Gucci is facing a class-action lawsuit after a PETA investigation discovered claims its products were ethically sourced were false.
What's happening?
According to a Forbes report, the lawsuit was initially filed in March in the U.S. District Court of the Northern District of Illinois. The suit is now moving to the pre-trial process to uncover more about how Gucci is harvesting animal skins and whether it is deceiving customers, as alleged by plaintiff Tracy Cohen, a former Gucci sales associate for 18 years.
As The Fashion Law explained, Cohen was a salesperson at the Gucci Chicago store, where management trained her to tell customers that all its exotic skin products were humanely sourced.
However, she later found out the company was hiding a dark secret about where it was getting its leather. Cohen said that in March 2024, she read news reports about Gucci and its parent company, Kering, being accused of the unethical treatment of pythons and crocodiles.
PETA's investigation confirmed this news, as it found pythons living in filthy conditions in Thailand animal farms, being hit with hammers and impaled with hooks just so workers could remove their skins more easily. They found crocodiles were stabbed with a metal blade and were skinned while still alive.
After learning about the horrific treatment of the animals, she was prompted to file a class-action complaint in June against the companies on behalf of herself and the customers who bought exotic skin products between 2009 and the present.
"I trusted that my employer was giving me legitimate training. Instead, Gucci lied to me. I unknowingly deceived my customers, many of whom are animal lovers. The animals were not 'ethically' sourced but instead tortured in the name of luxury fashion," Cohen said in a statement to PETA.
Why is this important?
When companies engage in greenwashing to deliberately deceive customers, it hurts their reputation and, more importantly, makes it difficult for people to trust them. In this case, Gucci is also hurting innocent animals in its attempt to sell more luxury purses and accessories, all while claiming no animals were harmed in the process.
Not to mention, unethically sourced python and crocodile leather are notoriously bad for the environment, requiring tons of land and water and negatively impacting biodiversity. In addition, tanning the hides creates pollution, and animals may suffer from disease from being kept in close quarters.
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"No one who views PETA Asia's footage showing that live pythons in Gucci owner Kering's supply chain are smashed with hammers, hooks are thrust through their heads, and their skin is stretched by water hosed into their bodies will see the company's marketing claims as anything other than fraudulent," PETA senior director Danielle Katz said.
"PETA commends Cohen for exposing how Gucci deceives its customers and staff about the violent, cruel methods used to kill pythons for its bags and belts."
What's being done about it?
Since the lawsuit is ongoing, it's unknown how Gucci will respond, or if it will be forced to make changes to sustainably source its leather.
We can make a difference by choosing to support eco-friendly companies and calling out greenwashing so that customers aren't deceived by companies that put profits over ethics.
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