Target Corp. is cutting ties with one of the world's biggest textile manufacturers after it discovered that the company passed off sheets as being made from Egyptian cotton when they were not.
Target cuts ties with vendor for deceptively selling Egyptian cotton sheets
Sheets were labled as Egyptian cotton when they were not.
August 20, 2016 at 5:17PM
The Minneapolis-based retailer said Friday that it is terminating its relationship with India-based Welspun Global Brands after an "extensive investigation" confirmed the deception. It has already pulled the products from its store shelves.
"These sheets were produced by a number of vendors, and only one of those vendors was substituting product," Target said in a statement.
The retailer said it was a clear violation of the company's code of conduct as well as not living up to the "high ethical standards to which we hold ourselves, and our vendors."
Welspun said it would issue a response at a later time.
About 750,000 sheets that were supposed to be made from 500-thread count Egyptian cotton under the Fieldcrest label between August 2014 and July 2016 were affected by this issue.
On Friday, Target began reaching out to Redcard holders and other Target.com customers who purchased the sheets to offer them a full refund. Other customers can fill out a form on the help page of Target's website to request a refund in the form of a gift card. Target added that there are no safety concerns with the sheets.
"We value the trust that our guests place in us," the company said. "The Target team will continue to work closely with all vendors to help ensure that the products we offer to our guests meet or exceed their expectations."
According to Welspun's website, it is a leading textile supplier to 14 of the top 30 U.S. retailers.
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Pioneering surgeon has run afoul of Fairview Health Services, though, which suspended his hospital privileges amid an investigation of his patient care.
