BY SHELBY TUTTLE
Over the last decade, the focus on sustainability in fashion has expanded beyond environmental concerns to include the conscious treatment of people and animals involved in production. In recent months, major fashion houses like Armani, Valentino, and Dior have faced legal issues for worker exploitation and unsafe conditions uncovered within their supply chains.
The latest scandal includes Italian “quiet luxury” brand Loro Piana, which was placed under judicial oversight in Italy this summer after an investigation revealed that one of the brand’s subcontractors was allegedly paying undocumented workers as little as four euros an hour for up to 90 hours of work per week.
These violations highlight a broader systemic problem within the fashion industry’s pursuit of rare, high-end materials and the often hidden challenges that come with relying on complex supply chains where labor practices are difficult to monitor.
The case against Loro Piana was sparked after Carabinieri police arrested a Chinese workshop owner in May following a report filed by one of his workers after he was beaten for demanding 10,000 euros in unpaid wages. The worker suffered injuries that required 45 days of treatment. Of the workshop’s 10 Chinese laborers, five were illegal immigrants, and all slept in illegal dormitories set up inside the factory. Upon further investigation, police discovered that the workshop produced Loro Piana cashmere jackets.
In a statement released by Loro Piana, the brand notes that the supplier was “in breach of its legal and contractual obligations,” and that it ended its relationship with the supplier in
May. The statement continued, “Loro Piana firmly condemns any illegal practices and reaffirms its unwavering commitment to upholding human rights and compliance with all applicable regulations throughout its supply chain.”
Court documents recorded that another of Loro Piana’s producers was making up to 7,000 of the brand’s cashmere jackets annually for just over 120 euros a piece. It’s worth noting that the items retail for between 3,000 and 5,000 euros. Certainly, the brand’s “Made In Italy” prestige seems to be hidden behind an outsourced supply chain that exploits workers and provides for an astronomical mark-up at retail.
And it’s not the first time that Loro Piana — the world’s top buyer of raw vicuña fiber and the top seller of items made out of vicuña wool — has been the subject of an investigation. Months earlier, Bloomberg Business reported that Indigenous vicuña suppliers in Peru didn’t get paid by the brand for their work.
Eliphas Coeli, general manager of Loro Piana in Peru told officials, “Well, I don’t know how other companies work, but we buy the fiber and deposit the payment for the value of the fiber” to a bank account. “And then the distribution of that payment is beyond our control,” he added, underscoring a somewhat blatant hands-off approach to ensuring fair pay for workers.
In addition to the issue of low wages, the overall issues faced by workers in the animal fiber sector extends to physical dangers and health risks. Workers in wool processing facilities can suffer from lung diseases due to high dust exposure. Similarly, tannery employees are often exposed to hazardous chemicals like chromium, leading to respiratory and skin conditions.
The Loro Piana revelations, along with similar issues at other fashion houses, force a critical re-evaluation of how luxury is defined, raising serious questions about the ethics of products made in a system that exploits and silences workers. As consumer awareness, especially among younger generations, grows, the ethical integrity of a brand’s supply chain— to include safe working conditions, fair wages, and ethical treatment of animals — is becoming just as crucial as the quality of the product itself.
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