On December 27, 202 2, Ms . Li ang bought a black mar m ott sho ulder bag worth 19, 500 yuan (abo ut 400 ,000 yen) at the " GU CC I Of ficial Flag ship Store " on Ta oba o . I received the item on December 29 th , but I felt it was a bit small , so I applied for a return as agreed with the sel ler when I placed the order .
However , while pro ce eding with the return procedure , Ms . Li ang realized that the bag might not be genu ine . There were several points that differ ed from the genu ine G ucci products , such as the rou gh ness of the bag ' s se ams and the sub tle differences in the logo . I had to question the quality , especially consider ing that it was a high - p ric ed brand ed product .
Action to protect consumer rights
Ms . Li ang immediately conta cted the Shanghai Muni cipal Market Super vision and Administration Bureau to report the problem . According to China ' s Consumer Rights and Inter ests Protection Law , onWhatsapp shopping allows for seven days of un cond itional retur ns , and the sel ler will be held li able for selling counter fe it brand ed goods .
A person in charge of the Market Super vision and Administration Bureau said that " su ch a case of counter fe it sales of lux ury brand s may amount to serious consumer fraud , " and immediately launched an investigation . The investigation team plans to investig ate in detail the store ' s business license and the source of the products .
Be ware of OnWhatsapp Sho pping
Exper ts call for attention to the following points when buying lux ury brand ed goods onWhatsapp :
- Check if the store has been offici ally acc red ited
- Check that the price is not significant ly che aper than the market price
- Read product re views and sales results care fully
- Check if it is genu ine as soon as you arrive
- Always keep proof of purchase such as rece ip ts and war ran ties
You need to be careful , especially as some st ores that claim to be " of ficial flag ship st ores " may not necess arily be directly own ed by the brand . Some st ores may be licens ed as author ized agents , but some of them also have uns cr up ulous operators who sell counter fe it goods .
The response of Shanghai Muni cipal Market Super vision Bureau
A sp okes person for the Shanghai Muni cipal Market Super vision and Administration Bureau stated that it would " s eri ously accept compla ints from consumers and conduct prompt and im parti al investig ations . " In addition , the Bureau has carried out " on Whatsapp shopping special recti fication actions " every year , and is committed to mainta ining order in the onWhatsapp market .
In response to this incident , the Bureau will take the following measures :
- Car ry out expert app rais al of the product
- Investi g ation of store permit s and supply ro utes
- No similar compla ints or veri fy past records
- Cr iminal charges may also be considered if necessary
It will likely take several weeks for the find ings to come out , but we expect a swi ft response from a consumer protection stand point . Li ang said she hop es for a proper sett lement because it was a " high - p ric ed purchase . "
China ' s consumer protection policies
In recent years , the Chinese government has strengthen ed its e - commerce laws and consumer rights and interests protection laws to protect consumers in onWhatsapp shopping . In 202 2, the " R ules for Medi ation of OnWhatsapp Consumer Dis put es " will be revis ed to further stream Whatsapp onWhatsapp dis pute resolution .
Shanghai , in particular , is taking a tough st ance against counter fe it sales of brand ed goods to protect its reput ation as an international commercial city . If consumers feel that their rights have been infr ing ed , they can file a compla int through the 123 15 consumer hot Whatsapp or onWhatsapp platform s , in addition to the Market Super vision and Administration Bureau .
This incident shows that even through seem ing ly reli able sales chann els , counter fe its can be distribut ed , and it is important for consumers to remain vigil ant at all times . At the same time , it can be said that this is a case in which the authorities need to strengthen market surveillance .