Inside the rise of Chiara Ferragni, the social media mega-star who's been accused of misleading followers into buying a charity cake

• Chiara Ferragni is an Italian influencer with just under 30 million followers on Instagram.
• The 36-year-old is under investigation for aggravated fraud over a Christmas cake partnership.
• Here's how the digital entrepreneur shot to social media superstardom.

Italian influencer Chiara Ferragni, who has almost 30 million followers on Instagram, is under investigation by a local prosecutor and is facing a $1 million fine after she was accused of misleading followers into purchasing a charity cake but not donating the proceeds.

In November 2022, Ferragni, who owns a fashion brand and a marketing agency, teamed up with Italian pastry brand Balocco to launch a special pandoro, which is a Christmas dessert. The item was packaged with a pink box featuring Ferragni's name and logo, as well as an illustration of the social media star.

The item was advertised on Ferragni's Instagram account at the time as a charity initiative that would aid children treated for bone cancer at the Regina Margherita Hospital in Turin, Italy.

The Italian Competition Authority investigated the campaign and found that because the special edition cake was priced higher than its normal cakes, it believed that Ferragni's campaign was "misleading" consumers into thinking the increased price would lead to a hospital donation. (The branded pandoro cakes sold for more than 9 euros each, while it's normally priced at 3.70 euros, the agency's press release stated.)

According to the Authority, two companies associated with Ferragni received over 1 million euros, or $1.1 million, from the deal, while the only donation made came the previous May in the form of 50,000 euros from Balocco, the cake brand.

As a result, Balocco was fined 420,000 euros, or $460,000, and Ferragni and her companies were fined 1.075 million euros, or $1.1 million.

Ferragni apologized in an Instagram post on December 18, and pledged to donate 1 million euros to the hospital, but said she would be challenging the fine, claiming it was disproportionate.

More recently, Ferragni was placed under investigation for aggravated fraud by a prosecutor in Milan over the partnership, according to the Associated Press.

But how did Ferragni become such a social media superstar and build her empire — amid this controversy? Here's what we know.

In 2009, Ferragni launched her blog 'The Blonde Salad,' which focused on fashion and lifestyle.

At the time, Ferragni was studying international law at Milan's Bocconi University but left before completing her degree, as her social media career was booming, The Financial Times reported.

In 2011, she was dubbed the "blogger of the moment" in an article by Teen Vogue. During an interview with the publication, Ferragni said she started the blog as a space to discuss fashion, travel, and food, and to inspire other people.

Ferragni's blog eventually evolved into a talent and marketing strategy agency, and she later launched a footwear and fashion brand in her own name.

Ferragni first appeared on the Forbes 30 under 30 list at the age of 27.

The influencer, who is now 36, was featured in Forbes' art and style category in 2015, highlighting the financial triumph of her shoe company, which sold products in 200 stores across 25 countries at the time.

The same year, Ferragni was used as a case study for Harvard Business School, which examined the success of her blog.

Ferragni continued to rack up accolades from Forbes over the following years.

She was listed as a top fashion influencer in 2017, and took the number 21 spot of top creators in 2023, noted for her partnerships with high-end brands which included the likes of Louis Vuitton, Gucci, and Prada.

She was then the subject of several TV and documentary specials.

In 2019, a documentary titled "Chiara Ferragni: Unposted," which followed the influencer's journey from a blogger to a digital entrepreneur, premiered at the 76th Venice Film Festival.

Two years later, Prime Video released the first season of the reality TV show "The Ferragnez," an 8-episode series that followed the lives of Ferragni, her husband Federico Leonardo Lucia (a famous Italian musician who also goes by Fedez), and their son Leone.

Fedez is a social media star in his own right, with 14.7 million followers on Instagram, and the couple's joint hashtag #ferragnez has been used in over 139,000 posts.

A second season of their docu-series was released earlier this year.

The fallout from the cake partnership continues

In January, the Associated Press, citing the Italian news agency Lapresse, reported that Milan prosecutor Eugenio Fusco placed Ferragni under investigation for aggravated fraud over her Christmas cake partnership.

The AP reported that Ferragni said she was feeling calm about the investigation in a statement: "I have always acted in good faith and I am certain that this will emerge from the ongoing investigation. I have full confidence in the work of the judiciary and with my lawyers," she said in part, according to the outlet.

Alessandra Balocco, the head of the cake brand, was also put under investigation for aggravated fraud, the AP reported.

Amid the recent scandal, Ferragni's massive online presence continues to span social media.

Alongside her tens of millions of followers on Instagram, the Italian superstar has 6.4 million followers on TikTok, where she regularly posts videos documenting her family life.

The Facebook page dedicated to her original blog has 1.2 million followers, and the influencer has a considerable following of over 779,000 on X (formerly Twitter) too.