Leather Industry Statistics for 2025

This is a complete list of up-to-date Leather Industry statistics for 2025. On this page, you’ll find hand-picked stats.

So, without further ado, let’s see the stats!

Top Leather Industry Statistics (Editor’s Picks)

• The global leather goods market was $531.07 billion in 2025 and projected to grow to $855.36 billion by 2032.
• Asia-Pacific was the largest regional market, holding 39.87% of global leather goods revenue in 2024.
• Luggage (suitcases, briefcases, business cases) is the industry’s top-performing product segment and takes around 43% of industry revenue.
• Footwear was the second largest product segment, accounting for 39.25% of total leather goods revenue in 2024.
• By 2029, global luxury leather goods users are projected to reach 397.2 million, with a user penetration rate of 5.4%.
• Global per-person spending on luxury leather goods in 2025 is about $8.45.
• In 2025, the average revenue per user (ARPU) of luxury leather goods is projected at $48.21.
• Global raw hide production was approximately 21 million metric tons in 2023, with cattle hides ≈ 60% of the total.
• In the U.S. alone, about 4.8 million hides ended up in landfills, making up 15% of the country’s total production.
• Grain-based leather alternatives use 95% less greenhouse gas, 93% less water, and 72% less energy than traditional leather.
• The carbon footprint of cowhide leather is 110 kg CO₂e per square meter, making it nearly seven times higher than that of synthetic leather.

Market Size & Growth

• The global leather goods market is $531.07 billion in 2025 and projected to grow $855.36 billion by 2032, at a 7.05% CAGR.
• In 2024, Europe held the second-largest share of the leather goods market at 37.44%, driven by strong demand for luxury items.
• Asia-Pacific region held 39.87% of the global revenue leather goods market..
• The footwear segment accounted for 39.25% of the total leather goods market revenue in 2024.
• The global leather footwear market was $138.29 billion in 2024 and is expected to reach $166.28 billion by 2030.
• The leather clothing market was valued at about $35.6 billion in 2023 and is projected to reach $51.8 billion by 2032. Leather jackets ranked top in the clothing market.
• Global revenue from luxury leather goods is estimated at $66.03 billion in 2025, with a 2.20% CAGR from 2025 to 2030.
• In 2025, the United States generated about $13 billion in luxury leather goods revenue.
• Global per-person spending on luxury leather goods in 2025 is about $8.45.
  From 2018 to 2024, average per-person revenue rose by $1.71. From 2024 to 2030 forecasted rise per person revenue is $0.52.

Luxury Leather Goods Statistics

• By 2029, the number of luxury leather goods worldwide is expected to reach 397.2 million.

• Luxury leather goods user penetration will rise from 4.7% in 2025 to 5.4% by 2029.
• The average revenue per user of luxury leather goods (ARPU) is projected at $48.21 in 2025.
• The luxury leather handbags market is valued at $29.02 billion in 2025.
• In 2025, the luxury leather handbags market in the United States will generate about $6 billion in revenue, the highest worldwide.
• On a per-person basis, average revenue in the luxury leather handbags market is $3.71 in 2025.
• The luxury leather wallets & little cases market is valued at $9.65 billion in 2025.
• The luxury leather wallets & little cases market is projected to grow at a 2.03% CAGR between 2025 and 2030.
• In 2025, the luxury leather wallets & little cases market in the United States will generate about $2 billion in revenue, the highest globally.
• On a per-person basis, the luxury leather suitcases & briefcases market average revenue is $1.24 in 2025.
• The luxury leather wallets & little cases market is valued at $12.71 billion in 2025.
• The luxury leather suitcases & briefcases market is projected to grow at a 2.75% CAGR between 2025 and 2030.
• In 2025, the luxury leather suitcases & briefcases market in the United States will generate about $2 billion in revenue, the highest globally.
• On a per-person basis, the luxury leather suitcases & briefcases market average revenue is $1.63 in 2025.
• The secondhand luxury leather goods market (bags, purses, belts) was $2.8 billion in 2023 and is projected to reach $3.8 billion by 2028 with a CAGR of 12.8%.
• Handbags make up nearly 45% of total luxury leather goods sales.

