Footwear makers continue march away from leather
18/12/2015
The commentator, a contributor to sister site www.leatherbiz.com, said that although tanners have managed to negotiate lower hide prices this year, following rocketing highs last year, it has not been enough to convince mass-market manufacturers to choose the material.
“We are not seeing any improvement in the sales of shoe leather,” he said. “Substitutes are getting cheaper as the price of oil falls and we are hearing from many shoe factories that have reduced or will reduce their leather content.
“There is no demand for low-quality raw materials and even premium raw materials such as calf have lost 30% to 50% of their value in a year.”
Suede is faring a little better.
Tanners and hides traders will have to wait until the new year to see if orders pick up, but with many businesses announcing extended Christmas shutdowns, the outlook does not look, the commentator added.
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