eather Club Australia™ | Journal Article
Leather is valued for durability, character and longevity, but responsible leather sourcing also requires attention to how the material is manufactured. The Leather Working Group (LWG) has become one of the most widely recognised systems for assessing leather-manufacturing facilities and encouraging measurable improvement across the global leather supply chain (Leather Working Group, 2026a).
What is the Leather Working Group?
Founded in 2005, LWG is a multi-stakeholder organisation involving brands, retailers, leather manufacturers, suppliers and other industry participants. Its Leather Manufacturer Standard assesses facilities across areas including water and energy use, chemical management, waste and effluent, air emissions, traceability, health and safety, environmental management and social responsibility. Certification applies to the manufacturing facility—not automatically to every finished product made from leather (Leather Working Group, 2026b; 2026c).
LWG currently reports more than 2,200 certified suppliers across more than 60 countries and states that around 30% of global leather production is represented within its system. This scale makes LWG relevant to brands seeking a recognised framework for assessing leather suppliers rather than relying only on broad sustainability claims (Leather Working Group, 2026a).
Figure 1. Selected global LWG indicators reported by Leather Working Group (2026a).
Why does this matter for Australia?
Australia is connected to international leather supply chains through footwear, apparel, accessories, workwear and other imported and locally branded products. Australian businesses therefore need practical ways to ask where leather was processed, how a tannery manages water, energy, chemicals and waste, and whether the supply chain can provide
Leather Club Australia™ | Journal | Research checked 14 August 2026
credible traceability. LWG provides one established framework for asking and independently assessing many of these questions.
LWG is also already visible among Australian businesses. Its current member directory includes Australian names such as Bared Trading Pty Ltd (Bared Footwear), Blundstone Australia Pty Ltd and Kathmandu Limited. Their presence does not mean every product they sell is LWG-certified; rather, it demonstrates that Australian businesses are participating in the wider LWG system and responsible-leather conversation (Leather Working Group, 2026d).
What do the Australian statistics tell us?
Australia publishes detailed merchandise trade data through the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade provides commodity-level trade datasets that can be used to examine leather, footwear and leather-goods trade (ABS, 2026; DFAT, 2026). However, these datasets do not identify what percentage of Australian leather businesses source from LWG-certified facilities or display LWG as a purchasing priority.
Important evidence note: No reliable public national statistic was identified showing the percentage of Australian leather, footwear or fashion businesses that use LWG-certified leather or publicly rank LWG as a sourcing priority. LCA should therefore not publish a percentage claim of this kind unless it is supported by a dedicated Australian industry survey or verifiable dataset.
What does Gold-Rated mean?
Under the LWG audit framework, leather-manufacturing facilities are assessed against detailed operational and ESG criteria. A Gold rating indicates a high level of performance against the applicable LWG standard. Importantly, responsible marketing requires precise wording: it is the audited facility that holds the certification/rating. LWG guidance also distinguishes membership claims from certification claims and places conditions on product-level logo use (Leather Working Group, 2026c; 2026e).
Why LWG matters to LCA
For Leather Club Australia, sourcing leather from LWG Gold-Rated manufacturing facilities supports a more transparent approach to material selection. It allows LCA to look beyond appearance and hand-feel and consider how leather manufacturing facilities manage environmental performance, traceability and responsible production.
LWG should not be presented as proof that a finished product has zero environmental impact. Instead, it is better understood as an independent framework for assessing leather-manufacturing facilities, recognising stronger practice and encouraging continuous improvement. For Australian customers and business buyers seeking greater transparency, that distinction matters.
At LCA, responsible sourcing is not simply a label—it is part of how we choose the materials behind the product.
References
Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) (2026) International Trade in Goods, May 2026. Australian Bureau of Statistics. Available at: https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/economy/international-trade/international-trade-goods/latest-release (Accessed: 14 August 2026).
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) (2026) Merchandise trade statistical pivot tables. Australian Government. Available at: https://www.dfat.gov.au/trade/trade-and-investment-data-information-and-publications/trade-statistics/merchandise-trade-statistical-pivot-tables (Accessed: 14 August 2026).
Leather Working Group (2026a) Responsible leather. Available at: https://www.leatherworkinggroup.com/ (Accessed: 14 August 2026).
Leather Working Group (2026b) Leather Manufacturer Standard. Available at: https://www.leatherworkinggroup.com/certification/leather-manufacturer-standard/ (Accessed: 14 August 2026).
Leather Club Australia™ | Journal | Research checked 14 August 2026
