LONDON FASHION WEEK: A LANDMARK BAN ON EXOTIC ANIMAL SKINS
Leading the way on the fashion industry’s commitment to reducing its environmental footprint and adopting more humane practices, coming up next season and starting 2025 London Fashion Week (LFW) becomes the first major fashion event, and the first of the “big four”, to ban exotic skins from the runway. This means that brands hoping to showcase in LFW’s official fashion week schedule as of next year will need to commit to not use crocodile, snake, lizard, alligator or other wild animal leathers in their collections.
The move comes following a formal restriction against fur introduced last year. The British Fashion Council (BFC) adopted the fur ban in December 2023 extending from Copenhagen Fashion Week, which banned fun in 2022, exotic skins in March 2023 and is set to ban feathers from 2025.
A landmark moment: #LFW is fur and exotic skin-free - feathers next
The BFC’s ban comes amid growing pressure from animal rights activists regarding fashion brands’ and organisations’ inclusion of animal products in their collections - namely People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). It was announced end of November by the British Fashion Council’s (BFC) deputy director of policy and engagement, David Leigh-Pemberton in a speech to parliament.
“As part of the British Fashion Council’s positive Fashion Initiative, London Fashion Week is fur-free. We will not showcase any brands featuring real fur or exotic skins in their collections and ask designers to agree to these conditions as part of their application to appear at London Fashion Week,” said Leigh-Pemberton.
This approach is part of a more comprehensive package of Standards introduced by the BFC’s Institute of Positive Fashion which leads their social, environmental and sustainability programmes, as Leigh-Pemberton explained. He added that the organisation is currently also consulting with the industry on its approach to feathers: “The standards we apply to designers showing on the official schedule continue to evolve, and we are now actively engaging with designers and the wider fashion community to discuss our approach to feathers on the catwalk.”
It is clear that this work happens in the broader context of the fashion sector’s response to environmental and social concerns. “The BFC continues to lead work on circularity, low carbon transition, DE&I (diversity, equity, and inclusion) and social impact within the fashion sector. We know that many of our designers have strong ethics and are working towards more sustainable practices and accurate measurement.” Towards this end, PETA saluted the ban and the “compassionate British designers who helped usher in this policy.”
Fashion remains divided: Fur vs Exotic Skins
A considerable amount of the industry’s biggest brands have already stopped using fur joining the growing cultural conversation led by animal campaigners pushing for a “totally wildlife-free policy” and ethical consumption. The list of brands putting bans in place includes some of the biggest names, from Gucci, Dolce & Gabbana, Saint Laurent, Valentino, Marc Jacobs to Chanel (who also banned exotics in 2018). Notably, spanning a decade, the value of global fur exports shrunk from a peak of $14.7 billion in 2013 to just $3.4 billion in 2023.
That said, a considerable amount of brands are also looking to stop using exotic leathers - Burberry did so in 2022. However, the conversation around exotics seems to be much more complex. Exotic skins have a larger market footprint than fur and higher profit margins as well as being considered an important tool in elevating brand perception. They are seen by many to epitomise luxury - they are used to make some of the world’s most coveted luxury goods. Which is why the ban stands as a significant challenge for designers specialising in the aforementioned sector of luxury leather goods. Notably, both prominent houses Hermés and LVMH have neither a ban on fur nor exotic skins whilst Kering, which has a ban on fur still utilises exotic skins as does Prada.
The Debrief
To sum up, even though the move solidifying London’s leadership role in sustainable fashion and ethical consumption - as its the most progressive of the fashion weeks when it comes to animal materials - comes amid growing pressure on an industry whose carbon footprint is outpacing its climate progress, it is also a fight - for LFW - for relevance. In light of an ever fluctuating runway landscape that has repositioned in the recent years its centre of gravity to the other fashion capitals, namely Paris and Milan (where by contrast, fur is still seen at shows).
But most prominently, LFW’s bold move to become the first fashion week to impose the exotic animal skin ban, sparks a revolution and leads the change in promoting sustainable fashion practises marking a significant step forward in the fight against a more ethical fashion future. Taking, at the same time, stock of where commitments might lie amongst brands, fashion weeks and conglomerates and what needs to happen for further progress to pull ahead.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
NICOLE ZENIOU
Nicole Zeniou is a Contributing Fashion Features Editor at Bungalow 28, joining in 2024. Previously the Fashion Features Editor at Madame Figaro Cyprus, she has contributed to titles like Marie Claire Greece, Cosmopolitan Cyprus, and The Cyprus Weekly. Founder of the online interview magazine The Éditor, Nicole is passionate about blending creative disciplines and supporting international talent. She has interviewed leading fashion figures such as LaQuan Smith, David Koma, Casey Cadwallader, Lorenzo Serafini, and Mary Katrantzou.
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