Fur Is Back: NYFW 2026 Embraces the Controversial Trend

Despite a wave of industry bans and growing ethical pressure, fur dominated the streets and runways of New York Fashion Week 2026. Sub-freezing temperatures gave attendees every excuse to reach for their coats, with mink, fox, raccoon, vintage, and faux pieces all making appearances. The so-called “mob wife aesthetic” that sparked a fur resurgence in 2024 has since shed its micro-trend label, embedding itself firmly into everyday winter wardrobes — particularly in New York.

Shearling Steps In as Fashion’s Loophole

On the runway, designers found a clever workaround. Calvin Klein, Michael Kors, and Altuzarra all sent fur-looking pieces down the catwalk that were actually shearling — wool and skin sourced as an agricultural byproduct, and therefore exempt from most fur bans, including the CFDA’s upcoming runway prohibition effective Spring/Summer 2027. Searches for shearling on resale platform The RealReal are up 246% year-on-year, reflecting its surging mainstream appeal.

Consumer Demand Defies the Industry’s Direction

Even as global fur production has declined by 85% since 2014, consumer appetite tells a different story. Vintage fur coat searches on The RealReal are up 191% year-on-year, with sales of real vintage fur growing nearly 200% — outpacing faux fur’s 118% rise. Emerging bio-based alternatives, like the plant-fiber pieces seen at Collina Strada, offer a promising path forward, but remain niche.

The tension between ethics and aesthetics is unlikely to resolve soon. As one industry insider noted, so long as shearling can convincingly mimic mink, fur’s visual appeal — and its controversy — will keep making headlines.