The French consumer watchdog has fined fast fashion retailer Boohoo €2.3 million over deceptive discounts and product descriptions.

The Directorate-General for Competition, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control (DGCCRF) said that Boohoo had exaggerated its discounts, preventing customers from getting a clear idea of the savings on offer.

In analysis of Boohoo items promoted as on discount, the DGCCRF found 48 had actually increased in price, 40 per cent were not actual price reductions, and 7 per cent were not reduced by as much as the promotion said.

Boohoo was also found to have described synthetic products as “leather” and “suede” in contravention of the French code de la consummation (consumer code).

“We have cooperated fully with the regulator, ​and continue to ​review how ⁠we price and label our products,” a spokesperson for the company told Reuters, adding that the watchdog’s findings related to Boohoo operations between October 2023 and February 2024.

At this time, the company was under the management of chief executive John Lyttle, who left the firm in 2024 ahead of it rebranding as Debenhams Group in 2025.

The DGCCRF has intensified its scrutiny of online platforms this year as it examines the practices of popular e-commerce brands. In April, the French watchdog issued a warning that almost half of online retail products fail to meet compliance standards. This included beauty and electronics products which it found to be dangerous to human health.

In June, the watchdog fined the online retailer Shein €22.5 million over problems with its returns and order confirmations processes. Shein vowed to contest the charges.

Misleading online discounts are also the focus of the British government, with the new prime minister Andy Burnham having pledged to end “phoney bargains” by cracking down on how retailers can promote deals.

“If something is advertised as half price, it should actually be half price,” Burnham wrote in the Guardian newspaper.

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