Something is rotten in the world of local online retailing. When the same shopper gets burnt twice in a month by two different e-commerce sites, you can't help but smell smoke. Last week's column revealed how a reader's new Samsung S5 smartphone, bought from Kalahari (now Takealot), actually belonged to Telkom.Izak Boshoff's handset, along with scores of others, have since been blacklisted by Telkom after one of its business customers failed to honour his contracts with the parastatal and fraudulently sold on some of the 1000 handsets he'd received in the deal.story_article_left1Takealot - which is refunding affected consumers - said there was no reason to suspect anything improper after its supplier sourced the phones from an alleged authorised Samsung reseller.Now Boshoff and his wife, Marietjie, have been dealt a second blow. Turns out that the R1699 NutriBullet extractor/ blender they bought from Groupon SA in April is a fake.But it took Groupon, the country's biggest daily deals buying site, until Thursday this week to concede that the product is counterfeit.Up to then, it had stood its ground, insisting the product was a genuine parallel import, something it had declared upfront when it advertised the offering.Parallel imports are branded products made for distribution in a foreign market and then imported legally into South Africa, through independent third parties. They are often offered at a lower price.Under the Consumer Protection Act, a parallel import must be declared as such, with a warning that consumers have no recourse against the accredited local importer. A consumer, of course, still has full recourse from the retailer that sold the product.Groupon's ad stated: "NB: These goods are parallel imports. A parallel import is a non-counterfeit product imported from another country. This simply means our suppliers directly import genuine products from suppliers overseas."The first sign of trouble was when Groupon - following legal pressure from NutriBullet's authorised seller - sent out an e-mail to at least 60 affected customers last Friday suggesting the product was bogus.The e-mail read: "It has been brought to our attention that the product you purchased may potentially be substandard and not an authentic brand. Should you wish to have this product refunded, you are most welcome to do so."We sincerely apologise for any inconvenience this may have caused, and will work towards ensuring that our systems are more thorough."The Boshoffs weren't that surprised. They'd already had to have the product replaced by Groupon's supplier, Magic In The Box, after it emitted a strong smell of burning rubber. The replacement has since leaked.mini_story_image_vright1Magic In The Box, which also sells direct to consumers through its website, has more than 40 complaints linked to it on Hellopeter. Gripes include poor service, non-delivery and defective goods.But back to Groupon. When I asked CEO Wayne Gosling what Groupon was doing selling fakes, he sang a different tune. He said the e-mail, "a courtesy" to the authorised South Africa seller, had been incorrectly worded. The product was indeed genuine."We stated from the get go that the item was a parallel import ... the e-mail was meant to be a reminder ... and if this was a concern, we would refund," Gosling said."The use of the words 'substandard' and ensuring our 'systems are more thorough' were erroneous and written by our customer service department, which didn't understand the issue at hand."His version didn't add up.And even less so once I'd spoken to the authorised seller, Cape Town's FastBox (part of the Melbro Group).Melbro, which knew about the Groupon deal within an hour of its opening and later received complaints about the product, bought one of the Groupon products and examined it, with assistance from NutriBullet's US manufacturers."There are various ways in which it visibly differs from the authentic product that we import," Melbro's in-house attorney, Glen Heneck, said.These include a subtle colour change and differences in the unit's blades, but, most strikingly, the incorrect spelling of the word "blade".The written warning on the base unit of the fake product reads: "Never place hand or utensil near bisde."Said Heneck: "It is, dare I say it, an impressive copy, but it's unauthentic nevertheless."The product's US makers confirmed they'd come across the same bogus variant in other markets, he said.Heneck said Melbro's attorneys had sent a letter to Groupon and its supplier in April. A second letter of demand was sent in May, at which stage it was "stated categorically" that the units were counterfeit. The original product is supplied to @Home, Dionwired and Hirsch's, as well as online retailers Yuppiechef, Takealot and Superbalist.So what does Melbro want? "The usual cease and desist remedies, including damages," said Heneck.story_article_left2"We're (naturally) worried that people who've bought these counterfeit units have less-than-happy user experiences and then malign the brand."After I went back to Groupon with evidence of the fake, Gosling relented."Upon an internal investigation today we've decided to e-mail and call all customers involved and tell them they'll be refunded, and we'll be picking up and disposing all items," he said."We entered the agreement with the supplier with the understanding that the items were parallel imports."We don't condone the practice of selling fakes and the supplier will be handled accordingly."Magic In The Box declined to comment.Groupon's blunder doesn't say much for its assurances to me three months ago that it was focused on product quality, which included the adoption of an approved 20-step process to vet deals before going live.The Boshoffs, not surprisingly, are fast losing trust in online buying."It seems as if many online retailers have a few questions to answer," said Marietjie."I'll definitely think twice before shopping online again." She's not the only one.sub_head_start Contact Megan Power sub_head_endE-mail: consumer@sundaytimes.co.zaFollow Megan on Twitter: @Power_ReportTune in to PowerFM 98.7's 'Power Breakfast' (DStv audio channel 889) at 8.50am on Monday to hear more from MeganPlease note: Other than in exceptional circumstances, readers sending me complaints must be willing to be identified and photographed...