Making a case for Leather | Responsible Leather

Making a case for Leather | Responsible Leather

We are often met with some hesitancy by some audience on discovering our core material choice, leather. In today’s day and age, when we are fighting the issue of climate change a material like leather sure imposes several questions. The question of procurement, the question of production and the question of disposability. 

Procurement being the slaughterhouse from where the animal hide has been collected from. Production being the process of tanning the leather and the usage of hazardous chemicals. Disposability being the problem of waste disposal from tanneries and the end leather product. 

Firstly, why pick leather in the first place? The answer is in the endurance of the material. Leather, if taken well, can last for decades and there’s a sense of an aesthetic romance even as the leather ages, trumping its easily available plastic based vegan alternatives such as PolyUrethane(PU) and PolyVynlChloride(PVC). Products created out of such alternatives start chipping off within 6 months to 1 year of usage prompting further purchase. A part of Adisee, we have been invested in the R&D of other vegan materials almost for a year and half now. Several plant based and lab grown leathers have been considered but we have not landed upon a reliable material as promising as leather. To provide some options to our customers we have created Raffia and Denim bags, but they are too reinforced with leather for the sake of infusing a longer life to the product. 

 

Adisee is a post-pandemic brand and as we all know and experienced, the pandemic halted our lives, locking us inside our houses and forcing us to think and be more mindful of our life choices if and when the new normal arrived. The idea of Adisee thickened the most during that time, prompting the founder Aditi Khorana to examine this new venture from all standpoints, honouring the creative logic, the economic logic and the Earth logic. Arriving at the decision of using leather was a well examined step after a deep study of all the leather alternatives and the process of leather production itself. 
The answer to the question of procurement, production and disposition was found through the UK based Non profit organisation, The Leather Working Group (LWG). A multi-stakeholder group that has established a stringent protocol for assessing the environmental compliance and performance capabilities of leather manufacturers. LWG-certified tanneries adhere to rigorous standards that promote responsible practices throughout the leather supply chain, from raw material sourcing to finished product delivery.

We handpicked a tannery from India which had been rated gold standard during the LWG audit, which means the tannery scored above 85% on the parameters of:

  1. Environmental Responsibility: efficient water and energy management systems, reduce waste generation, and responsibly handle and dispose of hazardous substances. 
  2. Worker Health and Safety: Tanneries must provide safe working conditions, proper protective equipment, and comprehensive training programs to ensure the health and safety of their employees. By prioritizing worker welfare, LWG tanneries uphold ethical labor practices and promote a more responsible leather industry.
  3. Traceability and Transparency: LWG-certified tanneries are required to maintain detailed records of their supply chain, enabling traceability from the raw material source to the finished product. 

This level of transparency allows consumers to make informed choices and ensures that the leather they purchase aligns with their ethical and sustainability values.
As stakeholders of the environment and fashion industry we are glad that consumers are educating themselves today and making better buying choices and putting  these difficult  questions forward, which probes the entire industry to look deeper into the issue and collectively inch towards betterment. 
At Adisee we continuously strive to co exist better with our community and our planet, steering clear of any big claims or promises our narrative is to create less but better. 

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