The girls are fighting! Cartier has filed a lawsuit accusing Tiffany & Co. of infringing on trade secrets by allegedly poaching a former employee and soliciting her for insider information.
According to the French jewelry giant, its American competitor — recently acquired by LVMH — hired a junior Cartier employee, Megan Marino, to obtain confidential information about the company's high jewelry collection.
The complaint, which also names Marino, goes so far as to proclaim that Tiffany & Co. "used quick money and title advancement to lure away an under-qualified employee from a successful competitor, knowing she lacked the experience and knowledge to perform a high jewelry manager role."
"Immediately upon hire, Tiffany’s president for the Americas met with this junior manager for the express purpose of obtaining information about Cartier, openly asking for highly valuable, detailed confidential information that would foster unfair competition."
Tiffany & Co. denied Cartier's claims and characterized them as "baseless allegations."
The legal scuffle comes in the midst of an ongoing rebrand for Tiffany & Co., which has sought to elevate and rejuvenate its image under LVMH's leadership.
Ever since the Bernard Arnault-led conglomerate purchased the heritage jeweler in 2019, the brand has made pointed efforts to court younger consumers via partnerships with Beyoncé, the "Not Your Mother's Tiffany" campaign, and collaborations with Daniel Arsham and Supreme.
In July 2021, the company hired Nathalie Verdeille, a Cartier alum, as the artistic director of jewelry and high jewelry.
Regardless of how Cartier's suit shakes out, it's clear that competition between the two jewelry giants is about to get a lot fiercer. (Cue: a Cartier v. Tiffany & Co. documentary.)
