French fashion giant to stop using models aged under 18

THE owner of fashion houses including Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent has announced it will no longer use models under the age of 18.

Kering, the French fashion giant, said the measure would be for both catwalk shows and advertising campaigns.

It was announced by François-henri Pinault, chairman and chief executive of the Kering group, at the Copenhagen Fashion Summit. The age restriction will come into force early next year.

Kering also owns brands including Balenciaga and Alexander Mcqueen, to which the new policy will also apply.

Mr Pinault said: “As a global luxury group, we are conscious of the influence exerted on younger generations in particular by the images produced by our houses.

“We believe that we have a responsibility to put forward the best possible practices in the luxury sector and we hope to create a movement that will encourage others to follow suit.”

It goes further than a decision in 2017 not to hire models below the age of 16 to “take part in shows or shootings representing an adult”. The group has also already introduced chaperones and limited working hours for models aged from 16 to 18.

The fashion industry is seeking to tighten up its ethical guidelines.

Mr Pinault said: “We hope to create a movement that will encourage others to follow suit. Luxury has an influence over the whole apparel industry and beyond. Our designers are opinion leaders, this is why we are well positioned to lead change.”

Marie-claire Daveu, Kering’s chief sustainability officer, said: “The physiological and psychological maturity of models aged over 18 seems more appropriate to the rhythm and demands that are involved in this profession.”

In 2017, a series of fashion houses signed a charter banning their designers from using “super-skinny” models following a number of scandals over anorexia. The designers were barred from using size 32 models under the French system – size XXS or size zero in the US, or 4 in Britain.

The concern over using young models follows the death of a 14-year-old Russian model in China in 2017.