Vogue publisher Condé Nast stops showing fur in all editorial and advertising

By Issy Ronald, CNN

(CNN) — Vogue will no longer feature “new animal fur in editorial content or advertising,” according to updated guidelines on the website of its parent company, Condé Nast.

The guidelines — which allow for “defined exceptions, including byproducts of subsistence and indigenous practices” — will also affect other titles owned by the media conglomerate, like The New Yorker, Vanity Fair and GQ.

But it is in its implications for Vogue, long seen as the preeminent arbiter of fashion, that this change is the most profound, representing the shift away from fur within the industry.

When asked about the change on its webpage, a spokesperson for Condé Nast told CNN that “our values and fashion guidelines have reflected this for many years.”

Fur’s popularity has been declining for years. Brands and retailers like Canada Goose, Gucci, Net-a-Porter, Versace, Prada, Neiman Marcus and Michael Kors have all announced their intention to phase out fur products since the 2010s.

Fashion magazine Elle banned fur from all its international editions in December 2021 to support animal welfare and reflect changing tastes, it said at the time. Fur farming is banned in several countries, including the United Kingdom, Austria, Croatia, Italy and Norway, while in 2021, Israel became the first country to ban new fur sales.

But in 2024, the “mob wives” aesthetic went viral on TikTok, sparking renewed interest in fur, particularly from younger generations, since the trend incorporated big fur coats, animal prints, heavy gold jewelry and glossy leather trousers.

At the time, Vogue published several articles dissecting the ethics of the trend, even if the fur worn was vintage or faux. “Fur is back. That’s a problem,” said one headline. “Is Wearing Vintage Fur Socially Acceptable Now?” asked another.

As recently as 10 days ago, however, Condé Nast made no mention of fur on the sustainability page of its website, according to screenshots on The Wayback Machine, a tool that archives webpages.

Condé Nast’s decision to stop featuring animal fur in its publications came after a nine-month campaign by the Coalition to Abolish the Fur Trade (CAFT).

During this campaign, animal rights protestors picketed the houses of Vogue’s editors and demonstrated outside events the magazine organized in London and New York. They also held protests inside stores affiliated with the magazine, including American Girl, a doll brand owned by Mattel, whose board includes Condé Nast CEO Roger Lynch.

CAFT announced Condé Nast’s change in policy in a statement on Sunday.

Although fur farms are banned in many countries, millions of animals are killed every year for their pelts, which are used in clothing, according to animal welfare charity Humane Society International. Most of those animals are kept in “barren battery cages on fur farms,” the charity adds.

Vogue’s recently departed editor-in-chief, Anna Wintour, has long drawn the ire of animal rights activists for her love of fur, famously being hit in the face with a tofu pie in 2005.

In 2019, she refused to condemn the industry during an interview with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour, saying that “fake fur is obviously more of a polluter than real fur.”

“I think a lot of people are discussing the idea of upcycling and what you can do with fabrics, fur, things that have already been used … I think it’s up to the houses that work with fur to make sure they are following best practices, that they are being ethical in their treatment,” she added.

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