The encyclopedia · Advertising & PR · Marketing decision · 2005–2006
Kate Moss lost H&M, Chanel and Burberry in a week — and was never charged
The Mirror's photos cost her three fashion contracts in five days; the CPS found no case nine months later.
H&M · Chanel · Burberry · Kate Moss (model) · 2005-09-20
What happened
On 15 September 2005 the Daily Mirror published photographs it said showed Kate Moss using cocaine at a recording studio in London. Five days later H&M — the first major brand to move — cancelled its campaign with her, saying it would not stand behind her.
The next day Chanel said it would not renew her contract, which was due to expire in October anyway, and Burberry scrapped a campaign it had planned with her. Three houses had made their decisions within a week of the photos, on the strength of a tabloid report alone.
The police then investigated for months. On 15 June 2006 the Crown Prosecution Service said there was insufficient evidence, and Moss was never charged with anything. Twelve days later Burberry — the house that had scrapped her campaign the previous September — announced her return as the face of its autumn-winter 2006 campaign.
Why it happened
- The photos made the face the story: three fashion houses moved inside five days, each protecting its own campaign rather than waiting for any finding.
- The market ran ahead of the law: the police investigation took nine months and ended with 'insufficient evidence', by which time the damage — and the reversal — had already happened.
- The exit was reversible: Burberry's scrapped campaign came back as a rehiring within a year, which showed the same brands that fled could also return.
The lesson
Advertisers don't wait for courts: three houses moved within a week of the photos, the no-charge decision came nine months later, and Burberry then rehired the model it had dropped.
Aftermath
The Metropolitan Police investigation ran into 2006 and closed without charges; on 15 June 2006 the Crown Prosecution Service said there was insufficient evidence. On 27 June 2006 Burberry announced Moss as the face of its autumn-winter campaign — nine months after scrapping her. She had continued modelling throughout the period, and the episode became the standard reference for how fast fashion houses move on tabloid reports, and how fast they can move back.
Sources
- The Guardian — H&M drops Kate Moss, 20 Sep 2005
- The Guardian — Two more brands drop Moss, 21 Sep 2005
- CNN — No drugs charges for Kate Moss, 15 Jun 2006
- CBS News — Kate Moss, Burberry Kiss And Make Up, 27 Jun 2006
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