How VEGEA turns Grapes into Leather

VEGEA is changing the leather industry with sustainable bio-materials for the future of fashion

With the production of sneakers comes the production of leather. The use of leather in footwear can be traced back more than five thousand years ago. While the material has proven itself in a lot of different ways, the material also causes a huge amount of environmental and social impact. VEGEA is an Italian company that has found a way to turn waste from the wine industry into a vegan, bio-based leather-like material that can be used in shoes!

VEGEA

VEGEA is an Italian company, founded in 2018 by architect and furniture designer Gianpiero Tessitore. In collaboration with environmental technician Francesco Merlino, he discovered that the stalks, skins and pips that end up as waste in the wine production process can actually be repurposed to create a smooth, soft leather alternative.

Over 27 billion liters of wine are produced each year and with that, 7 billion tons of waste by-product is created. Traditionally, these resources would be used as organic fertilizer or animal feed, but it turns out that luxury fashion products are also a serious possibility. In contrast to animal derived leather, VEGEA’s material does not promote animal cruelty, it does not waste as much water and there are no poisonous chemicals to be used. When a product from grape leather is thrown away, it can also be recycled.

VEGEA is starting to establish itself as a serious sustainable material innovation company with continuous development of new material options to promote a more sustainable future. In addition to leather-like textiles, they are creating vegetable, bio-based polymers and textiles made from hemp, organic and recycled cotton, recycled polyester and bamboo, entirely produced in Italy. 

Collaboration

To bring these materials to the market and enable customers to experience them, VEGEA has been working together with a select group of brands. H&M is probably the biggest partner that has introduced grape leather into their collection. The Conscious Collection made use of a variety of plant-based materials, including grape leather. In collaboration with eco-fashion brand Good News, H&M has created a range of sneakers that incorporates grape leather as well.

Other brands like Pangaia and Amsterdam based ETQ and Mercer have started to use the plant-based leather alternative in their styles. In hand, the material feels great with a soft and smooth touch and nice tumbled texture. I am excited to see how VEGEA is going to roll out their materials at scale in the coming years and how innovative brands that care for our future make great products that are good for the world and the people that wear them.