Burberry to drop real fur, stop destroying unsold goods

LONDON >> British luxury fashion brand Burberry said today it will stop using real fur in its products and also stop destroying products that it cannot sell.

The company said there will be no real fur in its London Fashion Week catwalk show later this month. It will also phase out existing real fur products.

Burberry said it has made only limited use of real fur in recent years with clothing incorporating fur from rabbit, fox, mink and Asiatic racoon. Those will now be eliminated, along with use of angora.

The fashion house, which produces clothing, leather goods and beauty products, also said it will no longer dispose of unwanted and unsold stock by destroying it after the practice was criticized by environmental activists this summer.

The company said in an earlier report that it destroyed more than 28 million pounds ($36 million) worth of luxury goods including beauty products in the last year to protect the brand’s image and keep its goods from being sold cheaply.

It said today it plans to expand efforts to “re-use, repair, donate or recycle unsaleable products.”

“Our responsibility goals cover the entire footprint of our operations and extend to the communities around us,” said chief executive Marco Gobbetti. “Modern luxury means being socially and environmentally responsible.”

Burberry’s Sept. 17 runway show will mark the debut collection for new creative chief Riccardo Tisci, who replaced Christopher Bailey at the helm.

The Burberry show is typically one of the highlights of London Fashion Week, which begins Sept. 14. The company will share the spotlight with Victoria Beckham, Roland Mouret and others.