Macy’s to Pay $10.5 Million in Class-Action Lawsuit Settlement
A class action lawsuit brought against Macy’s more than five years ago was settled on May 1 in an Ohio U.S. District Court.
The suit alleged the department store chain and manufacturing partner AQ Textiles inflated the true thread count of bedding and linen products, giving customers the false impression they were getting a higher quality product at a higher price point.
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The preliminary approval of the class action settlement signed by Judge Douglas R. Cole did not disclose monetary details of the settlement. However, a press release issued by court-appointed claims administrators on July 7 stated the settlement amount at $10.5 million.
In the suit, original plaintiffs Amy Hill of Missouri and Californian Sarah Hawes claimed they were deceived by the thread counts listed on the packaging. Hill said she purchased Fairfield Square 1000TC Luxury Sateen sheets from a Macy’s store in St. Louis in 2016 but discovered the actual counts were lower. Hawes purchased her 900-thread-count queen-sized sheet set for $69.99 at a Macy’s store in Beverly Hills. Like Hill, Hawes claimed she was duped into believing the sheets contained a higher thread count and thus “of higher quality, softer and better for sleep than sheets with lower thread counts.” The real thread count of the sheets Hawes purchased was approximately 249, the complaint said.
The suit contended that Macy’s inflated the actual thread counts by counting each strand of yarn, plied from an original thread and twisted back together, thereby “doubling or tripling” the actual thread count.
The suit pointed to the prevalence of this practice in the textile industry, citing a Aug. 2, 2005 letter sent by the Federal Trade Commission to the National Textile Association that suggested the following remedy: “A possible non-deceptive way to disclose both the thread count and the yarn ply would be to state, for example: ‘300 thread count, two-ply yarn.’ A representation of ‘600 thread count’ for this same product would likely mislead consumers about the quality of the product being purchased,” the FTC wrote in response to a request from the NTA for an opinion on the matter. In 2013, the NTA merged with the National Council of Textile Organizations and the American Manufacturing Trade Action Coalition.
The FTC has since declared the practice “inappropriate,” but hasn’t banned it altogether.
But the “inappropriate” label has opened the door to numerous lawsuits and companies that have been sued for allegedly inflating thread counts including Ross in 2021, and Simmons Bedding Company, which in May was sued in a California District Court for describing Simmons Beautyrest products as having a 1,000 thread count when the actual number was 216.
A representative for Macy’s told Sourcing Journal the company does not comment on pending litigation.
Consumers who purchased chief value cotton (CVC) sheets supplied by AQ Textiles, LLC, from a Macy’s store in the U.S. or at macys.com between Nov. 8, 2013 and March 24, 2023, could be eligible for compensation, the release said. Settlement class members must file their objections with the Cincinnati court by Sept. 6, 2023. A Sept. 20, 2023 approval hearing will determine whether the settlement should be ratified as “fair, reasonable, and adequate.” A final approval hearing is set for Oct. 20, 2023.
