Three black friends who spend $500,000 a year at Louis Vuitton sue brand after being banned from store and accused of using drug money
Three black friends who spend half a million dollars annually at Louis Vuitton have sued the luxury brand after receiving a shocking email banning them from using drug money to purchase items.
Three black friends who spend half a million dollars annually at Louis Vuitton have sued the luxury brand after receiving a shocking email banning them from using drug money to purchase items.
Tracy Renne Williams, her daughter Brandi Williams and a friend, Kristopher Enoch, filed a race-based discrimination lawsuit against Louis Vuitton on Friday in California federal court.
The plaintiffs have accused the high-end company of banning them from their stores for shopping while black and telling them they would be arrested if they returned, according to the lawsuit.
In September 2022 Tracy - a VIP customer of the brand - preordered $50,000 in merchandise to be delivered to her home from the Louis Vuitton store in Costa Mesa, California, and soon received an appalling email from the brand saying it could no longer do business with her.
Meanwhile, when Tracy sent in her white assistant to purchase the same exact items she wanted, he was treated respectfully and was not threatened with arrest, the lawsuit said.
Tracy Renne Williams (pictured), her daughter Brandi Williams and a friend, Kristopher Enoch, filed a race-based discrimination lawsuit against Louis Vuitton on Friday in California federal court
The plaintiffs have accused the company of banning them from their stores for shopping while black and telling them they would be arrested if they returned, according to the lawsuit. (pictured: Exterior of Costa Mesa store)
The email to Tracy read: Dear Mrs. Tracy Williams: It has come to our attention that Louis Vuitton has been unable to satisfy your needs.
Please be advised that Louis Vuitton is no longer prepared to do business with you and we ask that you no longer patronize our boutiques or attempt to order our products via telephone, online, or in person at any Louis Vuitton store.
Please do not make further attempts to contact the stores. Any further attempts to communicate with Louis Vuitton should be directed to our Legal Department in writing to: Attn: General Counsel, Louis Vuitton Americas, 1 East 57th Street, New York, New York 10022.
After receiving the scathing correspondence, Tracy visited a Louis Vuitton store in Beverley Hills and was told by a white manager that she was no longer welcome to shop at the store and that she would be arrested if she stayed or returned, the lawsuit said.
After failing to receive the products or a refund for her order, Tracy sent her white assistant to the same store where he was treated drastically different than her, the suit detailed.
To the contrary, Louis Vuitton staff treated him respectfully and, even when the assistant stated he would (and did) pay for the items with several thousand dollars cash, he was not otherwise prevented from making the purchase, according to the document.
When Brandi (pictured) entered a Louis Vuitton store in Chicago in July 2023, a white store manager who recognized her soon refused to allow her to shop there
The lawsuit recognized Tracy as a VIP customer for the brand, which gives her access to exclusive events and sales and dedicated Louis Vuitton concierges who tend to her customer service needs.
After allegedly being blacklisted from the company, the lawsuit claims Tracy, who once had a lucrative social media presence showcasing her extravagant finds, has lost about $40,000 in revenue.
Last year, Tracy attempted to purchase nine pairs of limited edition Nike Air Force 1 sneakers at $2,300 a pair, but couldnt because of the alleged ban, per the lawsuit.
Instead, those custom sneakers were sold at auction to the public for $176,400-$352,800 a pair. Those same shoes have since been re-sold for more than $1million a pair, the lawsuit stated.
According to the legal filing, her daughter Brandi also suffered discrimination from the brand while shopping at a Chicago store in July 2023.
During her interaction, a white store manager who recognized her soon refused to allow her to shop there, the lawsuit said.
The manager also baselessly accused Brandi of spending drug money during her shopping spree, according to the lawsuit.
Brandi then sent her non-black friend in to the same store to purchase the desired items with a gift card under her name, but was soon contacted by an employee that the purchase was illegal after discovering it was for her, the lawsuit claimed.
The store also demanded that she return the purchased items, according to the legal filing.
Tracys friend Kristopher was also denied from purchasing a jacket at a Louis Vuitton store in Beverly Hills, California in September 2022
Brandi went on to enter a Louis Vuitton store in New Orleans and was again told to leave or she would be arrested, the lawsuit said.
Tracys friend Kristopher also experienced a similar interaction while shopping at a Louis Vuitton store in Beverly Hills in September 2022.
At the time, Kristopher grew fond of a jacket that a non-black customer wasnt interested after an store associate presented it to them, the suit claimed.
Kristopher told staff that he wanted to purchase the jacket for Tracy, but the employees told him it was not available without a clear explanation from the store manager, the lawsuit stated.
Following both Brandi and Kristophers interactions, they received materially identical messages that Tracy did from the luxury brand, according to the lawsuit.
After each of them experienced their bizarre interactions with the brand, Tracy attempted to resolve the issue at hand, the suit said.
The three plaintiffs are seeking a jury trial and are suing the company for race discrimination under the Unruh Civil Rights Act, business discrimination, tortious breach of contract, and theft. (pictured: Inside Costa Mesa store)
According to the filing, the Beverly Hills and Costa Mesa store placed blame on each other for the situations.
She even got in touch with the vice president of the company, who told him he could do nothing about it and directed her to the brands legal team, the lawsuit said.
Tracy has not heard back from the brands legal representatives, the lawsuit claimed.
The legal filing went on to reference Oprah Winfreys experience with invidious race-based discrimination with Louis Vuitton when the store refused to sell her a handbag in 2015.
This bag is for the Italian people; it’s only for the Italian people, the talk show host, who addressed about the situation in a video, recalled an Italian sales clerk saying to her at the time.
The three plaintiffs are seeking a jury trial and are suing for race discrimination under the Unruh Civil Rights Act, business discrimination, tortious breach of contract, and theft, according to the lawsuit.
DailyMail.com contacted Louis Vuitton for comment.
