The devil is in the details
And we're all about the details. Our design and distinct aesthetics need no explanation, epitomizing sophistication and individuality. However, in a world increasingly clouded by ambiguous claims and hidden practices, the term quality has grown hollow and unreliable.
Here’s what elevates our pieces beyond their timeless artistry,
to create a harmonious blend of superior design and ethical integrity.
It begins with intention: today's luxury pet accessories are an afterthought, born of opportunity.
Founded after a journey to create the very best for our own companions, we simply replicate that process: if it isn't the best, it isn't good enough for our most loyal, devoted friends.
Leather
The What: We source some of the highest quality leather available in the world, sourced exclusively from renowned tanneries located in Tuscany's famous Leather District. The vegetable tanning method for producing leather is becoming a dying art, increasingly displaced by faster, cheaper chrome tanning methods. It's being kept alive, primarily in tanneries scattered about Europe, that have been using this method for generations. Unlike chrome tanning, which requires harsh chemicals and harmful heavy metals, vegetable tanning relies on natural tannins, derived from things like tree bark and leaves, to preserve the hide.
All of our leather is vegetable tanned, including a large selection crafted from Vachetta leather, a specialty vegetable tanned leather that came to prominence in large part thanks to Louis Vuitton (they use this type of leather for the straps on their signature bags and luggage). Vegetable tanned leather starts out a bit stiffer than inferior leather (Vachetta tends to be slightly softer than other vegetable tanned leather), but it breaks in quickly, softening and forming to the wearer as it does. Like fine leather shoes that form to your feet, our pieces offer not only superior quality, but unmatched comfort.
Our leather is tanned exclusively by member tanneries of Consorzio vera Pelle Italiana Conciata al Vegetale - which regulates, preserves, and guarantees the production of vegetable-tanned leather made in Tuscany. You can find out more about the consortium, and it's mission, here.
We also use only full grain leather: never top grain leather; so our pieces offer the ultimate durability and longevity while retaining their characteristic grain, to create unrivaled quality and beauty.
When you purchase one of our pieces, we don't just tell you it originates from a tannery in Tuscany, we trace the leather used for each one of our products to the specific tannery that produced it, and we happily share that information with you.
We are a protest brand: we reject cost cutting in any way that impacts the value for customers - we operate with unprecedented transparency, so you can hold us accountable to that promise.
The Why: A staggering 90% of the leather produced today is chrome tanned. While a far faster and cheaper method (the process takes as little as 24 hours - compared to several months for vegetable tanning), it comes at a high moral cost; it's not only harmful to the environment, it's dangerous for the people working in the tanneries or even living in it's vicinity. Chrome tanning also produces an inferior quality of leather, but this is often difficult to distinguish when new, which accounts for its prevalence, as well as its popularity with the vast majority of brands.
Luxury brands, relying on ambiguous information and opaque production, demand increasingly high prices as they simultaneously cut their costs on materials and labor. While economizing is simply good business, doing so by reducing the value for customers or exploiting human beings is not. Driven by greed and shareholder pressure, the use of chrome tanned leather only serves to increase profits, at the expense of true quality, long term beauty, the safety of laborer's, and the world we share.
When it comes to high quality leather pieces, the grade, type, and tanning method is paramount.
In todays industrialized market, brands are vague about the details, and that's by design.
Brands spend more time (and money) on their logo than on the leather that's used for their products.
We're going a different direction.
All of our leather is tanned by skilled artisans in the heart of Tuscany.
Hardware
The Quality: Our hardware is primarily solid brass or stainless steel, for strength and durability as well as long-term beauty. Cheaper alloy metals and hardware with a thin metal veneer become scratched and scuffed quickly; so we choose every buckle and stud thoughtfully. Genuine gold plating is used for our gold-tone hardware and matte black hardware is PVD coated whenever possible (PVD is a plating process that produces an extremely durable finish; it's the only successful method to produce a black coating that will not wear off or scratch easily). Typically, black hardware is produced using a black spray paint, which can chip and scratch off within days. Zippers are exclusively sourced from Riri - the Swiss maker of the smoothest zippers in the world.
The Why: We choose each element for our pieces with the utmost care, to ensure not only exceptional security for your companion, but enduring aesthetics. Cheap hardware will not hold up to the wear and tear of the mountains or the dog park, so we invest in solid, exquisite hardware that will.
Craftsmanship
The Quality: This is our favorite part. After gathering the finest leather and hardware, pieces are made-to-order, to your preferences, by highly skilled artisans. No assembly lines, no exploited workers. Meticulously handcrafted pieces are made with the same care and attention to detail that would go into luxury accessories made for people. Every edge is beveled and burnished to a sleek shine, as much for the comfort of your pet as for the sharp aesthetic. Stitching is done completely by hand for unmatched durability; leather is sewn using a technique called the 'saddle stitch', which will maintain it's overall integrity even if a thread is cut, and it cannot be achieved with a machine. When it comes to your pets accessories, convenience and utility need to be top of mind: additional rings are added for tags and attachments, harnesses are thoughtfully designed so they're easily slipped on and off, and features like front clips are added to assist you in training. Our products aren't just crafted by skilled artisans, they're crafted by pet owners; we appreciate the details, large and small, that make life with our companions easy, safe, and more enjoyable.
The Why: Luxury leather pet accessories are missing the mark; we see the alternatives, cut into straps that are riveted together, with raw, sharp edges and little thought. In crafting pieces for our own pets, devoting the care and attention to detail that they deserve, it's clear that not only is there a better way to do it, but in the other options that exist, they simply aren't bothering. We believe there is no substitute for real quality and craftsmanship, and we couldn't think of a better place to apply either, than in service to our best friends.
We serve multiple clients with each piece: you and your dog.
Far from an afterthought, accessories for your beloved pet is what we do; and we're committed to doing it the best.
Rounded, burnished edges are one of the details that set us apart - once you see it, you can't unsee it.
Ethics and Sustainability
The What: Every piece from Mongrel + Mode is completely handcrafted by a skilled artisan; from the experienced professionals performing the traditional art of vegetable tanning in the heart of Tuscany, to the expert leathercrafters who handmake everything, according to your preferences, in our Boston workshop. The highly skilled nature of both vegetable tanning and artful leathercrafting require experienced makers; accessories like ours can't be replicated or made by machine. All labor is fairly compensated; the tanneries we partner with are exclusively member tanneries of the Consorzio vera Pelle Italiana Conciata al Vegetale and are audited often by the consortium. Every step of our process is thoughtful of the environmental impact, from sourcing our leather from trusted, U.S. based distributors to reduce transportation emissions, to using a made-to-measure model for production, and with our recyclable, eco-friendly packaging.
The Why: Nearly everything we purchase today is made on an assembly line, often in developing nations where labor regulations are low or non-existent. Businesses are industrialized and impersonal - working harder to impress shareholders than to serve customers. Costs are cut where ever possible to increase profits; often at the expense of both product quality and the compensation and safety for laborers. We believe there should be an additional option: our prices are high, but they are entirely justified. We don't cut costs; we invest in the highest quality, ethically produced materials, and fairly compensate our highly skilled, Boston based laborers for production: that is why our pieces cost what they do. We believe that our customers are willing to pay for the upmost quality pieces available, produced from tannery to final stitch with absolutely no exploited labor. The only way to operate ethically is to operate with transparency; that is why we provide detailed information about the products we make, from the leather to every piece of hardware that makes up each item. If you have any questions about any part of our production or sourcing, please reach out to us anytime.
Contact us anytime at support@mongrelandmode.com or via our contact form - we typically respond within 24 hours.
