Faux or Real: The Dilemma of Leather

Faux leather is, as marketing terms go, not a material that elicits a sense of luxury, appreciation, and comfort. It almost sounds cheap, and for a long time, it was the option for many who didn’t have the funds to spend on genuine leather. It lacked the durability, luxury, and appeal of genuine leather, but innovations in material science, perceptions and technologies have changed the way faux leather is produced and, most importantly, marketed.

Rebranding it as “vegan leather” has helped elevate the opinion consumers have about alternatives to leather, borrowing on the sense of luxury of genuine leather, while appealing to conscious consumers with the vegan angle. Yet, do we really know the story on this material? While some refer to animal welfare concerns, they disregard the fact that genuine leather is a by-product of the meat and milk industry. In other words, it's not the goal of food production, just the leftover we can luckily use instead of disposing of it. In fact, while meat production soars, animal hides are currently being sent to landfill instead of processing them as sustainably manufactured leather. 

The Fashion Industry Broadcast explores some of these questions around leather and the alternatives, and while they see the positives and negatives of both materials, the bottom line of the matter is that it all depends on the origin of your product. PU-based materials may be a “must” for a vegan lifestyle, but for non-vegans leather remains a reliable choice. The origin and production of a leather car seat hold no secrets as its production is transparent, responsible, and manufactured in line with the highest standards. 

Explore their findings and insights of FIB in this article to help you form your own opinion.

Read the full article on faux and real leather.