All Cheshire & Wain leather cat collars are made England by small leather goods manufacturer in the midlands. We make our products here in the UK so we can ensure our products are made to the highest possible standard.

Working with leather needs to be approached with care - this beautiful material isn't always the easiest to work with and there are many points during the making process where things can go wrong. This Black Friday, just like the last five years we are offering up to 65% off perfectly imperfect collars, or 'seconds', that didn't entirely meet Cheshire & Wain's high standards during quality control.

Read on to learn more about what makes a product a 'second'. 

What do we mean by a cat collar being a 'second'? 

The idea of a ‘seconds sale’ was started by ceramicists who were looking for a way of selling their wares that had become aesthetically flawed during the firing process, but were still entirely functional. Over the last few years, this way of selling has been embraced by craftspeople and makers across all different pathways, primarily as a way to reduce waste. 

In regards to Cheshire & Wain, a seconds sale is a perfect solution when working with an organic material such as leather. Leather is lovely to work with, but imperfections such as mottling, small scuffs or discolouration are a natural aspect of this organic material. When we prepare the leather for production, the irregular edges of the cowhide are trimmed away - these pieces become our offcut products, like leather teaser toys or Christmas baubles. The main surface is then cut into panels - cutting around slight imperfections would cause a great deal of waste, which has always been an issue for us. We make a conscious decision not to avoid areas with natural markings, with the knowledge that any collars that have natural markings will be sold as part of our seconds sale. 

 

What other factors constitute a second?

Over the course of the year during our various production runs, it's inevitable that some collars don't quite make the grade. These are handmade products, so mistakes during production do happen. Certain factors that would make a collar a second could be veering slightly off course with the stitching, being overzealous with the rivet press or embossing wonky branding. Some of these details are barely noticeable, and none of these imperfections affect the quality or integrity of the collar, so it would be such a shame to discard these products due to superficial flaws. 

 

 

Why do we sell 'seconds' for Black Friday instead of doing a site-wide discount? 

Knowing that these collars can still be sold - albeit at a discounted price - puts our mind at ease that the bare minimum will be wasted during the production process. 

In addition, the fact that we opt for having a seconds sale instead of a Black Friday sale on products already made, is a way that we can offer discounts to our customers and take part in Black Friday without having a negative impact on our business and on the environment. Black Friday can be a pressure cooker where people expect huge discounts, which very often small and independent businesses are unable to offer. Opting for a seconds sale, not only reduces our material waste, but also makes our products more accessible. 

 

  SHOP THE SALE HERE