Odd FTC crackdown on fur advertising

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FTC / Federal Trade Commission99,999 times out of 100,000, we suspect advertisers would like to tout their products as being totally natural and 100% free of synthetic material. But in this case, the FTC is cracking down on manufacturers who are claiming that fur products are fake when in fact real fur is being used.


FTC stated, “Three clothing retailers have agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that they misled consumers by marketing that products contained ‘faux fur,’ when in fact, the products contained real fur.”

The companies rounded up by the FTC posse included The Neiman Marcus Group Inc., DrJays.com Inc., and Eminent Inc. d/b/a Revolve Clothing.

The companies claimed they were using “faux” fur for various items, and hid the fact that they had used rabbit and mink fur, and also failed to disclose the country of origin of the fur.

The settlement seems to be a cease and desist order as much as anything. FTC concluded, “Under proposed consent orders that apply for 20 years, the respondents are barred from violating the Fur Act and the Fur Rules. Consistent with the Commission’s Enforcement Policy Statement announced in January, the orders provide that the respondents will not be liable for misrepresentations about fur products that they directly import if they do not embellish or misrepresent claims provided by the products’ manufacturers, they do not sell the product as a private label product, and they neither know nor should have known that the product is marketed in a manner that violates the Fur Act.”

RBR-TVBR observation: It goes to show the power of relentless activism. This whole situation would have been unthinkable in our youth, when the entire cast of Hollywood Squares would seem to spontaneously break out into the Dicker & Dicker of Beverly Hills jingle. Now thanks to years of shaming those who wear fur products, we have companies trying to hide their use of fur. Amazing.