Faux Fur Fashion

By: S. Celulari

A very controversial topic around the fashion world is the usage of animals when fabricating clothing. Many fashion influencers and enthusiasts have changed their views on the that topic over the years, as technology has proven itself profitable when it comes to the fabrication of clothes.

One of the main reasons why both fur and skin were commonly used by designers is due to the fact that they heat up whenever in contact with your body. Besides becoming a popular fashion trend, it also became useful for stores to include it in their winter collections. Back in the 1930's, wealthy women used to wear fur jackets as a glamour accessory for winter, which is understandable since, at the time, thermal sweaters weren't created yet, and fur was the only way to avoid the cold.

However, fur was only used by a minor target audience, as the pieces were extremely expensive and only produced by exclusive designers. Along with growth of technology, fur pieces have become more popular and cheap stores were able to aggregate the trend by including faux fur. The issue of why real fur is still used in the fashion industry has become globally argued, now that a more animal-friendly option is available. This article will show how big brands have adapted to the faux fur fashion and how prestigious designers faced this significant transition in the fashion industry.

One of the most recent, mind-blowing news from inside the fashion world was when the Italian brand “Gucci,” announced they were going fur-free. Around October 2017, Marco Bizarri, Gucci's CEO declared to the press the brand's new aims for their future collections: the company believes that furs from animals such as minks, foxes, rabbits, karakul lambs and racoon dogs are completely out of limits as they require the animal's death for its use. On the other hand, lamb, goat and alpaca fur can still be used for clothing. Alessandro Michelle, Gucci's designer since 2015 informed the public that the brand wants to "reduce its impact on animals and in the environment". Oher stores such as Giorgio Armani and Stella McCartney have taken the same initiative and stopped using animals in clothing for some time now.
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The tendency is that, with time, brands stop using anything that is linked to animal fur or skin for their own benefit and for business reasons, so that fashion can become an animal and environment-friendly industry.