The creation of the internet for the masses changed most things in our lives.
Most of our bags aren't 100% leather, do we even care?
- Thread starter TraceySH
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Not necessarily for the better.
according to her post, she mentioned she bought the gab backpack a few years ago and she was quoted SGDD$350 (around usd250~) to repair the strap.
she didn't mentioned how often she wear the bag but I am just surprised that the leather peeling appeared in gab backpack. not sure how common is the leather peeling issue aside from the 22 and your 19 tote bags....
That's the way DH feels. I'm more in the camp that it has enriched our lives more than it has harmed them.
Totally correct, Chanel has always explored different options other than leather, her jersey, tweed and unusual materials for bags go back to the founder's heyday, so we mustn't 'blame' Karl too much. Chanel is fashion, it's a fashion brand, BUT I don't know why women's fashion needs to be fleeting though, Chanel's collarless tweed jackets have not changed much for the last 70 years (I am looking at a 1970s beige couture example atm, hung over the back of my chair). No one expects men's fashion to be so fleeting.
Luxury fashion should not be fast fashion, Karl just wanted us to buy lots of 'stuff'. The CF and Reissues are popular and have huge resale value because (apart from the colours) they're not seasonal. There was a time Chanel would take pre-loved bags in any state of repair and recondition/repair them, now you're lucky if they deign to look at a defective new one. Chanel do not have to do anything or take accountability of anything, because they are not a public company.
Glad you mentioned the nitty gritty of supply chains. Public owned companies (or more accurately shareholder-owned) have not been able to get away with so much so now the are forging ways to hide info behind walls of 'good for you' measures. Hermes takeover or ownership with integrated supply chains is one thing, but the whole of LVMH's move towards blockchain (how it's suppose to work here: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0360835221002382 ) through the Aura consortium (which includes Prada Group, OTB and Richemont) is trying to tie down the process to https://auraluxuryblockchain.com/about , like the word 'sustainability', people only hear the propaganda from the companies that invest in these systems, blockchain technology is still dependant on honest data. Like the Titanic couldn't sink, obviously nothing can wrong with block-chain.
There is still zero traceability, transparency or accountability for us, the customers, the end-users, who end-up paying for the 'magic' of block-chain technology. Technology can only deal with data, it cannot actually grade leather (or pass on all the data/info to us about origins, tanning process, transportation etc at an advanced station) just like always you only the 'word' of the last station. All data has to be inputed (by a human) it's not failsafe and it's not the rocket science it's reported to be. Basically, the need for block-chain is based on the premise that companies can't take human's words as evidence for 'origins' 'processes' 'quality' 'sustainability' etc, in the case of what we're discussing here, a company can't trust or expect staff monitoring staff to even know or understand leather quality when buying/receiving but then it says you can if a human entered the data at the last 'station' (i.e. this piece of leather is the one from factory A in country X, processed by B-method and ingredients (list) waste disposed of by ethos-K and uses 'c' workforce). All of this means less staff need to be trained to monitor what's going on just believe what they read (like passport stamps) and the end-user (that's me and you) can just trust. The computer will monitor the leather (or hardware or yarn or whatever's) from cow/horse/pig on a farm to store. We cannot know any of it, we are jut assured all concerns have been taken care of.
However, data corruption or falsification at any one of the stations will be passed-on through the line. Any mistakes, irregularities will be dealt with behind Aura's wall, perhaps not even the company will know. As we know, work conditions and processes are subject to change almost on a day by day basis, who are continuously monitoring these 'on the ground', if the factories and farms fall below standards, are they suddenly cut off (loss of livelihoods, loss of supply) or are they given time/resources to return to an acceptable level? What happens to the sub-par affected product in the chain during that time or after lay-off? Is it paid for and waived through affecting the standards (and data) or is it landfill (no longer their concern, it won't affect Aura's record).
Growth is one way of making money, but so is cutting supply chain costs (obviously). As well as making supply more difficult for little ateliers and companies because of exclusive contracts, once the supply chain is digitised, they can start to squeeze prices from suppliers because the consortium(s) are huge the suppliers have to alternative options, numbers start to be crunched to keep the share-holders happy (shareholders are never happy finitely, their concerns is performance not quality).
The threshold for quality and legal-tease ('leather' does not mean leather and can be just a fraction of leather, like (in the UK) wholemeal bread only needs to be make with 50% wholemeal flour). The consumer is falsely reassured by blockchain tech, just as we are falsely assured my words either legally like 'leather' 'wholemeal' or buzz 'sustainability' 'vegan' eco-friendly. Pineapple leather is not leather it's 100% pineapple, mushroom leather is 100% mushroom, 'leather' could well be 10% leather and 90% plastic. Blockchains can only produce quality of data, not quality of product.
All in all what I have deduced from this thread so far:
1. These luxury companies are too big for their own good, never mind ours.
2. These big name houses can no longer claim to provide products of the highest quality (or even recognise quality down the line(s))
3. The parent groups own the companies - not the other way around. The parent groups (Kering, LVMH, OTB, Richemont, Prada Group etc do not make things, they make money.
