Bulgari
In March, the Italian luxury brand specialising in jewellery, watches, fragrances, accessories and leather goods put out a statement that it was stepping up in the fight against COVID-19. In a post on Instagram, the fashion house stated: “Hand in Hand with Italy. In these uncertain times, Bvlgari feel compelled to act, and to take real steps towards aiding our fellow citizens. To help face the crisis of COVID-19, we have now transformed Bvlgari Fragrance production into a stream of free hand sanitisers for Italian public services. As proud Italians, we hold this responsibility to our country close to our hearts. We will continue to create and donate these vital supplies as long as it takes to keep people safe, in partnership with our trusted partner, ICR, and with the remarkable dedication of our manufacturing teams.”
Haute Hijab
Designer brand Haute Hijab announced in March it would be providing free hijabs to medical workers during this pandemic. In an Instagram statement, the company said: “As a community we Muslims make up a healthy portion of the healthcare profession and so many of our friends and family members are currently risking their lives with this pandemic. Having a fresh, sanitary hijab is one less thing they’ll have to worry about. To keep this going (as suggested by our incredible HH Fam) we’re leaving the form open for any healthcare professional to fill out or for you to fill out on behalf of someone on the frontlines.”
House of Dior/LVMH/Givenchy/Gurlain
Also in March, luxury fashion brands in France also announced it would be helping frontline workers. In an Instagram post, Dior wrote: “Because we care about your health and mostly those who protect us on the front lines. Dior has dedicated its production site Saint-Jean-De-Braye to produce large quantities of hydroalcoholic gel for free delivery to the French health authorities as priority to the AP-HP, Paris’ public hospital network. We are proud to take part of this initiative, launched by LVMH, alongside those of Givenchy and Guerlain. LVMH will continue to honour this commitment for as long as necessary. We all stand united in this fight against Covid-19.”
Gucci
In an Instagram post, luxury brand Gucci also joined in the fight, explaining in a post: “In the days ahead, the Group will provide the French health service with surgical masks and its preparing to manufacture new ones — while complying with the strictest health protection measures for its staff members — and made a financial donation to the Institut Pasteur to support its research into Covid-19. This contribution follows those already made in China and Italy in recent weeks. On March 11 in Italy, Kering and its Houses made donations to the four major foundation hospitals in Lombardy, Veneto, Tuscany and Lazio. More recently, Gucci responded to a call to fashion companies from the Tuscany Region for surgical masks and medical overalls, and aims to donate to 1.1 million surgical masks and 55.000 medical overalls in the coming weeks, subject to relevant authorisations.”
Burberry
The fashion brand has stated it would use its global supply chain network to fast-track the delivery of 100,000 surgical masks to the UK National Health Service, for use by medical staff. The brand further added: “We are also repurposing our trench coat factory in Castleford, Yorkshire, to make non-surgical gowns and masks for patients in UK hospitals.”
Ralph Lauren
According to the New York Times, the American fashion house will be donating $10 million to various COVID-19 funds and charities. The brand will also be making 250,000 face masks, in addition to 25,000 hospital gowns.
Armani
Designer Giorgio Armani donated $1.4 million to numerous Italian hospitals and institutions, according to Women’s Wear Daily. In addition, The Armani Group announced on March 26 that it has converted all of its production sites in Italy to produce hospital gowns, as the country continues its fight against the coronavirus.
