Woman Says Beverly Hills Store Broke The Law After Asking Her To Breastfeed In Private
BEVERLY HILLS (CBSLA.com) — A local mother has accused the retailer Anthropologie of breaking the law, when she says a manager did not allow her to breastfeed her baby on sales floor of the store.
Ingrid Wiese-Hesson was shopping at an Anthropologie store in Beverly Hills when her 6-week-old son, Xavier, began crying because he was hungry.
Wiese-Hesson then sat down in the store to breastfeed the infant, and that was when the store's manager reportedly intervened.
"The exact words to me were 'I'm here to escort you to the ladies room so that you can finish breastfeeding'," Wiese-Hesson said. "She opened up the bathroom, and she said 'sorry, there's no chair', and of course the only thing in the bathroom was the toilet seat."
Wiese-Hesson left the store after finishing breastfeeding her baby. Later, she called the manager to clarity why she had to breastfeed in the bathroom.
"(The manager) said 'well, there are other customers in the store, and I thought that you would be more comfortable, and they would be more comfortable, if you were to leave the sales floor'," Wiese-Hesson said.
Ingrid took to her Facebook page to post about the event, where she received a large amount of support.
"Literally, I posted the conversation I had with the manager on the phone, and within fifteen minutes, I had seventy-five comments, a hundred comments, three hundred comments, five hundred comments," Wiese-Hesson said.
Ingrid says that, although Anthropologie is her favorite store, she may boycott the chain if she feels mothers are not able to feed their babies there.
"It's certainly not going to stop me from doing what's best for my baby, but it may stop me from shopping at stores or places that are not tolerant."
Anthropologie posted a statement on their Facebook page Wednesday about the incident.
"We are disappointed to hear of the unfortunate experience that occurred in our Beverly Hills store. As a company comprised of hundreds of mothers, which seeks to put the customer first, we celebrate women in all of their life stages. Given our staff's dedication to providing exceptional customer service, we welcome this as an opportunity to enhance our customer experience by providing further training and education for our staff. Our aim is that all women - all mothers - be comfortable in our stores and delight in their relationship with Anthropologie."
Supporters will hold a protest outside the store at 3 p.m. Wednesday.