It's Official: San Francisco Supervisors Are So Over Fur

Photo: Fendi

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to ban fur sales in the city on Tuesday, making San Francisco the third (and largest) city with such a ban. West Hollywood and Berkeley already have similar laws in place. Interim Mayor Mark Farrell plans to sign the law, and the new policy will go into effect in January 2019.

The ordinance applies to not only to fur clothing, but fur home goods, gifts, and accessories. Under the new law, it will be illegal to purchase new furs in San Francisco proper and to deliver new furs ordered online into the city. (This is similar to California's python sales ban.) Vintage and used furs are exempt from the new law, as are leather, cowhide, sheepskin, and wool.

The Associated Press reports that annual fur sales in the city are estimated between approximately $11 million (according to city estimates) and $40 million (according to the Chamber of Commerce). While fur retailers can expect a revenue hit, the San Francisco Examiner reports that Supervisor Katy Tang offered a last-minute amendment to her proposal to allow retailers who have fur in their existing inventory to be able to sell it until January 2020 if the fur was ordered before March 20, 2018. 

Major department stores and current fur retailers like Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus have yet to comment on the ordinance, but the law could also impact local fur storage services. Without fur sales, it's reasonable that department stores would allocate their fur storage space for more revenue-friendly purposes. Rockyt has reached out to both Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus for comment. We'll update this post as more information becomes available.