Consumers warned about 'ghost stores' imitating Australian businesses

The ACCC is warning consumers about the operators of four websites allegedly misrepresenting themselves as local businesses, also known as ‘ghost stores’.

It is alleged these four ghost store operators are harming consumers by making false representations that they are local Australian businesses, imminently closing down, and selling high-quality clothing and footwear products, when they are instead based overseas, not imminently closing down, and are drop-shipping low-quality products.

The ACCC has issued Public Warning Notices to warn consumers about specific conduct by the operators of the following four websites: everly-melbourne.com, willowandgrace-adelaide.com, sophie-claire.com and doublebayboutique.com.

“We are warning Australians about the risks of engaging with these four websites specifically, which we allege are not based in Melbourne, Adelaide or Double Bay, nor are they imminently closing down,” ACCC Deputy Chair Catriona Lowe said.

“We further allege that the operators of these websites are supplying products which are not of the advertised quality.”

The ACCC’s Public Warning Notices follow an increased number of consumer reports to the ACCC in recent months about online ghost stores. Since the start of 2025, the ACCC estimates it has received at least 360 reports about 60 online retailers, though media reports suggest many more may be in operation.

The ACCC is concerned that, beyond these four websites, this type of conduct appears to be widespread, and that there are many other online ghost stores in operation that may also be falsely claiming to be local boutiques and supplying poor quality products.

The ACCC is also aware of complaints about ghost stores refusing to provide refunds, or only offering partial refunds, to consumers who have complained about the inferior quality of the goods compared to the advertised descriptions, or not responding to complaints at all.

Ghost stores have been known to target consumers through social media ads and also tend to close and rebrand under new names, often using different Australian suburbs, towns or cities in their names to appear ‘local’. 

“We urge all Australians to think twice before clicking on ads they see on social media which claim to be from a boutique business based in a local town or city,” Ms Lowe said.

“Often ghost stores will share an emotional story on their social media or website that they are a small, locally operated business, needing to close for financial reasons.”

“They will claim they are having a ‘closing down sale’ as a result, with all stock heavily discounted and available on a very limited basis,” Ms Lowe said.

“This conduct preys on the empathy of consumers who have a genuine desire to support local businesses, as well as creating a false sense of urgency.”

“The websites often use a similar format to many other online stores, advertising high-quality boutique clothing at heavily discounted prices. However, when the product arrives in the mail, consumers report receiving cheap, mass-produced products that have been sold at an inflated price and do not fit their advertised quality or description,” Ms Lowe said.

Ghost stores sometimes use a name that is similar to that of a genuine local boutique, leading to competitive and reputational harm for those businesses.

The ACCC understands ghost stores use targeted paid advertisements on social media sites such as Facebook and Instagram and often appear to use the Shopify e-commerce platform to host and operate their webstores.

“We have written to both Meta Platforms (as the owner of Facebook and Instagram) and Shopify to request they scrutinise and take appropriate action against the operators of ghost stores,” Ms Lowe said.

“We want to increase public awareness of these dishonest businesses so that Australians know how to spot them and can avoid being deceived into buying an inferior product.”

Signs that an online business could be a ghost store

• The store may have an Australian place in its name or domain, but the website domain is ‘.com’ and not ‘.com.au’.
• The website for the store often features a fake backstory relating to the owners and claims that, for financial or other reasons, the store is closing down. Advertisements on social media platforms, including Facebook or Instagram, will often claim that the closing down sale ‘ends tonight’.
• Use of AI generated images of the owners or team. This can sometimes be indicated in the URL.

• The returns policy on the website for the store will often suggest that items will need to be returned to a warehouse or general location overseas which is different from where the items are allegedly shipped from, for example, a store that claims to be based in Melbourne but requires returns to be sent to a warehouse in Asia.
• The website does not provide a contact phone number or physical address for the store, or indeed any contact details beyond an email address or web form.
• The website’s Privacy Policy or Terms of Service refers to international laws and regulations instead of Australian laws.
• The website does not provide an ABN (Australian Business Number) or ACN (Australian Company Number) for the business.
• Review platforms, like Trustpilot, often have negative reviews for the business, whereas the business’ website only features very positive reviews.
• The business’ Facebook page was only created recently and has negative reviews or lots of negative emoji reactions to its posts.
• The images of the products may be taken from other websites where the products are advertised under different descriptions and for much lower prices. 

Tips to help determine if an online store is genuine or not

The ACCC is urging consumers to check the business name on the Australian Business Register lookup and to use reverse image or ‘Google Lens’ searches of product photos on the website to see if they have been taken from another site.

Consumers should also check if the store is listed in a local business directory for the location the store claims to be in, or to look for the business name in a search engine and read reviews from other consumers.

Don’t just rely on the reviews on the business’ website as these may not be legitimate. Make further inquiries and if in doubt, do not purchase from the retailer.

What to do if you have purchased something from a ghost store

Consumers should contact their bank or payment provider immediately to see if you can stop the transaction or reverse the charge.

Consumers can also leave a negative review on the business’ Facebook page or a review site like Trustpilot.

Where consumers have accessed the websites via social media ads they can make a complaint directly to the relevant platform. For example, complaints can be made to Facebook, and should include a screenshot of the store ad and/or page, and if the website is hosted by Shopify, the merchant can be reported.  

The website can be reported to Google to have it delisted, and a report can also be made to the ACCC. Consumers can also report websites to ScamWatch.

Screenshots of the websites referred to in the Public Warning Notices

Background

Consumer and fair-trading concerns in the supermarket and retail sectors, with a focus on misleading pricing practices, are a compliance and enforcement priority for the ACCC in 2025-26.

In addition to the conduct outlined above, consumer reports to the ACCC suggest that, when approached, ghost stores do not honour their returns policy and either stop responding to emails or offer only a partial refund.

In some cases, a partial refund is offered but only if the item is shipped back to an overseas warehouse at the consumer’s expense.