October 16, 2018

Sunday Riley Allegedly Asks Employees to Leave Positive Reviews

Sunday Riley fake reviews

News exploded yesterday that Sunday Riley asked their employees to leave positive reviews of their products on sites like Sephora. A Reddit user shared an internal company e-mail yesterday stating that employees are asked to write fake positive reviews daily.

The story was picked up on Estee Laundry yesterday which is an Instagram beauty news account. At this time Estee Laudry took a copy of the e-mail from Reddit to share on their account and proceeded to tag Sunday Riley in the post and this is where the real tea gets spilled…

Sunday Riley’s official Instagram account replied to Estee Laundry and admitted they do indeed ask employees to write positive reviews. One of the most interesting statements in Sunday Riley’s reply was the following:

“At one point, we did encourage people to post positive reviews at the launch of this product, consistent with their experiences. There are a lot of reasons for doing that, including the fact that competitors will often post negative reviews of products to swing opinion.” Note the fact they accuse other brands of posting negative reviews as this is somewhat important in the grand scheme of things. Why is this important? Because as you may know recently there was some gossip going around that youTubers/influencers were being paid for reviews and product mentions on their channels. Ok, nothing really new there! We all knew that, that’s their job. However, there was also mention that allegedly in some cases a brand would ask for a positive review and also, for the influencer to proceed to talk negative about a competitive brand’s product. I thought it was interesting Sunday Riley pretty much confirmed something that was somewhat hazy before.

There’s some sense of shock when I read all this but also, I consider myself somewhat of a smart consumer and I do realize many reviews on Amazon, Sephora, and other retail sites don’t always ring true. I guess it’s just a little surprising to hear a company stand up and actually admit it is in fact true.

It also comes as unexpected from a beloved niche and indie brand like Sunday Riley. I’m sure it’ll be very disappointing news for fans of the brand.

Again, all of you are very smart consumers and none of this likely comes as any great surprise. But I still find it a little sad none the less!

I hope Sunday Riley learns a lesson from all of this and I hope that lesson is learned by other beauty brands. Quality, formula, packaging, it all speaks for itself. We wouldn’t need fake reviews if the products performed as well as they are marketed as.

About the Muse

Isabella MuseIsabella is just an average everyday geeky girl who doesn’t blend her eyeshadow correctly, wears too much blush, and hopes she never finds her holy grail products because she likes the thrill of the chase so much. Her mission is to bring you super honest reviews on makeup, skincare, fragrance and all things beauty. She’s in no way an expert on the topic and she sure as hell isn’t a super model. But she’s passionate about makeup and is seeking like-minded individuals that like pina coladas, getting caught in the rain, and ones that enjoy spending hundreds of dollars at Sephora without feeling buyer’s remorse. If you’re that person feel free to reach out and leave a comment or follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Bloglovin‘.

Leave a Comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Comments

  • Hollie

    NOOOOOOO so much of my HG skincare is Sunday Riley. I needed them to not be gross 🙁

    • Isabella Muse

      girl so long as it works for you just avoid the drama 🙂 and keep on keeping!

      • Hollie

        Maybe a topic of discussion post- how many of us actually leave reviews on Ulta and Sephora’s sites? I honestly never do, whether I love or loathe something. Maybe I’m part of the problem of skewing reviews since maybe a lot of “real folks” don’t? Or maybe I’m the only lazy one? I don’t even look at ratings and reviews anymore, I put all my stock on the words of a few trusted bloggers (you and Christine/Temptalia) and a few YouTubers (vintageortacky, emilynoel83, and xsparkage).

        • Isabella Muse

          I don’t either no time! I used to write reviews on Amazon but I no longer have time for that either 🙁 But that is a good topic to cover! I wonder how many average users do review product. thank you! I’m honored to be apart of the bloggers you read/watch!

        • Maggie

          I purchase a ridiculous amount of products a month and I’m a VIB Rouge and Platinum member at Ulta. I never, ever take the time to leave reviews. I’ll read them, but I’m with you, I generally give stock to what bloggers I have been reading for YEARS say. It’s such a weird thing because I do have my own opinions and strong opinions about certain products, but I just don’t ever feel the impulse to leave reviews. I tell my friends in person what my recommendations are, beyond that and narrating my fake YouTube videos in my head when I feel strongly about something, I feel no impulse to leave reviews.

        • Anne

          this makes me consider that I should write more reviews at retailers’ sites!

        • Charlotte

          I literally just went and posted two reviews I’d been meaning to leave at Sephora after seeing this news. Both were reviews of products I found middling at best, and yet have gotten hundreds of breathless reviews. And maybe other folks did like the product a lot better than I did – YMMV, everyone’s skin is different – but when I see product I had a negative experience with have all or almost all positive reviews, I do wonder. And feel the need to balance things out.

