NAD Refers SBLA Beauty To Federal Trade Commission

The National Advertising Division (NAD) of BBB National Programs has referred advertising claims made by SBLA Beauty, Inc. to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) after the company failed to provide a substantive response to NAD’s inquiry.  

The US advertising industry founded the NAD and the National Advertising Review Board (NARB) in 1971 as a system of independent industry self-regulation to build consumer trust in advertising and support fair competition in the marketplace. Through its work, thousands of misleading advertising claims have been removed from the marketplace and NAD’s case decisions represent the single largest body of advertising law in the country.

According to NAD, despite repeated outreach attempts, SBLA Beauty did not submit a substantive response to its inquiry or participate in the self-regulatory process. Per NAD/NARB procedures, NAD has referred this matter to the FTC for review and possible enforcement action. 

According to NAD, the following are representative of the claims that served as the basis for the inquiry:

Express Claims
• “Try the first-ever eyelift at home, clinically proven to lift & smooth the eyelid in minutes”
• “The Eye Lift Wand lifts and smooths the eyelids with the SBLA breakthrough
    formula, including the patent-pending SBLA66Peptide™, a truly revolutionary molecule.”
• “Smooths and lifts eyelid creases, hooded eyelids, lifts eyebrows and opens &  brightens the eyes.”
• “Visible results are immediate and with continuous daily use improve
    progressively.”
• “Key Benefits:
          • Opens the eye area by lifting the eyelids
          • Lifts droopy eyelids
          • Visibly smooths eyelid creases
          • Tightens the skin of the entire eye area
          • Diminishes crows feet and under-eye puffiness
          • Improves skin texture and discoloration
          • Builds collagen and regenerates skin cells”

Implied Claim:
The Eye Lift Wand immediately delivers results akin to an eye lift medical procedure.

FTC's Role

FTC’s mission is to protect consumers and competition by preventing anticompetitive, deceptive, and unfair business practices through law enforcement, advocacy, and education without unduly burdening legitimate business activity.

NAD recently concluded its annual conference on ad law this week. The two-day event was held in Philadelphia.