WATCH: Fake celeb pop-up skincare store scams South Africans
This is why we can't have nice things in SA...
Hailey Bieber, Stephen Baldwin's daughter, is an accomplished model. She recently added CEO and founder to her CV.
Bieber, whose middle name is Rhode, started her own skincare company using the same name.
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The brand has seen great success with a few products reaching viral levels.
While it seems like every celebrity and their mother are creating their own brands, especially skincare and makeup, Bieber's range has seemed to live up to the hype.
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Few of these brands have made it into South African stores and are readily available to users.
If – or rather when – they do, you'll have to hunt them down to find them, and there's the added risk that the products might be fake.
As it turns out, a very elaborate and convincing scam happened right under our noses.
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Social media exploded when a content creator posted a video of a pop-up store for Rhode in the Mall of Africa.
Fans and those who had been patiently waiting to get their hands on these products were extremely excited to see that their skincare dreams had come true.
In one of the first videos showing the space, screens showcase pictures and videos of Bieber and her products.
Watch the video below:
@noya.noy Pop Up of Rhode products in Mall of Africa Jhb 👀🥰 #fyp #foryou #rhode #sa #jhb #mallofafrica #foryoupage ♬ original sound - audios 🤍
Everything seems normal, right?
Wrong.
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As it turns out, people started to suspect this might be a complete scam based on tiny details.
Bieber and Rhode's official social media accounts did not mention the brand opening a temporary store in SA.
Influencers also noted that many product names were misspelt and that the store sold discontinued Rhode products.
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The unfortunate news soon emerged that the store was entirely fake.
The content creator who first posted about it decided to return her purchases, only to find that the pop-up Rhode store had vanished in less than 24 hours.
Watch below:
@ms.prinsloo In less than 24 hours of me buying from them 😭 why can’t we have nice things in South Africa 🥲 #mallofafrica #southafrica #rhode #scammed ♬ original sound - Danè
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One commenter mentioned something that could be important to keep in mind for future occasions: "I mean Rhode would have announced that there's going to be a store in South Africa like Rihanna did with Fenty she announced that the products will be available here in South Africa."
Mall Of Africa did share the following statement on their Instagram story over the weekend:
Mall of Africa takes any concerns around product integrity seriously and continues to provide a trusted shopping experience of the highest standards. Exercising care, Mall of Africa has made a decision to close the Beutessa pop-up at SOOK Mall of Africa. Mall of Africa apologises for any inconvenience caused and remains committed to transparency and providing a positive shopping experience for all.
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Main image courtesy of @ms.prinsloo/TikTok