Townsend named Best Places to Work 2025
https://www.bizjournals.com/albany/news/2025/10/08/best-places-to-work-2025-medium-large-winners.html Once again, Townsend Leather has been named a BEST PLACE TO WORK by the Albany Business… Full Aritcle
Blog
Once again, Townsend Leather has been named a BEST PLACE TO WORK by the Albany Business Review!
The Albany Business Review has been honoring companies in the greater capital region with this prestigious award for 22 years, and since Townsend started participating, we have earned the Best Places To Work title for half of those years! We are now at over a decade of being named a Best Place To Work, and are immensely proud of that achievement.
This recognition is hard-earned through employee surveys and comments; it comes from the words and minds of the people who work here every day.
We recently celebrated some of our employees who were celebrating milestone anniversaries at Townsend Leather (https://townsendleather.com/2025/lifestyle/the-heart-of-the-leather-making-region), while at that event, we gave special attention to our heart, something that makes us stand out, something that makes us extra, something that makes us Townsend. We are centered, heart-rooted in the leather making region of New York state, and we are there full hearted as our heart-filled selves. This focus on heart of Townsend Leather, is something that drives us and makes us who we who, and it is a reason we are able to earn recognitions like Best Place to Work – we get there through heart.
The heart of our people doing incredible work, the heart of our team looking out for each other, the heart of our passion at creating greatness together – it shows through in the work we do, the way we create together, and even in the awards we recieve.
We are proud of the recognition; we know it is a rare accomplishment, made even more rare by Townsend being positioned on the outer edges of the Greater Capital Region, and then even more rare yet by Townsend being a manufacturing company, so we do not take this win lightly. We know it matters. We know it is significant. And we know it is a true representation of who we are together, the best.
Whether it was engaging design conversations, sneaking off to a rooftop bar, getting deep into leather and upcoming projects, seeing a giant pigeon, or just getting to be face-to-face with customers, friends, & fans… BDNY 2025 was a delight all around.
With almost non-stop busyness from opening of the show to end, our booth always had something exciting happening. We got to hear about a lot of inspiring builds and upcoming projects, solve some leather dreams, and maybe most exciting of all we got to introduce the design community to our newest leather collection, The Cleopatra Collection!
Our Cleopatra Collection features a stunning variety of leather types and products, but the crowd favorites at BDNY were certainly The Shimmering Suedes, The Prism Cowhides, and the softer-than-soft Precious Calfskins.
Our Cleopatra Collection is nearly ready to sample directly to your hands, but to be sure that you are on the list as one of the first, complete the simple form here: https://townsendleather.com/cleopatra
We love getting to show off our hand-crafted leathers, getting them into the hands, eyes, and hearts of design lovers. Our passion is leather and seeing it come to life in an energetic place like BDNY is such a joy, but the greatest joy we have is the connection with each of you.
If we missed you this year, or the crowd carried you away before you got to explore everything, please reach out to us. We will ship samples, we will answer questions, we will talk leather for hours, we will host you here for a visit and tour… we love making leather dreams come true, info@townsendleather.com
So many stunning leathers to choose from, but the softer-than-soft Precious Calfskin…
the eye-catching, iridescent, Prism Cowhide…
the shimmering, glittering, supple Shimmering Suedes…
and the gotta-hold-it-to-believe-it Lotus Flower Digital Print Cowhide, each were the standouts of the Cleopatra Collection in our BDNY booth.
It is official, we are saying goodbye to our old friend, the PO Box.
Please update all your files, records, papers, invoices, scraps of random paper, phone contact cards, roledex, delivery dogs, and anywhere else that has a Townsend Leather address.
We will no longer be using or receiving mail at: PO Box 669,
Instead, please always use:
4 Grove Street, Johnstown, NY 12095
Townsend is not physically moving, but we are streamlining our addresses, now getting the mail right where we are.
Shipments can continue to be delivered to 45-49 Townsend Ave.
Our 4 beautiful buildings remain where they are, and everything will continue on as usual. We are just discontinuing the PO Box, no other moves or changes are being made. So, if you have a PO Box listed for Townsend, change that to 4 Grove Street. We installed a brand new mailbox at 4 Grove Street, it’s a very nice mailbox, if you want to come see it yourself – let us know! We love hosting visits of any kind and our 4 Grove Street building was always worth the trip, but with this new mailbox, Ooooo! Very worth the trip.
If you have any questions or just want to talk PO Boxes and addresses with us for fun, please contact us at info@townsendleather.com.
- Use 4 Grove Street for Townsend Leather mailing
- Remove PO Box 669 from anywhere and everywhere in your systems.
Our theme for 2025 has been Put the Extra in Extraordinary.
Our team is certainly EXTRA, and all of us together, and what we craft is truly extraordinary.
But, there is one thing in particular that stands out, that really makes us extra, and that is our heart.
Our heart.
Our center.
