The ‘knitted cardigan’ scam.

I’ve just had another pop up - ‘sadly closing’ - supposed to be London based, and yet nearly all the jumpers are described as ‘cozy’!

I once risked a few pounds on what looked like a linen smock. It turned out to be a cheap man made fabric, and several sizes too small. I put it in a clothing bank in the hope that a very small person might like it.

On the other hand I once spoke to a lady in M&S who was wearing a stunning dress with a very striking design on it. When I asked about it she told me she had bought it on line and had fully expected it to be awful. In fact it had fitted perfectly and looked twice the price. So you can strike lucky sometimes.

Magenta8

On the same page as I type this on GN there is an advert for TEMU and I can see a picture of what looks like a chunky knit, patterned green cardigan. I looked into the advertisement and the cardigan is apparently on sale for £13.50. Other similar cardigans are only £10.50.

Am I allowed to point this out or will I face consequences?

It’s very likely that the two cardigans are from different companies. Are you aware that Temu is a shop where companies sell their goods.
Btw, why would you face consequences, and from who?
If your referring to me being banned from FB I was a tad more vitriolic than pointing out price differences 😂

... and the closing down is always "sadly" because it's a "family business" or "my small business". I saw so many like that (usually on Instagram) that it made me suspicious.

I read reviews and I check the returns policy of sellers as a matter of course.

Leather handbags and other items from reputable-sounding firms too.
All having to "reluctantly" sell their stock because they are having a closing down sale.

RosieandherMaw

If they are called “Something or other London” it can be a red flag. Beware! S

Or “Something or other Oxford" or “Something or other of anywhere else with an aura of class" beware too.

If you are tempted by photos of attractive well-made clothes on sale by one of these online-only sellers, which are claimed to be of natural fabrics at surprisingly low prices, first look at their return policy. If your order turns out to be of inferior fabric, design or workmanship, or it just doesn't fit, you could end up paying as much as it cost you for its return on a slow boat to China.

Secondly, look at what customers are saying about them on Trustpilot (yes, Trustpilot publish customer reviews on all kinds of things, not just hotels and restaurants) If there are only a couple of reviews, both of them 5-star and glowing, they have just started marketing under that name, probably because they have been rumbled under their previous name, and have bought a fake reference from one of the sites selling good reviews.

On the same page as I type this on GN there is an advert for TEMU and I can see a picture of what looks like a chunky knit, patterned green cardigan. I looked into the advertisement and the cardigan is apparently on sale for £13.50. Other similar cardigans are only £10.50.

Am I allowed to point this out or will I face consequences?

I can, and used to knit fair Isle and picture knits. It is something that I would only do for love, as it is so time intensive (and no amount of money could compensate). I only ever used good quality wool as if I was putting in the effort the I wanted the wool to last, and wash well. I only ever knitted for children, preferably babies, and up to an adult size 12. (Just because of the sheer effort involved).

The Christmas that I saw a niece wearing the snowmen jumper, looking as good as new, that I had knitted for my sister about 30 years previously really made me happy. I was equally happy years ago to see an unknown child wearing a jacket that I'd knitted, a one off adapted pattern, for a different niece which the niece had outgrown. If I create something I just want it to be enjoyed.

I don't think that any company could pay a realistic wage to hand knitters to produce the "real thing".

If it is cheap it is obviously not what it purports to be.

Thanks for the warning …

Thank you for the warning .
I would have been tempted to have some hand knits .
Years ago ,I paid a lady to knit me some twin sets .
I felt sorry for her .
She was an elderly Chinese grandma who spoke little English ,but was recommended as a brilliant knitter who seemed to manage patterns .
I couldn't wear any of her twinsets .
They were also unpickable as her tension was so tight .
The wool was expensive .
What a waste .

Surely nowadays, all but those with vulnerabilities, physical or mental are wise to the whole way scamming is constantly among us and we have learnt how to swim with the sharks but not be eaten.

Too often when people get caught out it is because they are being greedy. Did anyone really think even one of the host of small shops closing down and selling off irresistable sweaters in pure wool for a tenner or whatever were anything but a scam?

It is the same with romance scams. So much has been written about them you would need to live in a box, never watching tv, never reading a paper and never using the internet to fall for someone you have never met and then pay them money.

If they are called “Something or other London” it can be a red flag. Beware! S

It must be more than 10 years ago when I group of us did everything we could ( for about 2 years) to get FB to take down the ads.
In the end we were banned from FB. We spent thousands of hours researching information.
You only have to look at GN to see that people believe the adds.
TBH it annoys me ( and the group) who spent so long trying to help people.