        • kjh

          I used to on Sephora…with a 96% approval rating. Hah…see how the game affects even those of us who really don’t give a $#!+ ? Then I stopped, when they posted a positive literally 5-10 secs after post (on old MUFE shadow), and dinged/unpublished my scathing comment about touch in sol liners at the same time.When they changed formats, I could not anymore, but would not anyway. On U, I have cust-reviewed on Cosrx, bec I love it so much and other things I wish to see continue there. Usually more obscure items, or thing that are not as they seem. Never do, on items that get a lot of reviews, and often get far too busy to bother.

  • Jen R

    You know, my sketch-o-meter went wayyyy off the charts for SR recently when they starting having full-size products in all sorts of subscription boxes. That CEO serum that was in multiple boxes has a $60+ price point! Could be that they just had a manufacturing surplus they were trying to offload, but honestly kind of seemed to me like trying a little too hard to ingratiate themselves to a larger audience.

    I like a bunch of their products, but find the “natural” fragrances to be so off-putting that I end up not using them. The only thing that actually smells good to me is the CEO cream; the UFO oil for acne seems like a good match for me, but I gag from the smell whenever I try to use it.

    • kjh

      Those volatile essential oils can raise havoc with your skin, once something sensitized you. Never went Sunday due to that. None this surprised me in the least. Not SR specifically. I have always thought they all do it.

  • Christina

    I agree with you here, Muse. I’m not surprised that they encourage(d) employees to write positive reviews and that other companies write negative reviews of their products. I don’t believe all the reviews anyway, and, as you said, I’m a smart consumer who does my research.

    That being said, I find it sad that we can’t trust reviews anymore. I’m sure if I posted something positive about a product, there’s someone out there that thinks I’m being paid to post it, especially since I rarely write reviews unless I feel strongly about something or I have the time. I remember my reviews on Yelp not being posted because I didn’t post often enough and the system thought I was a fake reviewer…I imagine the same thing happens with sites like Sephora.

    • Isabella Muse

      it really does suck! I hate I can’t depend on Amazon for a solid book review! All the book reviews are FAKE! It’s awful 🙁

  • Anne

    You know, this reminds me of why I like blogs like this and a few others who aren’t afraid to love or hate beauty products.

  • Beth

    Everything I’ve tried from the brand irritates my skin so not a huge loss for me 🙂

    • kjh

      Learn to read ingredients lists and avoid those volatile essential oils. Burt’s Bees killed my lips today..the limonene, linalool, etc. I should throw it away, b/c I know it is not good for me, even on days it does not bother me. Not to mention tetrahydrozaline (or however you spell it), the anti-redness ingredient typically in Visine. It felt like total acid…and never bothered me at all before my current conditions. You HAVE to get up on that stuff, or you will keep having the problems, returning stuff, or deep sixing it. It is a major undertaking to learn even the basics, but beyond worth it. Cosdna, EWG, and Paula’s ingredients dictionary are my besties now. Ten years ago, I had zero issues. One they start, they tend to generalize. We need to be informed, for our own safety, as well as our preferences.

      • Beth

        I use Drunk Elephant exclusively atm and so far I’ve had no issues. I avoid fragrance, alcohol and essential oils and prefer to avoid silicones. I’ve also reluctantly admitted that cream and liquid cosmetics when used regularly clog the shite out of my pores. Rosacea runs in my family so I’m trying to baby my skin as much as possible.

  • Carol G

    I never leave reviews either. I read this blog and Temptalia. That’s it. I trust you, Muse, and Christine because you 2 are obviously just doing it for the love of makeup. You both state your honest opinions and I go from there. That being said, there are times when I find a product I like and you necessarily didn’t. So each consumer needs to start thinking for themselves and stop relying on reviews (that we know are fake and/or embellished). I think it’s a shame that companies have to resort to having employees leave positive reviews. It’s actually bullshit. If your product is good, it should stand for itself. The cosmetic industry, in general right now, is all very
    unethical anyway (imo) because there is so much misrepresentation going on. For the first time in my life I’m willing to say that I’m pretty much over makeup. I NEVER thought that day would come because I’ve been a die-hard makeup junkie since I was 14 years old and it’s been part of my life forever but month after month of repeat palettes, copy-cat palettes and just the general churning out of crap on a daily basis makes me just want to throw up my hands in disgust and pretty much just walk away.
    Wow. It seems this post has hit a nerve with me and it’s nice to get all this off my chest. Thanks for listening everyone.

    • Isabella Muse

      Thank you Carol!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It’s too true! YMMV (your mileage may vary) when it comes to products. There are times Christine and I disagree about a product completely. She’ll like it, I’ll hate it, or vice versa. And I def trust all she writes but sometimes it just doesn’t work out where I agree with her review or how she felt it performed. So def different strokes for different folks! I am of the firm belief that if the product is good there is no need for anything fake, it’ll go viral all by itself! Thanks for sharing 🙂 I totally understand how you feel!

