Why it is important to join Leather Naturally

Release date: 1/21/2019

Listen to the external parties from Italy like Silvachimica, Lapi, GSC Group and Lamipel why they think it is so important to join Leather Naturally. Leather Naturally is working on a global communication strategy aimed at winning over younger consumers. 

The word goes to the first Italian Supporters: Claudio Bortolati (GSC group), Francesco Lapi (FGL International), Jacopo Pieraccioni (Lamipel) and Eric Poles (Silvachimica)

Leather Naturally is working on a global communication strategy aimed at winning over younger consumers. The basic idea is to get also the so-called Millennials and the Generation Z to make known and appreciate the values of leather through a communication project that speaks their language and that involves the most popular social media, from Facebook to Instagram, to Youtube. The timing for the start-up of the campaign is linked to the current fundraising trend. “We have been able to raise funds to finance a large part of the campaign but to reach the necessary amount of USD 1.5 million we need to find new supporters”, explains the president of LN, Egbert Dikkers. “We presented the project to many companies and associations in the sector, receiving very positive feedbacks”, adds Fernando Bellese, member of the Steering Committee, actively involved in the development of the marketing project. Leather Naturally is supported by tanneries from all over the world (including Bader, Prime Asia, Wollsdorf, Wolverine Leathers, JBS Couros, etc.), by all the chemistry multinationals and other important producers of tanning chemical auxiliaries, as well as by international rawhide traders. In Italy, the accession to the initiative is still at an early stage, perhaps due to a linguistic barrier, but attention is growing.

Among the supporters of the first hour we find Eric Poles, sales director for the leather division of Silvachimica of Mondovì (Cuneo):

“We are founding members and we really believe in this initiative. Since its creation LN has always defended our sector from attacks by various NGOs (environmentalists, animal rights activists, etc.) and from the unfair competition of synthetic materials that imitate our wonderful natural product. But now it is time to press the accelerator and take action: over time the group has expanded thanks to the passion of many operators in the sector and has devised ambitious projects to continue to pursue the initial objectives in a more global and incisive form. We need to expand the network by collaborating with other associations and bodies in the sector in order to have a sufficient critical mass to be able to invest in marketing and promotion”.
Absolutely convinced about the goodness of the initiative is also Francesco Lapi, number one of the Lapi Group who joined LN through FGL International of Castelfranco di Sotto (Pisa), a known manufacturer of chemical auxiliaries:
“Real leather is facing major attacks from all over the world - says Lapi - on the one hand there is a strong competition that tries to replace it by promoting the use of synthetic materials, on the other, associations that are carrying out increasingly strong denigration campaigns against leather for the welfare of animals. We have decided, like FGL International, to collaborate with Leather Naturally and all its members because it is absolutely necessary, in order to counter these attacks, that there is an organised system able to inform the final consumer which are the positive aspects by using leather. Everyone must be aware of the fact that properly produced leather is a truly sustainable material”.

Claudio Bortolati of the GSC Group of Montebello Vicentino (Vicenza), specialised in the production of chemical auxiliaries for all types of leather, shares the same opinion.

“Our sector has been under media attack for too long, often with fake news and almost always not corresponding to the reality leading the consumer to neglect if not abandon leather products. In this context the LN program is exactly what it takes to reverse the situation and bring the ‘real leather’ and the whole supply chain to the right consideration. I therefore hope that all components of the tanning sector will adhere to this project” concludes Bortolati.

Lamipel, one of the most important Italian rawhides trader, the parent company of the International Leather Split Group, 
attarverso which has 13 companies located in all the main tanning areas in the world, is also one of the supporters of  LN.

“It is part of our daily work to promote and spread the knowledge on the leather, explaining and making our customers discover the strengths and weaknesses that every hide or skin, based on origin and choice, brings with it - explains the manager Jacopo Pieraccioni - In this sense, Leather Naturally can expand the spread of this knowledge outside the borders of the tanning sector which we live in every day to reach the global consumer, in particular through the digital channel that today influences and, increasingly, guides the consumer to purchase. With constructive marketing it is necessary to spread knowledge, fight fake news and educate consumers. The goal is to increase the perceived values of leather products. This means being emotionally attractive to customers, letting them live and experience leather: whether in a car interior, or in a jacket or a sofa. Leather is the most natural material in the world and the perfect answer to the desire for sustainable and durable materials that today the market requires. Our leather should not be defended, but promoted!” concludes Pieraccioni. In the last couple of months LN has also been supported by various international organisations that bring together tanneries and tannery chemists from all over the world. In particular, associations that are part of the GLCC, the working group that brings together the International Council of Tanners (ICT), the International Council of Hides, the Skins and Leather Traders Association (ICHSLTA) and the International Union of Leather Technologists and Chemists Societies (IULTCS) who published a press release supporting the initiative by encouraging its members to support LN.

Source: Arsutoria Tannery - ARS Arpel Group