Peta buys shares in luxury businesses including Kering, Burberry, Ralph Lauren

By

Dominique Muret

Translated by
Isabelle Crossley

Published
Apr 12, 2020

The fall in the market for luxury goods, caused by the Covid-19 crisis, has at least made Peta USA happy.

The organisation announced that it has taken the opportunity to become a shareholder in a number of fashion brands. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, which works to protect animal rights, announced that it has, “bought shares in around 20 businesses including French luxury giant Kering, Burberry, Ralph Lauren, and Guess.”
 

Peta’s aim in buying up shares is “to push fashion brands to stop using wool, mohair, and cashmere,” the NGO said in a statement. Peta has not disclosed the number of shares it has bought in each business nor the value of the transactions. 
 
“Becoming a shareholder will allow the association to encourage large groups and brands, from Kering to Guess, to switch to chic, eco-friendly, and ethical materials,” said Peta France’s corporate liaison head, Mathilde Dorbessan.

“Consumers today want to support companies that share their values and only sell sweaters and coats which no animal has suffered to produce.”
 
This is not the first time that Peta has undertaken this kind of initiative. After having bought shares in Prada and Hermès, Peta’s USA branch took advantage of Farfetch’s initial public offering in 2018 to invest in the luxury e-commerce business in order to push it “to abandon fur”.
 
The association often buys the minimum number of shares necessary to enable it to take part in fashion companies’ meetings to allow it to influence business decisions and strategies from the inside, according to Peta. The organisation is also a shareholder in businesses including Urban Outfitters, Under Armor, Deckers Outdoor Corporation (Ugg’s parent company), and Capri Holdings, which includes brands Michael Kors, Jimmy Choo, and Versace.
 
Peta has denounced the use of mohair and cashmere through surveys it has carried out in South Africa, China, and Mongolia. The surveys showed cruel treatment inflicted on goats and sheep by producers when they are shorn or taken to the slaughterhouse.