Macy's bans fur sales in move celebrated by animal rights activists
Macy’s has formally announced that it will stop selling fur by the end of the 2020 fiscal year in a move that comes less than two weeks after California became the first state to ban the sale of new fur products.
The retail giant said that fur will no longer be sold across Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s private brands or from brand partners, according to a press release published on Monday.
“Over the past two years, we have been closely following consumer and brand trends, listening to our customers and researching alternatives to fur. We’ve listened to our colleagues, including direct feedback from our Go Green Employee Resource Group, and we have met regularly on this topic with the Humane Society of the United States and other NGOs. Macy’s private brands are already fur free so expanding this practice across all Macy’s, Inc. is the natural next step,” said Jeff Gennette, chairman and chief executive officer of Macy’s, Inc. in the press release.
“We are proud to partner with the Humane Society of the United States in our commitment to ending the sale of fur. We remain committed to providing great fashion and value to our customers, and we will continue to offer high-quality and fashionable faux fur alternatives,” Gennette continued.
Macy’s will also close its Fur Vaults and salons.
The company, which employs 130,000 people and has annual earnings of close to $25 billion, will continue to sell faux fur products, according to their new fur policy posted on their website.
The new fur free policy was developed alongside the Humane Society of the United States and aligns with their Fur Free Alliance guidelines which does make exceptions for sheep fur products and cattle fur including calf-hair and cowhide.
The Humane Society of the United States also made an announcement in a blog post about Macy’s decision.
“The announcement from Macy’s builds on an avalanche of fur-free policies adopted by popular fashion brands in recent years, including Prada, Gucci, Michael Kors, Burberry and many others … The fur industry simply cannot justify the cruelty it inflicts on 100 million animals each year —including foxes, mink, rabbits and raccoon dogs,” the statement read.
The Humane Society statement concluded: “We are proud to be part of the revolution that is working to bring an end to this suffering, and we will continue to fight this scourge globally until it is wiped off the face of the earth. Today’s announcement from Macy’s gives us added inspiration and our movement even greater momentum as we continue to work toward a fur-free future.”
