Chinese factories are using TikTok to work around retailers and tariffs — big brands say the videos are fake, sort of

Chinese factories are promoting themselves through TIkTok videos and asking American consumers to buy directly from them at a lower cost than retailers.

With President Trump recently raising tariffs on China to 245%, videos have gone viral in recent days of Chinese factories offering products in bulk and/or direct to the consumer from factories that say they supply U.S. retailers.

For example, factories claiming to supply Lululemon and Louis Vuitton have offered products at minimal costs.

As reported by the Independent, one video that garnered 10 million views said it was selling yoga pants from Lululemon for $5 instead of $100, the apparent listed price in the U.S.

Another video reportedly showed a man in a factory who claimed his Louis Vuitton bags can be sold directly to consumers across the world for $50.

Both companies reportedly told the outlet that their products are not finished in China, which raised the question of what “finished” means. Of course, many of these products and factories could be producing counterfeit products, but they also could legitimately be product suppliers that are meant to maximize profits for international retailers.

For Italian products to be labeled “100% Made in Italy” (according the official certification website), a product must be made with “exclusive designs” from Italy, built entirely in Italy, made with Italian semi-finished products, and a have a traceability process.

However, at least some of Louis Vuitton’s products do not contain an official seal and simply say “made in Italy.”

A Louis Vuitton handbag’s tag that says ‘made in Italy’

The Independent noted that it found at least one video that falsely claimed to be a Lululemon supplier. However, a Lululemon spokesperson told the outlet that just 3% or thereabouts of the company’s finished goods are manufactured in mainland China.

The specific nature of the remark is indeed for a reason, as the provided list of manufacturing partners on the Lululemon website revealed that manufacturers from “China Mainland” were categorized separately from “Taiwan.”

Other locations like Korea, Cambodia, Vietnam, and Sri Lanka appeared many times on the list of partners.

Other widely circulated video included $100 alleged Gucci products sold for just $1.49, while another factory boasted laundry pods being sold at a rate of 20 units for $1.

One auto-parts factory promoted a woman in a grime-covered location around dozens of engines who sang, “Many auto parts in my factory, if you need auto parts you can find me.”

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