“Prada cuts ties with over 200 suppliers after labour abuse audit”

…Prada has terminated its relationship with more than 200 suppliers for compliance breaches over the past five years, as the luxury brand conducts a “zero tolerance” audit in response to allegations of labour abuse in the industry’s supply chain…

Since 2020, the Milan-based company has conducted more than 850 on-site inspections across its Italian suppliers and subcontractors, including all-night stake-outs outside subcontractors’ factories. Over a quarter of inspections resulted in terminations.

Prada, which now has about 1,000 suppliers and registered subcontractors across northern and central Italy, found evidence of serious labour law breaches, such as the presence of dormitories inside the factories where workers slept…

In court documents filed last year, prosecutors said they uncovered a system of exploitation “so entrenched and proven [that it could] be considered part of a broader business policy exclusively aimed at increasing profit”.

Prada is not under investigation, but in December Milanese prosecutors asked the group to hand over information about its supply chain.

The company told the FT that it carried out 188 supplier inspections last year, leading to 43 dismissals. Of these, six related to cases of suppliers subcontracting work without authorisation to firms where workers slept inside the factory…