22 January 2024 , 11:05
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Parents have slammed H&M's latest back to school uniform advert as they accuse the clothing giant of sexualising young girls.
The fashion brand has sparked backlash for the ad which included an image of two girls in panafore dresses with the slogan: "Make those heads turn in H&M's Back to School fashion."
Social media users have branded the commercial as "sickening" and questioned the reasoning behind the ad. The fashion giant has since pulled the advert and issued an apology.
The retailer confirmed the removal and said: "We have removed this ad. We are deeply sorry for the offence this has caused and will look into how we present campaigns going forward."
Mumsnet founder and chief executive Justine Roberts said: "Mumsnet users have long been concerned about a sexualised culture creeping into the lives of children - which is why we launched our Let Girls Be Girls campaign in 2010. It's disappointing to see that, 14 years later, retailers are still creating inappropriate adverts that prematurely sexualise young girls.
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"While we're pleased that H&M have accepted their mistake and removed the advert, it really should never have been created in the first place. Our users would love to be reassured that they're taking steps to ensure everyone at H&M is crystal clear about the issue so it doesn't happen again."
Social media users expressed their concern about the ad, with one describing it as "H&M sexualising children" and another labelling it "inappropriate". One wrote: "What the hell is going on? This is sickening, sexualising kids." Another questioned: "what were they thinking?" whilst a third wrote: "Why are H&M suggesting schoolgirls in uniform "'turn heads"?