by RICHMOND HILL, Ontario– Although neutrals continue to dominate the leather motion business, Bellini Modern Living, a leading wholesaler and distributor of modern Italian furniture based in Canada, says warmer colors are on the upswing.
“We’re seeing a distinct shift to the warmer side of the color wheel, away from the grays and other neutrals that have dominated the landscape for so long. Since we purchase all of our full-grain leathers in Italy, we’ve always been ahead of the curve in terms of new colors, but the market is definitely catching up now. We’re selling more and more Hermes orange, terracotta, and both light Tiffany blue and darker Pacific blue as consumers get more comfortable incorporating all the warm, saturated colors they see now in fashion and automotive into their homes,” said Hossein Azimi, chief executive officer of Bellini Modern Living, adding that he himself just purchased an orange car.
“While customers are gravitating toward warmer colors and contemporary European styles in leather motion, where we have been challenged as a retailer is to find designs that fit American lifestyles,” said Becky Greene, executive director of merchandising at Furnitureland South, adding that modern European designs tend to sit differently than Americans are accustomed to. “Bellini excels at marrying sophisticated Italian design with comfort that’s more approachable for our American customers.”
“When our customers sit on a Bellini Modern Living leather sofa or sectional, they can absolutely see and feel the difference in the high-grade European hides they source for us, and Bellini is able to do it at a very competitive price that rivals a lot of the higher-end leather manufacturers,” Greene said. “The value is obvious, and that’s one of their strongest points of difference.”
Indeed, Azimi said, “Unlike in case goods, where it’s simply about the finish and the wood, when it comes to leather furniture, more senses come into play, and when you sit on high-quality leather, you feel a difference in the same way you experience a luxury car. You notice how soft and supple the material feels, the stitching details and the superior tailoring.”
In Bellini’s case, this also includes fewer obvious seams in the sofa and sectional designs. “The European leather hides we start with are naturally larger than those purchased in Asia and South America,” the executive said, “because the cows enjoy four seasons and the animals are better fed, with less insect bites and without the scorching sun to mar the hides. That allows us to create more clean-lined designs.”
