Sports Direct reported to the CMA for pricing practices

The consumer body claimed it had uncovered “some questionable and dodgy pricing tactics” on the Sports Direct website and said people may be being misled “into thinking they are getting a better deal than they really are”.

Sports Direct, part of Frasers Group, owns a portfolio of brands including Jack Wills, Slazenger, Karrimor, Everlast and Lonsdale.

Frasers Group also owns several other retailers, including USC, Studio and Get the Label, which sometimes appeared to be the only sellers of the Sports Direct brands, according to Which?

The Advertising Standards Authority makes clear that shoppers interpret the RRP as the price at which an item is most commonly sold. This meant shoppers might think the Sports Direct price was “a great deal” compared with the “normal” price across the market, said Which?

It added that it found examples of products where the researchers could not find any other online retailer selling them at or above the Sports Direct reference price, “leading researchers to question if these were, in fact, genuine”.

For example, a Jack Wills hoodie was priced at £24 with a “manufacturer suggested retail price” (MSRP) of £54.99. Which? said that MSRP is an obscure term that consumers might interpret as equivalent to RRP.

According to the group, its researcher could not find that particular hoodie sold or supplied by anyone other than Frasers Group retailers, where it was also £24. It was available on Amazon via Sports Direct for £40.

As per ASA rules: “If a marketer is the only seller of a product, and so has set the price themselves, it is unlikely to be acceptable to refer to the price as an RRP.” However, it is unclear if that applies when the only sellers are members of the same group of businesses.

Which? said Sports Direct did not provide it with a comment for publication. Retail Week has approached the retailer for comment.