Matt Bessler of leading leather tannery Wicket and Craig discusses the tanning process and how the economy, both nationally and internationally, has affected the trade.

The smell of a good piece of leather can- not be mistaken. To some, it’s just cow leather is a necessity. From saddles and headstalls to chaps and spur straps, the process of getting those hides ready for craftsmanship runs deep roots.

Tanning, the process of making leather, dates back to 7,000 B.C., and originated in South Asia. Then, tanneries were isolated to the out- skirts of towns because of the foul smells that accompanied the trade. Today, modern technology has allowed for improvements and sanita- tions of the process, which requires altering the protein structure of the hides.

Vegetable tanning is a method of tanning that uses tannin, a natural chemical found in trees such as quebrachos and mimosas, to cure the hides. These trees are often specifically grown for the chemicals. According to Matt Bessler, sales manager for Wickett and Craig Tannery, there are only two full vegetable tanneries in the United States, one being Wickett and Craig, located in Pennsylvania. The company was established in 1867 and has since grown into an 180,000-square-foot facility. Wicket and Craig boasts more than 4,000 active accounts, with Louis Vuitton as one of the company's biggest customers.

While other processes are available for making leather, Bessler explained that veg-tanned leather produces the best quality.

“They age and get a richer patina as opposed to a chrome, which is done with a chemical and is coated with a paint instead of stained,” he said.

Hides undergo a mild curing with a brine solution at the packing plants, which helps ward off bacteria while they are en route to the tanneries. Once received, the hair is com- pletely dissolved from the hides with a sodium hydrosulfate and lime mixture. They are then transferred to the tanning yard, where they remain submerged in tannin for two weeks, on average. Once tanned, the leathers are sorted by thickness and other variations so that they are directed for the proper product use.

“We carry so many leathers, it’s crucial that we make the right leathers out of the right thickness,” Bessler said.
The leathers are then transferred to coloring drums, where a base color is applied. Some are then moved to stuffing drums, where they are coated with oils and waxes, a regimen known as “hot-stuffing.” Leather used for making saddles doesn’t undergo this specific process, Bessler said, because it needs to hold its flexibility for stretching.

Once the hides are transformed, they are shipped out accordingly, across the nation.

Although the correlated increase in fuel and beef prices has caused the cost of leather to go up, the high demand of leather from foreign countries such as China and India is to blame for a big jump in prices over the past six to eight months, according to Bessler.

“During the last eight months, the hide market has exploded,” he said. “The demand for leather is very high.”

The culprit, Bessler continued, are shoes.

“Money is starting to trickle down in China and India, and they’re buying more shoes,” he said. “One and a half billion Chinese are expected to buy one and half pair of shoes this year. That’s a lot of shoes. The hides are leaving here quicker than they can buy them, so hide prices are going way up. We have to pay more for our raw material.”

The hides are being exported to China and India, where the countries have their own tanneries, but Wickett and Craig are left competing for the hides. With increased costs, Bessler worries that the company’s horse, or tack, market, which was already previously effected by the economy, will never return to full status.

“The horse industry has been the hardest hit,” he noted. “There’s no doubt about it. Leather doesn’t wear out that often. They don’t need a new headstall – they want one. When the economy goes bad and gas prices go up, they’re not going to buy the headstall.”

What has remained steady is firearm possession, and working in the leather trade’s favor are the holsters.

“After 9/11, the perceived need for guns has risen,” Bessler added. “Holster manufacturing is very big at this time.”

While leather remains essential for the mod- ern cowboy, other aspects of the horse market have moved toward a cheaper synthetic to better accommodate their pocketbooks.

“A lot of companies have the Wal-Mart mentality and don’t care about the quality or don’t know,” Bessler concluded about the ever-challenging leather and tack industries.