Re: Petition for enforcement of Fur Products Labeling Act, FTC Act, and Consent Orders Dear Chairwoman Ramirez and Commissioners, Law enforcement action is direly needed to protect consumers and law- abiding businesses from an ongoing, industry-wide pattern of animal fur products being falsely advertised and/or labeled as “faux,” or fake, fur. Pursuant to Sections 2.1 and 2.2 of the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) regulations, 16 C.F.R. §§ 2.1 and 2.2, The Humane Society of the United States (“The HSUS”) hereby petitions the FTC to investigate and commence enforcement actions, including certifying all pertinent facts to the Office of the Attorney General for criminal prosecution, against Century 21 Department Stores, LLC (“Century 21”), Amazon.com, Inc. (“Amazon”), Stein Mart, Inc. (“Stein Mart”), Eminent, Inc. (“Eminent/Revolve”), Neiman Marcus Group, Inc. (“Neiman Marcus”), Belk, Inc. (“Belk”), Gilt Groupe, Inc. (“Gilt”), Bluefly, Inc. (“Bluefly”), Mia Belle Baby, LLC (“Mia Belle Baby”), Barneys New York, Inc. (“Barneys”), Kohl’s, Inc. (“Kohl’s”), Nordstrom, Inc. (“Nordstrom”), Ross Stores, Inc. (“Ross”), Ruelala, Inc. (“Ruelala”), A-List, Inc. (“A-List/Kitson”), La Garconne, LLC (“La Garconne”), and Searle Blatt, Ltd. (“Searle”), (collectively, the “Retailers”), which are now or have recently been engaged in the advertising and sale of animal fur-containing wearing apparel and/or accessories in violation of the federal Fur Products Labeling Act (“FPLA”), 15 U.S.C. §§ 69–69j, and/or the Federal Trade Commission Act, 15 U.S.C. § 41 et seq. As described herein, The HSUS has amassed evidence that the Retailers have offered for sale wearing apparel or accessories that were described – in online advertisements and/or on labels, hangtags, or other printed media attached to or accompanying the items – as being made with “faux fur” (fake fur) when in fact animal fur is one of the materials making up the items.1 This petition identifies 37 different and unique styles of wearing apparel or accessories offered for sale between December 14, 2011 and December 8, 2015 1 This Petition will use “faux fur” to mean material that is like animal fur in appearance, but that is not animal fur as defined by the FPLA: “(b) … any animal skin or part thereof with hair, fleece, or fur fibers attached thereto, either in its raw or processed state, but shall not include such skins as are to be converted into leather or which in processing shall have the hair, fleece, or fur fiber completely removed.” on Retailers’ websites or in brick-and-mortar stores advertised or labeled in violation of the FPLA or FTC Act. See “Summary: Animal Fur Wearing Apparel and Accessories Sold as ‘Faux’, Purchased December 14, 2011 – December 8, 2015” (Attachment 1).2 Each of the 37 items in this petition has been assigned a unique “Case ID” pursuant to The HSUS’ rigorous internal procedure for evidence handling and storage – that can be used to reference and cross- reference. While these findings suffice to demonstrate a mmajor, industry-wide pattern of noncompliance, it bears noting that because of The HSUS’ limited organizational resources, the evidence submitted herewith is likely only a small fraction of all falsely advertised/labeled animal fur products sold during this time frame in the United States. In fact, this petition does not even represent the totality of The HSUS’s investigative findings during this time period – items that came in multiple colors but shared a single style number are only counted once, and an additional 12 unique items were addressed separately in focused petitions and a lawsuit.3 Among the Retailers are some of the largest and fastest-growing apparel and accessory retailers in the United States – andn the world. They include companies whose violations of the FPLA and FTC Act have been the subject of previous HSUS petitions, and two of whom— Eminent/Revolve4 and Neiman Marcus5 – are already suubbject to FTC enforcement orders for previously selling animal fur as “faux”. Neiman Marcus was most recently identified in an HSUS petition submitted to the FTC in April 2015.6 The misrepresented items at issue span the price range from $15.00 to $1495.00, discount and off-price to top-tier price-points. They include some of the most high-profile brands in the U.S. and global markets: Ellen Tracy, Marc New York by Andrew Marc, MICHAEL Michael Kors, Marc by Marc Jacobs, Burberry Brit, Canada Goose, Silvian Heach Kids, L’Amour, Bearpaw, Acquaverde, Rebecca Minkoff, Babywalker, Fun & Fun, MMighty-Mac, Jacadi, Mia Belle Baby, Elie Tahari, R&O/Rogue, W118 by Walter Baker, sarajane, Pajar, Nicole Lee, 2 A text‐only version is also attached as Attachment 2. 