one user. “A klandle!” another replied.

Bad timing for the company

In a statement to CNN, Bath & Body Works insists the label was an accident. “At Bath and Body Works, we are committed to listening to our teams and customers, and committed to fixing any mistakes we make-even those that are unintentional like this one,” said a spokesperson. “We apologize to anyone we’ve offended and are swiftly working to have this item removed and are evaluating our process going forward.”

Bath & Body Works has barely recovered from a major sales slump caused by the pandemic. In August, the company’s earnings report showed a 2 percent annual decline in total revenue. Not only that, but analysts estimate the holiday-scented candle collection amounts to about 40 percent of B&BW’s annual sales. It’s hard to say what removing Snowed In from the equation will have on their bottom line.

What are they doing with all those candles?

Bath & Body Works sales assistants are busily hiding the evidence of the company’s very public gaff. One employee shared on Reddit that management gave explicit instructions for removing the offensive labels and placing them in an opaque trash bag for removal. “All Snowed In units are being pulled,” they wrote. “They really don’t want these candles in the hands of people.. customers OR trash divers. I wonder how many people will manage to get one [ … ] The resell value will be huge on these I’m sure… even if they bring it back in a different package.”

That post proved to be spot-on accurate. As of this writing the candles are no longer available for purchase … unless you know where to look. Multiple eBay sellers have already listed their Snowed In candles for exorbitant prices. The highest we’ve seen so far was $350.