What’s the point of industry associations?

Industry associations play a crucial role in the growth and development of businesses and professionals within specific sectors. These organisations bring together experience and knowledge to provide a collective voice, valuable resources, and networking opportunities that are beneficial for both individuals and companies.

In the leather industry we have a number of key organisations that work entirely for the benefit of the industry:
International Council of Tanners (ICT)
International Union of Leather Technologists and Chemists Societies (IULTCS)
Society of Leather Technologists and Chemists (SLTC)
These organisations are largely voluntary with members performing governance and operational roles.

There are country and regional associations such as the Africa Leather and Leather Products Institute (ALLPI) in Africa, COTANCE in Europe and Leather and Hide Council of America (L&HCA) in the US. These organisations are usually run by paid staff and provide more focused support for their country / region.

Then there are not-for-profit companies like Sustainable Leather Foundation that play a critical role in maintaining quality, compliance, and trust across various sectors. These organisations set industry benchmarks, promote best practices, and provide valuable resources to businesses and professionals involved in auditing, certification, and compliance assessments. Supporting organisations like this is essential because they provide industry with a number of benefits:

1. Ensuring Standardisation and Best Practice
Audit and certification organisations help establish and uphold industry standards, ensuring consistency and reliability in compliance processes. Supporting these organisations contributes to the maintenance of high-quality standards across industry.

2. Enhancing Credibility and Trust
Membership in a reputable audit and certification organisation enhances your credibility. It demonstrates a commitment to industry best practice, ethical auditing, and certification integrity, fostering trust among clients, regulators, and stakeholders.

3. Representation for Regulatory Compliance
Organisations like SLF work to shape regulations, policies and frameworks related to audits and certifications. By supporting them, you help influence regulations that directly impact your industry and ensure that compliance requirements remain fair and effective.

4. Access to Industry Knowledge and Updates
Staying informed about regulatory changes, evolving industry standards, and emerging best practice is crucial in the audit and certification sector. Associations provide members with up-to-date research, reports, and training to keep them ahead of industry developments.

5. Professional Development and Training
Many associations offer certification programs, workshops, and continuing education opportunities. Supporting these initiatives helps professionals and businesses maintain competency, improve their skill sets, and adapt to evolving audit and certification methodologies.

6. Networking and Business Growth
Associations connect auditors, certification bodies, and industry leaders, creating opportunities for collaboration, partnerships, and business growth. Engaging with peers and experts can lead to new clients, business opportunities, and valuable industry insights.

7. Contributing to Industry Integrity
Audit and certification associations play a key role in maintaining the integrity of certification processes and audit practices. Supporting them helps uphold ethical standards, ensuring that certifications remain meaningful and credible in the marketplace.

Supporting an industry association is an investment in your professional and business success. By joining and actively participating, you contribute to the growth and advancement of your industry while gaining valuable benefits that can propel your career or business forward.

Most associations and support organisations like SLF operate entirely to support the leather industry; this requires industry investment to ensure adequate resources are available. Unfortunately, this investment is consistently the missing ingredient in the leather sector. The majority of profit making companies in the leather industry are not financially supporting our not-for-profit or voluntary associations and organisations. I would urge all readers to consider what will happen if our association membership numbers continue to diminish?

Please support your industry associations – they exist to support you.

If you would like to talk to us about how you can become a member of SLF, please contact: info@sustainableleatherfoundation.com or arrange to meet with us at:
Lineapelle, Milan: 25-27 February 2025
APLF, Hong Kong: 12-14 March 2025