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Susan Schwartz

Hong Kong consumers are being ripped off by discount stores selling samples of cosmetics and perfumes that manufacturers stipulate should be given away.

The Sunday Morning Post  has found that major discount outlets such as Angel, Aster, Rainbow and Sasa are off-loading 'not for sale' miniature cosmetic and perfume items for up to $70 each.

Hundreds of 'free samples' from 13 big-name brands, such as Shiseido, Lancome and Christian Dior, were found on sale, some past their use-by date.

The items have 'not for sale' or 'not for individual sale' printed on the back but many are covered with a bar code or ticket price. The samples include individual products or gifts-with-purchase packs that have been broken up.

Speaking from Tokyo, Shiseido spokeswoman Shioya Ryuko said customers were being asked to pay for items specially created as free gifts.

'We want them to stop doing that and we are against it,' Ms Ryuko said.

She said retailers were making money out of something they were not supposed to put a price tag on.

Sasa spokeswoman Macy Leung Mei-see said there was great demand for the samples. 'A lot of customers look for these as collectors' items and gifts. Some prefer to use them for travel,' Ms Leung said.

Angel Cosmetics marketing manager Karl Pang Ka-wing said it was company policy not to comment.

Cosmetic companies Aster and Rainbow did not return calls.

Shops that cover up the words 'sample' and 'not for sale' could be misleading consumers who would have grounds to lodge complaints, a Consumer Council spokeswoman said.

It was important to give consumers the right to choose what they bought, she said. 'If customers know the products are samples and are willing to pay the price, then that's okay.'

But Ms Leung said the tiny packages provided little space to stick bar codes or price tags without covering the brand name.

'We have no intention of hiding anything from customers because the samples are perfectly fine products we have purchased from our vendors or suppliers,' she said.

'Even though there is still three months from the product's expiry date, we will remove it from the shelves.'

Consumer Council research and survey head Connie Lau Yin-hing queried whether it was appropriate to sell samples.

French cosmetics giant Lancome also attacked the practice, saying manufacturers made samples as a way of providing customers with a free trial.

'If they feel it's good and they like it they can come back and buy the [full-size] product,' a Lancome representative said.

'We know they sell them. Yes they affect us. Can we do anything about it? No. I wonder why customers would want to spend money on something that should be free.'

Lancome says it periodically purchases its own products from stores in an effort to track down the source of the products.

They are then tested at its Paris headquarters, but finding the suppliers is difficult, if not impossible.

Cosmetics are often off-loaded by retailers in the United States and Europe to Asia where the lack of consumer-protection laws makes it easier for the practice to flourish.

Some manufacturers, including Chanel, have incorporated sophisticated invisible coding to track their products.

'Every retailer has a sliding scale and will sell to grey-market operations in Asia,' one industry source said.

'Legally there's nothing we can do about it, unless they have been tampered with, are fake or are out of date. Then we can complain.'

Lane Crawford cosmetics manager Leanne Maddox said customers of stores which sold samples were at a disadvantage.

She said there was no guarantee the product would be fresh and consumers were not given any user instructions.

Reporter's e-mail address: schwartz@scmp.com



Customers cheated as stores sell free samples