Occult spirituality is now firmly placed in mainstream culture. The growing interest in astrology driven by millennials, as well as the popularity of crystals and tarot cards via the ballooning spiritual wellness industry, have brought demonic mysticism from the fringes, and right into your Instagram feed.
However, as the cosmetics retail giant Sephora recently found out, mysticism and its more formal manifestation, witch culture, are not topics to be taken lightly. When the company tried to commodify and condense witch-related practices into a “Starter Witch Kit,” they managed to anger actual witches, forcing the kit’s manufacturer to apologize and pull the product.