Response to the green ink I sent them, appearing in blue below.

REF: 605654

Dear londonfeminist,

Thank you for your email received 14 September 2011, regarding the ‘I’m So Sorry’ and ‘New Girlfriend’ T-shirts.

I was extremely concerned to note your comments on the designs that are on these T-shirts, and would like to offer my sincere apologies on behalf of Topman for the obvious upset these particular garments have caused you.

Topman stock T-shirts with various designs on them, and by featuring these designs we certainly did not mean to cause offence to our customers or any members of the public. Please accept my assurances that these images were in no way meant to make light of any sort of violence and were instead meant to be light hearted without carrying any serious meaning.

I have passed a copy of your email to our Buying Director, so that he is aware of how strongly you feel about this issue. We are proud of our reputation as a retailer, and do not want to risk damaging this by causing any unnecessary upset to anyone. He has confirmed that the decision has been made to remove these T-shirts from online and in store.

I am grateful you have taken the time to bring your concerns to our attention, and once again apologise for the upset these T-shirts have caused you.

Regards,

Steph
Topman Customer Service

 

It’s positively effusive for a cut-and-paste job (although I gather they had to reply in bulk to these emails, so I’ll give them that.)  Would it be ungrateful to say it’s so effusive as to make me suspect they’re taking the piss?

Let’s assume though that they actually mean it.  But just for clarification, Steph from Customer Services – it’s not that “the garments” have caused me upset.  Generally, garments don’t cause anything; they’re inanimate objects.  It’s the deliberate decision by the Topman team to put out ‘edgy’ t-shirts making domestic violence and misogyny a ‘light hearted’ topic.  The garments themselves are neutral.  The people who designed them and decided to sell them – it’s they who cause upset or, as I prefer to call it, ‘contempt.’  Just so’s we’re clear.