Happi Staff03.16.20
Even in crisis, people are capable of good deeds—especially when they're threatened with jail time. The Tennessee man who last week admitted to stockpiling hand sanitizer in an effort to strike it rich on Amazon, donated all of his supplies after the state Attorney General began an investigation into price gouging.
On Sunday morning, Matt Colvin, an Amazon seller outside Chattanooga, TN, helped volunteers from a local church load two-thirds of his stockpile of hand sanitizer and antibacterial wipes into a box truck for the church to distribute to people in need.
Officials from the Tennessee attorney general’s office Sunday took the other third, which they plan to give to their counterparts in Kentucky for distribution. Colvin and his brother Noah bought some of the supplies in Kentucky this month.
The donations capped a tumultuous 24 hours for the Brothers Colvin. On Saturday morning, The New York Times published an article about how the duo cleaned out stores of sanitizer and wipes in an attempt to profit off the public’s panic over the coronavirus pandemic. They sold 300 bottles of hand sanitizer at a markup on Amazon before the company removed the listings and warned sellers they would be suspended for price gouging.
Tennessee’s price-gouging law prohibits charging “grossly excessive” prices for a variety of items, including food, gas and medical supplies, after the governor declares a state of emergency. The state can fine people up to $1,000 a violation.
On Sunday morning, Matt Colvin, an Amazon seller outside Chattanooga, TN, helped volunteers from a local church load two-thirds of his stockpile of hand sanitizer and antibacterial wipes into a box truck for the church to distribute to people in need.
Officials from the Tennessee attorney general’s office Sunday took the other third, which they plan to give to their counterparts in Kentucky for distribution. Colvin and his brother Noah bought some of the supplies in Kentucky this month.
The donations capped a tumultuous 24 hours for the Brothers Colvin. On Saturday morning, The New York Times published an article about how the duo cleaned out stores of sanitizer and wipes in an attempt to profit off the public’s panic over the coronavirus pandemic. They sold 300 bottles of hand sanitizer at a markup on Amazon before the company removed the listings and warned sellers they would be suspended for price gouging.
Tennessee’s price-gouging law prohibits charging “grossly excessive” prices for a variety of items, including food, gas and medical supplies, after the governor declares a state of emergency. The state can fine people up to $1,000 a violation.
