192-3138

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

BEFORE THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION

COMMISSIONERS: Lina M. Khan, Chair

Noah Joshua Phillips

Rebecca Kelly Slaughter 

Christine S. Wilson 

________________________________________________

In the Matter of

FASHION NOVA, LLC, DOCKET NO. C-4759

a limited liability company. 

________________________________________________

COMPLAINT

The Federal Trade Commission, having reason to believe that Fashion Nova, LLC, a 

limited liability company (“Respondent”), has violated the provisions of the Federal Trade 

Commission Act, and it appearing to the Commission that this proceeding is in the public 

interest, alleges:

1. Fashion Nova, LLC is a California limited liability company with its principal office or

place of business at 2801 E. 46th Street, Vernon, California 90058.

2. Respondent has advertised, labeled, offered for sale, sold, and distributed Fashion Nova

brand apparel.

3. The acts and practices of Respondent alleged in this complaint have been in or affecting

commerce, as “commerce” is defined in Section 4 of the Federal Trade Commission Act.

Course of Conduct

4. Respondent has sold its Fashion Nova brand apparel primarily online through the

fashionnova.com website.

5. Respondent specializes in “fast fashion” apparel designed and manufactured quickly and

inexpensively to allow the mainstream consumer to buy the latest fashion trends. Most Fashion

Nova merchandise sells for under $49.99. Respondent has added as many as 1,000 or more new

clothing designs per week.

6. Each product page on the Fashion Nova website provides consumers with the opportunity

to review the product and rate it on a five-star scale. At the bottom of each product page is a

section entitled “REVIEWS.” Next to that is a button labeled “WRITE A REVIEW.”

Consumers who click on the button are encouraged to give the product a star rating from one to

five, write a review, and “POST” it. If there are no customer reviews for a particular product,
2

consumers are encouraged to “BE THE FIRST TO WRITE A REVIEW.” Fashion Nova also 

sent its customers emails soliciting product reviews of the customers’ recent purchases.

7. Each product page with existing reviews displayed the product’s average star rating and a

summary graph of the number of reviews with each star rating, followed by individual

consumers’ reviews and ratings.

8. Fashion Nova installed a third-party online product review management interface. The

interface allows users to choose to have certain reviews automatically post based upon their star

ratings and hold lower-starred reviews for client approval prior to posting.

9. From as early as late 2015 through mid-November 2019, Fashion Nova chose to have

four- and five-star reviews automatically post to the website, but did not approve or publish

hundreds of thousands lower-starred, more negative reviews.

Count I

Deceptive Review Practices

10. In connection with the advertising, promotion, offering for sale, or sale of Fashion Nova

brand apparel, Respondent has, through the means described in Paragraphs 6 and 7, represented,

directly or indirectly, expressly or by implication, that the product reviews on the Fashion Nova

website accurately reflect the views of all purchasers who submitted reviews of Fashion Nova

products to the website.

11. In fact, the product reviews on the Fashion Nova website did not accurately reflect the

views of all purchasers who submitted reviews of the products because in numerous instances the

Respondent suppressed product reviews with ratings lower than four stars. Therefore, the

representation set forth in Paragraph 10 is false or misleading.

Violations of Section 5

12. The acts and practices of Respondent as alleged in this complaint constitute unfair or

deceptive acts or practices in or affecting commerce in violation of Section 5(a) of the Federal

Trade Commission Act.

THEREFORE, the Federal Trade Commission this 18th day of March, 2022, has issued this 

Complaint against Respondents. 

By the Commission.

April J. Tabor

Secretary

SEAL:

ISSUED: March 18, 2022