A mother claims she was thrown out of Tesco by a security guard who feared her outfit would encourage someone to undo her tie-back top and leave her “exposed.”
Alixe Galatis visited a branch of Tesco in the UK on 26 June with her children to do a food shop when temperatures hit a record-breaking 37C, reports The Mirror.
As it was “very hot,” the mother-of-three was wearing a black v-neck top that tied at the back, but as she made her way to the Scan as You Shop section, a male security guard approached her.
Alixe claims he told her she could not enter the store as her backless top could be “untied” by other shoppers and leave her “exposed,” reports The Mirror.
The 31-year-old retrieved a gym sweater from her car, draped it over her back and shoulders covering the offending tie, and was then permitted inside to complete her shopping.
Stay-at-home mum Alixe claims that as she left the store, the security guard shook his head with “disdain” at her outfit, with Tesco saying they were “really sorry” to hear about the experience and that “this should not have happened,” adding they would contact Alixe directly, reports The Mirror.
Alixe, from Essex, said: “It was just after the school run, I think it peaked around 36, 37 [degrees] or something crazy.
“The clothes I was wearing I had been in all day, I’d been in other shops and there wasn’t an issue until I walked into Tesco, I was with my kids as well.
“The kids were picking up the scanner and then the security was standing behind us and when I turned around he said ‘you’re not allowed in here’.
“I said ‘why not?’. He said ‘you can’t come in here wearing that top because it’s got a tie-up at the back’. I was just really confused and the kids were a bit stunned.
“I don’t know why but he wouldn’t give me any eye contact and I think because I wasn’t moving he carried on and said ‘someone can untie your top’, so basically just leave me exposed.
“Again, I looked at him so confused because that’s something that I’ve never even thought of. I said ‘okay so can I go and buy a top then because I just want to get the shopping done?’ and he said ‘no you’re not allowed in at all’.
“It was just so bizarre. The only thing I had in my car was my gym jumper. It was so hot and I was thinking ‘I can’t physically put this on, so I put it over my shoulders so it was covering my shoulders and my back.
“We did our shop, I had the jumper around me, and then on the way out he was watching me walk out. He was looking at me with such disdain and just shaking his head at me,” reports The Mirror.
Alixe claims her eldest daughter, who is nine, is now anxious about what her mum wears when going to the shops.
Alixe said: “I was just completely shocked. Why should I not be allowed in the shop? If someone ever, God forbid, tried to undress me in Tesco why would that be my fault?
“It was very ‘victim blaming’ mentality, it was just crazy. It’s definitely not a policy, I was not exposed, I was not wearing a bikini bra. My eldest is now more conscious around what I’m wearing when I’m going into the shops.
“She now thinks that that top is not appropriate to be worn in Tesco because of what this man was saying. They’re at a young age where they are very impressionable.
“Sometimes I pop into Tesco wearing gym gear and no one’s ever stopped me. It was just so bizarre that it was this top and that he said ‘someone can untie it and leave you exposed’.
“Should you not be more worried about those who are untying people’s clothing rather than stopping the person who is dressed?” reports The Mirror.
Following the incident, which she posted about online to an overwhelmingly supportive response, Alixe says she will be steering clear of Tesco during the next heatwave.
Alixe said: “The vast majority agree that the top was absolutely fine and that they should be focusing on the people that assault me rather than the clothes I am wearing.
“I will definitely be avoiding Tesco if it comes to another heatwave because I have quite a few tops or dresses that are a halter neck style, so your back is out,” reports The Mirror.
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