While fashion has always been about being on trend, there has been a notable trend of increased antitrust scrutiny of the fashion sector. Two recent antitrust lawsuits in the United States—one by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and one by private plaintiffs—both target alleged anticompetitive behavior in this industry.

In April, the FTC sued to block the merger of Tapestry Inc. (Tapestry) and Capri Holdings Limited (Capri), asserting the agency’s now-familiar theories of threatened anticompetitive harm to an extremely narrow product market, negative effects to labor markets and serial acquisitions. Federal Trade Commission v. Tapestry, Case No. 1:24-cv-03109 (S.D.N.Y. complaint filed Apr. 23, 2024). The previous month, two consumers filed a class action against fashion designer Hermès, accusing the firm of unlawfully tying the purchase of its popular handbags to the purchase of other Hermès accessories. Cavalleri v. Hermès International, Case No. 3:24-cv-01707 (N.D. Cal. complaint filed Mar. 19, 2024).