As the world battles global pandemic Covid-19 (the coronavirus), luxury companies are stepping in to make a change whether through donations or repurposing manufacturers to address the face mask and hospital gown shortage throughout the world. They are supporting medical workers on the front lines in several countries, and using their large global network to make positive change in the world. We’ve rounded up just a small portion of the luxury companies who are using their resources to fight Covid-19.
Louis Vuitton
Louis Vuitton’s parent company, LVMH, made headlines when they began manufacturing hand sanitizer a month ago. And Louis Vuitton is also helping fight Covid-19 by repurposing its American workshops in New Jersey, California and Texas to create thousands of non-surgical face masks, which will be donated to states that need it most. Louis Vuitton will also partner with local organizations in each state who are leading Covid-19 response efforts. The luxury brand is also repurposing its Ready-to-Wear atelier in Paris to make gowns for nurses and doctors directly helping patients suffering from Covid-19. Gowns will be donated to medical workers at Hôpitaux de Paris (the regional hospital center in Paris). louisvuitton.com
Ermenegildo Zegna Group
Luxury men’s Italian brand, Ermenegildo Zegna, is helping to fight Covid-19 by pledging a donation of three million Euros to the Civil Protection in Italy, which supports nurses, doctors, scientists and volunteers on the front lines fighting the pandemic. The Group will also manufacture medical masks by converting a part of its production facilities in Italy and Switzerland to doing so. In addition, the Group has made a direct financial contribution to several local hospitals to get ventilators and medical masks. zegnagroup.com
Moncler
Moncler announced on Instagram on March 17 the company will be donating 10 million Euros to help construct a hospital with 400 intensive care units in Milan, one of the worst-hit cities in the world. In a press release, chairman and CEO Remo Ruffini said: “Milan is a city that has given us all an extraordinary time. We cannot and must not abandon it. It is everyone’s duty to give back to the city what it has given us so far.” monclergroup.com
Chanel
Chanel is another luxury fashion house who will produce face masks for healthcare workers in France on the front lines of fighting Covid-19. Chanel president of fashion Bruno Pavlovsky said in a statement that Chanel is mobilizing its partner manufacturers and teams, plus 150 sewing specialists to produce protective face masks and gowns. The company will also donate 1.2 million Euros to an emergency fund created by Hôpitaux de Paris (known as l’AP-HP). chanel.com
Tiffany & Co
On April 6, Tiffany & Co Foundation pledged $1 million to Covid-19. The money will be split between two organizations: $750,000 will go to the Solidarity Response Fund for the World Health Organization and $250,000 will go to The New York Community Trust’s NYC Covid-19 Response & Impact Fund. The company will also match employee donations to any qualified nonprofit organization supporting Covid-19 relief. “During this global health crisis, we must all be responsive to the urgent needs of our global communities. We are proud to support organizations providing immediate relief for communities impacted by Covid-19, including our hometown of New York,” Anisa Kamadoli Costa, chairman and president of the Tiffany & Co Foundation said in a press release. tiffany.com
Capri Holdings
Capri Holdings owns Versace, Jimmy Choo and Michael Kors, and on April 1, the company pledged more than $3 million in support of Covid-19 relief efforts, split between its three luxury brands. Michael Kors will donate $1 million to support local relief efforts to NYU Langone Health and New York-Presbyterian Hospital, and Michael Kors and John Idol will make personal contributions of $1 million as well. Other organizations this money will go to includes God’s Love We Deliver, to provide meals to those in the city who need it most. The organization is a longtime philanthropic partner of Michael Kors. Additionally, Versace will donate $500,000 to the San Raffaele Hospital in Italy, as well as the Camera Nazionale Della Moda Italiana, which will donate ventilators and medical equipment to hospitals around the country. Donatella Versace has also made personal contributions, and this money is in addition to the one million Yen that Versace donated to the Chinese Red Cross Foundation in February. Lastly, Jimmy Choo will donate $500,000 to the National Health Service (NHS) in the UK and the World Health Organization’s Solidarity Response Fund. capriholdings.com
Burberry
Burberry recently announced its plan to repurpose its Yorkshire factory, which makes trench coasts, to make non-surgical face masks and gowns, as well as help fund research in single-dose vaccine development at University of Oxford (who has a track record in emergency vaccine development) and donate to charities supporting food poverty in the UK. Burberry is using its global supply chain network to deliver more than 100,000 surgical masks to the UK National Health Service. Marco Gobbetti, Burberry’s CEO, said in a statement: “In challenging times, we must pull together. The whole team at Burberry is very proud to be able to support those who are working tirelessly to combat Covid-19, whether by treating patients, working to find a vaccine solution or helping provide food supplies to those in need at the time.” burberry.com
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Bulgari
Bulgari helps to fight Covid-19 by delivering more than 160,000 medical-grand hand sanitizer units to UK hospitals and medical workers on the front lines. The company has also donated to the research departments at Lazzaro Spallanzani Hospital in Rome to help find a cure for Covid-19; the hospital was one of the first to isolate the virus to help stop the spread. The company has also made a donation to Italy’s Centre of excellence in Research and Medicine in the hopes of creating a vaccine for this devastating pandemic. bulgari.com
Gucci
Gucci launched a hashtag, #GucciCommunity, to stand with its global community and fight Covid-19. The brand will make two donations of $1 million Euros: The first being the United Nations Foundation’s Covid-19 Solidarity Response Fund, and the second being the National Civil Protection Department. The brand is also providing fans information on how they can help stop the spread of coronavirus, as well as supply them with pertinent knowledge on the disease. “Gucci has created a world, open a free: a Gucci global community. We ask all of you to be the Changemakers in this crisis, to stand together with us in the fight against the coronavirus. We are all in this together,” Alessandro Michel and Marco Bizzarri said in a statement. gucci.com
