Brussels: The European Commission has imposed a combined fine of €157 million on three of the world’s leading luxury fashion brands Gucci, Chloé, and Loewe after finding them guilty of engaging in unfair pricing practices that distorted market competition across the European Union.
According to the Commission’s findings, the brands imposed strict resale pricing restrictions on their retail partners, effectively curbing retailers’ ability to offer discounts or set competitive prices. The investigation revealed that the companies not only dictated maximum discount levels but also controlled the timing of promotional campaigns, leaving independent retailers with little room for commercial freedom.
European Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager stated that the luxury sector must “play by the same rules as everyone else.” She emphasized that setting artificial limits on prices to protect brand prestige or profit margins is a direct violation of EU competition law. The Commission underlined that such practices deprived consumers of fair pricing choices and weakened smaller retailers’ capacity to compete.
The fines were divided among the companies as follows: Gucci, a flagship brand under the French luxury group Kering, received the largest penalty of €119.7 million; Chloé, owned by Richemont, was fined €19.7 million; and Loewe, part of the LVMH conglomerate, incurred a fine of €18 million. The decision followed a detailed investigation spanning several years into the brands’ distribution and pricing structures within the EU market.
In a statement, Kering said the group had cooperated fully with EU authorities and had already accounted for the financial impact in its 2025 first-half results. LVMH also pledged full compliance with antitrust regulations and reiterated its commitment to transparency in commercial operations. Richemont, meanwhile, said it was taking the matter seriously and had launched internal reviews to strengthen compliance mechanisms.
The Commission noted that the restrictive practices in question were designed to maintain inflated price levels and safeguard the exclusivity of luxury goods—a move that ultimately harmed consumers by denying them access to competitive prices. Regulators stressed that luxury branding could not serve as justification for manipulating market dynamics.
These ruling marks one of the EU’s most significant actions against the fashion industry in recent years, highlighting a broader push to enforce fair-trade and consumer-protection principles across sectors known for opaque pricing. The decision also sends a warning to other global fashion houses that any attempt to control downstream pricing, even indirectly, will attract severe regulatory scrutiny.
The European Commission confirmed that the fined companies have the right to appeal the decision before the General Court of the European Union, but stressed that the evidence gathered leaves “little doubt” about the nature and scope of the violations.