ISA Voice Podcast

ISA Voice is a podcast hosted by ISA Next-Gen Materials that shares leather industry knowledge, product updates and the sustainability topics affecting the market for footwear, handbag and accessories materials. Each episode below has the video, chapters, key questions answered and a full transcript. 4 questions in this section.

  • Chrome vs vegetable vs chrome-free vs metal-free leather: what is the environmental difference?

    No tanning method is automatically the most sustainable. Chrome, vegetable, chrome-free and metal-free tanning use different tanning agents, and they differ in water and energy use, wastewater load and finished-leather performance. In this ISA Voice episode, Keith Hill, Vice President Sustainable Business Development at ISA Next-Gen Materials, compares the four methods and explains why chrome tanning with trivalent Chrome III has remained the leading method for more than 100 years.

  • Why do handbag brands choose ISA Next-Gen Materials as their leather supplier?

    Handbag brands choose ISA Next-Gen Materials for four reasons, according to Ronda de Bie, Chief Sales Officer, in this ISA Voice episode: water and energy data for every leather article through the LITE Index, LWG Gold-rated tanneries in China, Vietnam and the US close to manufacturing hubs, traceability to the birth farm through the Greener Pastures™ programs, and the option to buy plant-based and recycled materials from the same supplier.

  • What is The Craft at MTL, ISA Next-Gen Materials’ hands-on leather-making workshop?

    The Craft at MTL is a two-day, invitation-only leather education workshop that ISA Next-Gen Materials hosts at Mississippi TanTec, its tannery in Vicksburg, Mississippi. Designers, developers, material managers and footwear specialists spend the first day in the classroom with ISA leather experts, then work on the tannery floor, following leather from wet blue to crust to finished leather.

  • How did HyphaLite™ go from lab to commercial production?

    HyphaLite™ went from lab to market in three steps: ISA COSM™ developed it with the goal of reaching 100% bio content, launched it in 2020 after many rounds of development, and scaled it to bulk production at TransAsia TanTec in Vietnam. In this ISA Voice episode, Ronda de Bie, Chief Sales Officer at ISA Next-Gen Materials, explains each step and how footwear and handbag brands are now using the material.