People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals Says Lagerfeld Brand and Others Are Fur-Free
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FUR-FREE PLEDGES: After what was said to be years of appeals and pressure by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals and its affiliates, the Karl Lagerfeld brand is among the latest labels to go fur-free. The animal rights group revealed the news Wednesday.
Executives at the AM Retail Group, a wholly owned subsidiary of G-III Apparel Group, and G-III Apparel Group itself have agreed to ban fur, according to PETA. The AM Retail Group operates stores owned by G-III — Wilsons Leather, G.H. Bass & Co., Calvin Klein Performance, Karl Lagerfeld Paris, and DKNY stores. The G-III Apparel Group includes such brands as Andrew Marc. Supporters of PETA had first reached out to Lagerfeld in 1995, a PETA spokeswoman said Wednesday. Lagerfeld, who designed Chanel and Fendi women’s as well as his own line, died in February.
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G-III’s Morris Goldfarb, chairman and chief executive officer, was not immediately available for comment Wednesday.
A representative from the International Fur Trade Federation did not respond immediately for a request for comment Wednesday.
Andrew Marc is selling through its fur inventory and Wilsons Leather has pulled fur merchandise from its e-commerce site, according to the PETA spokeswoman. The fur-free policy applies to the Karl Lagerfeld brand and Karl Lagerfeld Paris, she said.
In going fur-free, the Lagerfeld brand and others join such fur-free companies as Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s, Burberry, Diane von Furstenberg, Chanel, Gucci, Michael Kors, Prada, Jimmy Choo and Versace. Last month Claudie Pierlot, the ready-to-wear brand owned by SMCP, said it would stop using fur in its collections starting with its spring 2020 offering. As was the case with the Lagerfeld news, the information was first circulated via a PETA press release stating that three of the ready-to-wear brands owned by SMCP — Sandro, Maje and Claudie Pierlot — would stop using fur.
In October, California officially banned the sale and manufacturing of new fur products in the state. In doing so, Gov. Gavin Newsom spoke “of one of the strongest animal rights laws in U.S. history.”
Regarding Lagerfeld and the other new fur-free recruits, PETA’s senior director Anne Brainard said in a statement, “PETA applauds these companies for their compassionate and business-savvy decisions, which show that fur is out and kindness is in. Ethical shoppers simply don’t want animals to be abused and killed for coats, collars and cuffs, and these fur bans are proof that the fashion industry is changing to meet the rising demand for luxury cruelty-free alternatives.”
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