Moo-ve Over Leather, Make Way For... Mushrooms?

Do we feel the color Mushroom was released to set the stage for a bag made entirely from Mushrooms? Can we get the Mushroom bag in Mushroom? We have so many questions.

It’s official, Hermes is joining the likes of Stella McCartney and hopping on the Mushroom leather train. While the partnership was announced in 2021, the launch of the first mushroom bag was rumored to launch in 2022 but we have yet to see the bag surface in boutiques.

The leather will be initially created by a company named MycoWorks and then shipped to France to be colored and finished by Hermes ateliers. The mushroom leather finish will be known as Sylvania at Hermes. The Victoria bag (shown below) will be the first style of handbag launched by Hermes. We think it’s smart to test the receptiveness of the market with a non quota bag style.

It’s unclear if Hermes plans to make this new mushroom leather an option for quota bags in the future, but we don’t see why fungi wouldn’t be part of the future for Birkins and Kellys. It seems unlikely that Hermes would invest into this leather to only create a travel bag and call it a day - unless the response to the Victoria is overwhelmingly poor.

MycoWorks and other Mushroom leather creators have expressed the similar look, texture, and durability between their fungi-derived leather and traditional cow leather. Mushroom leather however, is significantly more cost effective, and environmentally friendly in comparison. It also is quick to produce, taking only 3 months to create vs. the years needed to raise livestock.

With the introduction of this new leather alternative we can’t help but wonder if we’re about to witness the last years of Hermes’ amazing leathers. Will they follow in the path of Chanel and start by eliminating exotics? Or is this more about giving options to the environmentally friendly market of people who do not wish to wear animal products? Only time will tell.

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