Elizabeth Arden photoshoot turned into national campaign: suit

The Elizabeth Arden Ultra Plush Robe sold at Bed Bath and Beyond using a photo of model Kata Greaney.Angel Chevrestt
She looks warm in this bathrobe, but a model says Bed Bath & Beyond and Elizabeth Arden left her out in the cold financially.

Kata Greaney alleges in a $1.1 million lawsuit that she was cheated out of hundreds of thousands of dollars when an image of her that was meant for a spa brochure was instead used in the packaging of a robe.

Greaney says she came to a November 2011 photo shoot at Elizabeth Arden in White Plains with a signed contract specifying the pictures would be used only for print, and she was paid accordingly: a measly $320.

“The conditions of the photo shoot itself gave Ms. Greaney no reason to suspect that it would result in a national campaign,” says the suit, filed last week in Manhattan federal court.

The “industry standard . . . for a national campaign for a national brand” is $20,000 to $50,000 per year, Greaney claims.

London Luxury, the robe’s manufacturer, called the suit “meritless.” Bed Bath & Beyond declined to comment. Elizabeth Arden didn’t return a message seeking comment.