Gwyneth Paltrow’s Teeny Bikinis: The Daily Mail has accused Gwyneth Paltrow of sexualizing children by selling an exclusive range of little girls’ bikinis on her lifestyle website, Goop. The bikinis, created by established designer Melissa Odabash, come in sizes for girls aged four to eight years old. According to The Daily Mail, Goop describes the design as “perfect or little girls who want to match their mothers.” The paper attributed the controversy to a single quote from Claude Knight of British child abuse foundation Knightscape in which he explained, "We remain very opposed to the sexualisation of children and of childhood. The dangers have been discussed at length, so it is a great pity that such trends continue and that they carry celebrity endorsement." Goop is also selling the bikini’s adult version. Paltrow's rep labeled the claims "absurd" explaining that "two-piece bathing suits have been worn by young girls for decades." [Daily Mail]
Reed Krakoff to Depart Coach: Designer Reed Krakoff is stepping down as the as president and executive director of Coach in June 2014 to focus on his own namesake label. Krakoff has worked for the brand for sixteen years. According to WWD, shake up in the brand’s executive structure (chairman and chief executive Lew Frankfort is also expected to exit) will have Krakoff acting “more as an adviser to Coach than creative director” until the time of his departure. The brand is already looking for a replacement. [WWD]
Madonna Exhibit Hits LA: A fashion exhibit entirely devoted to Madonna will open at Macy’s in Century City, California on Thursday. The one-day-only pop-up experience is curated by longtime Madonna collaborator Arianne Phillips. Madonna herself even handpicked eight of her favorite archival costume looks for the exhibit, including iconic pieces by Jean Paul Gaultier. [Vogue UK]
Ralph Lauren to Settle Bribery Claim: Ralph Lauren Corp. will have to pay the US government around $1.6 million to settle a bribery scandal, reports WWD. The brand will pay $882,000 to the US Department of Justice and nearly $735,000 to the SEC to settle claims that it “violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act,” writes the paper. It all stems from one of the Ralph Lauren’s Argentinean subsidiary managers, who reportedly bribed government officials “to avoid inspection and Customs requirements between 2005 and 2009.” [WWD]