Josh Moon

The Montgomery (Ala.) Advertiser

MONTGOMERY, Ala. -- An apparent misunderstanding between a local retailer and a group of special needs students from Montgomery Public Schools ended with the children and a teacher being asked to leave and the store's parent company issuing an apology.

A store manager at the Eastdale Mall location of Bath and Body Works informed a group of Crump Elementary special needs students who were there on a school assignment that they couldn't shop in the store. A store manager then asked that the students and the teacher accompanying them leave through a side exit.

But both L Brands, the parent company of Bath and Body Works, and MPS say that the manager was confused about what the students were doing in the store and was concerned that a continued influx of students not making purchases would throw off the store's customer-purchase count.

"The mix-up at Bath and Body Works occurred when an employee apparently misunderstood the purpose of the visit," MPS spokesman Tom Salter said. "That issue has been resolved. We are looking forward to continuing to work with this community-focused company in this important work."

Students from several special needs classes from different MPS schools were in the mall last Friday to participate in a life skills practice. Teachers split the students into groups of three and sent them on "scavenger hunts" to find and purchase different items.

"We work with many stores around Montgomery to provide students with special circumstances the opportunity to learn to find and purchase the things they need," Salter said.

The mix-up at Bath and Body Works occurred when the store manager reportedly misunderstood teacher Dawn Ellis, taking her reference to a "scavenger hunt" to mean the students wouldn't be making purchases.

Ellis declined to comment about the situation.

According to L Brands, each Bath and Body Works store — along with many other retail stores — is equipped with a sensor to monitor foot traffic into each store. The foot traffic is matched with store purchases, and each location is expected to achieve a certain percentage of sales per the total number of customers.

Worried that the scavenger hunt would throw off the count, the manager, whom L Brands didn't identify, asked the students and teacher to leave through a side door where no sensor was present.

"We very much regret this misunderstanding and have personally met with Ms. Ellis and her students to offer our most sincere apology and welcome them in our stores at any time," a statement from L Brands read, in part.

A Bath and Body Works district manager visited Ellis' class at Crump Elementary on Monday to convey the store's apology. The store also offered the class a variety of free soaps.