Top clothing brands pulled up for substandard products

More than 20 batches of luxury clothing, including those belonging to top brands such as Giorgio Armani, Givenchy, Burberry, Marc Jacobs and Vivienne Westwood, failed quality tests, market regulators said.

Twenty three batches, or 18 percent of the 130 batches that were tested, failed the pH index, poor color fastness, unmatched fiber content and pilling tests, the Shanghai Industrial and Commercial Administrative Bureau said.

Seven batches came in short for poor color fastness. Among them, a batch of Burberry knitted garments failed for color fastness to alkali perspiration, while another batch of Marc Jacobs dresses was found to be substandard for wet rubbing color fastness as well as acid and alkali perspiration color fastness, the bureau said.

In addition, a batch of Vivienne Westwood women's coats failed for color fastness to water, acid and alkali perspiration, and fiber content, according to the bureau.

Color fastness is a compulsory standard of clothing in China and dye in clothing with poor color fastness can bleed onto the skin that can be harmful.

Eighteen batches were found to have unmatched fiber content types, or amount, compared with what was marked on their labels.

Among them, the label of a batch of Giorgio Armani coats indicated the coats contain 93 percent of cashmere and 7 percent of mulberry silk, while tests by the bureau found they actually contain 80.3 percent of cashmere, with the rest mulberry silk and wool, bureau officials said.

A batch of Givenchy dresses, three batches of Patrizia Pepe coats, skirts and suits, two batches of Pinko jackets and jumpsuits, a batch of Just Cavalli sports jackets, and two batches of Escada Sport dresses and knitted pullovers for women also failed unmatched fiber content.

Three batches failed for pilling, an important index indicating fabric quality, the bureau said. They included a batch of MaxMara knitted sweaters and a batch of Etro women's garments. A batch of Burberry cashmere sweaters failed for both pilling and fiber content.

Two batches of clothing, namely a batch of Patrizia Pepe skirts and a batch of Gegina T-shirts, failed pH index tests. Substandard pH index in clothing can cause skin allergies.

The bureau has ordered the brands to stop selling substandard and clear their stocks. They should also rectify and protect consumer rights.