Hong Kong’s fight against aggressive sales tactics is far from over

The tale of an 88-year-old woman having her credit card kept by a salesperson at a department store and swiped multiple times within hours for skincare products, a device and treatment sessions worth HK$100,000 is the latest example of strong-arm sales practices, a problem regrettably still found in beauty and other services.

The incident was reported by the South China Morning Post days after a woman said she had been pressured into transactions of more than HK$60,000 at a local outlet of beauty chain Opatra London last month. More complaints followed and prompted the arrests of three people so far. The Customs and Excise Department said it had received 38 calls for help linked to the chain, with reported losses ranging from HK$1,800 to more than HK$200,000, totalling more than HK$3 million (US$382,629).

The controversy surrounding Opatra started with a viral online video in which a woman cried outside an outlet in New Town Plaza shopping centre and claimed she had been cheated. The authorities took enforcement action as more complainants came forward about alleged malpractice across the beauty industry, while the United Kingdom-based company issued a statement saying the operation in Hong Kong was independently owned and run by a local distributor.