A story in the Huffington post on Wednesday said The Body Shop cut its ties with The Daily Mail due to human rights concerns.
Campaign group Stop Funding Hate published a tweet on Wednesday suggesting The Body Shop backed its campaign to stop advertising in newspapers it considers to be promoting bigotry. It said The Body Shop's decision represents a "huge win" for Citizens UK, which called for action earlier this week.
The tweet also depicts a Body Shop gift voucher promotion which ran in the Daily Mail in December:
This is a huge win for @CitizensUK & their excellent youth campaign group @SUSO_LDN. We are proud to support you! https://t.co/tGbzJ3npA7 https://t.co/lNYKzrySyB
— Stop Funding Hate (@StopFundingHate) February 16, 2017
A Body Shop spokesperson pointed PRWeek to its Enrich Not Exploit campaign, which aims to make The Body Shop the most ethical and sustainable global business.
"When an editorial stance seems to go against that commitment, we consider seriously whether we will support it," a company spokesperson said.
The Body Shop also published this tweet in response to Stop Funding Hate:
@StopFundingHate We do not have a partnership with the Daily Mail and there are no plans for The Body Shop to advertise. (2/2)
— The Body Shop UK (@TheBodyShopUK) February 15, 2017
PRWeek has contacted the Daily Mail for comment.
The Body Shop is part of the L'Oréal Group, which includes Lancôme, Yves Saint Laurent, Maybelline, and many others. It is unclear whether more L'Oréal brands will cease advertising in the Daily Mail, or if the Body Shop will pull ads from other papers.
The Body Shop declined to comment on behalf of other L'Oréal brands. PRWeek contacted L'Oréal but had received no response at the time of publication.
A spokesperson for Stop Funding Hate said: "We commend the Body Shop for recognising that their commitment to human rights is incompatible with their commercial relationship with the Daily Mail.
"We urge the Co-op Group, John Lewis, Marks & Spencer and other principled UK retailers to listen to their customers and follow the Body Shop's example."
According to the campaign group, internet service provider Plusnet, wallet brand Bellroy and airline business Eurowings have all pulled online ads from The Sun in the past week.
In that instance, Lego said it had listened very carefully to its customers after a well-reported open letter from a father to Lego, which was published on Facebook, accused it of betraying its own brand vales with the partnership.
In December, right-wing American news outlet Breitbart urged its readers to boycott Kellogg's, following the cereal company's decision to cease all advertising on the site.
