The keys to a trial that could lead to the influencer to ruin

Things are complicated for the most successful Italian influencer of the decade. With more than 28 million followers and a fortune of 40 million euros, I could lose everything after having been accused of making deceptive advertising. The subject, known as Pandoro Gatecame to light at Christmas of 2021 and although Chiara Ferragni He reached a friendly agreement with all those affected (for which he disbursed more than a million and a half), the Prosecutor’s Office is not satisfied and have summoned it to declare on September 23. If they decide to undertake criminal measures after their statement, Ferragni could face a jail penalty.

And all for a Pandoro, a typical Christmas sweet in Italy that Fedez’s former advertised from one of his companies ensuring that the benefits of sales (tripled the market value) would be donated to the Regina Margherita hospital. However, it was discovered that Ferragni donation had been made ‘a priori’ and that, therefore, its amount did not depend on sales, which was qualified as misleading advertising and aggravated scam. Public opinion destroyed the businesswoman, who apologized in a viral video and withdrew from social networks.

During those months, a resource was lodged before the guarantor of the competition. The procedure led to a fine of one million euros for deceptive advertising against two of the influencer companies and another 400,000 for the Balocco Food Company, which distributed the pandoros. The agreement also included the donation, by Chiara Ferragni, of 200,000 euros in favor of an entity chosen by mutual agreement (giving preference to the initiatives that support women victims of violence), as well as the payment of judicial expenses. The businesswoman believed that this was the end of controversy, but the Prosecutor’s Office wants to continue investigating.

Chiara will have to declare on September 23, accused of aggravated fraud. Their lawyers believe that the matter has no criminal relevance and that the problem has already been addressed and resolved before the guarantor of the competition: “The innocence of our client will be verified in the trial and we face the trial with serenity,” they said. She, on the other hand, has issued a statement regretting the decision of the Prosecutor’s Office: “I sincerely believed that it was not necessary I consider deeply unfair, but I am willing to fight with even greater determination to reveal my absolute innocence. ”

The consequences of the procedure for Chiara could be disastrous, not only at the economic level (if the judge, finally, imposes a complementary fine) but also at the reputational and image level: the influencer has come to lose 85,000 followers in a single week from That the controversy and brands like Coca Cola or Safilo jump have broken their advertising contracts with it.