Martha Stewart Sued Over Allegedly Bogus Knives: Do You Trust Celebrity Products?

by mrosen814 Posted 2012/09/14 22:00:00

Related Topics: China, Martha Stewart Living, Shopping, Celebrity, Huffington Post, Lawsuit, Germany, Martha Stewart, TMZ, 2012, Class, Word, Dollar, Living, 13, Sued

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	Yes	45 votes	13%
	No	314 votes	87%

According to the Huffington Post, Martha Stewart and Emeril Lagasse are in the deep fryer for a multi-million dollar lawsuit alleging the pair sold a line of bogus knives.

The knives, sold on the Home Shopping Network, depicted that the product was made in Solingen, Germany, which is a region known for its quality cutlery. However, the celeb-branded knives were reportedly knock-offs from China. Does this make you think twice about purchasing a celebrity endorsed product?

HUFFINGTONPOST.COM reports:
Martha Stewart and Emeril Lagasse are on the chopping block in a multimillion dollar lawsuit alleging the pair sold a line of bogus knives, TMZ reports. Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia (MSLO), the company that owns the Lagasse line, was selling a line of knives on the Home Shopping Network inscribed with the words "Solingen, Germany."

line selling line knives home shopping network inscribed solingen germany

+16

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sglmom 2012/09/15 02:18:20

No

+9
Emeril has more problems than the knives ..
his sauces in the Grocery also are rated rather low too ..

Would I purchase something just because some 'celeb' name is on the product?
NOPE .. that is NOT going to happen at all ..

I look at the product itself ..
does it fill a need?
where is the best quality ..

BE CAREFUL Consumers ..
and do check things out before you plunk down your hard-earned income on 'celeb-endorsed' ..
>> See Replies

More polls by mrosen814

timothy.hill.14 2012/09/19 02:05:06

No

Never bought a celeb product and never will.

reply
Cora 2012/09/18 22:37:00

No

75 % of them just have their names on the product and are then mass produced. They have no idea that some of the products that they have their name on are faulty .

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Lanikai 2012/09/18 20:13:39

No

And I hate Martha Stewart.

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kerrykregar.mcquillan 2012/09/18 16:40:15

No

Not necessarily... no celebrity endorsement will cause me to assume and not do research on my own...as far as MStew... I would think her team of minions might have done a better job of researching beforehand.

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Adam 2012/09/18 12:26:24

Yes

Sometimes yes, sometimes no. I mean, think about it: Do you expect a celebrity to be involved in the day to day making of these products? I REALLY doubt it. More likely, they get offered a bunch of money to use there names on a product, and that's the end of it.The idea that they are personally testing the product is not only unlikely, but it would be foolish to trust an entire brand, or even a single product, based on the review of one person, even an expert.

Celebrity endorsement can be very valuable as a marketing tool. And products good and bad use marketing. If a celebrity is endorsing it, you need to be exactly as suspicious as with a product sans name.

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joan.sloane 2012/09/18 10:56:35

No

Most celebrities are like expensive prostitutes. They will say or do anything if the price is right.

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LADY LIBERTY SILLY WORDSMITH 2012/09/18 03:58:47

Yes

I NEED a THIRD OPTION, BECAUSE I TRUST SOME & DISTRUST SOME!

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littlebuffalo55TBA 2012/09/17 19:54:48

No

No. No more than I would vote for a candidate based on a celeb endorsement.

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ur XLNC 2012/09/17 19:39:04

No

Here we have people that have made a fortune in the 'overpaid entertainers' industry, putting their fortunes into investments, HOPING that we recognize their names and fall all over ourselves trying to further THEIR fortunes by buying THEIR products. Let's see what's wrong with this picture. I have a pair of "Chuck Taylor" tennis shoes. They are overpriced and of poor quality. Thin soles, shoddy assembly. This BRAND, is Converse, if I'm not mistaken. They were my favorites when I was a teenager. I could NOT feel the rocks through the soles. Nike products....Michael Jordan, I think.....Made in Thailand????? Kathi Griffith....Made in Columbia is it? The American labor unions have been hugely responsible for this. Union made is priced right out of the ballpark for John Q.

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glen 2012/09/17 18:21:48

No

+1
They're just grabbin' all the stacks they can !

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Mark DeBarbieri 2012/09/17 17:35:38
Sperry23 2012/09/17 17:15:49

No

+1
Companies pay celebrities larges sums of money to endorse or put their name on all sorts of products. In most cases - not all - the celeb neither created nor uses the product. There are a few, very few exceptions.

It's all about the money and keeping the celeb's face in front of the public.

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exhon2009 2012/09/17 16:42:20 (edited)

No

The price is inflated just for the name. Looked at another way, if two knives are exactly the same price, with one being celebrity endorsed and the other one isn't, the celebrity endorsed knife will generally be of lower quality.

Edited to add: I wonder how much more I'd pay for brokerage fees if there was a Martha Stewart Discount Brokers.

