Rhode Saga | Yires urged to be skeptical of high-end brands appearing suddenly

Brand experts have urged Yires to always be cautious when spending their money on high-end brands and to verify things by checking those brands’ official pages to avoid falling for scams.

Their appeal comes as hundreds of unsuspecting young people were scammed over the weekend and sold counterfeit goods at a “Rhode Skin pop-up store” at the Mall of Africa in Midrand.

The unsuspecting consumers only realised hours later that they had been sold dupes.

While some on social media shared their frustrations over the scam, others launched their own investigations and discovered that there were too many red flags that were missed.

@michal_naidoo Rhode Mall Of Africa Saga #rhodegate #rhosesaga #mallofafrica #mallofafricascam #rhodescam #rhodesouthafrica#greenscreen ♬ original sound – Mi’chal Naidoo

  

A brand expert at Reputation 1st Group, Tshepo Matseba, says this incident has the potential to tarnish the popular brand, owned by American model and socialite, Hailey Bieber, among its South African supporters as well as that of the mall, irrespective of whether or not its owners were involved in the scam.

“This incident underscores the dangers of counterfeit operations exploiting globally recognised brands. Rhode’s reputation is built on trust, quality, and authenticity, yet an unauthorised pop-up has deceived consumers and tarnished the brand’s perceived credibility in South Africa. For premium international brands, this is a wake-up call to strengthen market presence, trademark enforcement, and consumer education in regions where counterfeit operations thrive.”

Matseba says the scandal has put Mall of Africa’s vendor approval process under scrutiny.

“The fact that a fake store could operate within its premises threatens consumer confidence and the credibility of all retailers within the mall. Luxury and international brands depend on shopping centres to provide a secure and reputable space for their products. If customers feel they cannot trust what they buy in an upmarket mall, they may take their business elsewhere. Reputation is everything, and once it is compromised, it’s difficult to rebuild,” he adds.

Some social media detectives have managed to trace the company, Beutessa, that brought the fake Rhode Skin to Mall of Africa, and it seems this relatively unknown company has a history of selling counterfeit goods across the country. And it now seems to have disappeared, which has further frustrated those who were scammed.

@zethugqola Rhode beauty pop up scam in Mall of Africa. #tiktoknews #southafrica #rhodeskin ♬ original sound – Zethu

Another Brand expert from Digital Law Company, Rorke Wilson, has given Yires who might have been scammed a bit of hope, saying they should approach their respective banks and find out if they can’t assist them by tracing their payments.

“Mall of Africa may be able to assist too, as they will have needed contact information in order to draft any leasing agreements,” adds Wilson.

He has further urged Yires to always question the veracity of any deal, especially with brands that are known to not have much of a presence in Mzansi.

“In this case, Rhode notoriously doesn’t ship to SA and always announce their pop-ups on their official channels. And that’s exactly what happened here, it was barely up for a day before one of our heroic TikTok sleuths noticed something weird and started asking questions. You should be particularly skeptical if there is a time pressure of any sorts on your purchase. If someone is trying to get you to part with your cash quickly, that’s probably because they’ll be gone just as quick after you’ve handed it over. A trustworthy seller will always understand you needing time to think over a new purchase.”

Matseba has also emphasised the same advise.

“Be skeptical of high-end brands appearing suddenly without prior advertising. If a deal seems too good to be true, it probably is. Social media excitement shouldn’t replace smart consumer habits.”