CFDA ends fur at NYFW
CFDA revealed the news in collaboration with Humane World for Animals and Collective Fashion Justice
The full version of this story was originally published on WWD, written by Lisa Lockwood and Rosemary Feitelberg
The Council of Fashion Designers of America, which owns and organizes the Fashion Calendar for New York Fashion Week, said Wednesday that it will no longer promote animal fur at any Official NYFW Schedule events, including on its Fashion Calendar, social media channel and website.
As a continuation of past program collaboration, the news follows years of engagement with Humane World for Animals and Collective Fashion Justice.
Beginning with the September 2026 New York Fashion Week, the CFDA will no longer permit animal fur in collections on the Official NYFW Schedule. This timeline is expected to give designers space to adjust their materials and show plans.
Farmed or trapped fur from animals killed specifically for their pelts — including but not limited to mink, fox, rabbit, karakul lamb, chinchilla, coyote, and raccoon dog — is not allowed. An exemption applies only to animal fur obtained by Indigenous communities through traditional subsistence hunting practices.
Leather and shearling are not part of the ban, according to the CFDA.
The CFDA will support designers through this transition and continue to provide resources on alternatives.
To help align NYFW designers with this new position, the CFDA is committed to offering educational materials and a material library so they can explore different materials.
This position aligns with London Fashion Week, which ended its promotion of fur in 2023, as well as fashion weeks in Copenhagen, Berlin, Stockholm, Amsterdam, Helsinki and Melbourne. Earlier this year, Condé Nast, owner of Vogue, Vanity Fair and Glamour, banned animal fur in editorial content or advertising, following similar policies from Elle and InStyle magazines.
“There is already little to no fur shown at NYFW, but by taking this position, the CFDA hopes to inspire American designers to think more deeply about the fashion industry’s impact on animals. Consumers are moving away from products associated with animal cruelty, and we want to position American fashion as a leader on those fronts, while also driving material innovation,” said Steven Kolb, chief executive officer and president of the CFDA.
Emma Hakansson, founding director of Collective Fashion Justice, said, “The CFDA has further cemented its position as a leading, innovative fashion council on the global stage by formally moving beyond unethical and unsustainable animal fur. At Collective Fashion Justice, we hope Milan and Paris fashion weeks will follow the CFDA and British Fashion Council’s lead, with our support.”
“We applaud the CFDA for using its unique influence on American fashion to help usher in a fur-free future. It’s policies like that that are paving the way for material innovation that will create a cleaner, more humane fashion industry without sacrificing creativity and beauty,” said PJ Smith, director of fashion policy at Humane World of Animals.