• The President of UOKiK, Tomasz Chróstny, has issued decisions against two entrepreneurs from the clothing industry: Lord and Polskie Sklepy Odzieżowe (Lavard).
• Falsifying the composition of the clothes was confirmed by inspections carried out by the Trade Inspection Authority and tests at the UOKiK’s laboratory.
• Fines have been imposed on entrepreneurs: Polskie Sklepy Odzieżowe - more than PLN 3.8 million, Lord - more than PLN 213 thousand.

The President of UOKiK, Tomasz Chróstny, has issued two decisions stating that consumers are being misled by false information about the clothes composition. The company in question are Lord of Krakow and Polskie Składy Odzieżowe in Stare Bystre which sells clothes under the Lavard brand (currently under restructuring).

Samples for laboratory testing were taken by Trade Inspection Authority inspectors at stores across the country. It was about jackets, suits and suit pants, shirts. The tests were conducted by employees of the accredited Laboratory of UOKiK Textile Products and Instrumental Analysis in Łódź. They checked whether manufacturers’ declarations were true, e.g. about the amount of wool, cotton, polyester.

- Consumers cannot independently verify the raw material composition of clothes and must trust the information on the label in this regard. For many people, such information is very important - it influences price, maintenance or application. In the case of entrepreneurs selling their products under the Lord and Lavard brands, customers were misled in many cases. For example, according to the declaration on the label, the pants were supposed to be made of material that contained 70 percent wool - in fact, wool was completely missing. If consumers had reliable and truthful information about the composition of garments, they might not have chosen to buy them, says the President of UOKiK, Tomasz Chróstny.

Laboratory tests show that out of those tested:

• 27 samples of Lavard brand clothing - 24 did not match the declared raw material composition,
• 11 samples of Lord brand clothing - 10 did not match the declared raw material composition.

Examples of irregularities:

In the decisions issued, the President of UOKiK found that consumers had been misled about the actual composition of the clothes and imposed fines on the entrepreneurs: Polskie Składy Odzieżowe (Lavard) PLN 3,830,838, Lord PLN 213,478. Once the decision becomes final, entrepreneurs will have to publish information about the decisions of the President of UOKiK on their websites. In addition, such a statement will appear in Lavard stationary stores. Decisions are not final and can be appealed to the court.

These are not the only decisions by the President of UOKiK regarding misleading consumers buying clothes. In March 2022, the President of UOKiK imposed a total fine of over PLN 2.1 million on manufacturers of formal menswear: Kubenz, Recman and Dastan Logistics.

What to look at when buying a lounge jacket?

• Outer fabric - choose it accordingly to your expectations. Consider whether the suit should endure long travel, frequent folding and transport in a suitcase, and during what seasons it will be worn.
• Fabric weight – usually ranges from 220 to 400 g, this corresponds to the weight of a square metre of the fabric. The colder it gets outside, the bigger the weight should be.
• Strand twist - standard labelling is Super 100’s, 120’s or 130’s. They refer to the thickness of the thread hair from which the strand is made. The higher the number, the finer and softer the fabric, but also more prone to creasing and wrinkling.
• Wool and addition of other fibres. Merino wool is comfortable and soft to the touch, it can be cleaned easily, you do not need to wash and clean it often. However, it is prone to creasing. A small dose of polyester or polyamide (5-10%) increases the friction resistance of woollen fabric.

Do you have any concerns or doubts regarding clothing quality or labelling? Report them to the Provincial Trade Inspection Authority Office.