LVMH-owned Dior has withdrawn a request for 100,000 euros in compensation from rival fashion label Valentino for allegedly blocking access to its Rome store with a celebrity-packed runway show on the city's Spanish Steps, a source told Reuters.
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Earlier this week, luxury fashion house, Valentino had presented its couture show at the Paris Fashion Week. The maison had acquired the necessary permits to hold the show at the Spanish Steps and had intimated the nearby retail stores of the same citing to expect, “guaranteed foot traffic to the stores.” However, Dior complained that the same had not occurred on the day of the show. The House further complained that the buyers were “refused access and blocked at the barriers” and that Dior's “stores remained empty and could not operate from the early hours of the afternoon.”
Valentino designer Pierpaolo Piccioli drew a crowd of movie stars and fashion figures including Anne Hathaway, Anna Wintour, Naomi Campbell, Andrew Garfield and Kate Hudson with a haute couture show on 8 July, sending models down the broad staircase, a major tourist hotspot, at dusk in sheer, shimmery gowns.
The performance lit up social networks around the globe, drawing praise from fans – and apparently frustration from Dior.
Dior had demanded 100,000 euros in light of the “hampered” business that the Valentino showcase caused and demanded the compensation to be paid within 15 days.
The allegation from Dior caused a flare through social media with many netizens trolling the trivial nature of the demand.
Now the house has retracted its demand.
Citing a letter from Dior, the source familiar with the matter said the French label was backing down "in light of the friendly relationship between the two Maisons".
The source said Dior had fired off a first letter to Valentino shortly after the show, saying that clients were blocked from reaching the store, keeping it empty on a normally bustling Friday afternoon, but had now written the second note.
Valentino declined to comment. Dior did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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