Climate activists target Gucci's Christmas tree in Milan

“With the Gucci Tree with which we decorate the Galleria, we want to spread a message of joy and beauty to all of you and to the entire city of Milan,” was the message from Gucci President and CEO Jean-François Palus during the lighting ceremony of the tree in December.

This Christmas spirit was lost on a group of activists called Ultima Generazione [Last Generation]” who threw buckets of orange paint at Gucci’s Christmas tree in Milan’s luxury Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II shopping arcade on Friday.

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A video published online by the Italian daily Corriere della Sera shows onlookers heckling the activists to stop until the police arrive.

The newspaper said that in a statement the climate activists allegedly promoted the “Fondo Riparazione” campaign, calling on the government to provide a 20 billion euro fund to repair the damage caused by climate change “that is affecting our lives destroyed”.

They targeted Gucci, the daily reported in its statement, in protest against “a company with a turnover of 10 billion euros a year that donates 1 million euros to charity.” [initiatives] while continuing to fuel a system of luxury and consumption that condemns us to death. In addition to being heavily criticized, the Gucci tree is a symbol of a lifestyle that is completely unsustainable” and “scandalous given the economic divide in Italy.”

The group called on the city of Milan to dedicate the Galleria site to “social or educational initiatives” for the country, rather than granting it to an international luxury group that “thus fuels the empty dream of consumerism.”

The next morning, Gucci sent a statement to WWD saying the company had decided not to remove the orange color “to encourage reflection on social and environmental responsibility,” and stressed that this decision “despite clear condemnation.” all forms and manifestations of vandalism”.

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In the statement, the company controlled by the Kering Group said it had “always demonstrated its commitment to addressing the complex issues of social and environmental responsibility.” Reiterating its strong condemnation of the act, the decision was made not to intervene and to use the incident as a catalyst for collective reflection. With its long-standing commitment to promoting constructive dialogue, Gucci reiterates its commitment to raising community awareness of these issues and emphasizes that shared responsibility should never manifest itself in violent or vandalistic acts.”

Following on from Swarovski – which had sponsored the city's Christmas tree since 2013 – the Kering-owned fashion house chose an installation of 78 gift boxes sealed with Gucci's signature Horsebit buckle and available in shades of white and silver and featuring the logo were provided with the trademark.

At the time, Gucci said that some of the materials making up the gift boxes would be donated to ForMattArt, a cultural association for social progress that promotes activities aimed at social solidarity and education.

Gucci's sponsorship of the Milan Christmas tree is part of a larger project aimed at promoting beauty and enhancing semi-peripheral areas of the city. For example, in collaboration with ForMattArt, the brand committed to illuminating parts of the Corvetto district in the south of Milan and beautifying the entrances to three of the district's most important schools as part of an initiative presented on the occasion of World Children's Day. On November 20th. Children also took part in artistic workshops to create decorations for their schools around the topic of children's and youth rights.

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