Victory! Urban Outfitters Apologizes for Selling Real Fur

Urban Outfitters has apologized for selling real fur after over 850 Change.org users signed the petition asking the retailer to do so.

Urban Outfitters contacted Change.org shortly after the petition went up three weeks ago, informing us that their vendor assured them the fur on the cardigan-in-question was fake. I wasn't buying it. Neither was Joshua Katcher, the head of the anti-fur PINNACLE campaign, and the person who originally made me aware of the hairy issue. Katcher ended up purchasing the Spring & Clifton cardigan himself, shortly before it was pulled from the website, and filmed a vlog explaining why the trim was real fur.

To Urban Outfitters' great credit, the retailer continued to investigate the issue to ensure that they were holding up their 2009 fur-free agreement with PETA. And when the retailer's own investigations confirmed that the fur on the Spring & Clifton cardigan was indeed real, Urban Outfitters was quick to apologize.

Urban Outfitters e-mailed this apology to Change.org yesterday: "We sincerely apologize for this unacceptable mistake. We take our agreement with PETA to stop selling fur seriously and want to uphold our promise. The item has been removed from the website and we will ensure that our merchants do everything in their power to prevent this from happening again."

Urban Outfitters also explained in the e-mail that they were deceived by their vendor, specifically their vendor's factory. The factory claimed the fur only felt and looked real because it has been “under special process and makes it feel soft and smooth.”

Now, I know real fur when I see it, but not everyone started an anti-fur club in middle school. It makes sense that Urban Outfitters at first chose to believe their vendor, and was disappointed to find out that they had been lied to. Urban Outfitters has yet to determine what the next steps will be in their relationship with Spring & Clifton, but has promised to follow up with Change.org on the matter.

The fur trim came from China, where undercover investigations have revealed the horrific cruelties animals suffer on fur farms. It's actually often cheaper to use real fur sourced from China than it is to use synthetic fur, which is one reason why fur mislabeling occurs.

The Truth in Fur Labeling Act will go into effect next month, at which point this type of mix-up will be illegal and punishable by a hefty fine and possible jail-time. But now that I have seen how committed Urban Outfitters is to upholding their fur-free promise, it seems unlikely that the retailer will fall prey to another furry snafu.

To all who are compassionate and fashion-conscious, please put Urban Outfitters back on your shopping list. And, thank goodness, because where else am I going to get a new pair of leopard-print vegan roller skates?

Photo Credit: churchstreetmarketplace