Handbags are displayed at the shop windows of a Louis Vuitton store in Fuzhou, East China's Fujian Province. Photo: CFP
After Canada Goose, French luxury brand Louis Vuitton is found to have also applied a "double-standard" refund policy, China Central Television (CCTV) reported on Friday, which will deepen Chinese consumers' anger toward international brands' discriminatory return policies.
The report came after Canadian luxury parka maker Canada Goose ignited a backlash among Chinese consumers for its discriminatory return policy in the Chinese market.
In addition to Canada Goose, a number of other international brands also have adopted different after-sale policies between China and other markets, according to the CCTV report, which cited Louis Vuitton as an example.
The report said that in the US and Canada, merchandise can be returned for full refund within 30 days from the date of purchase. However, a customer service employee of the brand in the Chinese mainland told the Global Times on Saturday that merchandise purchased at their Chinese stores is non-refundable, and only those purchased online are refundable within seven days of receipt. Both can be returned for exchange within 30 days of purchase.
Moreover, on Louis Vuitton's official websites in the US and Canada, its returns and exchanges policy reads that returns will be accepted for exchange in any freestanding Louis Vuitton store around the world, excluding Brazil, China, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, India, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Korea, Lebanon, Mexico, Russia etc.
The brand's different return and exchange policies have also triggered fresh anger among Chinese consumers on Chinese Twitter-like social media Sina Weibo on Saturday.
"You contribute greatly to its market revenue, while it takes discriminatory policy against you. What's the problem with you?" a Chinese netizen named Xiaomei2005 said on Weibo, hinting Chinese consumers shouldn't buy from the brand
There are also netizens calling for the revision of market regulations in China to better protect the rights and interests of Chinese consumers.
Last week, Canada Goose drew the ire of the public after media reports showed that a Chinese consumer who bought a down jacket at a Canada Goose store in Shanghai on October 27 claimed she could not return the jacket after finding quality problems in trademark embroidery, poor stitching and an unusual smell.
While the consumer finally got her refund after Shanghai authorities summoned the brand for talks, it still applies a 7-day unconditional refund policy for its online store in China, with a 30-day unconditional refund policy applied outside of China, according to its official website.