3An additional 12 items identified during this time frame are not included in this Petition. Five were already brought to the FTC’s attention in separate HSUS petitions requesting enforceement against two individual retailers. See The HSUS’ Petition for Enforcement re: Neeiman Marcus (submitted April 14, 2015) (three items); The HSUS’ Petition for Enforcement re: DrJays.com (submitted July 9, 2014) (two items). Seven items were the subject of HSUS legal proceedings against Lord & Taylor and Saks Fifth Avenue in D.C. Superior Court (No. 2008 CA 8285-B) which settled in January 2016. 4 Federal Trade Commission. 2013. “Enforcement » Cases and Proceeedings » Eminent, Inc.” August 6. https://www.ftc.gov/enforcement/cases‐proceedings/122‐3065/eminent‐inc. 5 Federal Trade Commission. 2013. “Enforcement » Cases and Proceeedings » Neiman Marcus Group, The, Inc..” August 6. https://www.ftc.gov/enforcement/cases‐proceedings/082‐3199/neiman‐marcus‐group‐inc. 6Pacelle, Wayne. 2015. “Time for FTC to Crack Down on Retailers Peddling Real Fur as Faux.” A Humane Nation. April 16. http://blog.humanesociety.org/wayne/2015/04/ftc‐nieman‐marcus‐fur‐petition.html. See also The Humane Society of the United States. 2015. “NeimanMarcus.com ‐ Animal Fur Sold as ‘Faux’ Investigation Results: Winter 2014‐15.” April 13. https://tinyurl.com/olqs3yq. ELSY Collection, JNBY, Happy Goat Lucky, Sisters, Elizabeth & James, Street Level, Monnalisa Bebè, Rag & Bone, Love Token, and T-Tech by TUMI. AAlthough some of the items have been publicized previously by The HSUS or investigative news teams, none of the 37 has been submitted by the HSUS to the FTC in a request for enforcement, prior to this petition. BACKGROUND ON THE HSUS The HSUS is the nation’s largest animal protection organization. The HSUS is based in Washington, DC, and works to protect all animals through education, investigation, enforcement, litigation, legislation, regulatory change, advocacy, and field work. Because more than seventy- five million fur-bearing animals are killed annually, and often inhumanely, for the purpose of obtaining their pelts for wearing apparel, accessories, and other products, The HSUS’s Fur-Free Campaign works to end the killing of animals for fur and fur trim, including by promoting faux fur as a humane alternative to the use of animal fur pelts. In addition to the number of intentionally killed animals (both in fur factory farms and in traps), The HSUS also works to protect the “non-target” animals—including domestic dogs and cats—caught, injured, or killed each year in traps set for the fur trade. The Furu -Free Campaign also works to protect The HSUS’s many members and supporters, as well as the public at large, from being duped into supporting animal cruelty and killing. The HSUS has extensive experience and expertise in many issues related to the animal fur trade, including the misrepresentation of animal fur products to consumers. Pierre Grzybowski, Research and Enforcement Manager for the HSUS’s Fuur-Free Campaign, has worked on this issue for over a decade, examining thousands of items of both animal fur and faux fur apparel and accessories for compliance with state and federal laws. Grzybowski (the investigator herein) has received specialized training related to evidence management, forensic photography, and forensic fiber analysis using microscopy.7 The HSUUS has also enlisted the services of Microtrace, LLC, an independent, third-party, ISO/IEC 17025 accredited microanalytical laboratory for several of the items in this petition. 7 See Attachment 3 for Grzybowski’s Curriculum Vitae. RETAILERS AND ITEMS IDENTIFED IN PETITION8 A. Century 21 Department Stores, LLC – Seven items in this petition Century 21 Department Stores, LLC (“Century 21”) is an off-price apparel retailer operating ten brick and mortar stores in New York, Neww Jersey, and Pennsylvania. It operates an online store at www.c21stores.como . Its company flagship store is located at 22 Cortlandt Street, New York, NY 10007. 9 This “top destination for bargain-hunting toourists and locals”10 was named in an animal fur advertising/labeling investigative news piece by NBC New York in February 2011. 11 The company’s CEO was subsequently sent a letter from New York Assemblymember Linda B. Rosenthal in 2011, reminding him of his company’s obligation to follow state and federal fur labeling laws.12 However, an investigation by HSUS and Assemblymember Rosenthal in 2013 found animal fur apparel continued to be sold as faux.13 Items in this petition: 1. “SILVIAN HEACH (Girls 4-6x) Grey Faux Fur Collar Jacket” HSUS Case ID: C21SHGRE120815 Attachments 4-9 The HSUS investigator purchased this girl’s Silviian Heach Kids brand coat online from C21stores.com on December 8, 2015, where it was advertised as having a “Faux Fur Collar” and “faux fur trim at collar.” Upon delivery and opening of the sealed package containing this coat, and an examination of all the English-language text on anny part of the coat, labels/hangtags, receipts, or other printed media accompanying the coat, no reference to “fur” was found. The 8 See Attachments 1 and 2 for summaries of this information.