A pair of smelly trousers are causing a right stink at Marks & Spencer.
Customers are complaining that a £45 pair of men’s slacks are “virtually unwearable” because they smell like a “wet dog”.
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The problem seems to get worse when the wool blend trousers get wet – making a bad situation worse for those who wash them in a bid to get rid of the stink.
Some were fobbed off by staff who blamed customers for “doing something” to the slacks, which come in blue, black and charcoal and went on sale in August.
But M&S bosses are now investigating.
A source at the retailer said: “The problem seems to be caused by a manufacturing issue with a small number of products, most likely around the naturally occurring wax called lanolin in the wool.”
Lanolin, a chemical secreted by sheep, causes the smell in wool.
Most of the time the smell is mild due to low levels of the chemical, but it is thought a batch of wool used for these trousers was especially high in lanolin..
One reviewer on the M&S site wrote: “Unfortunately these trousers smell awful when washed (damp/wet dog smell!) or when caught in the rain.
“Makes them virtually unwearable as the smell has lingered after washing.”
Another – describing an “awful smell” – wrote: “When I bought these, they carried an unpleasant, synthetic smell that I thought would wash out.
“I followed the laundry instructions on the label but it actually intensified.
“If I left them in a room for five minutes and then put them away, the smell would still be present an hour later. Truly awful.”
The customer added: “The shop assistant agreed they smelled bad but said I must have ‘done something to them’ myself.
“I was told I should have returned them before I washed them.”
Another said: “Got caught in the rain and the trousers started to smell.”
In 1993’s Wallace and Gromit’s The Wrong Trousers, which won an Oscar, a villainous penguin adapts a pair of Wallace’s “techno trousers” for a heist.
An M&S spokesperson said: “We always take customer concerns seriously and so are looking into it with our supplier.
Any customers wanting to return them can do so in-store or via their online account.”
