Coping with Covid

This past fall, we wondered how leather retailers and manufacturers have been weathering the infamous 2020 coronavirus.

To find out, we talked to a diverse sampling of the owners and operators of 10 leather companies, large and small, who in the recent past have kindly shared know-how, family histories, beautiful product shots and glimpses of themselves and their workspaces.

It would have been wonderful to have talked with everyone. But alas, time and space did not allow.

HARRIS LEATHER & SILVERWORKS

“The thing that changed for us, in the spring, was that we were shut down for six weeks as a non-essential business. During that time, many horse shows cancelled and there were no shows to go to. That put us in a hole,” said Phil Harris, co-owner with his brother, Eddie Harris, of Harris Leather & Silverworks, located in State Road, North Carolina.

Their company’s primary products are high-end, hand-built, decorative saddles, other artfully crafted leather goods and one-of-a-kind silver and gold products. Their bread and butter is the Quarter horse show industry.

“When things started to open up again in May, the horse shows were huge. Everyone wanted to see horse shows. But, as far as business was concerned, it was very strange. One week, a large horse show was just OK. The next one was great. The next one, just OK. In the past, sales-wise, things were always good across the board,” Phil Harris said.

He guessed that people were more focused on showing their horses, instead of buying, and that economic uncertainty played a role.

The really bad news came when the All-American Quarter Horse Congress, held annually in Columbus, Ohio, cancelled in July. “Usually it lasts an entire month and we’re there for four weeks. That show had been a mega part of last year’s sales. This (cancellation) hurt us tremendously.”

Fortunately, their second largest show, the NSBA (National Snaffle Bit Association) World Championship Show held in Tulsa, “was really, really good. It had a huge impact on the bottom line. But it didn’t make up for the Quarter Horse Congress.”

Adding to overall stress, the company had to close for