THEAntitrust fines Chiara Ferragni e toy for the “solidarity” pandoro: over 1 million to companies attributable to the well-known influencer, Fenice for 400 thousand euros and TBS Crew for 675 thousand euros, and 420 thousand euros to the confectionery industry. According to the Competition and Market Authority, the three companies deceived consumers into believing that the purchase of Pandoro Pink Christmas 2022 signed Chiara Ferragni, contributed to a donation for the Regina Margherita Hospital in Turin, when in reality the donation of 50 thousand euros had already been made by Balocco many months before the launch of the initiative and Ferragni's companies collected over 1 million from 'initiative.
Antitrust fines Chiara Ferragni and Balocco's Pandoro: here's why
The Antitrust has identified various unfair practices, including misleading communication in the press release andincorrect price information of the product, which was more than double the price of the classic pandoro (over 9 euros compared to 3,70), which contributed to misleading consumers, reinforcing the erroneous perception that the purchase would support the donation, in particular for therapeutic treatments for children sick people. Another point contested by the Competition and Market Authority concerns the diffusion, through thelabel placed on each Ferragni "branded" pandoro, misleading information which erroneously supported the idea that the purchase of the product would contribute to the advertised donation. In this way they would have negatively influenced consumers' freedom of choice, taking advantage of their sensitivity towards charitable initiatives and violating the duty of professional diligence in the Consumer Code and integrating a unfair commercial practice.
It does not end here. Codacons has accepted the Antitrust decision and announces legal action against Chiara Ferragni and Balocco to obtain the reimbursement of the cost of pandoro to all consumers involved. The association also calls for an increase in controls on advertising messages linked to solidarity initiatives launched on Instagram by the Ferragnez.
