Ecology is now a central concern for brands and consumers. New terms are emerging. There is talk of recycling, upcycling, eco-responsibility, eco-friendly, vegan, organic.... The consumer may find it difficult to find his way through all these new words.In the footwear industry, the expressions "VEGAN LEATHER" and "VEGETAL LEATHER" have appeared. These terms can be debated.

VEGETABLE LEATHER" is a rather quick and possibly misleading contraction of "vegetable tanned leather". Vegetable leather" is NOT a plant-based material. It is animal skin transformed into leather material. It is said to be vegetable because the hide is processed using vegetable elements such as wood bark. This technique represents 10% of the shoe industry. 90% of shoes use a "CHROME LEATHER" tanned from a chemical element called Chromium 6.

The term "VEGAN LEATHER" is also a new term. It is traditionally used for synthetic fabrics, which are in fact plastic fabrics, made from petroleum. The new fabrics made from vegetable materials such as pineapple and mushroom are now also frequently referred to as "VEGAN LEATHER". This term is actually a misnomer. The word LEATHER is protected by industry professionals who emphasise the properties of this material. The term leather can only be used if it comes from the skin of an animal. So the term "VEGAN LEATHER" has no meaning!

For our material, we decided to highlight the fact that it is NOT leather. It is a plant-based material made from corn fibres. Corn is a renewable resource that consumes 50 times less water than beef and 20 times less than cotton. It is resistant, easy to care for and lets the skin breathe. The visual effect is quite impressive, isn't it?

For its name, we simply called it our SUPER MATERIAL.