WHERE PARIS PROMOTION
WHERE PARIS PROMOTION
PRECIOUS LEATHERS From Africa to Paris
CONCERIA DELUXE PREMIERE VISION LEATHER
ITALTESSIL PREMIERE VISION LEATHER
HARMANLI DERI PREMIERE VISION LEATHER
F.LLI MORELLI PREMIERE VISION LEATHER
ERDOGAN DERI PREMIERE VISION LEATHER
CUIR DE LAGNY PREMIERE VISION LEATHER
MYMANTRA PREMIERE VISION LEATHER
EXPOPEL PREMIERE VISION LEATHER
T
his year Klein Karoo International launches eight emblematic and gorgeous collections that pay homage to the African landscapes and they can be discovered and admired at the HCP (Hermès Cuirs Précieux) stand during the fairs of Lineapelle in Milan and Première Vision Leather in Paris. Ostrich leather has always made us dream with perhaps the association with this bird bringing us back to the dawn of time. In ancient Egypt the ostrich was greatly valued for its feathers, which were used as a unit of measurement. When a person died, their heart was weighed against an ostrich feather to determine the soul’s passage to the underworld. This bird, often represented in Pharaonic frescoes, embodies the concepts of Justice and truth. Many centuries later, in the 1930s, ostrich leather became testimony of the sophistication of Parisian women. Blonde, sensual figures in a Tamara Lempicka painting, whose 24 W H E RE PA R I S I S E P T E M B E R 2015
idiomatic and round elegance evokes both voluptuousness and arrogance at once. Trunks of cognac-coloured pearled leather delicately placed in a sleek sedan by a meticulous butler, accessories for a glass dressing table, a clutch bag decorated with a bejewelled clasp, polished nails. An entire Art Deco universe unfolds before our eyes, mesmerised by this confined and powdery space, which is so modern and stylish. Ostrich leather in itself is already a pointillist painting, at times with nubuck nuances, at times a matt effect, at other times shining on its raised edges. It is a small symbolic relief equivalent to the placement of a fluffy feather that came to warm the cold winters of Moulin Rouge dancers or to enliven the adventures of a Rio Carnival in an explosion of colours. The ostrich, its skin, feathers, eggs, represent an entire universe, a state of the mind. From the breeding farms of Klein Karoo a lush green region far to the northeast of Cape Town, that gave its name to the Klein Karoo
International Company, come the finest ostrich leather and feathers. These products are then supplied to top level luxury brands that use them to create high quality bags, exceptional clothes, unusual and very stylish accessories such as the emblematic Birkin tote in ostrich leather from Hermès, a must-have accessory for the most refined and sophisticated women with a vintage version driving prices to as much as $100,000 dollars. Other luxurious items made from the exceptional leather include Louis Vuitton’s The Majestueux PM, which marries exceptional ostrich skin with the emblematic LV monogram, resulting in a masterpiece of refinement with ostrich, lizard and grosgrain tangerine leather. Tom Ford also offers an extremely feminine nude leather pump in ostrich, creating a Great Gatsby-inspired shoe. Luxury timepieces also work with the leather with Baume & Mercier vintage watches putting forward a refined ostrich leather bracelet. www.kleinkaroo.com
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By Estelle Arielle Bouchet
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WHERE PARIS PROMOTION
WHERE PARIS PROMOTION
Interview with Marc Brunel
THE DIRECTOR OF PREMIÈRE VISION LEATHER, THE GLOBAL LEATHER TRADESHOW
Could you define the DNA of the French show and give us recent figures for Première Vision Leather, to help us distinguish it from the Italian show and have a clearer understanding of the interactions? Première Vision Leather, like all the Première Vision Paris shows, is at the service of an international manufacturing industry that
dividends. The show has been particularly dynamic in recent years. Exhibitors and visitors appreciate it for the clarity and positioning of its product range, which has proven to be a very efficient tool for discovering collections. The show’s development within the Première Vision group mirrors the increased importance of leather in the
produces quality, specialist high-added-value products. In this context, joining forces with Première Vision’s other upstream fashion sector shows, and maintaining a timetable and product focus that is completely in line with the players of an industry positioned on the luxury and premium sectors, has paid
strategy of fashion labels over the last fifteen years.
26 W H E RE PA R I S I S E P T E M B E R 2015
You pay great attention to creation with the emblematic Trends Gallery and the forum Incube, as well as highlighting innovation in leather.
is also news about the sector beyond the show, with trend-setting subjects or in-depth articles on materials. This allows visitors and exhibitors to get the information they need “just in time”, according to their requirements, their sector of activity and the products they make. A taster of the season’s high points is now available on our website, www.premierevision.com For the fashion information and material forums, the show offers more experimental areas centred around the sensory experience and with a renewed approach to visitors. In September, more than 770m² will be dedicated to material trends with the two forums, the Trends Gallery and Incube. What are your objectives for the future, in a challenging European context and in light of the growing demand for quality leathers in the home furnishings sector?
show, has proven to be particularly dynamic in recent years and all indicators suggest that Europe has a key role to play with the arrival of new emerging countries and potential consumers of high added value goods in Asia and Latin America, in countries such as Mexico, Indonesia, Thailand and Korea. Consumption would appear to be growing in countries that were traditionally large consumers of luxury goods, notably in the United States, a little less so in Japan. The big luxury groups have correctly read these trends, taking new market shares to counterbalance the lower performances in countries experiencing a recession; their success is based on finding the right balance between these various zones. The future looks bright for the European tannery industry as long as it continues to stand out for its high quality and very creative products.
The European tannery industry is closely linked to the luxury sector and a manufacturing tradition that produces quality items. The leather goods sector, the biggest sector at the
Première Vision Leather 15-17 September www.premierevision.com
I’m thinking of one of your ‘Leathers of the Future’ exhibitors who illustrate the technical aspects of leather as a material. Could you tell us more about the Creation and Innovation aspects of this international show and describe the actions implemented in these areas? For a number of seasons, Première Vision Leather has worked hard to renew and enrich its fashion information, both in terms of form and substance. On our website, social networks and the mobile application, useful information is available to help with the preparation of collections. There w w w.wheretraveler.com 27