AW 25-26 decodings: Sustainable Leathers The - Automne-Hiver 25-26 - Leather - Première Vision Paris
Striving for excellence in aesthetics, craftsmanship and commitment. Positioning ourselves as creators of beauty, crusaders of quality and guardians of the environment and social rights, from breeding to the finished product. Deeply engaged in a season of profound transformation, the leather industry is asserting its singularity with a single imperative: to combine sensuality, renewed expressiveness and sustainability as its foundation.
Going Back to the Origins
The very origins of leather opens up specific issues that may seem far removed from fashion.
Traceability requires going back to the origin of the raw hide via the supply chain’s upstream right back to the farm, to guarantee respect for animal welfare and absence of deforestation. To combat deforestation, the European regulation, Deforestation-Free, urges the industry to trace the origins of hides right down to the plot, and to identify high-risk geographical areas. In terms of animal welfare, tanners are expected to highlight the origin and certification of raw skins that respect the five freedomsof animals.
To this aim, unitary traceability through laser marking, as implemented by CO.VI.CO or Spoor, enables skins to be tracked throughout the various transformation stages. Textile Genesis leverages its digital expertise to support professional associations and brands in finding a standard for data transfer. Accordingly, information on the origin of skins, good farming practices, tanning and finishing processes used, as well as the sharing of social audits carried out are aggregated on the digital platform.
From the most skilfully enhanced to the most documented co-product, the industry is committed to transforming itself.
Exceptional Formulations
Transform without denaturing: therein lies the major challenge for the industry when it comes to developing reduced-impact versions of iconic products.
Preserving aesthetic and quality standards is a veritable technical feat: innovations are modeled through the action of various mineral, plant or synthetic active ingredients, making it possible to obtain softness, suppleness or firmness without using bisphenols, glutaraldehydes, chromium or PFAs regulated by the authorities. Each substance is scrutinized. Continuous improvement is particularly focused on ingredients derived from biomass, co-products or recycling.
The new tanning and finishing solutions aim to improve the recyclability of treatment waters andenable the compostability of hides, with production scraps repurposed as fertilizers.
Circularity is implemented internally, with chrome and wastewater recycling processes, for closed-loop production. Chrome-free tanning offers versatile finishes in a wide range of colors. Meanwhile, vegetable tanning is also showing great promise, with new-gen formulations geared to garment leathers. Biopolymers derived from agricultural by-product extracts are used as tanning or finishing agents with reduced impact.
Rethought, tested, revisited and designed to last, our tanning and finishing recipes adapt to the product’s needs in terms of circularity, from its creation to end-of-life.
For more Autumn-Winter 25-26 decodings, see here.
