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Bosses at high-street retailer Zara have come under fire for including an allegedly 'sexually suggestive' item to their children's clothing line.
Mother-of-two Laura Wilson first noticed the t-shirt in a branch located in Kent's Bluewater Shopping Centre at the weekend.
She said: "I would never have my children in something like that. I thought it was suggestive.
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"I turned round to my partner and asked him if I was reading this right and he agreed that it was awful."
The tee featured a picture of a strawberry, along with the tagline 'take a bite'.
Laura was left horrified to discover it also included the words 'the perfect snack' on the other side.
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"I read the other side and thought okay," she said. "I didn't think it could get any worse but when I turned it round, it said 'take a bite'."
Laura claimed that, due to the word 'snack' often being used in slang terms to describe a physically attractive individual, it should have no place on an item of clothing intended to be worn by children.
The horrified mum - who works as a full-time content creator - insisted she'd never let either of her two children wear such a t-shirt.
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After sharing her find on TikTok, she instigated a fierce debate over the t-shirt, admitting in the first case that she wasn't sure if she was overthinking the branding.
"I did think that is this because I'm an overprotective parent or is it just plain wrong," she admitted.
"I put the TikTok up to get other people's opinion on it and it's very clear that other people have thought the same as me in these circumstances.
"It's very suggestive. This t-shirt was for a six to seven-year-old and I don't think this is okay."
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Much to Laura's relief, many fellow parents agreed with her assertion that the t-shirt has no place in the children's section.
"Absolutely not [overthinking it]! How that has got through product development is beyond me!" one user penned.
Another exclaimed: "What the actual f*ck. I am shaken to my core. Zara do better, this is vile."
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Though the 32-year-old explained she opted not to reach out to the global franchise out of fear she may be overthinking the 'inappropriate' garment, Zara has since issued an apology.
"There was no intention for the use of the word 'snack' on this t-shirt to imply anything other than the traditional meaning of the word, as evidenced by the image of a strawberry on the garment," a spokesperson said in a statement.
"However, we now understand that some individuals have interpreted the term differently. Therefore, we have removed the t-shirt from stores and our website and we apologise for any misunderstanding or offence caused."
Rhianna Benson