Stella McCartney Says ‘It’s About F**king Time’ to End Leather as She Teams Up With PETA for Racy NYFW Action

For Immediate Release:
September 6, 2024

Contact:
Moira Colley 202-483-7382

Stella McCartney and PETA will take the group’s iconic “I’d Rather Go Naked” campaign to a whole nude level during New York Fashion Week on Tuesday to lay bare a bold message: It’s about f*cking time to end the use of leather. The risqué display will kick off in the window of McCartney’s flagship store in SoHo, where actor Caylee Cowan and other animal allies will gather—covered only by strategically placed signs reading, “No Leather Ever,” and briefs by Karla Welch’s The Period Company—before marching to Washington Square Park. The action will mark the launch of Stella McCartney’s Winter 2024 campaign and PETA’s No Leather Ever pledge, which calls on consumers to take a stand against the violence of the toxic global leather industry by vowing to ditch animal skins.

“I have never used leather in any of my collections, and PETA was one of the first organizations to champion my vision for a cruelty-free fashion industry,” says McCartney. “I couldn’t have chosen a more perfect partner for launching my Winter 2024 campaign with a very activist spirit—because it really is about f*cking time we ended the use of leather.”

“Stella McCartney has pushed fashion forward with creativity, innovation, and compassion, while some other designers remain stuck in the Stone Age—still making clothes from animal skins,” says PETA President Ingrid Newkirk. “PETA loves partnering with Stella to chart an ethical, sustainable future for the fashion industry together and to urge everyone to leave leather on the rack—or, better yet, on an animal’s back.”

Where: Stella McCartney New York Soho, 112 Greene St., New York

When: Tuesday, September 10, 10 a.m.

A photo call at the Washington Square Arch will begin at 12 noon, and an after-party will be held at McCartney’s store starting at 6 p.m.

“It’s About F**king Time”—Stella McCartney’s Winter 2024 campaign slogan—is inspired by a custom tank top worn by the designer during Sir Paul McCartney’s inauguration into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1999 and has been reinterpreted as a rallying cry calling for an end to the violence and environmental destruction of leather. Every year, more than a billion animals are killed by the global leather industry. Cows killed for leather may be skinned and dismembered while they’re still conscious—after they endure castration, branding, and tail docking, all without painkillers. In addition to the horrific cruelty the leather industry inflicts on animals, it also contributes to the climate catastrophe, land devastation, deforestation, pollution, water contamination, and loss of biodiversity.

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to wear”—points out that Every Animal Is Someone and offers free Empathy Kits for people who need a lesson in kindness.

For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow the group on X, Facebook, or Instagram.