Product Recalls – Blog 5

The popular handbag and accessory store, Vera Bradley, “has earned a reputation as a leader in the gift industry. Creating stylish quilted cotton luggage, handbags and accessories, the company combines smart product designs with distinctive and colorful fabrics and trims” (http://www.verabradley.com/content/content.jsp?pageName=aboutus&areaId=2186). Based off what I have seen in the Vera Bradley stores and online, the products are very colorful with pretty designs. The store always seems to be crowded when I have been there. Yet, on March 19, 2014, Vera Bradley ran into some trouble with its products. Vera Bradley had to recall its bear ring rattles and bunny stuffed toys, both for young children.

According to the report, the hazard for these products was that the “pom-pom tail can detach from the body of the bear rattle and the bunny, posing a choking hazard to young children” (http://www.cpsc.gov/en/Recalls/2014/Vera-Bradley-Recalls-Bear-Ring-Rattles-and-Bunny-Toys/#remedy). The products were sold from September 2012 through January 2014. They went for about $12-$20. About 98,000 units were sold. The report suggests that anyone who bought this product should take it back to the store to get a full refund.

Luckily, no injuries were reported for the products. But it is scary to think that a young child could have possibly choked on the pom-pom tail that can be removed from the product. After reading this report, I have a new way of thinking about products and their safety. As a consumer, I am not always thinking about “is this product safe?” because I tend to trust the producer of the product. But the producer of the product is not perfect. And they don’t always catch future problems—although the designing team should consider every aspect of the product. The producer has a lot of pressure to create the perfect product, which involves the safety of its consumers. I’m glad that Vera Bradley has recalled its products for the safety of its consumers.

Links:

http://www.cpsc.gov/en/Recalls/2014/Vera-Bradley-Recalls-Bear-Ring-Rattles-and-Bunny-Toys/#remedy

http://www.verabradley.com/content/content.jsp?pageName=aboutus&areaId=2186

http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/healthy_kids/Vera-Bradley-recalls-Bear-Ring-Rattles-and-Bunny-Toys.html