European Commission fines Gucci, Chloé and Loewe for price fixing

Audio By Carbonatix

MILAN (AP) — The European Commission has fined luxury fashion houses Gucci, Chloé and Loewe a total of over 157 million euros (nearly $183 million) for anti-competitive practices restricting independent retailers' ability to set prices for their goods.

The commission said the companies' fixing of resale prices, discovered in a 2023 investigation, breached the bloc's competition rules and harmed consumers.

“The decision sends a strong signal to the fashion industry and beyond that we will not tolerate this kind of practice in Europe, and that fair competition and consumer protection apply to everyone, equally,’’ Commission Vice President Teresa Ribera said in a statement on Tuesday.

Gucci owner Kering acknowledged the decision “related to past commercial practices” and said in a statement that “a cooperative procedure” allowed for a swifter resolution of the case. Gucci's fine was cut in half to nearly 120 million euros for its cooperation revealing additional breaches, the commission said. Kering said funds were set aside for the fine in the first half of 2025.

Chloé, which is owned by the Richemont group, saw its fine reduced by 15% to nearly 20 million euros.

The French fashion house said in a statement that since the 2023 investigation it had reinforced its compliance training and adopted enhanced measures to ensure "strict" adherence to competition law, including annual training and reports.

"We take this matter extremely seriously and acted with the utmost diligence to address it,'' Chloé said in a statement.

Loewe owner LVMH did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Loewe’s fine was halved to 18 million euros for its cooperation.

The commission said that the three brands restricted the ability of independent retailers to set their own prices for high-end apparel, leather goods, footwear and accessories sold both online and in physical stores.

The brands required the retailers to stick to recommended prices, set maximum discount rates as well as periods for sales, mirroring practices in the brands’ own direct sales channels.

The practices "deprived the retailers of their pricing independence and reduced competition between them,” the commission said.