How I Built a Sustainable Leather Brand (By Accident)

When I started Casupo, I wasn't asking myself how to make sustainable leather goods in Los Angeles. That question came later. What started everything was something I kept seeing over and over again – and couldn't unsee.

The Factory Visits That Changed Everything

My corporate job took me to incredible factories in China and Mexico – reputable, fair trade places where the workers were extremely talented and genuinely proud of their craft. Every visit included the same routine: a walk through the stock room to choose leathers for samples or prototypes we were developing.

And every single time, one thing struck me: they had SO. MUCH. Material.

The Problem Nobody Was Talking About

I started asking questions. Where did all this leather come from? Why was there so much of it just sitting there?

The answer was always the same story. Brands would order materials for samples or production runs, then leave the excess behind at the factory. Eventually, these beautiful leathers would get moved to the "stock room" – which was really just a holding area for materials nobody knew what to do with.

The amounts were significant but not quite large enough for big brands to justify another production run. So there they sat.

When I started visiting footwear manufacturers in Mexico, I saw the exact same thing happening.

My Los Angeles Beginning

I launched my own leather goods brand with production right here in Los Angeles. I wanted to keep things local and manageable. While working with my LA factory, I noticed those same shelves filled with gorgeous leathers that nobody was using.

The Shift That Changed Everything

In 2020, I decided to build Casupo around these excess leathers. They're large enough quantities to create small batches, but what makes them special is that each piece tells a unique story – leather that was destined for waste, given new life and purpose.

Where We Are Today

In five years, Casupo has rescued over 3 tons of beautiful leather from ending up in landfills.

Now, factories actually call us when they need help repurposing these materials. We've become part of closing the cycle for them – giving rescued leather a better future while creating products that are truly one-of-a-kind.

That's how you build a sustainable leather brand. Not by starting with a question about sustainability, but by paying attention to a problem everyone else was ignoring.