Today, the fashion industry is becoming more aware of the importance of protecting and respecting the environment and is committed to the animal cause. Many fashion designers and retailers have decided to give up the use of real fur in their collections. A step closer to a more ethical fashion.
The latest to say goodbye to the real fur: Michael Kors . At the end of December, the American designer explained his choice: "Thanks to the latest technological advances, we are now able to create a luxurious aesthetic using faux fur". These new techniques will be presented in February for the next show of the brand. Six months ago an event was organized by animal rights activists against the creator during his speech at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. This decision to stop the fur also applies to the shoe designer Jimmy Choo , bought a few months earlier by the American fashion company.
Impossible a few years ago to imagine the fashion behemoths separate from this noble material, symbol of luxury par excellence. And yet, other big names in luxury and ready-to-wear have also crossed the mark. This is the case of Giorgio Armani , Gucci , Ralph Lauren , Calvin Klein , Hugo Boss and Tommy Hilfiger who put a definitive end to the use of animal fur. We can also mention among others American Apparel , Scotch & Soda or Spirit. The mass-market brands have followed suit: the Inditex group (Zara, Bershka, Massimo Dutti, Oysho ...), H & M and Topshop. As for the labels Timberland, The North Face and Napapijri, known for their coats or fur-trimmed shoes, they have only been using synthetic fur since 2015.
Long before the fashion industry became interested in the subject, Stella McCartney positioned herself as a pioneer of an ethical fashion. From the beginning, she used synthetic fiber for fur, but also for leather. A fervent defender of the animal cause and respect for the environment, the English designer managed to impose herself without ever putting aside her ecological beliefs.
On the retail side, the Selfridges department stores and the Yoox, Net-a-Porter and Zalando stores are no longer offering real fur products. Lately, the Old Spitafields Market, one of London's most popular fashion markets, has banned its retailers from selling animal fur since 2018.
Currently, 450 companies around the world have joined the international "Fur Free Retailer" program and have committed to stop using a material that causes high environmental impact and unjustified animal suffering.