      • kjh

        Totally true for me as well, for both you and Christine. and, despite I suspect you have to say ‘allegedly’ from a legal standpoint, SR ADMITTED IT.

        • Isabella Muse

          I def felt the need to put allegedly in there! You just never know what these things! Later they might say they were hacked lol!

  • Deb

    I tried a couple of SR products when they first came on the scene and found them to be over priced junk. Promptly forgot about the brand and never went back. After reading that leaked email, I find myself just wanting them to fail now. That email made me rage. Especially the part about using a vpn so nothing could be traced back to their IP address. They are straight up engaging in collusion to defraud the consumer. This has to be a violation of multiple laws, not the least of which is truth in advertising. I hope this tanks their reputation. As a consumer this just pisses me off to no end.

  • Patricia Kelley

    I wonder is Sunday Riley knows because they post negative reviews of competitors products.

  • dusty

    This is disgusting & disappointing. Yes, I have read reviews that I could tell were just “off” somehow, but it still makes me sad to see it stated so blatantly.
    I write reviews, because I like to be able to read reviews from “average users” & it just makes me mad that companies that want me to trust them enough to do business with them have no more respect for their own products than to cheat the consumers, by “tricking” them & lying to them.
    I have been tempted to try SR, but I won’t be again & it makes me thankful for reviews on Makeup Alley & bloggers, like you, that I trust.
    Thank you.

    • Isabella Muse

      It really is sad 🙁 Also shocking somehow! I could see this from some larger brand but SR always felt like it fit in a nice skincare niche! It really makes me sad they’d resort to this! Thank you! I am truly flattered!

  • Wendy Sue

    I do leave reviews, both good and bad. But only on products that are HG for me or REALLY bad. Recently I left a terrible review of a product on Ulta, and GUESS WHAT? The never published it. Pissed me right on off. THAT is deceptive as well.

    • kjh

      U has never refused one, but S has multiple times. I never wrote about things that I had a personal, idiosyncratic reaction to (and i’m totally prone to that), or things that I believed were a different color…those are my problems…even though the product may have been misrepresented. My bad; I own it. Ulta has had lots of obvious fakes, with fake names and towns…reviews that you did not need to be a forensic linguist to know were written by the same person. Notably suspicious, when you were looking for consumer reviews, none for months, then 56 on a single day. It’s too bad that the sales tactics ruin what is such an awesome, fun purchase. All this shit is like learning there is no Santa, Easter Bunny, or Tooth Fairy. Not fun to grow up.

  • Charlotte

    As you said, I’m not surprised that this is happening in the industry, but I AM surprised to see Sunday Riley as the culprit. Maybe they’re worried folks are starting to realize they’re not that special? I’ve gotten to sample a lot of Sunday Riley this year thanks to various beauty subscription boxes, and while none of their formulas have been a dud, they also aren’t anything I couldn’t find for way less money, you know? I’ve been using Luna oil every other night for two months now, and while it’s definitely doing what it promises – my skin is smoother and plumper, and my redness has decreased (it’s never really gone; I have a complexion that would charitably be described as “ruddy,”). But it’s not doing anything for me my $22 ROC cream didn’t, back when I used it regularly.

    But then, I find pretty much all luxury skincare to be that way. Maybe it’s because I don’t have any major skin concerns at the moment (I’m at the age where it’s about preventing wrinkles, not reducing them), but in my experience there’s very little skincare that costs $$$ that you couldn’t find a reasonable dupe for, if not at the drug store, then at least from a more moderately priced brand like FAB or Clinique. (The only exception I’ve found in Drunk Elephant’s TLC Sukari Babyfacial, which I will be very sad to finish my two deluxe samples of and have to pony over real money.)

    For my money, it’s not the fake reviews on commerce sites that I find really scummy, it’s the fake reviews by media outlets that are supposed to be objective. I love the Allure box, but I don’t trust ANY reviews of beauty products they publish on their sites, because it’s clearly all about who will provide them with product vs. actual objectivity. Also, after I saw Refinery 29 touting Sunday Riley’s suggestion of combining Good Genes with Luna oil, I stopped trusting them, too (applying AHAs + retinols at the same time = NO, and any beauty editor worth their salt would know that). At this point, I just make sure to do my due diligence in researching what various ingredients do and how they interact with one another, and making sure I understand how the products I’m using actually work.

