Alternative leathers draw cheers, boos

By Joan Gunin -- Furniture Today, July 1, 2007

High Point — When bycast leather arrived on the scene five years ago as a low-cost alternative to leathers, it was viewed as a bit of an outcast. But the recent advent of bonded leather — a more controversial, leather-like alternative — has boosted bycast's position in the market in terms of authenticity.

Bycast, a leather split coated with protective polyurethane, is generally considered leather because of its cowhide base. But critics dismiss bonded leather — an amalgam of leather remnants, shavings and a gluing agent, but minus any actual cowhide — as the leather version of engineered wood.

"Bycast at least is a sealed leather, not the shavings, but bonded leather is (like) particleboard," said Sam Contreras, leather product manager for Coaster.

But Alan Naness, president of leather supplier Design Resources, calls bonded leather "a terrific product that is three-and-a-half to five times less costly than most leathers." Design Resources sells bonded leather along with a variety of natural hides.

Naness expects the leather look-alikes will cause better leathers to "become that much more important because people will say 'I want better leather' and they will be very vocal."

On floors near you

Still, alternative leathers — including bycast, polyurethane (also known as PU) and vinyl treatments — themselves are becoming more prevalent on retail floors. And the interest isn't limited to the promotional segment.

The first wave of bonded leather seating is due to hit retail next month. The new material's popularity is expected to rival that of microfiber and soon could account for more than half of all starting grade to midrange leather upholstery purchases.

The big appeal is price, with the cost of the bonded option about half that of a top-grain hide. Better aniline leathers are priced from $1.55 to $1.85 per square foot and bycast at about $1.35 per square foot, while bonded goes for 80 cents to $1.10, according to Michael Campbell, president of Leather Italia USA.

Also, the use of bycast is largely restricted to firm, tight- back styles, due to the rigidity of the hides. But the bonded option, offered in 54-inch widths (rolls), tailors better because of its flexibility, making it applicable to either straight or curved frames, in stationary or motion.

Manufacturers say bycast and bonded leathers represent another way to serve consumers, particularly those with limited budgets. But many say the affordability of these leather-like materials is weakening the appeal of genuine leather, since some consumers don't recognize the difference.

Critics fear such alternatives may further depress leather pricing as well as confuse consumers. For example, it's not unusual to see advertisements promoting "genuine bycast leather."

"This is a niche that people have tried to turn into a mass market item because their leather sales are declining," said Stephen Barr, president of Man Wah Americas/Cheers Sofa. "All the gains that could be made through international sourcing peaked a few years ago.

"Now everyone is looking to decrease price, turning to pig and bonded leathers, as a lesser version of the original product," he said. "It is cannibalizing the category."

Truth in labeling

Barr criticized those in the industry who don't acknowledge that their products — typically sold as leather SKUs — are not the genuine article.

"When you need a CSI team to tell you what you are selling, it's a problem," he said, adding the approach seems to be, "Don't ask, don't tell."

Although an advocate of guidelines, Barr admitted the concept would be difficult to manage on a global scale.

At Coaster, which sells bycast sofas but hasn't had a new model in two years, Contreras said he has been tempted by bonded leather's value.

"But if you use it, what do you call it? At this point, we're holding back on it," he said. "I would have a hard time selling it as 'eather.' It devalues (real) leather."

By contrast, he added, microfiber was supposed to be like suede but was never sold as suede.

Contreras vowed to hold off on bonded leather for at least another market. Part of his reluctance stems from the fact that, as a new product, the durability and sell-through of bonded leather remain untested.

But, he admitted, "We have to go with what the customers ask for."

Broyhill and Natuzzi are among several sources generating good results with bycast leathers. Broyhill has used bycast sparingly on a few sofas and groups and as a collage teamed with microfiber.

Broyhill says bycast has been readily accepted by consumers and, unlike bonded leather, it's an alternative that can be legitimately marketed as leather.

At the summer Las Vegas show, Broyhill will add a fabric/collage group to Attic Heirlooms that uses bonded leather on outside arms. The company believes the concept provides good usage of the product at a value price.

Both Natuzzi's Natuzzi Living and Italsofa brands have employed bycast since 2003 for "its look and its price," said Fred Starr, president of Natuzzi Americas. But as for bonded leather, Natuzzi "doesn't want any part of it," he said.

Leather Italia USA is set to debut a bonded leather accent chair program at the upcoming Las Vegas Market. "That's the place for bonded and bycast — on smaller items," Campbell said.

"The key is to use fully surface-coated bonded type leathers and the better (tanning) agents for the protection coatings," he said. "We are able to strike this balance by working with our vertical partners in China. And because they offer many of the same properties as a full, natural top-grain leather, both are viable categories for the retailer."

Bycast continues to sell well for Hamilton & Spill, which also has sampled and showed bonded leather.

"We're not putting anything (bonded) in our major mainstream line; basically it's by request and very frame-specific," said Gary Harmon, Western regional sales manager.

Zocalo, introduced to bycast by its partners in Europe, likes the durability of both bycast and bonded leathers. Michael Pierce, director of merchandising, said the consistency of the color coating process "removes the dye lot variation problems that plague other types of leather."

Some better-end manufacturers are using bycast on a limited basis.

"It's very consumer friendly," said Peter Robinson, president of Robinson & Robinson, LeatherTrend's parent. "We have tested it and it performed very well in the marketplace. It has earned its place as an integral part of the leather market."

He is currently sampling bonded leather.

Harry Cierler, director of North American operations for Chateau d'Ax, said his company has offered bycast for about five years but it is not a staple: "We offer it and it's retailing, but we limit the styles we have it on. We are a leather manufacturer and that's where we are going to be."

Producers such as Universal, Hickory Hill and Leathercraft have shied away from faux leathers because of the stigma attached to them.

"It's not our thing," said Roy Calcagne, senior vice president of Universal's upholstery division. "It's more promotional than our line."

Sister company Craftmaster debuted leather seating in October using only top grains and splits.

At Hickory Hill, Vice President of Sales Alex Reeves sees bycast as "a pricing issue typically equated with promotional product." He dismissed bonded leather as a mere "trick."

"There are other things to do in product development that we can make better margins on and separate ourselves from the masses," Reeves said.

At Leathercraft, President Jack Donohoe said, "The bycast thing has made it a lot further than I thought; I thought it would be a train wreck. But it's been out a number of years and in sufficient quantifies. People still run it, and big unit people too."

But, in Donohoe's opinion, bycast is a limited look with a limited market. "It works on tightly upholstered Paris clubs (chairs) and that's all," he said.

Bycast's appeal remains strongest at the promotional level. "From a marketing standpoint, I keep myself out of the pricing fray," Donohoe said. "The real money is made on step-up (pricing), not step-down."