Birkin asks Hermes to take her name off croc handbag

French Actress and vocalist Jane Birkin has inquired Hermes to remove her name from essentially the advantage items maker’s popular luggage thanks to whatever she known as “spiteful” crocodile species cultivation and killing processes.

Birkin agreed to lend her name to the bag after sharing a flight with the charismatic late head of Hermes, Jean-Louis Dumas, in the 1980s. Not so anymore: last month, PETA conducted a new investigation into the crocodile farms that Hermes sources its leather from, and the star is horrified by the results. It’s under 7 minutes long, but it does a great job of painting a picture of the underbelly of the luxury fashion market. “PETA will be campaigning outside the company, and, as a shareholder, also working from the inside to demand a ban on exotic animal-skin accessories, including crocodile-skin bags and alligator-skin watchbands”.

“I have asked Hermes to rename the Birkin Croco until they adopt better practices that meet global standards for the production of this bag”, Birkin said in a statement to the media.

Hermes did issue a statement following Birkin’s, saying, “Jane Birkin has expressed her concerns regarding practices for slaughtering crocodiles”.

The statement continues to say that an investigation is underway at the Texas farm where the video was taken.

“Her comments do not in any way influence the friendship and confidence that we have shared for many years”, Hermès said.

Hermès said on Wednesday that it was also shocked by the PETA video and that an investigation at the Texas farm is under way.