Milton Keynes-based Argos bows to pressure and adds gender neutral title 'Mx' to online order forms

Milton Keynes-based Argos has added the gender-neutral title ‘Mx’ alongside Mr and Mrs its online order forms

The move follows years of pressure from Include Mx, which was started by LGBTQ+ activist and journalist Tom Pashby (they/them) in late 2020.

It was founded because Tom was forced to misgender themselves in order to buy household items from Argos, due to the company’s online order form requiring a title but failing to offer one which is suitable for non-binary people.

He said at first Argos ignored his requests or simply responded by saying they would look into it.

"Most people probably sail through online order forms hardly even thinking about what they’re typing. For many people like me, it can be an immensely frustrating experience because of companies forcing us into using a binary gendered title like Mr or Ms,” he told the Citizen.

Include Mx celebrates organisations that include the gender-neutral title Mx as a title on their forms, and encourages others to adopt it. The campaign has succeeded with River Island, Next and Wilko.

In summer 2022, Include Mx started a petition on change.org asking Argos, which is owned by Sainsbury’s, to add Mx, and it attracted over 12,000 signatures.

During the same summer, Include Mx coordinated an open letter which was signed by Emma Best, Conservative London Assembly member, addressed to the board of Sainsbury’s asking them to use their power to get Argos to add Mx.

Tom said this week: “I am over the moon to see that Argos has added Mx to its forms, finally ending its exclusion of non-binary people.

“Non-binary activists have been asking Argos to add Mx since as early as 2011, and Include Mx has shone the spotlight on this injustice since 2020.

“It should not have taken all this campaigning to pressure Argos into doing the right thing. Brands need to respond much faster to changes in society and implement systems which are inclusive of all their staff and customers.”

Include Mx has been spending June 2023, which is Pride month in the UK, highlighting major brands which have chose to incorporate the Pride colours into their logos and stating whether they include Mx on their forms.