Hearst Magazines Bans Fur From Its Publications

Hearst Magazines has implemented an animal fur ban across its editorial and advertising content. A spokesperson confirmed on Tuesday the Harper’s Bazaar publisher had added the new regulation to the sustainability section of its “About Us” webpage.

The new amendment reads: “Across our portfolio of wholly owned global brands, Hearst Magazines prohibits the promotion of animal fur in editorial content and advertising. (Our guidelines recognize defined exceptions and apply to all new business and future content).”

“This is something we have been working toward for a while and believe it’s the right move for our company and our brands,” a spokesperson for the media company — whose portfolio includes Elle (which officially became fur-free in 2021), Esquire, Seventeen and Cosmopolitan — told The Business of Fashion in an email.

The decision comes less than a week after the Council of Fashion Designers of America announced last Wednesday it would ban fur from New York Fashion Week, and two months after publishing imprint Condé Nast went public with its own fur ban across editorial content and advertising.

Hearst Magazines’ ban follows a five-day protest campaign against the media company by grassroots organisation the Coalition to Abolish the Fur Trade, which included a demonstration last Friday in the lobby of global headquarters Hearst Tower in New York City. The CAFT said it would next be campaigning against the US luxury brand Rick Owens.

Learn more:

CFDA to Ban Fur From New York Fashion Week

Set to take effect in September 2026, the new rule will see New York Fashion Week become the second major fashion week circuit to terminate its promotion of animal hides.