In early October, ten members of the Jamie Stern team boarded a series of flights from all over the United States and flew into Milan’s Malpensa Airport. From there, the crew then took eastbound trains and shuttles to Verona to settle in for a week of in-depth leather education and enrichment.
By visiting a number of modern leather mills in the greater Verona area, the sales representatives and project managers alike were able to see the entire production process, from the initial sorting of the untreated raw material all the way through the final stages that result in the beautiful, sustainable, durable upholstery material we have all come to know and love.
However, before we dove into the ins-and-outs of leather production, many of us in the Jamie Stern camp took to the streets of Verona for some wine tasting, shopping and sightseeing. The city’s famed Arena was right outside our hotel room windows. Pictures don’t really do this nearly 2,000 year old structure justice!
After the more touristy portion of the trip, we made our way to the town of Arzignano. Renowned as a central hub of European leather production, Arzignano is made up almost entirely of tanneries, finishing plants, embossing specialists, dye houses, suede manufacturers, water purification sites and raw material warehouses. Essentially, every building in town is dedicated to the creation of world-class leather for upholstery and fashion. If our team was going to gain a deeper, more thorough understanding of leather, there is no better place on Earth to do so!
In every location we stepped into, we were greeted by teams of skilled artisans and highly trained professionals who specialize in particular areas of the leather manufacturing process. Each and every hide is handled by literally dozens of these specialists. The end results are some of the best leather hides in Italy. Whether one is looking for budget-friendly, protected leathers for hospitality and commercial projects, more sophisticated, luxurious articles for the corporate and high-end residential segments, or even bold, vibrant Hair-on-Hides, there are ideal leathers being produced in Arzignano every single day.
We took in rooms in which hides were examined for imperfections and separated by quality and yield. We saw leather hides being split from their lower suede areas. We walked through giant warehouses in which thousands of hides were being dried with both time-honored and more modern techniques to achieve certain aesthetic traits.
One of the more fascinating techniques that caught our eye was the vacuum drying process. This notable step smooths out the leather’s natural grain by removing all water vapor and moisture. The heat from this vacuum drying machine also brings natural waxes and oils up to the surface, creating an undeniably beautiful (and organic) sheen that enlivens any piece of furniture.
Another impressive sight worth noting was the aircraft hangar-sized rooms filled with large industrial dye drums. 150-200 hides at a time are placed in these massive drums during some the earliest stages of production. This serves two purposes. By tumbling the leather for 12-24 hours, the hides gradually soften, developing the supple, luxurious hand that has distinguished genuine leather for centuries. During this phase, the hides are also colored with the water-soluble aniline dye. This coloration process is gentle and organic, emphasizing the leather’s natural features such as unique patterns, grain variations, fat wrinkles and more.
A crucial stage in the creation of protected, highly durable leathers for high-traffic areas is the application of the semi-aniline finish. This step was the crown jewel in our leather tours. A quarter-mile long spray line processes hundreds of hides every day. This contemporary mechanized procedure ensures that all of these hides receive an even topcoat, providing remarkable color consistency as well as robust protection against scratching, soiling and fading in sunlight.
We also spent a great deal of time in the mill’s state-of-the-art laboratories where we received extensive explanations of the various sustainability, durability, flammability, aircraft, marine and paneling treatments that various articles go through in order to pass industry-specific codes and requirements.
The team also partook in some much-needed R&R between factory tours. We had a few amazing dinners at some of Verona’s best restaurants including Antica Bottega del Vino and Osteria Il Bertoldo, where we celebrated our own Pierce Brinker’s birthday. The food was great, the wine was great and the leather conversation never stopped flowing.
We hope to return to the leather manufacturing region of Northern Italy again soon with more team members. There is an endless supply of production knowledge, fun facts and sustainability initiatives that can only be truly understood via an in-person, hands-on experience. Until next time, Italy!