The Pleather Principle: The Moral Dilemmas of Sustainable Fashion

By Fashion Editor Lucrecia Luna Smee

To wear or not to wear, that is the question of the day when it comes to genuine leather fashion.

In a world where the average fashion consumer is much more environmentally conscious than they have been historically, the topic of the ethics and morals of the clothes we put on our backs has become a popular point 0f discussion both in professional and casual spaces. The consumers care about where the materials used to make their garments are coming from, and this has led to a major change in the fashion industry, especially in retail spaces.

Are brands and fashion houses being transparent about their means and method of production, or sharing the origin points of materials and how they come to be in their possession? God no, they’ve just made up some new buzzwords to make us feel better about buying the terrible materials! This had led to a major problem in fake sustainability in the fashion-sphere, the worst of which has been the rise of my worst enemy, vegan leather.

I will henceforth be referring to vegan leather interchangeably by its true name “pleather”, an amalgamation of the word’s plastic (or polyurethane) and leather – because, surprise if you weren’t already aware, that’s what most vegan leather is, plastic. Not to say that all leather alternatives branded as “vegan” are just plastic materials, there are various other options that I’ll be briefly covering a little bit later, but generally, when it comes to high-street widely available products advertised as being made of “vegan leather” we are talking about pleather.

Pleather has enjoyed a rebrand and, dare I say, burst in popularity with the recent rise of ethical fashions among the general population. All things labelled “vegan” or “recycled” are often thought immediately to be ecofriendly, and therefore more worthwhile. Seeing this rise, brands have started labelling pleather or polyvinyl chloride (PVC) products as “vegan” alternatives to genuine animal hide leather, which, technically, is correct.

Traditionally, pleather was viewed as a cheaper, both in cost and quality, alternative to genuine leather. It had the look of real, was cheaper to buy, and overall, it was always a more accessible material than working with genuine leather - the use was more economical than environmental. It was seen by purveyors of designer goods and the fashion “elite” as a poor imitation and looked down upon as they sported their leather pumps and snakeskin purses.

However, now with the shift towards ethics and sustainability, we have seen it gain a much more favourable place in the minds of the general public with the rebranding it has received. Nobody wants to face the wrath of the “sustainable fashion mafia” (or 13 year olds on TikTok) because they’ve been seen purchasing firsthand leather goods. The shift from pleather to “vegan leather” meant a shift in viewpoint. It became more than the poor man’s alternative; it became the smart man’s leather, the leather of the future. This leaves us with the question: is vegan leather actually more sustainable than real leather? And to build on that… does it really matter?

If I have not hammered this home enough, I am not a fan of vegan leather, I am an unapologetic pleather hater. However, dear readers, I am also an enormous hypocrite because the majority of my shoe collection are in fact made of pleather (I can feel the judgement through the screens – but listen I have my reasons). It’s almost impossible to avoid buying shoes that are vegan leather, even if you’re spending the extra zeroes on shoes that will “last”. Consumers often end up getting up charged by certain brands if they choose vegan leather because the markets say so.

When purchasing my first pair of Dr Martens shoes I decided to go with “eight eye patent vegan leather Jadon’s”, believing I was choosing a more sustainable option and that I’d have good quality shoes that were built to last. I purchase them, three months and €260 later, the first zip broke, after six months and the first hole appeared. Cut to now, three years on, more than half of the patent “shiny” layer has peeled off, both zips are broken and there are holes big enough to fit four of my fingers in. Not to mention, the soles are in danger of falling off. Have I stopped wearing the shoes? God no, and I won’t stop until they are physically unwearable. Of course, I could’ve gotten them repaired but, here’s the thing, I went to four different cobblers at various points in the shoes damage and not one could actually fix them, or at least they had no desire to attempt it.

These shoes, although the most expensive in my possession, are not the only vegan shoes that have come under my ownership that have fallen apart rapidly, and therein lies my spite. Pleather is not built to last – it’s plastic, it does not stretch and bend to your body or foot like genuine leather, meaning once it’s reached its life span it gets weak, flimsy and then finally straight up unusable. This also makes it much more uncomfortable for the wearer after long periods of time, leather shoes break in eventually, pleather shoes do not.

Let us talk process and manufacturing for a second.

According to The Minimalist Vegan pleather, specifically Polyurethane leather, “by adding adhesive to polyester fabrics and like PVC is a mixture of plastic chemicals and petroleum compounds.” Basically, imagine dipping fabrics into suspicious and bubbling vats of liquid. That’s how polyurethane leather is made. You’ll see this type of pleather often, as it’s softer, more malleable and has a more genuine appearance than other alternatives.

There is also PVC – not typically marketed as vegan leather but is often used in vegan or synthetic leather shoemaking – where the plastic is chemically treated with “plasticisers” to achieve that soft, leathery feel. The Minmialist Vegan explains, “PVC is made with approximately 57 per cent chloride and 43 per cent carbons, which, you guessed it, comes from oil, gas, and/or petrol. Its essentially fabric fossil fuel.” Not only this it also takes an average of 500 years to decompose, when it does eventually break down it doesn’t simply break down into the earth. No, instead it turns into small microbeads of plastic which wash into oceans, rivers and cause even more harm. However, it is much cheaper to manufacture than polyurethane and genuine leather, so it is incredibly common in fast fashion specifically.

This is not to say making genuine leather is a perfectly environmentally friendly and unharmful process. Of course, leather itself is largely just a byproduct of the beef industry, these are animals that are – apologies – going to be slaughtered regardless, so it is natural in that sense. However that animal hide needs to be softened, and the most popular softening method is “chromium tanning”.

Amanda Tull of The Atlantic speaks on the process of creating genuine leather and chromium tanning; “[chromium tanning is]… the use of a slew of caustic chemicals that can be dangerous to workers, and it creates waste that seeps into the surrounding environment. On top of that, [because] most leathers are a by-product of the beef industry, [the] industrial-scale cattle ranching releases methane into the atmosphere, spurs deforestation, and is generally horrific for the welfare of the animals involved.”

Many companies have been creating other alternatives, blends of pleather and real leather known as bonded leather which are, perhaps the worst of both worlds. Then there are great alternatives, such as fruit and vegetable based leathers like apple leather, cork leather, mushroom leather that are great durable leather alternatives but are sold at an incredibly unaffordable price for the average consumer.

Personally, my preferred method of acquiring leather is reclaimed or vintage leather – leather goods that have already been made and have either been resewn or reworked into other pieces. Or simply, are preloved pieces being resold in great condition.

There is no perfect conclusion to this article, but I shall leave you all on this note. There is no correct way to consume fashion. Consume these various types of leather goods in a way that aligns with your means and your beliefs. No one is better than anyone else just for purchasing a particular genre of leather be it pleather, PVC, genuine or reclaimed. Buy what you wish, what you can afford, and don’t feel put down for doing that. We can often be bullied into feeling awful for not being ethical enough with our choices, but the most important thing to consider is the resources at your disposal. Buy the pleather shoes if they make you happy, worry about the consequences when you have the means.