Fake Quebec products sold online came from China

Dozens of Quebecers who were convinced they had purchased products made here online were cheated by receiving low-end merchandise from China.

This type of paid scam which plays on the heartstrings of local purchasing is causing more and more victims, specialists note.

Rosanne Côté was tempted by an advertisement, directly on her Facebook page, for the online store stylenordique.ca. This resident of Alma, in Lac-Saint-Jean, ordered a coat whose description promised her “style and warmth on icy days.”

• Listen to the interview with Marie-Claude Paradis-Desfossés, investigative journalist for the JE show, via QUB :

Convinced she was getting a good deal, she ordered a coat sold at a discount at $79.90. “As much as possible I try to encourage local companies,” she says in an interview on the show Iwhich will be broadcast this evening at 8 p.m. on TVA.

Quebecers targeted

M^me Côté was disillusioned when she received her package: a light jacket with a label made in China. What she also didn’t know was that the same coat was listed for US$9 on the Chinese shopping site AliExpress.

Dozens of reports of consumers cheated by stylenordique.ca have been shared on the Fraude-Alerte community platform.

“The name of the site, the local aspect, the promotion of local purchasing… It is certain that we are targeting the Quebec population,” notes Fyscillia Ream, co-founder of the Cyber-criminology Clinic, associated with the University of Montreal, which manages this platform.

The Consumer Protection Office (OPC), for its part, received eight complaints about the stylenordique.ca website, which is now closed.

Dozens of complaints

Another site, Julie-Fortin.ca, promised “Quebec-made” shoes and accessories that reflect “the authenticity and robustness of our beautiful province.”

Kelly Marion, from Notre-Dame-des-Prairies, in Lanaudière, ordered two pairs of boots, one for herself and the other for her mother. “Generally, I have quality when I buy in Quebec,” laments M^me Marion showing us her purchase.

“Mine is more of a fabric. They both looked like they were made of leather,” she laments.

She paid by debit card and is still waiting to know if she will be able to get a refund of the $160 paid on December 6, 2023.

Here again, the Julie-Fortin.ca website is no longer accessible. The OPC recorded 30 complaints from other cheated customers.

Misrepresentation

According to Fyscillia Ream, these sites have in common that they have a professional look and have been created on the Shopify platform, which offers businesses hosting of their online store.

The co-founder of the Cyber-Criminology Clinic believes that Shopify is “a facilitator of dropshipping”, this practice through which an online merchant transfers customer orders to a supplier who takes care of delivery.

THE dropshipping is not illegal, but according to Alexandre Plourde, lawyer at Option consommateurs, this business model is often accompanied by fraudulent strategies such as misrepresentation.

“The law says that everything the trader says must be true. […] There are all sorts of breaches of this obligation. For example, traders who say that the goods they sell are made in Quebec, or who [prétendent être] located in Quebec by giving a false address,” explains M^e Plourde.

The multinational Shopify ignored our interview requests.

Real victim companies

The identity of real Quebec companies is also usurped by online sellers with questionable practices.

There is indeed a real Style Nordique.com boutique, which is based in Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean and which specializes in the sale of mittens and slippers made in Nunavut.

Its owner, Esteban Simard, recounts with emotion having to defend his reputation last November and December, while the scammers from stylenordique.ca used the name of his company. “[Des clients floués] started insulting me online. Fraudster, be careful!”, he says.

The entrepreneur claims to have lost 75% of his turnover.

He attempted to help cheated consumers by detailing the fraud in a letter to them. “By adding this proof, they were reimbursed [par leur compagnie de carte de crédit]. Currently on my computer, I have reached 326 known victims,” he says.

Fake address

The site stylenordique.ca used the address of a real company: Déménagement machinerie Granby. “We just have heavy machinery, really no coats here,” says co-owner Marie-Josée Fecteau.

She regrets having managed, from the beginning of November to mid-February, dozens of calls, packages containing coats and even formal notices from dissatisfied customers.

Some customers even went there to choose another coat. “It’s a stress that it causes us and it gives us bad publicity,” laments M^me Fecteau, who also filed a complaint with the police.

Nightmare

The company Chaussure Morin, specializing in the importation of high-end shoes, also allegedly inspired sellers with questionable practices who operated the site lorimorin.ca.

“People were searching for Chaussure Morin on Google and it was Lori Morin coming out. […] They copied a bit of our signature from Morin,” explains owner Nelson Morin.

The subterfuge stretched over several weeks so much so that Mr. Morin had to hire an additional resource to deal with the flood of calls from dissatisfied customers and try to have the fake site closed. “I don’t want to sell chnoute,” declares the person who describes the experience as a nightmare.

The lorimorin.ca site is no longer accessible. It is the subject of 19 complaints to the Consumer Protection Office.

The regulatory body also sent a recall notice to the delinquent merchant… but to a false address.

“The application of laws and sanctions is difficult in such a context, but the Office has certain means to trace them, in certain circumstances,” specifies Charles Tanguay, spokesperson for the OPC.

Tips from experts to avoid getting caught

M^e Alexandre Plourde, Consumer Option

• Beware of false discounts. “We announce huge discounts, 50%. But what we see is that the merchant never offered the good at the regular price.”
• Beware of fake consumer reviews. “Often when we go to these sites, we see rave reviews, 5 stars everywhere. You have to ask yourself if these are real reviews or reviews paid for by the merchant.”
• Pay by credit card. “The law provides that it is only people who pay by credit card who have a right to chargeback. Other payment methods, whether a virtual debit card or PayPal, do not offer the same protection for consumers.

Fyscillia Ream, Cyber-criminology Clinic

• Do a reverse image search on Google. “We’re going to upload our photo that we took via screenshot and then we’re going to look at the products that are coming out. This tells us that it is not a Quebec product because it is available on AliExpress for a lower price.”
• Check if the merchant has a good reputation. “If, as a citizen, I report fraud on Fraude-Alerte, everyone can see it. Everyone can see, for example, that I have reported this website or this fraudster.”
• Report to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Center. “We have to do it because it allows us to open investigations and it will demonstrate the importance of a type of fraud.”