Sole Society Confirms Emails Threatening Legal Action Were a Phishing Scam

Samantha McDonald
·3 min read

Sole Society has confirmed that recent emails threatening legal action against customers were a scam.

In a statement to FN, the footwear and accessories maker said it learned today that unauthorized phishing emails were delivered to its mailing list. The messages, which displayed subject lines warnings of “legal action” or indicated a “problem with a past order,” requested customers’ credit card information.

“We deeply regret any anxiety or concern the incident has caused,” a spokesperson for the company said. “At this time, we have no reason to believe any customer payment data was downloaded or taken by the malicious actors that sent these phishing emails, which were an attempt to obtain this information.”

To customers who received the phishing email but did not open it, Sole Society recommended that they neither click on it or any of its links, nor reply to it. The shoppers, as well as those who opened the email but did not click on any links, were instructed to delete the email as soon as possible.

For those people who clicked on the links and entered their personal information, the company advised that they contact their credit card provider and report that it might have been compromised.

Customers who want to reach out to a customer service representative were told to contact (855) 435-5050 or visit the website help.vincecamuto.com.

Sole Society was founded in 2011 and has since expanded its business: In late 2014, Aldo became its primary shoe and handbag supplier, and it received $8 million in funding the following summer from Nordstrom and Insight Partners. The investment enabled the Los Angeles-based firm to beef up its executive team and broaden distribution beyond the direct-to-consumer model. With the cash infusion, it was also able to open a 2,250-square-foot brick-and-mortar outpost at the Santa Monica Place shopping mall in California in December 2015. (The store has reportedly closed down.)

In August 2016, Camuto Group took a majority stake in Sole Society. At the time, then-Camuto Group CEO Alex Del Cielo explained that the new digital-focused buy will help the company ramp up its own e-commerce presence, as well as extend the shoe maker’s multibrand reach.

Then, in October 2018, DSW and Authentic Brands Group entered into a nearly unprecedented deal — in which the retailer and brand management firm, respectively, partnered to snap up Camuto Group. The acquisition gave DSW’s umbrella organization, Designer Brands, full control of Camuto Group’s sourcing, production, design and distribution infrastructure, along with a 40% share in the intellectual property of its brand portfolio, which includes labels such as Vince Camuto, Enzo Angiolini and Sole Society. ABG, on the other hand, was handed the remaining share of its IP and is responsible for growing and marketing the labels.

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