William-Sonoma will have to pay $3.1 million after the FTC ruled that the retailer had falsely been listing items as made in the U.S.
In a release sent last week, the FTC and U.S. Department of Justice violated a 2020 order that required retailers to be transparent about whether their products were made domestically or abroad, in an effort to discourage fraud.
The DOJ reportedly filed its complaint against William-Sonoma on April 24 after receiving a referral from the FTC. The complaint alleges that William-Sonoma advertised product lines in its Goldtouch, Rejuvenation, Pottery Barn Teen, and Pottery Barn Kids brands as all “or virtually all” made in the U.S., when they were actually made in China.
The exact wording William-Sonoma used was “crafted in America from domestic and imported materials,” while the FTC found that items like mattress pads were actually “wholly imported from China.”
William-Sonoma acknowledged that the accusations were true, and agreed to a settlement. Business Insider reported that this is the largest settlement in the largest “Made in USA” case the FTC has handled so far.
Obviously, William-Sonoma isn’t in the promotional products industry. But as consumer demand for domestically made products grows, suppliers need to be extra careful that if they advertise something as made in the U.S., it is.
Within the promotional products industry, there is precedent with cases like Brandnex, which reached a settlement with the FTC after doing just this. Brandnex ended up having to pay almost $150,000.
So, obviously, the FTC is consistently on the lookout for retailers and other companies found in violation to this rule, and is not afraid to enforce it.
