National Advertising Division Recommends Influencer Discontinue or Modify Social Media Advertising for Skims

As part of its ongoing monitoring efforts, BBB National Programs’ National Advertising Division assessed Skims Body, Inc.’s advertising practices to ensure that its partnerships with celebrity influencers Brittany Mahomes and Lana Del Rey complied with the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) Endorsement Guides regarding the proper disclosure of their financial relationship with the brand.

Skims, a fashion apparel brand specializing in underwear and loungewear, regularly collaborates with celebrities and influencers, including singer Lana Del Rey and sports personality Brittany Mahomes, to promote its collections on Instagram.

The National Advertising Division’s (NAD) inquiry focused on whether Del Rey and Mahomes adequately disclosed their financial relationship and material connections with Skims while promoting its products on social media. NAD also considered the steps Skims has taken to ensure influencer compliance with the FTC’s Endorsement Guides.

Lana Del Rey’s Instagram Posts

NAD reviewed three Instagram posts by Del Rey from January 2024 that featured Skims, either mentioning the brand by name or tagging Skims. NAD noted that Skims had taken steps to ensure its contracted influencers comply with FTC Guides, such as providing posting instructions to its influencers and monitoring its influencers to inform them of insufficient disclosures.

Skims specifically asked Del Rey to discontinue or modify the three posts that mention or tag Skims without a clear and conspicuous material connection disclosure to include #ad and/or #sponsored as their contract indicates. For compliance purposes, NAD will treat this voluntary modification as though it was recommended by NAD and agreed upon by Skims.

Brittany Mahomes’ Instagram Posts

NAD also examined two Instagram posts by Mahomes from November 2023 featuring her and, in some cases, her family wearing Skims. Although the posts did not mention Skims in the captions, the brand was tagged in the images, which qualifies them as endorsements under FTC guidelines.

Skims argued that Mahomes’ posts did not explicitly reference Skims and were presented in a stylized fashion shoot making it likely that consumers would assume a paid partnership. However, NAD determined that the images, while polished, did not inherently signal sponsorship. Since tagging a brand alone does not constitute sufficient disclosure, NAD concluded that a clear and conspicuous material connection disclosure was necessary.

As a result, NAD recommended that Skims take reasonable steps to have Mahomes discontinue or modify the challenged posts to include an appropriate disclosure.

In its advertiser statement, Skims stated “As a supporter of voluntary industry self-regulation, Skims welcomes the opportunity to work with NAD in upholding high standards of truth and accuracy and appreciates NAD’s recognition of the steps Skims has taken to ensure its contracted influencers comply with the FTC Endorsement Guides.”

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