Italian Influencer Chiara Ferragni Faces $1 Million Fine For 'Misleading' Charity Cake Campaign
Italian authorities are investigating influencer Chiara Ferragni over a pink Christmas cake she promoted, claiming proceeds would go to charity. But authorities say the donation never materialised.
What went wrong?
Chiara Ferragni, an internet sensation with nearly 30 million Instagram followers, introduced a cake collaboration with Italian brand Balocco in November 2022. The pink-packaged pandoro, a traditional Italian Christmas dessert, included Ferragni's illustration and branding.
Marketed as a charity initiative on Instagram, the partnership aimed to support children treated for bone cancer at Turin's Regina Margherita Hospital. However, Italian authorities launched an investigation, alleging the campaign misled consumers, and Ferragni and Balocco faced fines of over a million euros for reportedly receiving funds without delivering the promised donation.
What did the findings of the probe reveal?
The Italian Competition Authority initiated an investigation in June and released its findings on December 15. The inquiry revealed that the limited edition cake was priced at 9 euros, approximately $10, in contrast to the classic version, priced at around 3.70 euros, or $4.10.
The authority claimed that the press release, labelling, and social media posts during the campaign were deceptive, leading consumers to believe that the elevated cost would contribute to donating to the hospital.
Instead, the Authority stated that two companies associated with Ferragni received over 1 million euros, or $1.1 million, from the deal, and the only donation was 50,000 euros from the cake brand, Balocco, the previous May.
The statement said, "This practice significantly limited consumers' freedom of choice by leveraging their sensitivity to charitable initiatives," adding that it violated its consumer code.??
Both parties have now received a fine due to the findings ¡ª Balocco of 420,000 euros, or $460,000, and Ferragni's companies of 1.075 million euros, or $1.1 million.
Influencer's response
On December 18, Ferragni responded to the findings in an Instagram post, as reported by the Associated Press. She apologised and committed to donating 1 million euros to the hospital. However, she expressed her intention to challenge the fine, deeming it disproportionate. Ferragni clarified that she did not supervise the information provided to consumers about the product, and she pledged to avoid combining commercial partnerships with charity projects in the future.? ? ? ??
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni appeared to allude to the scandal in a speech over the weekend, referring to social media content creators promoting "expensive panettone making believe that they are for charity, when the price only pays for millionaire's fees," per the AP.
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