London — An investigation disqualified former supermodel Naomi Campbell from operating a charity, revealing that she used monies donated by an organization she formed for spa treatments and room service charges. Announced on Thursday, the investigation into Fashion for Relief discovered “multiple instances of misconduct,” including the use of charity funds to cover Campbell’s five-star hotel stay in the south of France.
Campbell, 54, will not be able to run a charity in the UK for the next five years due to the UK Charity Commission’s decision. Two additional trustees were also suspended.
The watchdog investigation discovered that between April 2016 and July 2022, just 8.5% of Fashion for Relief’s total spending went into charitable gifts.
Campbell, who became the first black model to appear on the cover of Vogue in the United Kingdom in 20 years in 1987, rose to international prominence in the 1990s and is now a very prominent person in the business.
The Victoria and Albert Museum in London held an exhibition honoring her in June.
Speaking in Paris on Thursday, after receiving an award from the French government, the British star denied any culpability for the mismanagement of funds.
After receiving the Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters title, she told reporters, “I handed over control to a lawyer.” The actress announced that she would be conducting an investigation to determine the nature and methods of her charity, given that everything she does and every penny she raises is donated to charitable causes.
Campbell’s Foundation hosted a series of lavish, star-studded events in London and Cannes to generate cash for charitable causes. Programs ranged from assisting child refugees to aiding victims of the Ebola epidemic and the 2011 Japanese earthquake and tsunami.
In 2017, nearly 1,000 people attended an event at the French Riviera resort, including celebrities Leonardo DiCaprio, Antonio Banderas, Faye Dunaway, Jane Fonda, and Uma Thurman.
A three-night hotel stay for a comparable event in 2018 cost around $10,400.
The Charity Commission found no evidence that the trustees had ensured such costs were “reasonable.”
The regulator also investigated further costs of £6,600 (about $8,800) for Campbell’s hotel stay, which included spa treatments, room service, and the purchase of cigarettes.
The trustees claimed that a donor normally covered hotel costs, but they did not provide any supporting documentation.
According to the summary, “the commission concluded that there had been serious misconduct and/or mismanagement in the administration of the charity by the trustees since its establishment.”
Earlier this year, Fashion for Relief disbanded and had its charity registration revoked.
Founded in 2005, it describes itself as “dedicated to improving the lives of those living in adversity by uniting the fashion industry as a force for good.”