A podcast run by Abbey England, a specialist wholesale supplier of equestrian leather and other materials, recently featured Simon Yarwood, the chief executive of World Leather’s parent company, World Trades Publishing. By Leatherbiz.

Speaking to host, Ishbel Watson, Simon Yarwood said he was hopeful of growth for the leather industry in the near future as brands and consumers come to see how well the material fits into the drive towards a circular economy.

He pointed out that, since launching the magazine’s Leather and the Circular Economy section in 2020, World Leather has published almost 150 in-depth features on this topic. “We realised that this was the way the world was moving,” he said, “and that if we didn’t address this subject, we wouldn’t be serving the industry properly. This is one of the key issues the industry faces, but it is also one of the key strengths the industry has.”

He said he was in no doubt that there had been an anti-leather feeling among some brands and consumers in recent years, but added that the leather sector was “beginning to turn a corner” on this. He claimed that a number of organisations that were “in the process of engineering leather out of their products” were now talking about using leather again in the future.

Advances in leather chemistry and an increasing spirit of co-operation among leather manufacturers and suppliers were all reasons for optimism about the future success of the industry, Mr Yarwood said.

He said the leather sector deserves to see growth in the years ahead for all of these reasons and, in particular because of its circular-economy credentials. “Leather is a perfect fit for this,” he concluded. “It’s the total opposite of fast fashion. It’s the total opposite of plastic in the ocean. It is the total opposite of petrochemical-based materials. It is perfect for people who want long-lasting products and sustainability.”