Pubdate: Sun, 25 Sep 2005
Source: Observer, The (UK)
Copyright: 2005 The Observer
Contact:  http://www.observer.co.uk/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/315
Author: Alex Duval Smith in Stockholm, Nick Mathiason and David Smith in London
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/coke.htm (Cocaine)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/heroin.htm (Heroin)

ANTI-DRUG BILLIONAIRE WHO ENDED MOSS'S UKP1.2M DEAL

H&M Boss With Strict Moral Code Took 'Only Decision Possible' In 
Firing Kate Moss

The man who fired supermodel Kate Moss from fashion giant H&M, 
triggering the costliest week of her career, is a Swedish billionaire 
obsessed with corporate ethics and responsibility, fiercely 
protective of his company's public image and a founding trustee of a 
charity dedicated to fighting drugs.

Stefan Persson, 57, H&M's executive chairman, cancelled Moss's 
contract, reportedly worth UKP1.2 million, because apparent 
photographic evidence of her cocaine abuse was 'not consistent with 
the company's clear policy on drugs'. It has emerged that he would 
otherwise have faced severe embarrassment from Mentor, a drugs 
prevention organisation fronted by the Swedish royal family and 
supported by H&M, which told The Observer that Persson made 'the only 
decision possible'.

H&M's announcement last week came as a surprise because at first many 
in the fashion industry had shrugged their shoulders and opined that 
'supermodel takes drugs' was hardly a revelation. But soon, led by 
H&M, a domino effect was under way: Chanel and Burberry axed 
31-year-old Moss, taking her week's losses above UKP2m. Rimmel and 
Gloria Vanderbilt jeans also said they are reviewing their contracts 
with her, signalling that the industry will no longer turn a blind 
eye to so-called 'heroin chic'.

Moss's mistake was to offend Persson's strict moral code; the 
stereotypically reserved Swede is one of the country's biggest 
taxpayers and has been known to phone journalists at home to complain 
about inaccuracies in their articles. Moss's dismissal last week 
bears the signs of another personal intervention by Persson, 
estimated to be worth UKP4.8 billion.

Initially Moss appeared to have weathered the storm over grainy Daily 
Mirror pictures which showed her allegedly snorting cocaine in the 
company of her rock star boyfriend Pete Doherty in a recording 
studio. On 16 September, a UK spokesman for H&M, which had signed 
Moss for its autumn clothing collection, designed by Stella 
McCartney, said: 'We met Kate ... and she has told us she regrets the 
incident and has apologised to us. We are going to give her a second chance.'

But there were quickly signs that the company had misjudged the mood 
of the public, and some sections of the media. Over the weekend that 
followed, its stores were inundated with calls of protest, a worrying 
development in conservative parts of America, where H&M is seeking to 
expand. The Daily Mail, Britain's second biggest-selling daily 
newspaper, published an alarming editorial: 'The Mail has a question: 
Would it make a difference to these oh-so-chic executives of the 
fashion industry if their customers - worried about their children's 
future and wanting to take a stand against drugs - refused to buy their goods?'

By Tuesday, H&M had sacked Moss. But according to some press reports, 
Jorgen Andersson, the company's director of communications and 
marketing, had been so touched by a phone call from a distraught and 
apologetic Moss that he wanted to keep her on. He told the Swedish 
newspaper Svenska Dagbladet: 'We are marketing H&M's clothes, not the 
model,' and added: 'If she honestly regrets it, I don't rule out 
[using her again].'

However, H&M spokeswoman Anna Bergare said that the final decision 
was taken by 'people on the highest level in the company', believed 
to mean Persson and managing director Rolf Eriksen. She added: 'After 
much thought and consideration of all the factors we felt that the 
image that had been portrayed [by Moss] was not consistent with our 
company's clear policy on drugs.'

Persson - who inherited the Hennes & Mauritz brand from his father 
and has made it one of Europe's biggest fashion retailers with more 
than 1,100 stores in 22 countries - has little sympathy for the 
industry's casual attitude towards drug abuse. His favourite charity 
is Mentor, a drug prevention group of which he is a founding trustee. 
Its president is Sweden's Queen Silvia and one of its most active 
trustees is Princess Anni-Frid Reuss-Lyngstad, better known as the 
brunette in Abba.

The charity held its biggest fundraising event of the year last 
Thursday, a gala performance of the Abba musical Mamma Mia, with 
tickets selling for up to UKP400 each. Persson was among the guests 
and his hard line on the Moss issue ensured he was spared embarrassment.

H&M is one of Mentor Sweden's seven 'general partners', each of which 
contributes UKP100,000 annually to the charity's work. Nina Johansson 
of Mentor made clear its expectations of how H&M would react to the 
Moss controversy. She said: 'From Mentor's perspective ... it was the 
only decision possible. H&M is an image maker and an example to young people.'

Persson himself, writing on the Mentor Foundation home page, says: 
'Companies must take on social responsibility. Companies often serve 
as social models and are moulders of public opinion.'

He has led by example, differing from many of his business 
contemporaries by refusing to become a tax exile. He has established 
charitable foundations for healthcare, medical research and drug 
rehabilitation schemes. He runs H&M - which is often compared to 
Sweden's other international retailer, Ikea - as a tight ship with 
few business-class flights, taxis or company mobile phones.
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MAP posted-by: Elizabeth Wehrman