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Professor Wizard 2012/09/17 13:40:59

No

Nothing hyped by a Celeb is "special"... it just means the producer offered a enough money to the celeb, to get them to sponsor his product.

I would NEVER purchase anything, JUST because a Celeb sponsored, produced, or invented it.

And if they were selling Made in China knives, and advertising them as Made in Germany - then they should be in trouble.

So should the US Car companies running on the "Made in America" platform for example, when many are actually made in Mexico and Canada and shipped here. But they won't.

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Steve 2012/09/17 13:38:52

No

They are just more items with the name of a famous person on them to increase sales.

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Bob 2012/09/17 12:15:23

No

Over priced product with their name on it: helping the rich get richer.

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GrooVy 2012/09/17 12:07:00 (edited)

No

Are you kidding? Hell No.

Trust Martha Stewart? F' That! The only thing to trust about her is to wind up back in jail!

Sometimes I trust Actors/Celebrities to make it to the end of a movie alive.

Martha is just a very ugly con-artist!

President Obama is a Celebrity I can Trust.

reply
GrooVy to GrooVy 2012/09/17 12:09:24 (edited)

Think smart! Don't Follow stupid Celebs.

President Obama is the only honest Celeb who deserves our Trust!

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Marvelo... to GrooVy 2012/09/18 04:58:04

+1
BRAVO! BRAVO! BRAVO!
That is GREAT!

Now tell one about a Priest a Rabbi and an Irishman!

reply
cesspool 2012/09/17 11:57:54

No

Many celebs don't use their products or care where they come from.

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JessDeCristo 2012/09/17 03:54:23

No

That's something I've been never able to figure out, who and why got the idea that people wold wanna buy something just because some celebrety use it or has bougth it, that's idiotic. Now when you're talking about medicines , that's different, like some lady celebreties migth promote a medication to help at least slow down some type of cancer, that I would trust.

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Mel 2012/09/17 03:39:02

No

I'm not a doctor, but I play one on TV= YOU ARE NOT A DOCTOR!!!!!

The best products I bought were Ron Popeil knives, and they were great.

reply
cookiemonster 2012/09/17 02:59:17

No

+2
They will endorse anything for money

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sidkitty 2012/09/17 02:46:26

No

+2
O goodness no!

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Barbi Rose 2012/09/17 02:26:57

No

+3
Lets be real most are just products using celebrities to sell things they don't make them and have some input. Why pay more when you can get the same product for less.

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Fashionable60s 2012/09/17 02:24:59 (edited)

No

+3
I do not like celebrity products when there's a plethora of superior products out there without their names. Most of the knives or pots and pans I own have been with me for at least 2 decades since I had done my research beforehand to ensure that they will last a life time. Right now, proof positive, they are still doing their stuff beautifully, a little chipped or stained here and there but still functioning very well.

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Barbi Rose to Fashion... 2012/09/17 02:27:31

+2
Selling a name..

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Catita 2012/09/17 01:38:00

No

+3
no, they just use their name to make more $$$$$$

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JohnT 2012/09/17 01:24:36

No

+3
I don't buy products based upon that. I check consumer reports on product cost, and performance than make and informed purchase. I could care less about name brands that is for those that are in the juvenile age bracket.

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Recruit 2012/09/17 01:02:08

No

+4
I will never understand why people will pay more for a brand name anything.

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American 2012/09/16 21:28:22
kevracer 2012/09/16 21:11:24

No

+3
oopsie I am sure there is a simple explanation

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Anonymous Loner 2012/09/16 18:44:10

No

+4
I don't trust any product from any celebrity. Or really, it just depends. But overall, those who are higher in social rank are not ones a decent human being can trust (unless, of course, that said human being is an individual who has been brainwashed by mainstream society).

Note: I'm starting to think I might be paranoid.....

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Barbi Rose to Anonymo... 2012/09/17 02:29:54

+2
I would not endorse any product I did not personally use. I would probably do it for free if they gave me like a year supply of the product. I won't lie if I use it and like it I'll endorse it. I won't do it simply because they pay me I have integrity.

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Anonymo... to Barbi Rose 2012/09/17 02:30:50

+3
Very good point. I agree. :)

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Derbyhat 2012/09/16 18:39:40

No

+3
Unfortunately Martha still believes that her stock dealings were excusable and that her name will sell anything. I rarely shop K-Mart and when I do, I avoid anything Martha anything.

As for celebrity endorsements, how is that Oprah endorsement of Obama going? Broke yet?

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Barbi Rose to Derbyhat 2012/09/17 02:30:27

+2
Yeah she's a mean girl who went to jail so no.

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S* 2012/09/16 17:10:10

No

+6
I like Newman's own, but other than that, I rarely buy endorsed products.

reply
Barbi Rose to S* 2012/09/17 02:30:46

+3
And his money goes to charity!

reply
TasselLady 2012/09/16 13:51:36

No

+3
No, I don't.

reply