MILAN (AP) — High-end Italian fashion house Ferragamo announced it has successfully tracked the country of origin for the majority of leather materials used in creating its luxury shoes and handbags, marking an important milestone in supply chain transparency according to industry specialists.
This development arrives as European Union environmental regulations create mounting demands for fashion companies to monitor and account for materials throughout their supply chains.
The family-owned, publicly-traded luxury company has published environmental impact reports for more than ten years, but their 2025 report issued on March 31 marks the first time they’ve included specific data on material tracking — particularly for leather, which specialists note presents greater tracking challenges compared to textile materials like cotton.
“We have been using leather in a more sustainable way,” James Ferragamo, the brand’s chief transformation and sustainability officer and grandson of founder Salvatore Ferragamo, said in a recent interview. “I think it is one of the more sustainable materials in my point of view.”
The majority of tanneries partnering with the company “control their water, have fair treatment of the workforce, monitor their supply chain ensuring that they’re buying leather from those who are not deforesting, and taking the right approach also in terms of breeding and animal welfare,” he said.
Material tracking represents a fundamental and essential step for the fashion sector, which now confronts new European Union requirements that will mandate brands and suppliers guarantee their products meet environmental standards from initial design through final disposal. Specific implementation details are still under development, with compliance being rolled out gradually over the next several years.
“Traceability is an essential factor, but it’s not sufficient, I would say,” said Francesca Rinaldi, a sustainability expert at Milan’s Bocconi University and director of the Monitor for Circular Fashion. “It enables the implementation of sustainability and circularity.”
She noted that any business failing to track their materials “doesn’t know their supply chain” and “could be also criticized for greenwashing.”
Future EU regulations and policies are advancing toward complete material circularity, incorporating strategies to extend product lifespans for clothing, accessories and shoes through repairs and end-of-life management, including recycling and upcycling, she explained.
The European Union is also implementing gradual restrictions on destroying unsold clothing, accessories and footwear for companies employing more than 250 people and generating over 40 million euros ($46.8 million) in yearly revenue.
The family business was established in 1927 by Salvatore Ferragamo in Florence, following his time in Hollywood where he had built a reputation as a celebrity shoemaker serving clients including Marilyn Monroe and Judy Garland. Material shortages during World War II led Ferragamo to explore alternative materials, replacing leather with wicker and utilizing cork for shoe soles, the younger Ferragamo explained.
Staying true to its heritage, Ferragamo continues focusing primarily on footwear and leather accessories. Combined, these categories represented 86% of 2025 sales totaling 976.5 million euros ($1.1 billion).
Ferragamo began its leather tracking program with the calf leather used for the signature Fiamma bag, following it from livestock breeding through final assembly, the company revealed in its 2024 annual report.
During 2025, Ferragamo engaged key tanneries representing 80% of its hide purchases in an effort to identify raw material countries of origin through supplier documentation. When including textiles like cotton, silk and nylon, the company reports 81% of its materials carry third-party sustainability certifications.
“Today there is not one single solution, one single technological solution to trace the leather to the birth farm of the cows,” said Davide Triacca, Ferragamo’s sustainability director. “We got to that result through a very dedicated and consistent approach and today we are able to trace more than 80% of the entire leather that we supply and the vast majority of which comes from Europe.”
European Union regulations do not mandate leather tracking. Environmental specialists emphasize that methods based on country-level mapping and supplier documentation do not establish complete custody chains and instead represent an initial phase of traceability.
Ferragamo’s environmental efforts have included a limited collection featuring silk-like textiles created from orange fibers in 2017, among its earliest research investments, and more recently the Nova men’s tote constructed with nylon derived from castor oil rather than petroleum, plus the Back to Earth collection showcasing the brand’s signature Hug handbag treated with plant-based dyes.
“Research keeps on going. It’s something that we’re doing all the time,” Ferragamo said. “We’re trying to find different ways of creating different materials. And sometimes the materials that we produce are not ready for market. But it doesn’t mean that we don’t experiment.”
