Maison Simons will ban fur from its stores by the fall.
The Quebec retailer responded to a request from the PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) organization which campaigns against animal cruelty. This group has over 65,000 members.
“Kudos to Simons for taking action to help end the barbaric slaughter of animals for their fur,” said Tracy Reiman, vice president of PETA, in a statement. “Customers can do their part by choosing comfortable vegan clothing approved by PETA, for which no animal has suffered or been killed,” she continues.
On Monday, Simons management confirmed to Journal removing this type of clothing from its inventory. However, no official was available to give an interview on this subject. It is therefore not possible to know, for the moment, the impact on the brand’s finances.
PETA claims to have shared numerous investigative videos on the global fur industry in recent months, involving products sold at Simons, among others. On its website, PETA notably targets the Canada Goose brand in an article.
The organization criticizes the fact that some farm animals spend their lives in cages. PETA also laments the fact that some ranchers are reportedly using “less expensive slaughter methods, such as broken necks, suffocation, poisoning and genital electrocution” to salvage the furs, in order to sell them to designers.
Not a first
Simons is not the first retailer to join this movement. Several banners like Macy’s, Hugo Boss, Armani, Burberry, Gucci, Versace and Michael Kors have already banned fur from their collections.
In addition, in recent years, Simons has injected millions of dollars to reduce its environmental footprint. In Quebec City, the brand has notably set up a self-sufficient energy store at the Galeries de la Capitale with geothermal wells and solar panels.
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