4. You cannot trust. single word any of the luxury companies write, do or say.
5. Transparency, traceability etc, are for the companies sole benefit, you won't know because they deem you (the one who pays for it all) are the only part of the chain that doesn't need to know.
6. Equilibrium, Aura or any other consortium towards concerns on ESG are the answer to recent consumer pressure on luxury companies. Individual companies and consumers alike can now be fully assured because the parent companies say so (it's the parent companies that are the members and govern).
7. All of our quality concerns are because a) we don't understand fashion (Karl Lagerfeld) b) we're too picky c) we're not supposed to be actually carrying/using our bags, it's just normal wear and tear d) we know too little/too much.
Yep. It birthed these forums for obsessions in 2005 or so? Then, social media. Social media has really pushed the rinse/repeat buy/resell cycle to new heights.
My issue with any leather bonded with plastic is that it can’t technically biodegrade. Or not efficiently anyway. We need to eliminate plastic, not add it to natural materials.
Papertiger and ctimec, I think you are both hitting on some important points and that there is a much larger discussion about sustainability within the fashion industry here.
Sure there is a bacteria that can be used to break down non-recyclable plastics, but it's largely not in use. I like that I can keep a thick leather bag nice for decades by treating it with oil, but that it can be left to biodegrade if needed.
I don't personally see the need to introduce a proof of work blockchain techology that uses an increasing amount of energy over time into fashion sales. I'm also really tired of techbros sprinkling blockchain on everything.
The fact that it's not just about the quality of the leather, but also about sustainability really drives the point home for me.
Sure there is a bacteria that can be used to break down non-recyclable plastics, but it's largely not in use. I like that I can keep a thick leather bag nice for decades by treating it with oil, but that it can be left to biodegrade if needed.
I don't personally see the need to introduce a proof of work blockchain techology that uses an increasing amount of energy over time into fashion sales. I'm also really tired of techbros sprinkling blockchain on everything.
The fact that it's not just about the quality of the leather, but also about sustainability really drives the point home for me.
I emailed Mulberry customer support about the oversized Alexa out of concern that it might not be full grain leather since it doesn't specifically say full grain on the listing. Here's their response:
Thank you for the email. I will be happy to assist with your inquiry.
Our Oversized Alexa Heavy Grain, is a full grain chrome tanned leather. The special tanning process adds a buttery texture and rich coloring creating a very durable product.
For more information on our leather please follow the link below:
www.mulberry.com
Thank you for the email. I will be happy to assist with your inquiry.
Our Oversized Alexa Heavy Grain, is a full grain chrome tanned leather. The special tanning process adds a buttery texture and rich coloring creating a very durable product.
For more information on our leather please follow the link below:
Responsible Leather | Made To Last | Mulberry Green | Mulberry | Mulberry
Explore Mulberry's Responsible Leather initiative that enables the design & sourcing teams to look for the lowest impact materials for our beautifully crafted leather goods.
www.mulberry.com
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What a truly thoughtful and fantastic read, thank you @papertiger! "Not knowing" is one thing (and sometimes I am ok with that), deception is quite another. I don't like being manipulated (lied to) to separate me from large sums of money. Companies basically (by omission) telling us "you don't need or get to know" is something I can decide around. But companies saying this thing is X and it's really Y, means decisions I made were based on falsehoods. That REALLLLY makes me angry.
Either way, yes, it's all about the almighty dollar, and always will be.
Used to be, maybe before the mega corp's, company/ consumer relationships were a win-win. They make something fantastic, we buy it, love it, feel good about it our principles stay intact. Now it's a win-lose, where there's no symbiosis between consumer and corporation. They win, we lose.
Not really so much of a fun game anymore. I guess, as you stated, the big guys will squash the small guys, commandeer the marketplace with materials and labor...they are...unstoppable?
This thread is so interesting…
This morning, I contacted Saint Laurent customer service by email because I had a question about a repair, and took the opportunity to ask if my Niki crinkled leather bag was 100% leather or bonded leather. Someone replied me the same day (!) that my bag was coated (I knew that, because I accidentally removed the coating with hydroalcoolique wipe, that was the object of my repair question…) but that the leather was 100% calfskin. Good to know…
This morning, I contacted Saint Laurent customer service by email because I had a question about a repair, and took the opportunity to ask if my Niki crinkled leather bag was 100% leather or bonded leather. Someone replied me the same day (!) that my bag was coated (I knew that, because I accidentally removed the coating with hydroalcoolique wipe, that was the object of my repair question…) but that the leather was 100% calfskin. Good to know…
So glad to know this thank you! And SO glad they answered you!!
Saint Laurent bags also show up on Neimans' website when you search for "full grain"
It's not just chanel though, i recently had a chance to visit fendi, coach etc & the leather on the bags did not feel very good nor did it look really high quality to my untrained eyes. It seems like quality is gling down across so many luxury companies & prices go higher each time.