• The global luxury leather handbag market is projected to grow by over $3 billion between 2025 and 2030, reaching $32.5 billion in 2030.
  
  

Sources: Fortune Business Insights, Mordor Intelligence, Grand View Research, DataIntelo, Statista, Global Growth Insights, Statista, Statista, Statista, Statista

Product Segments & Leading Categories

• Luggage (suitcases, briefcases, business cases) is the industry’s top-performing product segment and takes around 43% of industry revenue.
• The luxury leather suitcases & briefcases market is valued at $12.71 billion in 2025. The United States estimated revenue is 2 billion in 2025 from this market.
• Footwear is the second largest sub-category of the leather goods market with 39.25% share.
• Handbags, suitcases/briefcases, wallets, and small leather goods together form the main luxury product mix; small leather goods are more popular among younger consumers.
  

Sources: IBISWorld, Mordor Intelligence

E-commerce & Digital Adoption

• By 2025, it is estimated that 19% of personal luxury sales will happen online (more than triple the 2009 levels).
• Nearly 80% of personal luxury sales are “digitally influenced.”
• Worldwide online shoe sales were about $113.0 billion in 2023.
• Online sales accounted for roughly 31.2% of global footwear sales in 2023.
• About 63% of consumers planned to shop online for shoes during the 2023 holiday season.
• In 2021, leather shoes bought online had a market share of 70%, generating about $69.37 billion in sales.
• For luxury leather goods, online retail now accounts for over 35% of total sales, and e-commerce transactions rose 40% in five years (North America +50%, Asia-Pacific +60%).
• While e-commerce and digital channels are expanding rapidly, offline retail still dominated leather goods sales in 2024, accounting for 71.23% of the market.
• Online retail is projected to accelerate at a 9.24% CAGR through 2030.
• The online segment of the leather footwear market is projected to grow at a 3.5% CAGR.
  

Sources: McKinsey, RunRepeat, Global Growth Insights, Mordor Intelligence, Grand View Research, market.us.

Second Hand Market

• The secondhand luxury leather goods market (bags, purses, belts) was worth $2.8 billion in 2023.
• The pre-owned market is projected to reach $3.8 billion by 2028 at a CAGR of 12.8%.
• Asia led with approximately $822.5 million and Europe with $623 million in the regional split for the secondhand market..
  

Sources: Statista

Consumer Perception toward Leather & Alternatives

• 92% of U.S. consumers reported being at least somewhat open to purchasing next-gen (animal-free) materials.
• 51% of consumers were somewhat to moderately likely to purchase next-gen materials.
• 41% of consumers were very likely to purchase next-gen materials — a clear early-adopter segment.
• 94.8% of consumers correctly recognized that the tanning process requires a lot of water.
• 21.9% of consumers knew that German manufacturers/retailers are legally required to know the chemicals contained in leather.
• 26.9% of consumers correctly identified the statement “genuine leather is always without plastic components” as false.
  

Sources: Material Innovation Initiative, Frontiers in Sustainability

Production, Hides & Tanneries

• Global raw hide production was approximately 21 million metric tons in 2023, with cattle hides ≈ 60% of the total.
• In 2024, China consumed about 27% of global raw hide volume and accounted for 47% of global raw cattle hide imports.
• Brazil’s hides and skins exports grew 12.5% in value and 22.3% in square meters in 2024 versus 2023.
• In 2020, approximately 120 million hides were wasted globally, accounting for nearly 40% of worldwide hide production.
• In the U.S. alone, about 4.8 million hides ended up in landfills, making up 15% of the country’s total production.
• Rising global footwear production contributed to a 56% increase in demand for tanned leather over the past three years.
  

