Australian consumers have a distinct taste for quality, timeless design, and the utmost attention to detail. In an age where fashion trends shift rapidly, and retailers strive to capture the interests of their target audiences, fashion-conscious consumers need to look beyond the exterior of an item. By extension, looking beyond what’s on offer is critical when scouting for Australia’s right leather goods retailer. This is why you need to keep in mind that leather goods retailing is a long-term investment, and there are some things you need to pay close attention to before buying your first piece of leather.
Since leather goods are products of nature, they are all made from different types and varieties of materials, each with distinct properties and characteristics. Finding the right thing for your needs is essential for your satisfaction as a buyer and is also necessary for sourcing the perfect piece of leather. For example, if you are looking for a bag that can be used as a clutch to carry an iPhone or other electronic devices, you need to consider which type of leather will best suit your needs.
The most common types of leather in fashion include full-grain leather, suede, nubuck, and smooth finish. Full-grain leather bags are the highest quality due to their completely undyed skins, which offer a high-quality finish that allows the item to age gracefully over time. Suede is made from suede material which is lighter in weight than full grain-leather bags. Still, it has the same characteristically soft touch and great versatility because it’s made with scraps of leather left over after producing full grain-leather bags.
Nubuck is smooth finished as opposed to Nappa- or kid-grain leathers, which offer an incredibly soft touch but at a cost since it does not allow for more distinctions in color tones between each skin. Smooth finished ‘suede’ materials have only recently appeared on the market in Australia, commonly through mail-order houses such leather store in Sydney, where they can be sourced with good quality and at a premium price. Nubuck is very hard wearing and has a higher resistance to damage so it can cost less than full-grain leather, and it will not fade, crack or split as quickly as the other leather types.
Smooth finished materials afford the best of both worlds in terms of texture as they are both luxurious soft-touch finish and durable. Still, they need to be treated with care to prevent soiling by rubbing against abrasive surfaces such as keys rattling in your pocket, contact with rubbing alcohol fumes, etc. When purchasing smooth finished bags, generally, you can expect the item to be well-crafted, stitched well, and have heft and thickness comparable to other bag styles within the same price range.
In conclusion, if you’re looking to purchase a quality leather bag or portfolio, both types of leather will offer an outstanding balance between the appearance, durability, and casual looks of a traditional leather bag. Customers looking for items crafted with high-quality materials and finish for extended-lasting use will usually opt for full-grain leathers and fans of smooth completed crafted materials such as suede, nubuck, etc.
