"Call me stupid but I think I can change," says Stella McCartney

Stella McCartney pledged on Monday to try to change the world's largest luxury fashion group after LVMH acquired a stake in its brand, one of the most sustainable in the world .

The British designer strongly defended her decision to become "sustainable development advisor" of the owner of LVMH, Bernard Arnault, who regularly exchanges places with the boss of Amazon, Jeff Bezos, at the top of the list of the richest men of the world.

"My mother (late animal rights defender Linda McCartney) used to say infiltrate from the inside," McCartney told AFP hours before her week-long parade. fashion in Paris, which included a lot of vegan leather and a menagerie of fur animals in which skins are used fashion.

And she dispelled fears that Arnault is using her to dress after dismissing teenage Swedish activist Greta Thunberg as "offering nothing but criticism."

"Call me stupid. I hope I'm right," said McCartney, after inviting Christiana Figueres, the former UN climate chief who had designed the ; Paris agreement, to meet a group of fashion designers and shakers on the eve of its parade.

"I choose to believe that I can make changes, that I can show them a great example of a different way of doing business," said McCartney.

– "I will not let him go" –

"If my business is healthy – what I need to scream at them that this may be the future of fashion – then I think they are not going to sit back and ignore me, "she added.

LVMH "saw the quality of the products I make and they compared it to the quality made by all the other brands that kill millions of animals and the environment, and they said," Hey, it's the same, "said McCartney.

But the designer – Beatle's daughter Paul McCartney – did not defend LVHM's decision not to sign the "Fashion Pact" on the fight against climate change at the G7 summit in France l ; last year, who was defended by his main rival, Kering.

LVMH, whose huge stable of labels includes Dior, Louis Vuitton and Givenchy, is said to be lagging behind Kering, who owned half of the McCartney brand until she bought them last year.

"I think it sends a huge positive message that Mr. Arnault has invested in a house that is as durable and has this kind of conversation the day before his show.

"He is not there to tell me that I cannot do this. He is completely behind," insisted McCartney.

"I am his personal advisor on sustainable development … and I am extremely passionate about it. I will not let him go. We will see what I can do, but my intention is to do something.

– "Let's make the change" –

"Fuck it, let's make the change," she said.

When asked if sleeping with Arnault – formerly nicknamed "the wolf in a cashmere coat" – was not risky for his brand, McCartney replied that she "might have me- even a few fleas – but these are good ones that I'm taking to another niche.

"I also showed them a healthy, change-making business model that was accepted and looked great," she added.

The British designer has built a tremendous reputation for producing elegant, wearable clothing that is ethically made, pioneering recycled wool and new vegan materials to replace leather and fur.

The climate message has been omnipresent in the fashion brand LVMH Paris Fashion Week Dior celebrating its show with neon slogans such as "Patriarchy = CO2" and "Patriarchy = climate emergency" which could make reading uncomfortable for its owner.

Time to change: British designer Stella McCartney welcomes applause at the end of her Paris fashion show

A model with crocodile earrings at the Stella McCartney Paris fashion show

No skin on my nose: vegan designer Stella McCartney sends fur costumes from all the animals that don't have to die for her clothes during her fashion show in Paris

The British designer has built a tremendous reputation for producing elegant, wearable clothing that is ethically made, pioneering recycled wool and new vegan materials to replace leather and fur.