‘This is a huge victory that will spare countless animals and makes a clear statement that animal furs and exotic animal skins are unnecessary products of the past’

Fashion giant Nordstrom has committed to stop selling fur and other exotic animal skins by the end of 2021.

The move came into effect following ‘customer feedback’ and a partnership with The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) and will be implemented at all of Nordstrom’s properties, including Nordstrom Rack, Last Chance stores, as well as Nordstrom’s e-commerce sites.

Under the new policy the Seattle-based retailer will no longer carry exotic animal skin products that are derived from — but not limited to — lizards, snakes, pythons, alligators, crocodiles, ostriches, sharks, kangaroos and stingrays.

‘Committed’

“As a leading fashion retailer, we’re committed to delivering the best possible service and merchandise for our customers. Delivering on that commitment means continually listening to customer feedback and evolving our product offering to ensure we’re meeting their needs,” said Teri Bariquit, Chief Merchandising Officer at Nordstrom, in the brand’s press release.

 “As part of our ongoing product evolution, we’ve been working with the Humane Society of the United States and recently made the decision to stop offering products made with genuine fur or exotic animal skin in any of our stores or online.

“Our private label brands haven’t used these materials for years, so extending this policy to all the brands we carry is a natural next step for our business.”

WE’RE GOING FUR-FREE. By the end of 2021, you’ll no longer find products made using animal fur or exotic animal skin at Nordstrom. Learn more about our decision to go fur-free and our partnership with the @HumaneSociety: https://t.co/M7TVI4z8MB pic.twitter.com/VxfQRC3jUo

— Nordstrom (@Nordstrom) September 29, 2020

‘Huge victory’

HSUS welcomed the decision and praised the brand for adopting the compassionate policy of dropping fur and exotic skins from its fashion lines.

Expressing its gratitude in an Insta post, the group wrote: “Nordstrom is adopting a policy against selling fur and exotic skins!

“This is a huge victory that will spare countless animals and makes a clear statement that animal furs and exotic animal skins are unnecessary products of the past.

“This announcement couldn’t have come at a better time. It’s become quite clear that aside from being overwhelmingly cruel and bad for the environment, fur farming is a major COVID-19 risk, with outbreaks linked to fur farms in the U.S. and Europe.

“Thanks to your support, we’re changing the future of animals for the better.”

‘Ban the use of all animal-skins’

PETA, who has been urging Nordstrom to go fur-free since 1980 also commended the fashion retailer and thanked it for doing right by animals who are mutilated and killed for their fur and skin.

The animal charity is now urging the company to ban the use of all animal-derived materials since Nordstrom is yet to ban the use of materials derived from cows and calves, sheep and lambs, pigs, goats and water buffalo.

• Read: Calvin Klein and 16 other brands ban fur because ‘the future of fashion is vegan’

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Mohsina Dodhiya

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