July 26, 2018
What started as a mother’s curiosity ended in the retail company Claire’s filing for bankruptcy. That’s right! Your 12 year old daughter’s favorite place for jewelry and makeup is in big trouble, but not for the reason you may think.
Back in 2017, mother, Kristi Warner of Barrington, Rhode Island was suspicious about the ingredients in her daughter’s makeup she purchased from Claire’s. When she received results of the lab tests from her daughter’s makeup, she was shocked to find out that tremolite asbestos was found. With concern, she pulled seventeen other Claire’s products that also tested positive for tremolite asbestos.
We know that tremolite is a type of amphibole asbestos that has been found in talcum powder products.With talc cases triggering a new line of asbestos litigation, specifically for those that sell and manufacture cosmetic products with talcum powder, Claire’s is not the only one suffering.
In response to finding out this information, Claire’s pulled a number of their products from production. The company then began their own testing of the products and initially stated that it was “asbestos free” in late December 2017. Fast forward to March 2018, Claire’s then announces they are filing for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy. Why? Because, as you may have already guessed, a second round of testing did in fact reveal large amounts of tremolite asbestos in their products.
Although Claire’s had a fair amount of debt before news of their asbestos-containing products surged the internet, they anticipate they avoid the ultimate fait of closing for good by reducing its debt by roughly $1.9 billion.The retail store plans to continue business operations throughout the bankruptcy process which is set to go through in September.
Claire’s could come out on top in the end.Especially since any potential harm to minors who may have been exposed will not come to light for decades to come.That is uncertain for now. What is certain, however, is that exposure to asbestos-containing products, even those of the less potent chrysotile form, creates a risk of developing an asbestos causing disease. Manufacturers of products, especially cosmetics, should learn a lesson from Claire’s and avoid the costly detriment and bad press by regularly testing their products.Currently talc-containing cosmetics do not require FDA approval before going on the market; however, it is always a good idea to be safe now rather than sorry later.