While it has been a slow march, more and more fashion brands and couture house labels have been committing themselves to become more ethical. From Stella McCarthy working to make at least 50 percent of her womenswear line sustainable, to the likes of Gucci, Armani, Calvin Klein, and Tommy Hilfiger promising to go fur-free, brands have been taking strides to do right by the world. And the newest brand to hop onto that band wagon is Versace. Donatella just announced that Versace is going fur-free, explaining that she no longer feels right about killing animals in order to make fashion.
In an interview with 1843 magazine, in between discussing the failures and successes of the Italian label, the vintage rococo designs of the '90s that have become a staple of the brand, and Donatella's social media presence, the designer nonchalantly shared that her label will no longer be using fur in its collections.
“Fur? I am out of that," she told the magazine. "I don’t want to kill animals to make fashion. It doesn’t feel right.”
1843 pointed out that this news was so unexpected that, at the time of the interview, Versace’s own website was still highlighting “fur-embellished coats that turn heads" on its front page, trying to catch their customers' attention with their fur pieces.
But this news is a huge deal for the fashion house, especially since Versace has made its reputation on being a label for those whole love excessive glamour and over-the-top luxury. Fur has been a central theme in many of its seasons, where just in its Fall 2017 runway models stomped down the catwalk in an array of ombre fur coats in electric and eye-searing colors.
But as Vogue pointed out, Donatella might have become more introspective these past couple of years which has, in turn, led her to this decision, as was apparent with her recent politically-driven collection. In her Spring 2018 line, clothes were printed with such words as "courage," "loyalty," "equality," "unity," and "love," with the runway tipping its hat to the political unrest that has been going off in shock waves across the world.
With black sheer tops with the word "courage" stamped across the chest, neon and black beanies with "unified" and "equality" embellished across the front, and sheer overlay slips with "courage" written in sequins and mixed in with collages of floral patches, it was edgy and heavy with meaning all at once.
That's not to say that faux-fur won't still make it into Versace's runways, though. There are plenty of labels that use vegan faux-fur to create real-looking, luxurious pieces, such as Marc Jacobs and Stella McCartney.
But just because the designer is retiring fur also doesn't mean the label is now going vegan. Leather is still very much on the table, or at least it is for the time being. Versace's Fall 2018 ready-to-wear collection was evidence of that, where Donatella re-created the '80s era on the runway, putting forth a collection that looked like a mashup of punk style and the cast of Clueless. Featuring electric yellow and blue plaids, '80s trenches, wide buckle belts, and studded accents, it was a flash to the past — and leather was the connecting theme throughout all of it.
From studded leather plaid patchwork jackets, to leather collared shirts, to high waist leather pants, it was a collection fit for an incredibly chic biker gang. But to the brand's credit, there was not one fur piece.
It's pretty great to see more and more brands step away from fur, though there are still plenty of fashion houses that use it. Hopefully with big names like Versace distancing themselves from such designs, more labels will follow.
