What is Genuine Leather?

March 10, 2023

What is Genuine Leather?

WHAT DOES GENUINE LEATHER ACTUALLY MEAN?

It is probably one of the most common yet highly misplaced term in the fashion world. Genuine leather is the catchall term for anything that is technically leather.

Over time, this definition has gotten so stretched that it is almost

meaningless for consumers.

PERCEPTION VS REALITY

According to the dictionary, the word “genuine” means authentic, real, true, or actual. In other words, “Genuine Leather” can also be referred to as “True Leather”, "Real Leather" or “100% Leather”. In short, genuine simply means that something is made of leather but does not infer high quality.

Always remember that genuine leather is not a qualitative term but only a collective term to categorise products which are made of real leather; just like the term “car”. A Porsche and a Chevrolet are not comparable quality-wise.

Unfortunately, the vast majority of consumers still believe genuine leather is the “best” and warrants a higher price. The opposite is true.

Since genuine leather refers to anything that is leather, all animal hides (pig, goat,

sheep, etc) qualifies as “genuine leather”. It also means that discarded scraps of leather reconstituted into a bag, jacket, wallet or shoe can qualify as a “genuine leather product”.

POINT TO NOTE

Full grain leather is also genuine leather by definition. But again, someone selling full grain leather won’t market it as genuine leather because they know the difference. Which is why we refrain from using the word genuine leather and indicate the exact type of leather used instead.