Antitrust order Ferragni to pay 1.2 million in Easter egg case – General news

Italy’s antitrust authority said Friday it had ordered two companies linked to businesswoman and fashion influencer Chiara Ferragni to pay at least 1.2 million euros over three years to the children’s charity I Bambini delle Fate, following an investigation into a misleading Easter egg advert made by Dolci Preziosi that Ferragni promoted.

This is one of three cases involving allegedly false endorsements of charitable products by the 37-year-old.

Both Ferragni-led companies said in a statement that they had decided to clearly separate their commercial and charitable activities.

The other cases involve a “designer” version of the popular Italian Christmas cake “Pandoro” and a Barbie-like doll based on it.

Last year, the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection imposed fines of over one million euros on companies linked to Ferragni and 420,000 euros on Italian confectionery company Balocco for unfair trade practices related to the sale of Pandoro chocolates.

The antitrust authority said the companies had made it clear to customers that by purchasing a “designer” Ferragni edition they would be contributing to a donation to the Regina Margherita pediatric hospital in Turin.

However, the €50,000 donation had been made by Balocco on his own initiative several months earlier, and companies linked to Ferragni allegedly made more than €1 million from this initiative.