Would Sephora really ban customers who spend thousands of dollars every year with them? Last year, frequent customers say they had their ability to place online orders taken away for buying too much stuff. This year, frequent customers report having their accounts shut down or their ability to place orders restricted. Funny, thing though: all of these customers have e-mail addresses based in China, or Chinese surnames. [More]
gray market
Trader Joe’s Sues Owner Of Store In Canada That Sells Only Trader Joe’s Items
By 8.19.13
Trader Joe’s has made it known that they want one of their best customers to stay away. That’s because he isn’t buying thousands of dollars’ worth of gluten-free granola and chocolate-covered potato chips for his household in Canada: he’s hauling them across the border to sell at his own shop, called Pirate Joe’s, at higher prices. [More]
What Is The Gray Market, And Why Should I Care?
By 5.9.13 — Updated: 5.10.17
Back in February, we posted the story of a reader who got a great deal from an online discount vendor on a Samsung MP3 player, but learned that there was a reason why the deal was so fab. It had been manufactured for the Chinese market, not the United States market, and made its way to her pocket through gray market channels. That meant that it didn’t have a warranty through Samsung USA: if she wanted to fix it, she had to send it for repair in Hong Kong. Okay, but what’s the “gray market?” [More]
