Sam Seskin

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IN THE MATTER OF SA:lI SESKIN DOING BUSINESS AS IMPERIAL SALES COMPANY, ETC.

CONSENT ORDER, ETC. , IN REGARD TO THE ALLEGED VIOLA TIO:\ OF THE FEDERAL TRADE CO).MISSION ACT Docket C-1468. Complaint Dec. 1 96B-Decision Dec. , 1968 Consent order requiring a Hollywood, Fla. , distributor of "Una-Trim " a weight-reducing product, to cease making unordered shipments to retail druggists and naming them jn advertising without their prior approval.

IMPERIAL SALES CO. ETC. 1467 1466 Complaint COMPLAINT Pursuant to the provisions of the Federal Trade Commission Act, and by virtue of the authority vested in it by said Act, the Federal Trade Commission having reason to believe that Sam Seskin, an individual doing business as Imperial Sales Company, and The Forward Company hereinafter referred to as respondent, has violated the provisions of said Act, and it appearing to the Commission that a proceeding by it in respect thereof would be in the public interest, hereby issues its complaint stating its charges in that respect as follows:

PARAGRAPH 1. Respondent Sam Seskin is an individual doing business as Impcrial Sales Company and Thc Forward Company with his offce and place of business located at 1515 South 14th A venue, Hollywood, Florida.

PAR. 2. Respondent is now and for some time last past has been engaged in the advertising, offering for sale, sale and distribution of a weight reducing product called L:na-Trim to retailrs for resale to the consuming public. PAR. 3. In the course and conduct of his business, respondent now causes and for some time last past has caused, his product when sold, to be shipped from his place of business in the State of Florida to purchasers thereof located in various other States of the United States, and maintains and at all times mentioned herein has maintained, a substantial course of trade in said product in commerce, as "commerce" is defined in the Federal Trade Commission Act.

PAR. 4. In the course and conduct of his business as aforesaid, respondent has engaged in the practice of making unordered and unauthorized shipments of his product to retail drugstores located in the various States of the United States, and in the further practice of inserting or causing the insertion of advertisements in newspapers of general rculation in the communities where the retail drugstores, to which the aforesaid unordered and unauthorized shipments were made, are located. The aforesaid advertisements announced the availability of respondent' s products at the local retail drugstores named therein, and to which the aforesaid unordcred and unauthorized shipments have been made without prior consent, approval or permission to use the name of such drugstores in such advertisements. Said advertisements have the false appearance of having been inserted in the said newspapers by the local retail drugstores named therein.

Decision and Order 74 F. The acts and practices as hereinabove set forth were and are unfair and deceptive.

PAR. 5. In the conduct of his business, and at all times mentioned herein, respondent has been in substantial competition, in commerce, with corporations, firms, and individuals in the sale of products of the same general kind and nature as that sold by respondent.

PAR. 6. The aforesaid unfair and deceptive acts and practices of respondent have had, and now have, the tendency and capacity to induce, and have induced, retail drugstores and members of the purchasing public to purchase substantial quantities of respondent' s product.

PAR. 7. The aforesaid acts and practices of respondent, as herein alleged, were and are all to the prejudice and injury of the public and of respondent's competitors and constituted, and now constitute, unfair methods of competition in commerce, and unfair and deceptive acts and practices in commerce, in violation of Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act. DECISION AND ORDER The Federal Trade Commission having initiated, an investigation of certain acts and practices of the respondent named in the caption hereof, and the respondent having been furnished thereafter with the copy of a draft of complaint which the Bureau of Deceptive Practices proposed to present to the Commission for its consideration and which, if issued by the Commission, would charge respondent with violation of the Federal Trade Commission Act; and The respondent and counsel for the Commission having thereafter executed an agreement containing a consent order, an admission by the respondent of all the jurisdictional facts set forth in the aforesaid draft of complaint, a statement that the signing of said agreement is for settement purposes only and does not constitute an admission by respondent that the law has been violated as alleged in such complaint, and waivers and other provisions as required by the Commission s Rules; and The Commission having thereafter considered the matter and having determined that it had reason to believe that the respondent has violated the said Act, and that complaint should issue stating its charges in that respect, and having thereupon accepted the executed consent agreement and placed such agreement on the public record for a period of thirty (30) days, now in further conformity with the procedure prescribed in 9 2. 34 (b) of its IMPERIAL SALES CO. ETC. 1469 1466 Decision and Order Rules, the Commission hereby issues its complaint, makes the following jurisdictional findings, and enters the following order: 1. Respondent Sam Seskin is an individual doing business as Imperial Sales Company and as The Forward Company, with his offce and principal place of business located at 1515 South 14th Avenue, Hollywood, Florida.

the sub- 2, The Federal Trade Commission has jurisdiction of ject matter of this proceeding and of the respondent, and the proceeding as in the public interest.

ORDER It is ordered That the respondent Sam Seskin, an individual doing business as Imperial Sales Company or as The Forward Com pany or under any other name or names, and respondent' agents, representatives and employees, directly or through any corporate or other device, in connection with the advertising, offering for sale, sale or distribution of the product "Una-Trim or any other product in commerce, as "commerce" is defined in the Federal Trade Commission Act, do forthwith cease and desist from:

1. Shipping or sending any merchandise to any drugstore or retail establishment without having previously obtained the written and express authorization or consent to the complete terms and conditions of sale or consignment, and resale, of any merchandise by the person, company or corporation to whom sllch merchandise is sent. 2. Placing any newspaper advertisement, or causing the dissemination of an advertisement in any other manner, for the purpose of publicizing such product, which advertisement uses the name of any drugstore or retail establishment without having previously obtained the written and express authorization or consent of the druggist or retail establishment whose name appears in the advertisement. It is tUTther onle,' That the respondent herein shall, within sixty (60) days after service upon him of this order, file with the Commission a report, in writing, setting forth .in detail the manner and form in which he has complied with this order. 1470 FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION DECISIO:-S Complaint 74 F.