“Zalando Apologizes for Selling Fake Branded Clothing: Consumer Experience and Legal Implications”

Nettavisen wrote on Tuesday about consumer Eric Malm’s experience with the online giant Zalando. Malm had bought a branded jacket from Karl Lagerfeld, which later turned out to have Guess buttons.

– Too stupid to be true

“We are sorry that we have sold you a product that is fake. This is of course totally unacceptable from our side,” wrote a Zalando customer service employee in an email seen by Nettavisen.

Malm himself thinks the experience is hair-raising.

– This is too stupid to be true, said Malm.

Has this happened to you? Contact the journalist here.

Nettavisen has tried to contact Karl Lagerfeld’s press department. Nettavisen has been in contact with Zalando.

– We are investigating how it can happen that the jacket can have a tag from one brand and a button from another brand, Zalando spokeswoman Anne Vibe Hansen told Nettavisen on Tuesday.

– Not legal

The Consumer Council, which helps you if you have purchased a product or service as a private individual, reacts to the experience:

– If you buy a jacket from Karl Lagerfeld, you must receive the right item of good quality. When you order expensive branded clothes, you pay a lot for the brand itself. It is not legal to sell a fake product as a brand, says consumer lawyer Nora E. Wennberg Gløersen to Nettavisen.

– Check products carefully

The Consumer Council expects Zalando to take the incident seriously, and check how this happened and where the error lies:

– They should also check whether this can apply to several products, says Gløersen.

Consumers are also prompted:

– For the consumer, it is another reminder that mistakes can happen, and that you have to check products you buy online carefully as soon as you receive them, she concludes.