The brands that are fur free and the ones who are still using fur

Photo: Louis Vuitton

Photo: Fur Free Alliance

There has been a big shift the last few years. From high-end fashion brands using fur as a symbol of luxury to now joining the club of fur-free brands. It is no longer considered fashionable to wear an animals skin that has been raised simply for its fur. In the 2020 decade, we can only hope that keeping animal in cages for their skin will be something that goes into the history books and no longer a practice to be found in society.

The last year covid scandals on the mink farms across the world has also show that keeping a large group of animal in cages close to each other is not only ethically wrong but also a health risk for humans and other animals. Several countries have now banned mink-farming (or enforced laws against other practices leading to the end of fur-farms) such as; United Kingdom, Norway, Croatia, Austria, Netherlands, Belgium and the list goes on.

Some of the high-end brands that first made the decision was Ralph Lauren in 2006 followed by Armani 2016, Gucci in 2017, Burberry in 2018, Chanel in 2018, Versace in 2019 and Prada in 2019. Yves Saint Laurent was one of the brands who recently joined announcing in September 2021 that they will go fur-free with start from 2022. Stella McCartney, launched in 2001, has never actually used fur at all. This truly shows that you don’t need to use fur in order to be a successful fashionable brand.

However, not all the brands seem to have follow the change. Dior, Chloe and Louis Vuitton are still using fur. That these brands continuous with the practice is unbelievable considering public opinion. According to Fur Free Alliance, most citizens of North American and European countries are against fur.

Fur-free is not the same thing as cruelty free. Many of these brands are still using leather and other animal products and the level of animal welfare can variate a lot. To be sure of animal welfare, the best thing a brand can do is to go free of animal products, just like Stella McCartney? Will this be the next step for the high-end brands to follow?