Lily’s Florist admits to misleading customers after advertising as ‘local’ across Australia

An online Australian florist has admitted to duping customers into believing they were buying fresh flowers from local businesses.

Customers ordering through Lily’s Florist were made to believe it was a local business in more than 1000 Australian suburbs, but the online company outsourced to third-party florists to fulfil its orders.

It used more than 1500 different webpages and Google ads to mislead customers, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission said.

United Florists Pty Ltd, which operates Lily’s Florist, has given a court-enforceable undertaking to the watchdog to have its directors complete compliance training.

Elysium Marketing Pty Ltd, which is the trustee for the owner of Lily’s Florist’s business name and website, has made the same undertaking.

Online florist, Lily’s Florist (above) has admitted to misleading customers with over 1500 webpages and Google ads that made Aussies believe they ‘bought local’

They both admitted Lily’s Florist made misleading representations to customers.

The online florist marketed itself as ‘your local flower delivery service’.

‘Statements that mislead consumers into thinking they’re dealing with a small business in a local area unfairly diverts business away from legitimate local businesses,’ watchdog commissioner Liza Carver said.

‘Businesses seeking to boost their online presence by targeting particular locations in their marketing strategy must be transparent about how their business operates and where they are actually located.’

Another company, Fig & Bloom Pty Ltd, has taken down potentially misleading representations from 940 webpages that could have made customers believe it was a local business in a specific suburb.

Flowers that were purchased through Lily’s Flowers were instead packaged and shipped from warehouses that were often a fair way away (pictured, stock image)

The company had its flowers assembled and delivered from one of three warehouses, which were often a fair way away from the suburb, the watchdog said.

‘Consumers may seek out local providers in the hope of receiving fresher flowers or to support businesses in their neighbourhood,’ Ms Carver said.

‘Misleading representations about the nature of a florist deprives consumers of the ability to make informed choices about their orders.’

Aussies from more than 1000 towns found themselves duped by the online florist, which has since taken down any misleading content (pictured, stock image)

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Lily’s Florist cooperated with the watchdog’s investigation and has removed misleading statements from its webpages.

Lily’s Florist and Fig & Bloom have been contacted for comment.