When one comes across a Made in USA label, it evokes higher quality and supports a domestic business. For many, the Made in USA labels are a marketing selling feature that can, in many cases, dictate the desirability and selling price of the item.
So when high-end home products retailer Williams-Sonoma was found to have high-end items falsely labeled as Made in USA, it didn’t go unnoticed.
False labeling of an item’s origin is technically a violation of a 2020 commission order regarding item province and proper labeling. The investigation led to finding some twenty items having false labels, being produced in several different countries across the world.
The settlement was reached with Williams-Sonoma paying the FTC some $3.175 million in civil penalties, making it the largest Made in USA fraud case.
In tandem with the fine, companies manufacturing these products have to submit a yearly report to the FTC to make sure they are reaching and maintaining certain guidelines.