“The luxury handbag is growing, and that’s fine. The premium end one, Michael Kors level so to speak, too. The ones suffering are the Italians who ask us for product at that level, but that is made here where the costs are much higher.” Giorgia is a designer. She has a company in Milan that does design consultancy for high-end leather goods businesses. She is a long-time regular at Lineapelle, where she has stable relations with tanneries she visits knowing that she will find offers that appeal to her, and where she browses around the stands looking for something new that takes her by surprise. “Although it is not easy to define the perimeter of the types of leather we are looking for – confesses Onyedika Tate, a designer employed in the Dutch offices of Calvin Klein –. It is very broad. We sample simple leathers for our products with a classic cut, and other crazier ones for the sporty lines.” “We prefer coming to Lineapelle rather than other leather fairs – concludes Miguel Blanco, owner of the Spanish firm Magnanni (men’s footwear) – because here is where the tanners, mostly Italian and French, that we work with exhibit, and it is easier to meet new ones here.” (rp)
Amidst guarantees and new features, visitors are looking for the right leather for bags (ones that are sturdy) and shoes (ones you can chase in)
