There has never been such a good time to be an anti-fur advocate.
Despite lively conversation around fur in the 80s and 90s, with supermodels posing nude for PETA and proudly proclaiming that they ‘would rather go naked than wear fur’, designer brands have been hesitant to let go of this fading, declining former status symbol – until now.
Fashion and fur
With sustainability being an increasingly hot topic in fashion, fur is finally being declared dead as well-known and respected fashion schools such as Parsons School of Design in New York no longer work with it in their design courses, and earlier this year, the whole city of Los Angeles banned the sale of fur.
But leading the way are the brands that were once huge supporters of the industry, who now promise to ban all animal-based fur from their collections.
Burberry
After the scandal that revealed that this UK brand burned millions of pounds’ worth of clothing, the fashion house took steps to become more eco-friendly, which included a ban on fur.
Diane von Furstenberg
In a bid to make the brand more appealing to the lucrative millennial generation, Diane von Furstenberg added its name to the growing list of designers who banned fur and angora.
Maison Margiela
Creative director John Galliano spoke to PETA and ELLE earlier this year about his decision not to use fur in his collections at Maison Margiela.
One of the things he said about his choice was: “Today we don’t want a product – we want ethics, a firm that defends the values that we admire.”
Jean Paul Gaultier
A long-time user of fur and supporter of the industry, Jean Paul Gaultier called fur farming ‘absolutely deplorable’ on French TV this year, promising to keep animal fur out of his future lines.
Donna Karan /DKNY
After a long partnership with Humane Society United States, Donna Karan announced that both her namesake brand and her diffusion line DKNY will be dropping fur starting from 2019.
Versace
Italian designer Donatella Versace said this year: “Fur? I’m out of that. I don’t want to kill animals to make fashion. It doesn’t feel right.”
Chanel
The latest legendary fashion house to add its name to the list, Chanel banned both fur and exotic skins from its collections just a few weeks ago in favor of sustainable materials.