April 26 (UPI) — The Department of Justice said Friday that cookware company Williams-Sonoma will pay a $3.1 million civil penalty and stop making false and misleading claims about the origins of its products to settle a federal court complaint.
The DOJ said the company falsely labeled products “Made in the USA” when they were actually wholly imported or contained significant imported content.
The home products were sold through Williams Sonoma Home, Pottery Barn, Pottery Barn Kids, Pottery Barn Teen, PBTeen, West Elm and Rejuvenation.
“Williams-Sonoma misled consumers by touting products as made in the USA when at least one of them was made in China,” DOJ Civil Division head Brian M. Boynton said in a statement. “We will continue to work with the FTC to stop deceptive marketing practices like this.”
Williams-Sonoma’s actions were violations of the FTC Act and the Made in USA Rule, according to the DOJ.
FTC Chair Lina M. Khan said in a statement, “Williams-Sonoma claimed its products were made in the United States even though they were made in China. Williams-Sonoma’s deception misled consumers and harmed honest American businesses. Today’s record-setting civil penalty makes clear that firms committing Made-in-USA fraud will not get a free pass.”
The settlement imposes a $3,175,387 civil penalty on the company and enjoins Williams-Sonoma from “making misleading or unsubstantiated country-of-origin claims and includes record keeping and reporting obligations to ensure the company’s future compliance.”