PETA Targets Armani For Breaking Promise To Stop Using Fur
For Immediate Release:
30 October 2008
Contact:
Anna Sargent 020 7357 9229, ext 228; [email protected]
Sam Glover 020 7357 9229, ext 229; [email protected]
London – At a news conference before his runway show in Paris last year, Giorgio Armani declared, “I spoke with the people from PETA, and they showed me some materials that convinced me not to use fur”. The announcement followed almost two years of meetings with PETA US in Paris and Milan. But this fall’s collections include fur-trimmed jackets, fur-hemmed skirts, floral-printed fur coats and even fur-trimmed snowsuits for babies. To call attention to how the designer reneged on his promise, members of PETA will unveil giant posters of the group’s new ad campaign depicting Armani as “Pinocchio”. Protesters will also show shocking new undercover video footage – narrated by X-Files star Gillian Anderson – of rabbit fur farms in France and China, where Armani buys his pelts:
Date: Friday, 31 October
Time: 1 pm sharp
Place: Armani flagship store, 37-42 Sloane St., London
Armani is particularly obsessed with rabbit fur and has refused to meet and discuss the new exposé of rabbit-fur farms. Since Armani now refuses to see how the animals suffer and die painfully for his collections, PETA US is urging Hollywood celebrities who wear his clothes and frequent his fashion shows – including Tom Cruise, Cate Blanchett, Glenn Close and Josh Hartnett (who is currently wearing Armani in the West End production of Rain Man) – to use their influence with the designer to get him to keep his word and stop the cruelty. In addition to Gillian Anderson, other stars who have appealed to the designer on PETA US’ behalf include Pamela Anderson and Sir Paul McCartney.
“To satisfy the whim of the wealthy, Armani is buying up the skins of countless rabbits – one of the gentlest species – who are sentenced to a horrific life and a violent death in China, a country with no animal protection laws”, says Dan Mathews, the senior vice president of PETA US.
Broadcast-quality copies of Gillian Anderson’s fur exposé video will be available on site and high-res images of the unveil available after the event.
For more information, please visit PETA.org.uk.