Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.

Trial of Chinese Crime Gangs in Italian Fashion Stalls Amid Sabotage Fears

A landmark trial in Italy against Chinese crime gangs allegedly controlling Europe’s fashion logistics is floundering due to mishaps and suspected sabotage.

A worker rests in a fast-fashion outlet factory owned by a Chinese company in Prato, central Italy. (Getty Images)

Reuters

11 December 2025

BoF PROFESSIONAL

A landmark trial in Italy of Chinese crime gangs has suffered so many mishaps - from the disappearance of documents to the resignation of interpreters - that a senior prosecutor suspects it’s being sabotaged to protect the criminals’ grip on Europe’s fashion industry.

Please sign in to ensure you can read our agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice. Or get in touch at support@businessoffashion.com if you experience difficulties.

Italian Police Seek Governance Documents From 13 Fashion Firms in Labour Abuse Probe

Governance and supply-chain documents have been requested from 13 luxury fashion brands, including Gucci and Prada, as part of an ongoing investigation into alleged worker exploitation.

Fashion Is Failing to Protect Garment Workers From Extreme Heat

The International Accord is adding heat-stress protocols to its binding mandate for brands after a watchdog group documented severe heat-related harm to garment workers in Bangladesh and Pakistan.

Amnesty Says Fashion Benefits From Worker Repression

The human-rights organisation’s first-ever examination of the global garment industry alleged that major brands have been complicit in widespread anti-union abuse across their South Asian supply chains.

In This Article

Topics

Sustainability:Regulation

Location

Prato, Italy

Exclusive: Shein Wants Brands to Use Its Supply Chain. Should They?

The fast-fashion giant is offering to let smaller labels plug directly into its famed on-demand manufacturing and global logistics network. But is the boost in speed worth the risk of putting operations in a competitor’s hands?

Can Fashion Stop Wasting So Much Water?

Fresh solutions to water scarcity in the supply chain, sourcing shifts and regulatory recalibration are reshaping fashion’s sustainability playbook.

Fashion Searches For a New Climate Solution

Coach-owner Tapestry’s new carbon-removal partnership and brands making fresh commitments to textile-to-textile recycling startups show an industry searching for ways to address its environmental impact.

Textile Recycler Circ Names New Brand Partners as It Grows Commercial Reach

A new group of brand partners, including Reformation and C&A, is joining the poly-cotton recycler’s long-term commercialisation program only weeks after its debut, signalling growing demand as the company gears up for industrial-scale production in Europe.

The Business of Fashion

Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.

CONNECT WITH US ON

News & Analysis

Topics

More

Careers

Community

Subscribe

About Us

Trial of Chinese Crime Gangs in Italian Fashion Stalls Amid Sabotage Fears

Subscribe to the Daily Digest

Italian Police Seek Governance Documents From 13 Fashion Firms in Labour Abuse Probe

Fashion Is Failing to Protect Garment Workers From Extreme Heat

Amnesty Says Fashion Benefits From Worker Repression

Exclusive: Shein Wants Brands to Use Its Supply Chain. Should They?

Can Fashion Stop Wasting So Much Water?

Fashion Searches For a New Climate Solution

Textile Recycler Circ Names New Brand Partners as It Grows Commercial Reach

Can Lake Translate Success in Sleepwear Outside the Bedroom?

Who Won Fashion’s Red Carpet Season of Change

Trump Signs Order to Combat Fraudulent ‘Made in America’ Labels, White House Says

Oil Market Set for Tumultuous Week as Kharg Attack Raises Stakes

The Daily Digest Newsletter

The Business of Fashion