Elle Magazine have said that they will stop using fur in all of their editorial and advertising content worldwide. This is a first from a major publication.

This is a big deal. This isn’t just some tiny local magazine or a niche underground print, this is Elle, a French magazine that comes out in 45 different editions around the world. They have 33 million readers and 100 million monthly online visitors! This will definitely get the fashion world’s attention as well as the fur industry.

Elle’s international director, Valeria Bessolo Llopiz, said that fur is no longer welcome nor acceptable.

“The presence of animal fur in our pages and on our digital media is no longer in line with our values, nor our readers. It is time for Elle to make a statement… rejecting animal cruelty.”

The magazine will instead focus on fostering a “more humane fashion industry” and to “increase awareness for animal welfare.”

This hasn’t applied to every single edition of Elle, just 13 for starters. By January 1, twenty more editions will drop fur and the rest will drop it a year later.

“Fur has become old fashioned,” said Llopiz as she noted that this shouldn’t be that radical as heaps of brands had already gone fur-free years ago.

“We are in a new era and the Gen Z, which is the golden target for fashion and luxury, has huge expectations in terms of sustainability and ethics.”

The fur industry, naturally, isn’t pleased about this and argues that a ban on fur could harm the environment. Their point is that their natural product is being replaced with synthetic fur that is made with plastics and plastic is obviously not great for the environment.

The French fur industry is going so far as to “consider suing” Elle’s platform for “refusing to sell.”

The industry thinks that the general public is being swayed by “radical movements” and therefore do not reflect the general opinion of the public.

All their complaining falls flat when you learn that many designers are actually moving away from polyester to make their fake fur and instead opting for plant-based materials. Some are even using natural fibres like wool and feathers to mimic the appearance of fur. So there are options that don’t harm the environment and considering that they are aiming for sustainability, then moving away from polyester just makes sense.

This may be the beginning of the end for the fur industry, and it is unlikely that they will go down without a fight. Discrediting these kinds of movements will be their go to move going forward.

What do you think about this? A legitimate move towards sustainability or vain virtue signalling?

Remember when Billie Eilish caused Oscar de la Renta to stop using fur? Yeah, we wondered if that was the case. Find out more here. 

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