Poltronesofà's crossed-out prices were theatre — Italy fined the sofa chain €1M, again

Poltronesofà, Italy's big sofa chain, advertised its 'Collezione Promo' line in constant campaigns across TV, radio, social media and the internet, emphasising large discounts against much higher crossed-out prices. The message was simple: buy now, save a lot.

The investigation found the advertised convenience largely did not exist. Collezione Promo products were strategically destined for brief marketing windows and sold mainly at promotional prices — so the higher reference price was purely formal, not a real market benchmark. The practice, running at least since January 2023, was misleading and omissive, the AGCM said, breaching articles 20, 21 and 22 of the Consumer Code.

On 5 January 2026 the authority fined the company €1 million, ordered the practice to cease and required a compliance report within 60 days. It was a repeat offence: Poltronesofà had already been fined €1 million in 2021 for similar campaigns — 'Doppi saldi doppi risparmi', 'Supervalutiamo il tuo divano' — a sanction confirmed by the Tar in 2022 and later halved to €500,000 by the Consiglio di Stato.