Sources: Global Market Insights, IndexBox, APLF, Choose Real Leather. Business Research Insights

Supply Chain, Trade & Prices

• Global leather shoe exports were about $63.0 billion in 2023 (up 3.4% vs 2022).
• Europe exported $32.4 billion (51.4%) and Asia exported $28.0 billion (44.4%) of leather shoes in 2023.

Top Leather Shoe Exporting Regions

• Top leather shoe exporters in 2023: Vietnam $10.6B; Italy $8.9B; China $8.5B.

Top Leather Shoe Exporting Countries

• The U.S. imported about $169.8 million of finished leather goods in 2023, mainly from Mexico, India, and China.
• In 2022, the U.S. was the top leather shoe importer with 20% of the global import value.
• Germany was the second largest shoe importer with just under 10% global import value..
• Italy led global exports of leather apparel with $1.29 billion in 2023, followed by China at $1.14 billion and India at $848 million.

Top Leather Apparel Exporters

• The United States led global imports of leather apparel with $1.37 billion in 2023, followed by Germany at $544 million and France at $512 million.

Top Leather Apparel Importers

Global Imports: Leather apparel and clothing accessories

• The estimated value of global imports of leather apparel and clothing accessories was $7,302,236 in 2024.

• Brazil was the top exporter of leather and exported $1.2 billion worth of leather in 2024.
• The United States was the second biggest leather exporter with $617 million worth of leather in 2024.
  

Sources: Tendata, World Bank WITS, Statista (exporters), OEC, IndexBox, Trade Map

Sustainability & Alternative Materials

• Grain-based leather alternatives use 95% less greenhouse gas, 93% less water, and 72% less energy than traditional leather.

• The carbon footprint of cowhide leather is 110.0 kg CO₂e per square meter, making it nearly seven times higher than that of synthetic leather, which stands at 15.8 kg CO₂e per square meter.
• Plastic/synthetic leather currently makes up about 15–20% of the leather goods market.
• Producing 1 m² of finished leather results in about 22.48 kg CO₂e.
• About 68% of leather’s environmental impact is linked to farming and slaughter stages.
• The bio-based leather market was $145.26 million in 2024, projected to reach $535.69 million by 2034 (CAGR ~13.94%).
• A single pair of leather shoes may use about 2,113 gallons of water.
• The vegan leather market was estimated at $11.07 billion in 2025.
  

Environmental Effects of Cattle Ranching & Waste

• In Brazil’s Amazon, cattle ranching for beef and leather drove about 80% of deforestation.
• In Queensland, Australia, cattle farming caused about 93% of deforestation in local rainforest areas.
• Raising cattle uses about 17,100 liters of water per kg of leather at the farm stage (draft citation).
  

Sources: CarbonFact, Collective Fashion Justice, Precedence Research, Custom Market Insights, Vegconomist, Global Market Insights, Collective Fashion Justice, Circumfauna, IFAS, Choose Real Leather.

Employment, Wages & Safety (U.S. highlights)

• In 2024, the median annual wage in leather and allied product manufacturing was $35,160, with hourly wages averaging $17.
• In 2024, the leather and allied product manufacturing industry employed 11,400 workers across key occupations.

Employment by Occupation

• In 2024, labor productivity in leather and allied product manufacturing grew by 2.1%.
• The number of private leather manufacturing establishments in the U.S. was 1,574 in the fourth quarter of 2024.
• In June 2025, the Producer Price Index (PPI) for leather and allied product manufacturing in the US was 206.84.
• In 2023, the rate of total recordable workplace injuries and illnesses in the U.S.leather and allied product manufacturing was 3.4 cases per 100 full-time workers.
  

Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

Investment, Innovation & Outlook

• Investment in eco-friendly tanning technologies increased by 36% in recent years.
• Bio-based tanning adoption increased 43% and chrome-free alternatives rose 38%.
• Faircraft raised about $16 million, and UNCAGED raised $5.6 million (seed, 2024) in funding rounds.
• Accessories grew 2–4% and leather goods grew 3–4% in recent industry commentary; growth has slowed but remains positive.
  

Sources: Business Research Insights, Fashion Dive, ESG Today