Latest news with #AlexandAni
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Trump administration says RI under investigation for affirmative action hiring. What we know.
The U.S. Department of Justice says it is investigating Rhode Island state government and its "affirmative action policies" for potential employment discrimination. The investigation seeks to determine whether the state "engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination based on race or any other protected characteristic," according to a June 4 letter from Assistant U.S. Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon to Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha. "Our investigation is based on information that Rhode Island may be engaged in employment practices regarding its affirmative action program governing state government employment under state law that discriminate based on race, national origin, or other protected characteristics in violation of Title VII [The Civil Rights Act]," the letter said. It is unclear how many other states have received similar letters. The letter does not mention the state's Division of Equity, Diversity & Inclusion, which oversees diversity recruiting efforts and minority contracting laws, the state policies that most closely resemble "DEI" initiatives President Donald Trump has vowed to eliminate. "We are currently awaiting details regarding the substance of the investigation," Olivia DaRocha, spokeswoman for McLee wrote in response to questions about the letter. "At this time, we have no reason to believe that there is an issue with our current hiring practices." The McKee administration refused to say whether it has received any subpoenas or formal requests for information from the DOJ. Dhillon's last high-profile case in Rhode Island, before she joined the federal government, was a lawsuit on behalf of Alex and Ani founder Carolyn Rafaelian accusing Bank of America of gender discrimination and blaming the lender for sending the jewelry company into a financial "death spiral." Alex and Ani dropped the case less than a month after bringing it and later filed for bankruptcy protection. The DOJ letter was first reported by The Public's Radio. Neronha told the station the letter was "so vague and non-specific" he doesn't see a need to respond to it yet. Rhode Island was recently also put on notice by the Trump administration after being named a "sanctuary jurisdiction," along with Providence and Central Falls, which the administration called "sanctuary cities," in an executive order issued May 29. The jurisdictions named in the order were alleged to have been violating federal immigration law. The order promised follow up from the federal government, but both state and city officials said they never received any. And days later, that order disappeared from the Department of Homeland Security website. This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: RI under investigation by Trump administration for DEI hiring politics
Yahoo
07-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Once-promising RI jewelry company now owes millions
EAST PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — Alex and Ani was founded by Cranston-based designer Carolyn Rafaelian back in 2004. But today, the jewelry company is a shell of its former self: it's mostly controlled by out-of-state private equity firms and owes millions to small businesses, landlords, and the town of East Greenwich. The Boston Globe RI's Alexa Gagosz joined 12 News at 4 to talk about the latest lawsuit against Alex and Ani, brought by a designer who says the bangle company owes her more than $6 million. Watch the full interview in the player above. Read the full story in The Boston Globe Rhode Island: Alex and Ani sued by Pamela Love, a L.A.-based jewelry designer, for millions in unpaid bills » MORE: Globe RI & 12 News Stories Globe RI on » Globe RI & 12 News Partnership: WPRI 12 partners with The Boston Globe Rhode Island to deliver unmatched local news coverage MORE: Globe RI & 12 News Stories Download the and apps to get breaking news and weather alerts. Watch or with the new . Follow us on social media: Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Boston Globe
06-03-2025
- Business
- Boston Globe
Alex and Ani sued by Pamela Love, a L.A.-based jewelry designer, for millions in unpaid bills
Get Rhode Map A weekday briefing from veteran Rhode Island reporters, focused on the things that matter most in the Ocean State. Enter Email Sign Up The arrangement worked for its first seven months, according to the suit. But on March 12, 2024, Alex and Ani CEO Prita Kumar told Love's manager that the company was terminating the agreement 'because of the 'financial health'' of the brand. However, Love had already designed pieces for the company to sell, the suit alleged. And Kate Robinson, Alex and Ani's chief creative officer at the time, told Love that the designs were already in production and could not be returned or given back to Love. The pieces went on sale last summer, the suit said. Advertisement In the lawsuit, Love and her attorney, Peter Fox, said they are looking to collect the unpaid money. Designer Pamela Love attends the Opening Ceremony Dance Left Benefit at Spring Studios on December 2, 2017 in New York and Ani was founded in 2004 in Cranston, R.I., by jewelry designer Carolyn Rafaelian, who named it after her eldest daughters. By 2014, the company was selling 10 million of its signature expandable wire charm bracelets per year. In a series of interviews with the Globe, Rafaelian said she was 'pushed out' and has not been involved with Alex and Ani since 2020. In 2022, Rafaelian launched Related : Advertisement In June 2021, after a series of high-profile problems — including lawsuits, years of executive turnover, and a ransomware attack — Alex and Ani was largely controlled by private equity firms and Alex and Ani is now controlled by majority owner Lion Capital, a London-based firm founded by English financier Lyndon Lea, while the remaining 35 percent of the company is controlled by the Bathing Club LLC. Lea has not responded to multiple requests from the Globe for comment since November 2023. The Bathing Club is controlled by Mark Geragos, a celebrity attorney who previously served as Alex and Ani's counsel. Geragos could not be immediately reached for comment on Thursday. Geragos, a long-time legal commentator on TV, has represented clients that include Lyle and Erik Menendez, Michael Jackson, Chris Brown, and other high-profile figures. He Related : Love initiated arbitration to collect her unpaid fees in the spring of 2024. During the arbitration, lawyers for Alex and Ani admitted that the company was 'trying to find a way to pay Pamela her money,' the suit said. Advertisement The arbitrator, former L.A. Superior Court judge Katherine Chilton, said the company's only justification for not paying Love was its poor financial health, and because its assets 'have been transferred to a third party.' This week, Love's suit also alleges a long-time effort by executives to move assets around to make them more difficult for creditors to collect. For example, in February 2023, Geragos's firm The Bathing Club initiated a security interest in Alex and Ani's assets, the suit said. In 2024, after Love began her arbitration, Lea also assigned a lien on all the company's assets to the Bathing Company. 'The transfer was from insider to insider,' the lawsuit said. 'With two insider liens on Alex and Ani's assets and no defenses to Pamela Love's claims ... Geragos caused the Bathing Club and Alex and Ani to execute a strict foreclosure on Alex and Ani's assets on or around July 24, 2024.' The suit alleges that these moves were 'part of a sham to defraud creditors.' Larry Meyer, an independent board member at Alex and Ani, declared during the arbitration that he was working on 'the orderly shutdown of the company.' Alex and Ani's Alexa Gagosz can be reached at
