Retailer Pricing Strategies: Back To School Under The Competition Act

How much did you really save in Back to School sales? Can consumers trust a retailer's claims about its "regular" prices and its "sale" prices? Canada's competition law enforcer is showing renewed interest in retailers' ordinary selling price strategies.

Retail sales promotions in Canada must comply with the deceptive marketing sections of the Competition Act, including the "ordinary selling price" (OSP) provisions. They apply whether the promotions occur in-store or online, and whether the retailer is based in Canada, in the US or EU, or elsewhere.

Canada's Competition Bureau, led by the Commissioner of Competition, has not focused publicly on OSP for several years. But this year, the Commissioner settled one OSP case for $3.5 million and, in another OSP investigation, obtained court orders requiring extensive document production and ordering questions to be answered.