Bath and Body Works has recently been in some hot water for a candle collection that features a questionable design oversight. The seasonal “Snowed In” candle was quickly withdrawn from shelves for its controversial design that appeared to feature white hooded figures which garnered some unsavoury comparisons.
There are no hard and fast rules to packaging design, but Bath and Body Works’ recent design mishap shows that the internet is capable of picking apart even the most seemingly innocent designs. While I don’t believe there was any nefarious intent with this candle packaging, let this be a lesson – always get multiple perspectives before signing off on a design.
Interesting Design from r/bathandbodyworks
The candle in question features a white paper snowflake design with several pointed tips and two circles that could unfortunately be interpreted as eye holes. Seemingly created with innocent intentions as part of Bath and Body Works’ seasonal candle range, some fans couldn’t seem to get into the festivities.
Raising the issue on the r/bathandbodyworks subreddit, one user shared the candle with the caption “I know it’s one of those paper snowflakes, but I can’t be the only one who sees “it,” right….RIGHT??”. Others were quick to chime in, confirming that the OP was not alone. “The Klan Krismas Kandle?!? No thank you ma’am,” one user chimed in, while another commented, “This is so freaky and ugly, and yep, I kkkan see it.”
As reported by CNN, Bath and Body Works responded to the backlash with the following statement: “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. We apologize to anyone we’ve offended and are swiftly working to have this item removed and are evaluating our process going forward.”
From X’s neverending design dispute to Lyle’s ridiculous logo design controversy, there are plenty of examples of design mishaps in the industry. Oversights aren’t uncommon – it’s often a case of ‘when’ rather than ‘if’ it will happen. The best we can hope for is that brands take accountability and learn from their mistakes.
