CFDA places CEO Steven Kolb on leave after altercation with PETA protesters
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The Council of Fashion Designers of America has placed president and chief executive Steven Kolb on leave following an altercation with PETA protesters at the Cos runway show during New York Fashion Week, Business of Fashion reported.
In a statement, the organisation said it takes the matter very seriously and that Kolb will be on leave pending a full review, adding that the CFDA is committed to working with dissenting voices and to respectful engagement with differing viewpoints.
The incident took place on Sunday at WSA at 175 Water Street, where activists from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals walked onto the runway carrying placards and shouting about the use of sheep's wool by Cos and its owner, H&M Group. Footage captured by Fashionista and circulated widely online shows Kolb wrestling one protester to the floor and pushing another against a window, covering their mouths in both cases.
Kolb issued an initial statement saying he had reacted inappropriately and should have left the situation to the security team. He posted a fuller apology to his personal Instagram Stories on Monday.
As reported by Business of Fashion, Kolb wrote that reviewing the videos had made him understand the reaction they generated and that he did not recognise the person in them. He said he was taking voluntary leave and meeting a professional to ensure it never happened again, that he held himself accountable, and that he had accepted an invitation from PETA to discuss its concerns and hoped to apologise in person to the two individuals involved.
Calls for Kolb's resignation or a formal reprimand grew as the footage spread. PETA confirmed that the activists involved in the altercation were filing a police report and plan to pursue criminal charges. “Today’s actions show how top people in fashion use violence to silence people who expose how sheep are beaten, bloodied, and violently killed for scarves and sweaters,” PETA Founder Ingrid Newkirk said in a statement on Sunday. “PETA is calling on H&M and COS to ban wool from its collections and is urging everyone to shop elsewhere until they do.”
The protest targeted H&M Group's wool sourcing. PETA has accused the retailer of misleading consumers over responsible wool claims, citing a PETA Asia investigation into a certified South African operation in the group's supply chain.
Kolb joined the CFDA in 2006 and was appointed chief executive in 2011. The organisation represents more than 300 American designers and runs initiatives including the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund and the annual CFDA Awards.