H&M Hand Antiqued Sunset Leather

[drcollie]

I called H&M today to ask availability on this leather and told it had been dropped. I about fell out of my chair - its my current FAVORITE leather. I like it so much that I ordered two pieces for my own home in it, as well as two sofas for the floor that just arrived.

Well - when you really like something you fight for it, so I emailed the people who make the decisions at H&M and asked if they would keep it in the line - give it more of a chance than just 6 months (it was introduced at October 2011 market). They said that they would because I requested it. Now I need to show them some sales in that hide or it won't be in the line this time next year.

So if you like this leather - help me keep it in the line by ordering some on your H&M or Jessica Charles pieces! Or maybe I'm the only one that really likes it?

[juliepooch]

Please post a product/link with the Antiqued Sunset Leather.

Oops. Found it!! Great color.

[northeast]

I have had my eye on this leather. Duane, could you compare the hand of the hide to the Capri or the Antelope, for example?
Thanks

[drcollie]

Any of the hand-antiqued or burnished leathers are more like bomber jackets, or something you would find from Ralph Lauren. They're more of a saddle leather, firm and sometimes squeaky. But they're tough and not fussy, with lots of color bursts and visual appeal. Capris is a butter soft luxury hide. Antelope is a super-fine finished or protected leather. All three different.

[hglaber]

Heh, so how long is they stay of execution?

You better get them to cut some swatches if you want it to live. I bet distance customers are a hard sell without them and H&M seems to be out of the burnished/atiqued quite often. I suspect getting a complete set of swatches for that piece you were teasing me with a week or so ago (Sunset/Cameo/Nile Croc, all burnished) would be nearly impossible.

[drcollie]

Here's the deal with swatches and why its more difficult to get burnished ones.

The swatches are almost always made of scrap that hits the floor during trimming. They usually hire some high school kids part time to stamp them out with a dye-cutter and place the sticker on the back. All the burnished and hand-antiqued hides are toned to color AFTER the piece is made up, so there is no scrap. All samples for those have to be cut from prime off a large hide. Even we as dealers have a hard time getting swatches for our main handle sets of these leathers.

Keep in mind as well that the industry as a whole does not embrace on-line ordering and mail order/long distance. They still want you to buy locally, and your dealer is supposed to have a full set. They're more inclined to make sure every dealer has one full set of current leathers rather than mail out ones.