Four Celebrities Involved in Fake Imported Brand Scam 'Apologize and Issue Refunds'; Internet Points Out Two Spokespersons Still 'No Response'

On March 31, a CCTV investigation in China revealed the full truth behind the online health supplement brand 'Usy'. This brand, whose lutein product has long topped sales on short video platforms, has total sales exceeding 4 million bottles across its entire product line, with its flagship lutein supplement contributing over half of those. Now, the brand has been exposed for allegedly false advertising, with several products marketed as 'imported' actually being manufactured within Mainland China.

According to reports, since 2019, Usy has poured huge sums into hiring celebrities for endorsements, including Zhao Lusi, Joseph Zeng, Michelle Chen, Annie Yi, Carman Lee, Ming Dao, Cherie Chung, and Lin Yun. All of them have represented the brand or promoted its products. Thanks to the star effect, their revenue surged rapidly.

But as the scandal has grown, only some of the celebrities involved have stood up to take responsibility, according to reports. Michelle Chen, Carman Lee, Ming Dao, and Cherie Chung have successively apologized, promising full refunds—stating that as long as consumers bought the products through their livestreams, they could apply for after-sales service and receive a full refund immediately. Regarding Annie Yi, some say she apologized, but there are still consumers unable to contact her for refund coordination. As for brand ambassadors Zhao Lusi and Joseph Zeng, there are reports that they have apologized, but without detailed content, while others say they have not formally responded at all.

The discussion section has also revived an old topic: When a celebrity says 'I have eaten this myself for years', or 'my whole family uses this', is that really said in good conscience? Ordinary people are willing to spend big money on health supplements because they trust celebrities, but in the end, that trust becomes a sickle to cut them down, severely exploiting consumers.

It is reported that Usy previously marketed itself with slogans like 'Australian original import' and 'premium nutrition brand'. However, when a CCTV reporter traveled all the way to Australia to verify, it was discovered that the factory address listed was actually an auto repair shop. The company’s so-called Australian parent company and R&D center, awards, brand story, and even foreign experts were all fabrications; the products were made by contract manufacturers in China and hyped up through pure marketing as fake foreign goods. Some products did not even have the required regulatory approval marks for health supplements, relying on nothing but words to deceive consumers out of more than 100 million RMB.