Faarea Masud & Connie BowkerBBC News
MitchumA well-known deodorant brand has apologised after some of its roll-on products reportedly left customers with itchy, burning armpits.
Consumers of Mitchum’s 48-hour roll-on anti-perspirant and deodorant complained on social media of having “agonising weeping spots”, redness and irritation after using the product.
Posting on TikTok, one customer claimed she wanted to “rip my armpits out”, while another said her underarms felt like they were “on fire”.
The company said it was “truly sorry” and explained how a change in the manufacturing process had affected 100ml batches sold in the UK, Ireland and South Africa. It said it was removing the affected products from shelves.
‘I started smelling really bad’
Steph Buttery, 34, from Manchester, has been a loyal Mitchum customer for the last 15 years.
But after she started using a new bottle of the firm’s aerosol powder fresh deodorant in July, she developed an itchy red rash around her armpits and says she “started smelling really bad”.
Steph, who runs a soft drinks company, says she had to keep her arms down throughout an important business meeting, because she was so conscious of the smell.
She has since switched deodorant brands and says the problems have stopped.
“I’ve been totally turned off [Mitchum] for life. I’m going to go for natural deodorant from now on.”
Steph is one of hundreds of people who have taken to sharing videos of their experience on TikTok.
One woman said she was unable to sleep after using the roll-on because it left her with “second degree chemical burns on my armpits”.
Another described her underarm skin as developing a pink rash which had “scabbed over”.
A third said she was left in agony because of “weeping spots” under her arm.
“I won’t be using any Mitchum products again because I’m not risking this happening again,” she said.
A Mitchum spokesperson said the brand was “truly sorry some of our customers have experienced temporary irritation”.
In a statement, the company said: “We want to reassure there has been no change to the formula of our products, but we have identified a change in the manufacturing process affecting one of our raw materials.
“This has impacted how the roll-on interacts with the skin of some users.”
It did not give details of what the change to its manufacturing process was but said the issue had since been resolved and it was working to “remove the small amount of product” left in shops.
“In addition, we have reverted to the original manufacturing process to ensure no other batches are affected,” the spokesperson said.
Mitchum advised all those affected to contact its customer services team so it could “make this right”.
The firm has issued a list of all the affected 100ml roll-on products. These are:
- Powder Fresh
- Shower Fresh
- Unscented
- Pure Fresh
- Flower Fresh
- Ice Fresh
- Clean Control
- Sport
