Leather Pipeline: it may take years for cheaper leather to reclaim market share
28/07/2015
“Brands and retailers are not delivering a clear picture about their expectations for business, which is related to the fact that the global economy is uncertain,” the report says. “It is still unclear how much leather, as a material, has suffered in consumer product demand.”
A key factor in this, it points out, is that some “non-leather alternatives” have had a high level of success in the market, meeting brands’ material demands and proving easy to handle in production. It goes on to suggest that the leather industry should “face up” to the idea that, at least in the commodity sector, leather is likely to take a number seasons to recover its market share, if it ever does.
“We are not too worried about the medium and higher end of the quality and image range where leather is often part of the DNA of the article or brand,” it concludes, “but about standard, bread-and-butter articles. These account still for a great proportion of leather consumption around the globe and play a bigger role in the market than many believe.”
You can read the full report on the Market Info page of the leatherbiz website.
Share this story:
