CNN.com reported last week that fashion icon Dior
“agreed a [sic] number of remedies to settle an Italian competition authority investigation into whether the luxury brand and two of its units misled consumers with their statements about working conditions at its suppliers. The antitrust body said Wednesday that the pledges made by Dior, which is owned by LVMH, were an appropriate remedy for the possible unlawfulness and decided to close the investigation ‘without establishing any infringement.’”
The basis of the suit was an 2024 investigation into Dior and Armani where
“… prosecutors in Milan uncovered workshops where underpaid workers, often immigrants who were in the country illegally, produced leather bags then sold to Dior and Armani for a tiny fraction of their retail price. This led Italy’s antitrust investigation to open an investigation into whether the luxury brands had misled consumers, focusing on the discrepancies between the reality uncovered by the judicial labor probes and the messages from brands to consumers in terms of craftsmanship and corporate social responsibility.
… prosecutors appointed commissioners to oversee Dior and Armani’s units that outsourced the handbag production, to ensure they fix their supply chain problems. The special administration regime was lifted earlier this year [2025].”
As part of that 2024 investigation, “prosecutors appointed commissioners to oversee Dior and Armani’s units that outsourced the handbag production, to ensure they fix their supply chain problems.” The oversight was terminated earlier in 2025. Interestingly, Valentino was just placed under a similar oversight program for similar problems.
Human rights can be problems even in luxury supply chains so vigilance is still required. Listen to our podcast with the CEO of the Association of Professional Social Compliance Auditors (APSCA) to hear what they are doing to improve social audits.
Members can read more about supply chain risks here.
If you’re not already a member, sign up now and take advantage of our no-risk “100-Day Promise” – during the first 100 days as an activated member, you may cancel for any reason and receive a full refund. But it will probably pay for itself before then.
DID YOU KNOW … we are much more than just blogs. PracticalESG provides tools and guidance for in house staff and outside advisors – from beginners to senior practitioners. We scour third party resources, vetting and filtering them – saving you hours of your day doing that yourself. And we don’t use AI to produce any content or have annoying ads.
Are you a client of one of our Partners? Contact them for exclusive pricing packages for PracticalESG.
If you aren’t already subscribed to our complimentary ESG blog, sign up here for daily updates delivered right to you.
Photo credit: obias Arhelger – stock.adobe.com
