Victory! Victoria’s Secret Confirms That Fashion Show Will Use Only Faux Feathers After Push From PETA

For Immediate Release:
September 26, 2024

Contact:
Moira Colley 202-483-7382

Victoria’s Secret has finally earned its wings from PETA. After months of exchanges with PETA about the cruel ways birds are raised and killed for their feathers, Victoria’s Secret has confirmed to the group that it will use only beautiful handcrafted faux feathers for the models’ Angel wings at its upcoming fashion show, which will feature performances by Tyla, Lisa of BLACKPINK, and headliner Cher.

Victoria’s Secret has previously used up to 620,000 feathers—from chickens, Chinese pheasants, and ostriches—for a single fashion show. In thanks for the brand’s compassionate move, PETA is sending it a delicious vegan cake decorated with beautiful birds.

“PETA is tickled PINK that the return of Victoria’s Secret’s iconic fashion show will reflect modern values by ditching cruel and archaic feathers to create dazzling designs that no bird died for,” says PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman. “Fashion is all about creativity and innovation, and Victoria’s Secret is setting a fabulous example for other designers to follow.”

Feathers used for fashion are torn by the fistful out of fully conscious, terrified birds or taken from ones killed for their flesh or skin. The feather industry helps prop up the meat industry, since a bird’s feathers can be sold at a much higher price per pound than their flesh. A PETA investigation into the largest ostrich-slaughter companies in the world revealed that workers forced frightened young birds into stalls where they were electrically stunned, then slit their throats in full view of their flockmates.

Stella McCartney, famously feather-free, recently launched a campaign to urge designers to sign PETA’s feather-free pledge vowing never to use feathers again in their collections. This week, PETA took to Dior’s runway to call on the brand to go feather-free.

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.