It is what makes us Townsend. It is what makes us last for 56 years now, with some employees having been here for 45! years or more! And like Townsend’s own long history, the whole region has a long history.
Leather has a long and storied past in our area.
Upstate New York became the world’s largest supplier of leather gloves for a time. The area has had leather craft in its soul for hundreds of years. This is because of the old-growth forests of hemlock trees that were used for traditional leather tanning, the vast farmland area that is conducive to dairy farms and happy cattle, the pristine waters flowing from the Adirondack Mountains, and the hearty craft-focused people who wanted to create something useful, long-lasting, and beautiful.
So Upstate New York, specifically the foothills of the Adirondacks, has become near and far as the leather making region.
And the center of that region?
Townsend Leather.
Townsend Leather is figuratively and literally at the heart of the leather making region.
We are proud of our history and proud of our place in the rich story of leather. We are especially proud to be the heart of it all. We are still in the same building that was built by hand by “Red” Kucel and his friends. We are still crafting leather with old-world techniques and knowledge, but are also looking forward incorporating cutting-edge technology and crafting the world’s finest upholstery leather in the highest of quality, with heart.
This year we celebrated our team and some significant anniversaries, like we do every year. We had Townsend Leather Partners celebrating everything from 1 year, to 5, 10, 15… 35, all the way to 45 years with Townsend Leather.
See more about our previous longevity events and our storied history, https://townsendleather.com/2024/lifestyle/55-years
You don’t stay at a place through an entire lifespan without loving the work and the people you do it with. We are proud that we can be a place that people are proud and pleased to come to every day.
Our celebration culminated in our anniversary honorees showcasing not just their heart, but their “extra“ness as well. With a video presentation of some of their incredible talents…
We are the heart of the leather making region.
Centered in the area
Continuously beating
Working as a team
A place of care and togetherness…
Townsend is the heart.
Townsend Leather is continuing our grand golden parade to New York City. We look forward to the design-centered BDNY show each year, and this year will be extra glittery.
Our team will be coming with new leathers, new friends, new design inspiration, and candy.
Need a pass to the BDNY expo?
Use our Free Expo-only Pass Code: BDNY695
Don’t miss out on what’s new at BDNY
Townsend Leather will be unveiling our exciting new collection at BDNY this year. If you check out Booth #2325 you will be among the first to see the Cleopatra Collection.
The Cleopatra Collection brings together the elegance and allure of ancient Egypt with the appeal and relevance of today. Texture, suppleness, eye-catching color… all wrapped in a casing of glittering gold and glamour.
In our booth, you will also have the opportunity to meet the newest member of the Townsend family, Sarah Thomas from JAB ANSTOETZ.
Sarah is our local rep for the contract market in NYC and will be in the booth to meet local NYC designers.
Townsend is proud and excited for our partnership with JAB this year.
You can read more about our design-centric relationship here: https://townsendleather.com/2025/lifestyle/jab
And don’t forget to check out our in-booth gold-themed “candy buffet bar”, to grab some sweet treats that taste and look luxurious, as well.
Visit Townsend Leather at BDNY Booth 2325
To fill your hands with candy, your mind with design inspiration, & your heart with a love of leather.
The lights, the shimmering glitter, the excitement… just get through Las Vegas to find it all at the Townsend Leather NBAA Booth #2231!
With so much new, so much to show and share, it is going to be a spectacle of leather and design love.
We will be unveiling an exciting new collection, bursting with beauty, both subtle and eye-catching.
But the only way to be the first to see it is in our Booth.
While you are there, exploring the vast reaches of our newest collection and all it has to offer, you can also receive a special one-of-a-kind gift from us.
Something to help you get through the long days and busy nights of NBAA. Just mention you saw our blog, and the gift is yours.
But of course, you never leave a Townsend Leather booth empty-handed; you’ll leave this year with arms full!
Stop by our “candy bar” to grab some glittering gold candy and help celebrate all that is new and beautiful.
Contact us for samples, with questions, or to let us know where to find you at NBAA: info@townsendleather.com
Or if you can’t make it to NBAA this year, still reach out, we can make your leather dreams happen: info@townsendleather.com
Visit Townsend Leather at NBAA Booth 2231
to fill your hands with candy,
your pockets with gifts,
your mind with design inspiration,
& your heart with a love of leather.
UPDATE: IT’S ALL GOOD
It has been fixed, so go ahead and place all the sample orders your design-loving heart desires.
For the past few weeks, the backend of our website has had some technical difficulties. Which means there is a possibility we missed your sample request.
If you placed a request for samples through our sample store in the past few weeks and you have not heard from us, please contact us at info@townsendleather.com to re-request samples, or place a new request through our now-working sample store.
https://samples.townsendleather.com/
You can use the website to browse all our 1000s of beautiful leather swatches and build your own Lightbox of selections, then place an order for samples.
Send any missed sample requests directly to us at: info@townsendleather.com
Latest
