Some sources are testing a single frame in a bonded leather cover, yet others refuse to touch it.
The new alternative cover is hitting retail floors now, said Alan Naness, president of Design Resources, a distributor of this
newly developed amalgam composed of 17% leather mixed with polyurethane.
Naness said he is enjoying “major placements” with his product — dubbed NextLeather — but it needs time to “develop a track record.”
Well aware of detractors, Naness said, “I am not trying to sell it as leather or to mislead anyone. I am not trying to pass it off as anything else. It’s a big product on its own.”
He compared its qualities to that of cotton vs. cotton blend, or solid wood vs. wood veneer.
One unabashed proponent of the new cover is Michael Campbell, president of
Leather Italia USA.
“We have received a glowing reaction once I explain the levels of leather characteristics. This is allowing our better and newly introduced programs to shine because they can compare it to (real) leather,” he said.
But most, like Michael Nicotera, co-owner of newly launched Chinese importer Spectra Home, were more tentative. “
We’ll use it for effect only (as trim) if we need to (meet a price),” he said.