Coach Accused Of Destroying Thousands Of Pounds' Worth Of Handbags

Retailer Coach has been accused of 'destroying' thousands of pounds worth of handbags after Anna Sacks (aka @thetrashwalker) shared a shocking video on TikTok.

You can watch it below:

In the video, Anna displays a number of 'slashed' Coach handbags, originally discovered by @dumpsterdivingmama, who claims they were found in a bin outside a Dallas mall at the end of August.

"As you can see they're all slashed, which is Coach's policy," Anna alleges.

"This is what they do with unwanted merchandise, they order an employee to deliberately slash it so no-one can use it and then they write it off as a tax write off under the same tax loophole as if they were accidentally destroyed."

Anna Sacks/TikTok)

Anna continued: "Coach actually has a repair programme for their bags... so I'm going to take some of these into Coach and ask them to repair them for me, because according to their website they really care about the circular economy, they really care about sustainability."

The repair policy explains: “All of our bags are crafted to last. We know that things happen, though, and sometimes bags need repair.

"The good news is: we have our very own Coach Repair Workshop staffed by expert craftspeople who love your bags as much as you do.

“So, don’t ditch it, repair it—it’s another small thing we can do to keep bags out of landfill and reduce our impact on the planet.”

TikTok/Anna Sacks)

And social media users were shocked at the video, with one person commenting: "Purposefully destroying products doesn't sound very circular to me."

While another added: "Thank you for calling out companies for their environmental impact. @Coach be better."

And a third said: "I had a Coach bag in my Christmas wish list, I'm removing it now."

"I will not be buying any Coach bags now," added a fourth.

Others suggested making slashed bags the latest trend, with one writing: "Let's make shoddily repaired luxury items into a new fashion statement."

Coach/Twitter)

Tyla has reached out to Coach for comment on their claims. On Monday evening, the brand tweeted: "We always strive to do better and we are committed to leading with purpose and embracing our responsibility as a global fashion brand to effect real and lasting change for our industry."

The brand also revealed it has now "ceased destroying in-store returns of damaged and unsalable goods".

Topics: Life, Shopping

Lucy Devine

Lucy is a journalist working for Tyla. After graduating with a master's degree in journalism, she has worked in both print and online and is particularly interested in fashion, food, health and women's issues. Northerner, coffee addict, says hun a lot.

@lucedevine