    • Isabella Muse

      exactly. Not a great surprise this is going on at all! But Sunday riley? That’s shocking! I haven’t been impressed with them either. I started using their products together which helped considerably as it seems like they are happiest when used as a regular routine but still not living up to the crazy hype! Allure is most def not a trustworthy site in my opinion! Hellogiggles, bustle, all those sites I take with a grain of salt. I think I read a Naked Cherry review on bustle or allure yesterday and was somewhat shocked about how they threw around words like super pigmented and how the blush palette was so silky. Come on really? That blush in the highlighter palette was horrible. It was dense AF. I mean sure there are formula flukes sometimes and what I got might not be exactly what they got but I have my doubts about these things. I find it shameful some of the stuff Allure posts! The raving and over hype on products is astounding!

      • Isabella Muse

        ps not to mention they never disclose PR samples and potentially sponsored content!

  • bella

    Hi Isabella,

    I read you and Christine, and I love how you say that sometimes you don’t agree on the same product. My answer to that is –DUH! lol As we all have different skin types and preferences, but I still read both of you, and love both of you! I also watch tons of YT videos and I feel like 90% of them fudge. If you watch them on a regular basis what they really like comes out. When I first starting reading blogs–it seemed like everyone who wrote did it because they loved makeup, and then the money came in, and people were not disclosing that they were being paid. Same thing happened with YT. I loved YT in the beginning, and now I find myself not as enthusiastic as the fakes have multiplied triple time! The drugstore prices have risen substantially and it makes makeup not as fun.

    Thanks for all your hard work and I love your blog!

    • Isabella Muse

      Hi bella! Thank you 🙂 for reading Musings I’m flattered you do! Christie and I have been friends for many years now and I think we always have a laugh that we have such similar views on some things whereas others we are so different! Different strokes for different folks ;-D I guess! I think in many cases most of us are in agreement about certain formulas from certain brands but occasionally they’ll be some launch that my readers will love and I can’t understand why. It’s def preferences and how you use the product, your application skill level, lots factors into it I think! I hope people use sites like mine as a source of info but I also hope they’ll check something out for themselves because you just never know if you’ll love it when I don’t. I think the birth of youtube changed a lot of things. I don’t love the fact a lot of larger youtubers don’t disclose. I think it’s a bit dishonest not to do so but I guess they have a different idea of how they want to run their channels than I personally would. It’s important for me to be as upfront as possible with everyone as I want to make friends, keep them, and also allow those friends (readers) to trust me. That can’t happen if I’m not up front with things. ITA about drugstore pricing. It’s absurd. You can buy mid-range for the price of drugstore nowadays 🙁 But at least there are sales/coupons that always helps! THANK YOU very much 🙂 xoxoxo! I appreciate your comment/compliments!

  • Kel

    I saw this last night and felt horribly bummed. I feel like I should find replacements after this. Just looking at my SR bottles makes me cringe. I’m so so glad you posted about this. I was wondering if you saw it! You’ve always been my favorite place to go for honest opinions <3 Thank you for being awesome!!

    • Isabella Muse

      I was pretty sad to hear it too. I’m not a HUGE SR person! A lot of their stuff hasn’t quite worked out for me and didn’t live up to the hype and now I guess I know why! aw thank you! Flattered!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • CC

    Well said! Have you had experiences of being asked to write a certain review yourself, at any point. I already know you wouldn’t, just wonohow often you’ve been asked?

    • Isabella Muse

      No, I’ve never been approached to be paid for a review. I have done sponsored posts that will feature a product or a round of products (for example, Ulta asked me to do a metallic eye look for Fall using a few different products from Stila, Buxom, etc…) but these aren’t reviews but more like features. It’s rare but I have done sponsored posts like that in the past. But anything on this site labeled “review” was never paid for by any brand or company. I wouldn’t do a paid review simply because I’ve built up a lot of trust with my friends here and I feel like being paid for a review automatically translates as “we want something positive for our money” and I won’t lose face with the audience/readers/friends I have here for some $. I think I got into blogging well before the idea of paying people for a review came into play. Even in later years I don’t think a lot of beauty bloggers were ever paid for their content. It seemed more like fashion blogs were on that path but not beauty blogging ones. Or maybe I live under a rock because none of the beauty blogs I read have been paid to review products unless you count samples as a form of currency.

  • Elizabeth

    I just want to let you know how much I appreciate your reviews. I have learned about many new products from you that I otherwise may never have discovered. Thank you!!

  • Patty K Dicks

    At least they owned up to it and didn’t try to skirt the issue. I think Sunday Riley’s products stand on their own and I really like them and think they deserve what good reviews they get. I hope they have stopped the practice and now rely on the good reviews her products truly deserve. Cermanic Slip and Good Genes are two of my favorite products.

  • Kish

    I knew it!!! All those great reviews of Good Genes and not one mentioned that it smells like a porta potty at Woodstock.

  • Vikki

    This is so sad. I can’t fully trust any brands anymore, especially Sunday Riley. No wonder their UFO isn’t really working for me.