London Fashion Week becomes the first of the big four fashion weeks to ban exotic animal skins, leading the charge toward ethical and sustainable runway practices.
London Fashion Week will become the first of the “big four” global fashion weeks to ban the use of exotic animal skins, starting in 2025. This historic decision by the British Fashion Council (BFC) solidifies the event’s standing as a leader in ethical fashion. Designers participating in the prestigious shows must now commit to eliminating crocodile, alligator, and snake skins from their collections.
The announcement, made by the BFC’s deputy director for policy and engagement, David Leigh-Pemberton, during a parliamentary speech, follows the Council’s earlier decision to ban fur, a promise first introduced by chief executive Caroline Rush in 2018 and formally enacted in December 2023. London Fashion Week’s latest initiative sets a new benchmark for sustainability and animal welfare, further distinguishing itself from other fashion capitals like Milan and Paris, where fur and exotic skins still appear on the runways.
The ban aligns London Fashion Week with the values of smaller but influential events like Melbourne and Copenhagen fashion weeks, both of which have also prioritized sustainability and animal welfare. Copenhagen Fashion Week announced its own ban on feathers earlier this year, effective from 2025.
Animal rights advocates have lauded London’s decision as a major victory. “We celebrate this important progress,” said Emma Håkansson, founder and director of Collective Fashion Justice. Dr. Charlotte Regan, a wildlife campaign manager at World Animal Protection U.K., praised the move as a pivotal moment for global fashion, stating, “Millions of animals continue to suffer and die for fashion when there are so many innovative and exciting animal-friendly materials designers and clothing companies can choose to create with instead.”
Despite this progress, campaigners have turned their focus toward the use of feathers in fashion. Regan noted, “With both fur and now wild animal skins banned from London Fashion Week, our attention turns to the use of wild bird feathers in fashion. We look forward to working with the British Fashion Council on the last step of their journey to being a completely wildlife-free event.”
Ethics and emerging designers
London Fashion Week’s focus on emerging talent has made such bans more feasible. According to the Business of Fashion, leather goods powerhouses — typically reliant on exotic materials — are less prominent at the event, giving London a unique opportunity to lead the ethical fashion movement.
Feathers, however, present a more complex challenge. Widely used as trim in garments, their authenticity can be hard to determine. A 2023 investigation revealed feathers marketed as faux by labels like Boohoo were real.
The BFC has expressed its commitment to supporting designers through this transition. In a statement, the Council emphasized its dedication to ethical and sustainable practices under its Institute of Positive Fashion, which works to integrate social and environmental values into the industry. “We know that many of our designers have strong ethics and are working towards more sustainable practices and accurate measurement,” the statement read.
While London and Copenhagen continue to innovate with their bans, Milan and Paris fashion weeks haven’t made any such announcements and often showcase collections featuring fur and exotic skins. With designers embracing sustainable innovations and audiences prioritizing ethics, the industry stands at a transformative crossroads.
BFC’s announcement comes as designer Gabriela Hearst, celebrated for her dedication to sustainability in fashion, has unveiled real python leather in her Spring/Summer 2025 collection. The leather is sourced from invasive species — a controversial practice. Hearts partnered with Florida-based materials innovator Inversa for a pump and sling-back flat using the leather, which she told Vogue is “game-changer.”
Inversa specializes in crafting exotic leathers from invasive species, animals whose unchecked proliferation is devastating ecosystems. Its python leather, sourced from Florida’s Greater Everglades, helps address a crisis where non-native pythons have reduced native species populations by up to 90 percent. According to Inversa, every python hide used in production protects an estimated 460 animals that a single 13-foot python would consume during its life, while also bolstering the survival of 39 endangered species.
But the practice still poses ethical concerns. And with animal-free textile innovations, like mushroom leather increasingly available, some designers and labels have begun to move away from exotic skins, feathers, and even leather. Danish luxury label Ganni has committed to no new virgin leather, embracing alternative textiles instead.
Stella McCartney, a trailblazer in sustainable fashion, has intensified her advocacy against the use of animal-derived materials, notably feathers and leather, during recent fashion weeks. Her initiatives underscore a commitment to ethical design and environmental responsibility.
In September 2024, during New York Fashion Week, McCartney collaborated with People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) to launch the “It’s About F*cking Time” campaign, urging the fashion industry to cease using leather. This campaign revitalized PETA’s iconic “I’d Rather Go Naked” demonstrations, featuring activists, including actor Caylee Cowan, posing nude with strategically placed signs reading “No Leather Ever” in the windows of McCartney’s SoHo flagship store and at street demonstrations in Washington Square Park.
McCartney, a lifelong vegetarian who has never incorporated leather into her designs, stated, “I have never used leather in any of my collections, and PETA was one of the first organizations to champion my vision for a cruelty-free fashion industry.”
PETA President Ingrid Newkirk commended McCartney’s efforts, noting, “Stella McCartney has pushed fashion forward with creativity, innovation, and compassion, while some other designers remain stuck in the Stone Age – still making clothes from animal skins,” Newkirk said.. “PETA loves partnering with Stella to chart an ethical, sustainable future for the fashion industry together and to urge everyone to leave leather on the rack – or, better yet, on an animal’s back.”
At Paris Fashion Week in October, McCartney expanded her ethical stance by addressing the use of feathers in fashion. Her Spring/Summer 2025 collection highlighted the plight of the estimated 1.5 billion birds killed annually for fashion. McCartney emphasized the importance of eliminating feathers from fashion, stating, “I’m trying to tell everyone that those feathers you’re seeing on the runway — all is pointless.”
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