Trigger warning: This story contains descriptions and depictions of violence.
Drama came to New York Fashion Week on Sunday at the COS Fall 2026 runway show, where CFDA CEO Steven Kolb took it upon himself to physically restrain multiple PETA activists attempting to storm the runway in protest of the use of wool in fashion. At least five representatives from the animal advocacy group disrupted the presentation, with several of them making it onto the runway holding signs reading, “Sheep beaten and bloodied for wool. Don’t buy it.” Security peacefully escorted most of them from the venue (a spacious floor in lower Manhattan’s WSA).
Photo: Gilbert Flores/WWD via Getty Images
In one corner, though, Kolb held two protestors back from the runway, ripping their signs away, putting his hands over their mouths, and in one case, wrapping his legs around a female activist to restrain her. Fashionista happened to be seated nearby and captured the below footage of the events unfolding.
Even though it’s not a member of the CFDA or even an American fashion label — its parent company is Sweden-based H&M Group, and its lead designer Karin Gustafsson is also Swedish — COS was one of NYFW’s major shows this season. The presentation drew celebrities like John Boyega, Sharon Stone, Michelle Williams and Luptia Nyong’o, as well as fashion notables like Jenna Lyons.
Photo: Gilbert Flores/WWD via Getty Images
Ahead of the September shows in New York, PETA issued a press release saying it would “turn up the heat” on H&M Group over its use of wool. “PETA is calling out [H&M] for duping consumers with ‘responsible wool’ claims when a recent PETA Asia video exposé into a NATIVA-certified South African wool operation tied to H&M Group’s supply chain revealed workers kicking and stomping on terrified sheep, dragging them by their legs, and leaving them with gaping wounds after crude shearing,” read the PETA statement.
Representatives from COS and the CFDA did not immediately respond to Fashionista’s request for comment.
