Stella McCartney promotes animal rights message at Paris Fashion Week

Vegetarian fashion designer Stella McCartney has proved once again why her brand continues to be ahead of the curve as she promotes a powerful message of compassion towards animals in fashion at Paris Fashion Week.

Models at vegetarian fashion designer Stella McCartney’s show at Paris Fashion Week last week were asked to wear some rather unorthodox outfits to walk down the runway to highlight an important message that animal skins don’t belong on the runway.

Walking down the runway alongside models dressed in the designer’s new collection were a number of models dressed in animal suits, including two cows, a fox, a horse, two rabbits and a even crocodile!

This eye-catching spectacle aimed to show the fashion world that almost every catwalk is filled with items made from the fur or skins of dead animals.

Speaking to The Guardian, McCartney said: “What we try to do is to sugarcoat a powerful, meaningful message in a little bit of humour and fun, to make our point in a palatable and digestible way so that people listen.

“These animals are the ingredients of everyone else’s fashion shows. We are the only luxury fashion house in the world that isn’t killing animals on the runway. I wanted to make that point, but in a joyous way.”

The brand has also shared a number of cartoons on its Instagram profile featuring animals that are often killed for fashion such as a fox who exclaims “my coat looks better on me.”

Vegan leather

Over the years, the designer has been paramount in changing the perception that animal skins are necessary to creating luxury apparel, and debuted a “Skin-Free Skin” collection—made from a vegan suede-like material—at Paris Fashion Week in 2016.

Speaking at the time, McCartney said: “Fashion is an industry that makes a significant impact on the planet. It’s not just cool clothes and trends. … Every single day, myself and my entire team are challenging ourselves and the industry: what [can we] do better?”