As I was merchandising my vintage inventory at the Malibu Country Mart last week, a shopper exclaimed to the boutique owner that while she loved the new vintage merchandise it would be better if she didn’t allow the sale of fur items in her store. Now everyone’s entitled to an opinion, but the interesting thing about this comment is that the shopper was carrying a large leather handbag! Is it just me or does that seem a little bit hypocritical? I mean, where exactly did she think the huge leather purse on her arm came from?
Needless to say, wearing fur is a fashion quandary that polarizes fashionistas. To wear or not to wear, to buy or not to buy, to sell or not to sell. Those are the questions. And each fashionista needs to examine her own heart and her own values and decide what’s right for her. After much painful deliberation, I have chosen to continue offering vintage fur pieces at Zuburbia as I believe it’s the best choice for non-vegan fashionistas who insist on using fur in their wardrobes.
Contrary to popular opinion, I don’t think that the handful of fur items I sell each year are contributing in any meaningful way to the $16.5 billion dollar worldwide demand for fur. (Yep, you read that right—$16.5 BILLION!) My clients aren’t making a choice between not-buying fur and buying fur. They are choosing between buying new fur and buying vintage fur. And not only is buying vintage fur better for the environment, but at Zuburbia, 20% of the retail sale of all fur items is donated to animal activist charities.
In an article yesterday for the Washington Post, Nina Shen Rastogi addressed the fake vs. real fur dilemma from an environmental perspective and determined her final recommendation was…vintage. The article is definitely worth a read. And if you still feel fur has a place in your closet, then today’s VPOD features a beautiful vintage mink coat with a leather belt that will keep you warm without burning up your pocketbook. (It’s being sold for only 13.5% of its original retail price!)
That makes it a perfect vintage choice for a fur-wearing vintage fashionista!
Available at Fur Outlet.
Discovered at TheFind.com.
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