Stella McCartney to Ralph Lauren Have Ventured Into Vegan Leather

As plant-based materials increasingly replace leather in luxury goods, NFW is one of the companies working behind the scenes to bring vegan materials to fashion brands like Ralph Lauren, Patagonia, and Stella McCartney

This self-proclaimed “material innovations company,” whose name stands for Natural Fiber Welding, is a leader in the wave of vegan materials. NFW’s founder and CEO is Luke Haverhals, who has a PhD in chemistry from the University of Iowa, but always had an interest in economics.

“I asked myself, ‘What is a reasonable way to replace the entire plastics industry, economically speaking?’” Haverhals says. “I was on a quest to make sure humans were less dependent on carbon high toxin materials, I thought what I could do to solve this problem?”

The answer was in plants. Haverhals founded Peoria, Ill.-based NFW in 2015, envisioning a plastic-free future.

“People think plastics are cheap, but they’re among the most expensive and toxic things that humans ever tried to create,” he says.

THE ITEM

NSW provides fabrics for many brands, including Stella McCartney’s MIRUM-made handbags, which are 100% recyclable and circular—meaning at the end of their life, the material can be reused to make something else.

The name of this fabric comes from the Latin word for “miracle,” Haverhals says. “We don’t call it ‘leather,’ but it’s a leather-like material. It allows us to work with fashion designers and brands and we aim to start well, stay clean, and end well with regenerative materials. We don’t add bioplastics or polyurethane.”

The collection of NFW’s Mirum-fabric includes the Falabella MIRUM Tiny Tote Bag and the Frayme bag. They were launched at the Fall/Winter 2023 runway show at Paris Fashion Week in spring of 2023, and are available for pre-order, shipping out this month. They’re the world’s first luxury handbags crafted from this new vegan, plastic-free alternative.

McCartney aims to source 100% of her products from recyclables by 2025. “McCartney has been instrumental to NFW, she is a guiding light to the industry,” Haverhals says. “If we can get more luxury brands onboard, it will be better for others to get clean materials into their products, as well.”

The collection is a “call-to-action to take a stand for our planet,” McCartney said in a statement. “I have long dreamed of the day when we would see a plant-based alternative to leather that does not kill a single creature and can be easily given back to Mother Earth, without creating waste.”

(NFW is also funded by the Collab SOS Fund, a US$200 million fund which invests in companies that power a more sustainable economy. McCartney is one of its co-founders).

THE PRICE

As an example of the luxury goods NFW provides materials for, the Falabella Mirium Tiny Tote Bag sells for US$1,170.

WHAT’S THE GOOD?

NFW uses natural ingredients like vegetable oil and citric acid. “They can easily be turned into natural polymers when they break down,” Haverhals says. “We use natural rubber, cotton, we source regenerative cotton, we use cork, leftover from wine bottles, we use rice hulls, which are thrown out, a lot of things that are overlooked in the supply chain.”

WHAT’S NEXT

The company is gearing up for a launch with Ralph Lauren. It recently opened a factory in Peoria, as part of their expansion, and plans to expand to Europe, Southeast Asia, Sri Lanka, and China. “It’s important for us to be in China and we are proud to be partnering with them, helping take care of people and animals on the planet we share,” Haverhals says.

More than 1,500 brands reach out to NFW. “Everyone wants to better their brand,” he says. “When you think of shoes, bags and apparel, we are cleaning up the supply chain,” Haverhals says. “That’s our mission—to enable the world in a transparent, traceable way—where we don’t have any polyurethane goblins hiding in the closet.”

The boom in casual footware ushered in by the pandemic has ended, a potential problem for companies such as Adidas that benefited from the shift to less formal clothing, Bank of America says.

The casual footwear business has been on the ropes since mid-2023 as people began returning to office.

Analyst Thierry Cota wrote that while most downcycles have lasted one to two years over the past two decades or so, the current one is different.

It “shows no sign of abating” and there is “no turning point in sight,” he said.

Adidas and Nike alone account for almost 60% of revenue in the casual footwear industry, Cota estimated, so the sector’s slower growth could be especially painful for them as opposed to brands that have a stronger performance-shoe segment. Adidas may just have it worse than Nike.

Cota downgraded Adidas stock to Underperform from Buy on Tuesday and slashed his target for the stock price to €160 (about $187) from €213. He doesn’t have a rating for Nike stock.

Shares of Adidas listed on the German stock exchange fell 4.5% Tuesday to €162.25. Nike stock was down 1.2%.

Adidas didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Cota sees trouble for Adidas both in the short and long term.

Adidas’ lifestyle segment, which includes the Gazelles and Sambas brands, has been one of the company’s fastest-growing business, but there are signs growth is waning.

Lifestyle sales increased at a 10% annual pace in Adidas’ third quarter, down from 13% in the second quarter.

The analyst now predicts Adidas’ organic sales will grow by a 5% annual rate starting in 2027, down from his prior forecast of 7.5%.

The slower revenue growth will likewise weigh on profitability, Cota said, predicting that margins on earnings before interest and taxes will decline back toward the company’s long-term average after several quarters of outperforming. That could result in a cut to earnings per share.

Adidas stock had a rough 2025. Shares shed 33% in the past 12 months, weighed down by investor concerns over how tariffs, slowing demand, and increased competition would affect revenue growth.

Nike stock fell 9% throughout the period, reflecting both the company’s struggles with demand and optimism over a turnaround plan CEO Elliott Hill rolled out in late 2024.

Investors’ confidence has faded following Nike’s December earnings report, which suggested that a sustained recovery is still several quarters away. Just how many remains anyone’s guess.

But if Adidas’ challenges continue, as Cota believes they will, it could open up some space for Nike to claw back any market share it lost to its rival.

Investors should keep in mind, however, that the field has grown increasingly crowded in the past five years. Upstarts such as On Holding and Hoka also present a formidable challenge to the sector’s legacy brands.

Shares of On and Deckers Outdoor , Hoka’s parent company, fell 11% and 48%, respectively, in 2025, but analysts are upbeat about both companies’ fundamentals as the new year begins.

The battle of the sneakers is just getting started.

Stella McCartney to Ralph Lauren Have Ventured Into Vegan Leather—Meet Their Supplier

The pandemic-fuelled love affair with casual footwear is fading, with Bank of America warning the downturn shows no sign of easing.