Shipment
When you have received a shipment from Townsend Leather, please open the box immediately.
The shipment box is not a storage box.
Your leather needs to be taken out of the box and stored properly as soon as it is received.
Do not store leather in hot or humid conditions. Do not expose the leather to direct sunlight, to air containing reactive chemical fumes, or to cold below 32°F.
For best results, store your leather on racks or something similar where it is not compressed.
Townsend Leather loves leather and we want you to love your leather as well. The leather you have selected is a luxury hand-crafted product that was produced and shipped to you under the highest quality standards and with a true passion for great work and the best possible leather. Please treat it with respect.
The box your order arrives in is a shipping box, it is not a storage box. Leather is a natural, beautiful, 3-dimensional fiber product – it needs to “breathe” and rest in a natural state to be at its utmost beauty and functionality.
Townsend Leather’s Receiving and Storage Policy:
DO NOT STORE LEATHERS:
Under hot and humid conditions
- In areas with exposure to direct sunlight
- In areas with exposure to atmosphere where air
contains reactive chemical fumes such
as sulfur dioxide, ammonia, or others - In cold draughts below 32 degrees
- In the shipment box
Townsend Leather’s Receiving and Storage Policy requires you to remove the leather from the shipping box immediately after receiving it. Then place the leather in a room-temperature, non-humid place that is free of direct sunlight and any chemical fumes. Best practice would be to drape the leather over a “horse” or a rack. Or it can be laid flat. Temperatures of 50-70 degrees F and relative humidity of 25% to 65% are considered ideal for storage.
Depending on the conditions of its storage, leather either loses or absorbs moisture. Proper storage conditions and procedures will help ensure leathers are at optimal condition for usage. Storing rolled hides in the boxes they were shipped in is likely to result in discoloration, primarily in the form of roll lines, as the leather cannot breathe evenly due to the compressed areas.
Failure to follow the guidelines of our Receiving and Storage Policy could result in unevenness of color, the development of creases, wrinkles, and lines which contribute to loss of cutting yield, and possibly, the waiving of Townsend’s responsibility to help correct these issues along with its acceptance of any costs associated with the rework.
Remove leather from shipping cartons immediately upon receipt and place over racks or horses. If no racks or horses are available, lay out the hides on a table or flat surface for 3 – 5 days before beginning work as this will help relieve the wrinkles and creases created as a result of being rolled and stored in boxes. When storing hides on a rack or horse, the leather should be stacked grain to flesh with the grain side up. Depending on available storage area, it is best to limit the number of hides stacked to 40 or 50 hides. It is best practice to only stack common colors together. It is advised to rotate the hides by re-piling them every 30-45 days if the leather is not being moved and restacked due to normal upholstery usage.
If hides are opened and then later repackaged (for shipping purposes only), please be sure to roll hides with grain side out. Do not store leather in boxes. Storage in boxes will result in creases and yield loss when stored this way. Townsend is not responsible for removal of creases due to inadequate storage. Roll lines caused by inadequate storage will not be the responsibility of Townsend Leather.
We reserve the right to charge for services related to helping reduce the appearance of creases, wrinkles, color issues or other damage, and to charge for storage of material requiring “freshening” or additional corrective services (which contribute to loss of yield), and possibly, the waiving of Townsend’s responsibility to help correct these issues as well as Townsend’s acceptance of any costs associated with the rework.
For further information or guidelines for storing of leather, please contact
Townsend Leather at 518.762.2764 or by e-mail at info@townsendleather.com.
See our full storage policy and other important information here: