If there is one who wants to take Happy New Year wishes literally, it is Chiara Ferragni. The Italian entrepreneur and influencer with 30 million subscribers on Instagram has been in the middle of a legal-media storm for three weeks and the lull does not seem to be for any time soon.
On December 15, Codacons, the Italian competition watchdog, fined it more than a million euros for unfair commercial practice. At the end of 2022, she attached her image to a limited edition of pandori, pink Christmas cakes, for the benefit of sick children at the Regina Margherita Hospital in Turin. However, Balocco, the manufacturer of these desserts, had already paid 50,000 euros to the Turin establishment before the start of the promotional campaign. The companies Fenice and TBS Crew, which belong to Chiara Ferragini, collected more than a million euros without paying anything to the hospital.
“Thank you to those who do not seek to destroy but to help”
The “Pandoro Gate” had the effect of a bomb in Italy where Ferragni is one of the most popular figures. Following the announcement of his fine, the 36-year-old transalpine star expressed contrition in a video on Instagram. With tears in her eyes, she pleaded the communication error, promised to pay one million euros to the Regina Margherita hospital, and assured that she would no longer mix her commercial practices with charitable actions in the future.
And then radio silence… until this Wednesday. After sixteen days of silence – an eternity for a social media figure accustomed to documenting each of her professional or private actions for her followers – Chiara Ferragni made her return in a story on Instagram.
“I would like to thank all the people who, in recent days, have stayed close to me and comforted me with their words. Thank you to everyone who sent me a message, who asked how I was, who encouraged me to come back to the networks, she wrote. Thank you to those who are there, to those who listen, to those who do not seek to tear down but to help. To those who expressed their opinion, even negative, in a peaceful and constructive manner, because in life you must always know how to confront yourself, reflect and start again. The people who truly love you reveal themselves in times of need, and I have seen, read and heard you. Really, thank you. »
90,000 followers lost in one week
In the previous story post, Chiara Ferragni declared “I missed you” and asked the question “How are you feeling?” » in a sticker inviting you to respond privately. A way of taking the temperature of its audience, believe the Italian media, like the Corriere della Serawhile on his Instagram account, in recent hours, Internet users continued to post unwelcome messages.
Many of his fellow citizens do not seem inclined to give up (at least, not so quickly). In the week following the announcement of her fine, the Instagrammer lost 90,000 followers – which is relatively little considering her counter currently exceeds three tens of millions of subscribers, but, as reported Il Messenger on Wednesday, unsubscriptions continued, at an average rate of 3,000 per day. The anger also materialized far from the virtual: on January 1, a viral video showed the window of one of the Ferragni boutiques in Rome tagged with the words “bandita” and “truffatrice” (“scammer”).
Tackled by Giorgia Meloni
Even far-right Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni attacked her, without naming him. “Influencers aren’t the ones who make tons of money wearing clothes or handbags or promote expensive panettoni and make people believe it’s for a good cause,” she said. declared in a speech delivered in Rome on December 16.
On the business side, the Safilo group, an eyewear giant, ended its contract with the Italian because she “broke her commitments”, pointing out a “lack of good faith in her behavior”. The media, from the celebrity press to the most serious news journals, do not miss a single moment of this “Pandoro affair”. The center-right weekly Panorama did not fail to feature Chiara Ferragni on the cover of its last issue of 2023: The fall of the false generousheadlined the headline also singling out the Soumahoro family and activist Luca Casarini.
Ready to collaborate with magistrates
In the Pandoro Balocco affair, four public prosecutor’s offices (those of Milan, Cuneo, Prato and Trento) have opened an investigation. The Milan public prosecutor’s office also announced that it was carrying out investigations into chocolate Easter eggs from the Dolci Preziosi brand, “in support [à l’association] Bambini delle fate”, to which Chiara Ferragni also associated her image. The entrepreneur, who is not currently the subject of any legal proceedings, said she was ready “to collaborate” with the magistrates, according to her lawyers cited by LaPresse.
Even in the event that no legal action is taken against her, Chiara Ferragni will certainly have to work to repair her damaged reputation. A businesswoman – she launched her range of cosmetics, clothing and accessories, and regularly collaborates with major fashion brands – Chiara Ferragni co-presented the Sanremo Festival last February, one of the most popular events in Italy . With her husband, the rapper Fedez, she was also entitled to a documentary series on Amazon Prime Video, The Ferragnez. The title (it is a contraction of their two names) refers to the nickname used by the celebrity media to talk about the couple. Some of their detractors now nickname them “Truffagnez”, adding to their contracted surnames the first two syllables of “truffatori” (“crooks”).