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Ugg footwear retailer Christofi Investments has paid $39,600 in penalties after the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) issued it with two infringement notices for allegedly making misleading pricing claims on its websites.
The infringement notices relate to advertisements on the Ugg Originals and Ugg Australia Classic websites that displayed classic ugg slippers and platform uggs at what appeared to be a discounted price alongside a higher strikethrough “was” price.
The ACCC alleges the claims were false or misleading in breach of the Australian Consumer Law (ACL) because the products had not been offered for sale or sold at the higher price in a reasonable period before the advertisements were published.
The regulator was alerted to the conduct by consumer complaints to its Infocentre.
What the ACCC alleges
The practice at issue is known as strikethrough pricing, where a retailer displays a current selling price alongside a crossed-out higher price to create the impression of a discount or saving. The ACL prohibits businesses from misleading consumers about the price of goods, including by creating a false impression that a product is being offered at a reduced price when the higher reference price was not genuine.
ACCC Commissioner, Luke Woodward, described the regulator’s concern that shoppers were likely to have believed they were receiving a genuine discount.
“The ACCC was concerned that consumers were likely to have been misled by the Ugg websites’ claims they were getting ugg boots and slippers at a genuine discount, when we allege this was not the case,” Woodward noted.
He warned that the consumer law applies equally to online retail as it does to physical stores.
“It is a breach of Australian Consumer Law to mislead consumers about products or pricing. We remind retailers that the ACL applies just as much to online stores as it does to bricks and mortar stores.”
Woodward added that the ACCC views misleading pricing as harmful not only to consumers but also to competitors who price their products accurately.
“The ACCC continues to actively pursue cases involving misleading pricing practices by supermarkets and other retailers. False pricing claims do not just cause harm to consumers, they harm competing retailers who present their prices fairly and accurately.”
About Christofi
Christofi Investments is an Australian-based retailer of Ugg footwear and related products. It operates 26 physical stores across Australia as well as an online retail presence.
The company owns the Ugg Australia Classic website, www.uggaustraliaclassic.com.au, and administers the Ugg Originals website, www.uggoriginals.com.au. The allegedly misleading pricing claims appeared on both sites.
The ACCC noted the matter is not connected to the long-running legal disputes over the Ugg and UGG trademarks between US-based and Australian companies.
Broader enforcement context
The infringement notices sit within a broader pattern of ACCC enforcement activity around misleading pricing practices in Australian retail, including ongoing cases involving supermarket chains.
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Under the ACL, the ACCC can issue an infringement notice when it has reasonable grounds to believe a person or business has contravened certain consumer protection provisions. The payment of a penalty specified in an infringement notice is not an admission of a contravention of the ACL.
Last Updated on June 15, 2026 by Nick Ross
