Lush to exit social media channels

British cosmetics firm Lush is closing its UK social media accounts this week, complaining that it is "tired of fighting with algorithms" and did not want to "pay to appear" in newsfeeds.

In a statement, the retailer asks customers to contact it by email, phone, or via live chat on its website.

LushUK has 202,000 Twitter followers and 569,000 on Instagram. More than 423,000 have liked the page on Facebook.

That account name will close on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, along with Lush Kitchen, Lush Times, Lush Life, Soapbox and Gorilla.

"We don't want to limit ourselves to holding conversations in one place, we want social to be placed back in the hands of our communities - from our founders to our friends," read the statement.

Lush North America tweeted that its channels would remain in operation.

The brand said it was "cutting out the middleman between ourselves and the Lush community", but also hinted at a new social approach - and it suggested a hashtag for those wishing to chat with it.

In 2018, Lush suspended an ad campaign following criticism on social media. The campaign related to a public inquiry into claims of wrongdoing by undercover officers who infiltrated activist groups in England and Wales.

Commenting on the move, Sandra Schroeter, senior international product marketing manager at LogMeIn, noted that as of next week, the company will only engage with customers online via live chat.

“This is a bold move and one which is in line with today’s consumer trends – it also highlights the many benefits of choosing live chat to support customer engagement.

“Live chat enables retailers and businesses alike to respond to customer queries with speed and in real-time,” she continued, adding: “Perhaps more importantly, it enables businesses to own the conversations and speak to customers directly.”

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