LVMH, which owns luxury brands like Louis Vuitton and Christian Dior, will use perfume production lines to make hand sanitizer
Luxury brands conglomerate LVMH, which owns high-end fashion brands like Louis Vuitton and Fendi, will be repurposing its perfume production lines to start making hand sanitizer as a response to the coronavirus outbreak. LVMH says it wants to tackle a nationwide shortage of anti-viral products in France, BBC News reports.
The company announced Sunday it will produce large quantities of hydroalcoholic gels and deliver them, free of charge, to health authorities.
On Monday, factories that normally produce makeup and perfume for brands like Christian Dior and Givenchy will start to produce hand sanitizer, and will do so for as long as necessary, according to BBC News.
In an effort to combat coronavirus, restaurants and non-essential stores have closed across France. CBS News' Imtiaz Tayab reports that Spain, France and Italy all saw their highest single-day death rates from the virus on Sunday. In Italy the jump came in spite of a whole-country lockdown.
There are currently more than 5,400 cases in France, and that country has seen 127 deaths, according to the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center.
In the U.S., New York State announced plans earlier this month to make its own hand sanitizer and provide it free to public facilities as consumers complained of nationwide shortages. Some stores and online sellers have been accused of price-gouging for Purell and other brand-name products.