HomeGoods and Macy's have committed to banning mohair from their assortments, according to a report by Home News Now (hometextilestoday.com). The commitments place two of the largest US home goods and department store buyers directly into a fibre-exclusion trend that has so far been driven largely by apparel-sector animal welfare policies.

The report names HomeGoods and Macy's among a group of retailers making the commitment. It did not specify, at the time of publication, a hard phase-out deadline or the share of mohair-containing product lines affected at either retailer.

What does the commitment change for suppliers?

For vendors supplying TJX's HomeGoods banner and Macy's Inc., the commitment translates into a material restriction on fibre content in future purchase orders. Suppliers of mohair-containing home textiles — blankets, throws, upholstery fabrics and blended knit goods are the typical categories — will need to reformulate, substitute fibre, or redirect mohair programmes to other customers.

Sourcing teams at both retailers will now have to enforce the ban through their product compliance processes:

• Fibre-content declarations and testing protocols updated to flag mohair in blends
• Supplier documentation requirements extended to trace mohair at the yarn and fabric tier
• Existing orders reviewed against the new policy's effective terms

How did the commitments come to light?

Home News Now reported the retailer commitments. The publication did not attribute the news to a corporate press release from either HomeGoods or Macy's, nor did it name an advocacy campaign as the trigger.

Historically, retail mohair bans have followed investigations into angora goat farming conditions in South Africa, the origin of the bulk of the world's mohair supply. Campaigns by animal welfare groups have previously secured mohair bans from major apparel retailers, and home textiles appears to be the next category absorbing that pressure.

What should sourcing and compliance teams do now?

Suppliers with mohair in their home textiles programmes for US retail should treat this as a live compliance restriction, not a sustainability marketing statement. Three actions follow directly from the news:

1. Audit current order books with HomeGoods and Macy's for mohair content, including low-percentage blends that may fall under the ban's scope once terms are defined.
2. Qualify substitute fibres — wool, alpaca, recycled or synthetic alternatives — that meet existing hand-feel and performance specs.
3. Request written phase-out timelines and fibre-declaration requirements from the retailers' sourcing offices before committing to new development for fall/winter programmes.

The decision the news forces is straightforward: vendors that cannot certify mohair-free supply chains for these two retailers should begin fibre substitution now, ahead of any published deadline.