Beware of online ads with heartfelt backstories — they may not be real small businesses

Online shoppers scrolling through social media or browsing holiday sales are increasingly encountering polished ads that appear to spotlight small, family-run businesses on the brink of closing. Many of these sites feature emotional narratives, images of elderly artisans, or claims of decades-long craftsmanship. But consumer advocates and researchers warn that some of these retailers are carefully constructed facades — designed to sell mass-produced goods while exploiting trust.

Two such examples, Melia & Co. and Olivia Westwood Boutique, illustrate how convincing these operations can appear. Both present themselves as intimate, women-led businesses rooted in tradition, community, and personal loss. Yet a closer examination shows that neither operates as advertised, and both share common warning signs seen in a growing wave of online shopping scams.

Familiar products, identical images

Melia & Co.’s website features sweaters described as the final creations of a woman who has spent decades hand-knitting garments filled with “quiet stories of care and beauty.” The narrative suggests she is closing her small studio, offering her remaining pieces to customers as a final farewell.

Olivia Westwood Boutique tells a different but similarly evocative story. Its “About Us” page describes twin sisters continuing a boutique their mother founded in 1972, emphasizing values of family, community, and women supporting women. The site advertises a sale commemorating what would have been the late founder’s 95th birthday.

Despite these distinct narratives, both sites sell many of the same Nordic and festive sweaters, using identical stock images. Domain registration records show that both websites were registered in China in November, just ahead of the peak holiday shopping season. On consumer review platforms such as Trustpilot, negative feedback for both stores has accumulated, with buyers reporting low-quality products, long shipping delays, and difficulties obtaining refunds.

Melia & Co. did not respond to requests for clarification about its ownership or operations. A closer look at one of its promotional pop-up ads reveals the word “advertorial” at the top and bottom, along with a disclaimer stating that the people shown in the photos are models. At least three other websites use the same images and sell the sweaters as “lovingly hand-knitted in small batches.”

Olivia Westwood Boutique, when asked where it was based and who owned it, replied by email that it operates as an online boutique “working with trusted global fulfillment partners to serve our customers,” without addressing questions about its origin story.

A widespread and growing problem

Online shopping fraud is not new, but it is becoming more difficult for consumers to identify. According to a Pew Research Center survey conducted in April 2025 and published in July, about 36% of Americans who reported buying an item online that never arrived or turned out to be counterfeit said they failed to receive a refund.

Advances in digital advertising and artificial intelligence have further blurred the line between legitimate small businesses and deceptive operations. Seth Ketron, a marketing professor at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota, said AI-generated images and text are increasingly being used to give fraudulent sites the appearance of authenticity and history.

“It’s getting more and more common,” Ketron said. “If you’re not careful or you don’t really know what to look for, it’s easy to gloss over the signs that it’s probably not real.”

Misleading ads often appear directly in social media feeds or as banner ads on unrelated websites, where shoppers may be less inclined to scrutinize them closely.

Check for verifiable details

For legitimate small business owners, impersonation scams can be damaging as well. Deanna Newman, who owns C’est La Vie, an online jewelry retailer based in Ontario, Canada, discovered the problem after receiving an angry comment on her Facebook page from someone claiming to have received poor-quality goods from her store.

After investigating, Newman found no record of the order. She later concluded that scammers were using her business name for multiple fake jewelry websites. Customers who searched online to complain about inferior products were sometimes redirected to her legitimate site.

Some of the copycat sites claimed C’est La Vie had physical locations in cities such as New York, Birmingham, Dublin, and elsewhere — none of which existed. Customers reported receiving low-grade jewelry shipped from China, or nothing at all.

Newman posted warnings on her website and social media accounts and shared videos on Instagram and TikTok to show she was a real person running a real business. While some fraudulent sites were taken down, the surge of complaints and poor reviews still affected her sales.

She advises shoppers to look for verifiable details, such as a physical address, working phone number, or clear ownership information. When in doubt, contacting the business directly can be revealing.

“If they’re genuine, they should be happy to reply,” Newman said. “If it looks too good to be true, it probably is.”

Be cautious of emotional appeals

Experts say emotionally charged stories are a common tactic used to lower consumers’ skepticism. Announcements of “going-out-of-business” sales, family tragedies, or memorial promotions are frequently used to prompt quick purchases.

Newman said the scammers using her company’s name employed multiple versions of this strategy, including claims about the death of a close family member. In one case, a customer contacted her to express sympathy for the supposed loss of her son.

“They thought I was the scam website,” she said. “They believed they were supporting someone going through something difficult.”

Use third-party checks

Murat Kantarcioglu, a computer science professor at Virginia Tech, recommends checking third-party reviews before buying from unfamiliar online retailers. While reviews themselves can be manipulated, they can still provide useful context when viewed critically.

Platforms such as the Better Business Bureau, Trustpilot, and established marketplaces like Amazon or Etsy can offer clues about a company’s history. A business claiming decades of operation should typically have reviews stretching back several years.

“If the small business claims to be there for 30 years, they should have reviews from at least a couple of years back,” Kantarcioglu said.

Look up the domain — and trust your instincts

Another simple step is checking when and where a website domain was registered. Kantarcioglu suggests using tools provided by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, as well as services like Whois or GoDaddy.

A mismatch between a company’s claimed location and its domain registration, or a site registered only months ago but marketed as long-established, can be a red flag.

Even with precautions, scams can still slip through. As digital tools improve, deceptive practices are likely to become more convincing, experts warn.

“As AI gets better, people doing dubious business practices are going to have an easier time duping people,” Ketron said. “Things are going to look more and more convincing, and that makes them harder to detect.”

For consumers, the safest response when something feels off may be the simplest one: pause, investigate, and if doubts remain, walk away.