Burberry burns US$36 million of its products to stop counterfeiting
Shareholders criticise British fashion label’s actions, which help to keep its supply chain intact, protect its intellectual property and stop illegal copying
The British fashion label Burberry has destroyed more than £28 million (US$36 million) worth of its unsold fashion and cosmetic products over the past year to guard against counterfeiting.
In a practice understood to be common across the retail industry, the luxury brand burned products worth £28.6 million, including £10.4 million worth of beauty items, according to its annual report.
Retailers said the measure was needed to protect intellectual property and prevent illegal counterfeiting by ensuring the supply chain remains intact.
Burberry said it destroyed only items that carried its trademark and only worked with specialist companies able to harness the energy from the process to make it environmentally friendly.
It said the destruction of cosmetic items was a one-off related to a licence agreed last year with the beauty company Coty.
A company spokesman said: “Burberry has careful processes in place to minimise the amount of excess stock we produce.
“On the occasions when disposal of products is necessary, we do so in a responsible manner and we continue to seek ways to reduce and revalue our waste.”
The company’s clothing is priced at the high end of fashion retail, with men’s polo shirts selling for as much as £250 and its famous trench coats costing about £1,500.
[Burberry] shows no respect for its own products and the hard work and natural resources that are used to make them