A heavyweight lineup of London’s most exciting young designers has signed a joint letter to fashion students urging them to pursue cruelty-free fashion, and resist the bribes of a dying fur industry “desperately trying to keep itself visible by pushing pelts on up-and-coming designers.”
Hannah Weiland, the faux fur alchemist behind your favorite fuzzy coats at Shrimps, is joined by fellow fur-free designers Faustine Steinmetz, Marta Jakubowski, Molly Goddard, Felder Felder, Renli Su, JH Zane, and Vika Gazinskaya as signatories to the letter, which was sent by PETA to Central Saint Martins, to be passed on to all fashion students.
“As future fashion designers, students at Central Saint Martins have a unique opportunity to influence the next generation of consumers by embracing the trend towards cruelty-free fashion,” the letter opens. It encourages students to resist the incentives and bribes of fur companies.
“Every single bit of fur comes from an individual who was likely killed by painful means after spending a miserable, terrifying existence confined to a tiny barren cage,” the letter explains, noting that, “Even in so-called ‘Origin Assured’ countries, investigators have documented the neglect, starvation, and gaping wounds of animals on fur factory farms.”
“Whether the fur comes from a frightened caged fox in Finland or a gentle angora rabbit held down and live-plucked in China, it’s not ‘fabric,’ and it’s not ours for the taking. It belongs to the animals who were born with it and need it,” the letter continues, highlighting the global success of fur-free brands, and also the wide range of vegan and eco-friendly alternatives now available.
86% of London Fashion Week designers did not use any fur on their fall/winter 16 catwalks, and in recent months a number of international fashion houses — including Armani, Hugo Boss and The Kooples — have joined cruelty-free designers like Stella McCartney and Vivienne Westwood in their commitment to being fur free.
Having been anti-fur throughout our 36 year history, i-D hopes students will follow the lead of London’s best new designers and keep fur out of fashion.
Read: PETA founder Ingrid Newkirk on turning her conviction into an international movement
Credits
Text Charlotte Gush
Photography Jamie Stoker