Myer’s support of horse racing cruelty and slaughter

For almost 60 years, Australian fashion retailer Myer has helped to fund horse racing cruelty, and incentivised consumers to support it. As the Victorian Racing Club’s major partner, read on to see how Myer supports and promotes cruelty under the guise of fun and ‘harmless’ fashion competitions.

Myer has long supported the cruelty of horse racing

Myer’s longstanding ‘Fashions on the Field’ has incentivised many Australians to attend the Spring Racing Carnival for almost 60 years. Starting with ‘Ladies Day’ in 1962 to attract women to racing events, the carnival has since introduced ‘Family Day’ which encourages young men and women to attend racing events and witness normalised cruelty for years to come. Myer’s ‘Fashions on the Field’ competition also boasts $300,000 in prize money for entrants to compete. The fashion events rival the interest of the racing events at the carnival, often serving as a distraction or a justification for attending racing events, amid the growing concerns for animal welfare.

Myer’s endorsement of the Spring Racing Carnival is an endorsement of cruelty. Myer’s sponsorship of the VRC and their use of the Spring Carnival as a selling point for fashion promotes the cruelty that occurs alongside it.

Myer funds horse exploitation and slaughter

At the end of the 2023 racing season, Myer will become the longest-running major partner of the Victorian Racing Club (VRC) extending their partnership to 40 years. Myer is the exclusive fashion partner of the VRC and possesses naming rights for the “Myer: Fashions on the Field” events. The brand also commits to parading the Melbourne Cup trophy around selected stores across the country, celebrating their participation in the cruel sport it stands to make exorbitant profits from [3].

Myer pays the VRC an estimated $3 million per five-year contract [4]. The brand heavily relies on the racing season, with Australian consumers spending upwards of $40 million on fashion and accessories ahead of the Spring Carnival [5].

Myer is responsible for cruelty to horses, but they have the power to change

According to Myer, their brand is “  synonymous with race wear fashion; our sponsorship of the Victoria Racing Club's Myer Fashions on the Field competition, across Australia’s biggest race days, celebrates our passion for style, interpretation and elegance” [6]. In other words, the races are part of Myer’s brand identity. Myer’s public attitude suggests they see no issue being associated with a blatantly cruel industry that cares little about the welfare of racing horses.

Amid the release of ABC’s 7:30 Report “The Final Race” which exposed the true fate of race horses once they are deemed useless to the industry, a spokesperson for Myer provided the following statement: “We welcome the action being taken by the VRC … to ensure the welfare of horses on and off the track, particularly through the … announced VRC Equine Wellbeing Fund" [8].

The statement reflects Myer’s continued commitment to their profitable partner despite being “appalled” by the footage included in the report [8]. Myer’s apparent distaste was not followed up by any action, as the brand has made no commitments to an inquest into the mistreatment of race horses featured in the report, instead shifting responsibility to the VRC, while continuing to profit from this cruelty.

Myer’s response reflects their desire to continue operating by ignoring inconvenient truths. We encourage Myer to take a stand against cruelty and to stop sponsoring the Spring Racing Carnival. Rival Australian fashion retailer David Jones has already made the commitment to cease promoting the Spring Racing Season in their campaigns. It’s time for Myer to join the evolution away from cruelty, and end their partnership with VRC.