More than 100 years’ experience in the art of tanning

 

Our history

“D. Alran & Cie” was founded in 1903 by David Alran, in Mazamet, in the heart of the Montagne Noire mountain range. In its early days, the tannery fellmongered and tanned sheep and goat hides for the footwear industry. The large number of sheep farmed in the region, the power of the river and the poor soil quality in this mountainous area forced shepherds to find other sources of income and played a role in the development of wool transformation then tanning activities in the region, from as early as the 16th century.

Two facilities were built and continued to be developed until the late 1960s. The first, located above Mazamet (at Moulin de l’Oule) between the ‘route des usines’ and Arnette, carried out the beamhouse tasks to stabilise raw hides. In the second, closer to the town centre, near route de Carcassonne, retanning and dyeing, crusting and meticulous finishing steps were completed.

In 1951, the second site expanded to meet the demand from the fast-growing French footwear industry. Gradually, the tannery began to specialize in goat hides. At this stage, Europe’s leading luxury brands were already clients of “D. Alran & Cie”.

histoire de la mégisserie alran depuis 1903 - cuir de chevre

At the end of the sixties, the beamhouse workshop closed and the tannery dedicated itself to dyeing, tanning and finishing operations on the current site. Techniques quickly evolved and new machinery allowed for increasingly complex finishing needs to be met (application of pigments, buffing, pressing etc.).

In the mid-1980s, as well as being France’s leading goat leather producer, the team cultivated expertise in producing calf leather with a variety of finishes (nubuck, metallic etc.). This period was characterised by a gradual reallocation of tannery resources, moving away from the footwear industry to focus on leather goods, fashion accessories and artisanal trades.

Drawing on more than 100 years of cultural heritage and its unique knowledge and skills, the company, which was rebranded Alran S.A.S in October 2007, is dedicated to investing in and preparing for the future.

Today, we take pride in constantly adding to our extensive range of grain and temper options for goat and calf leathers. We source our hides from all over the world (Africa, Asia, the Middle East) and choose from a multitude of tanning and finishing processes, taking into account colour and style trends. This means that opportunities for grain and temper innovations are endless.

L'histoire de la mégisserie Alran - cuir de chevre
Mégisserie Arnal - cuir de chèvre - notre histoire
notre histoire - histoire 2 - alran

Our values

Our tannery, based in the south of France’s Tarn region, specialises in both large and small hides. We are deeply committed to our origins and our region, and hold the materials we work with, our knowledge and skills, and our surrounding environment in the highest regard.

The material

To ensure we make the finest leathers, we treat our raw materials with the utmost humility.

Every hide is unique and we strive to elevate each one by taking into account its technical constraints.

notre histoire - valeur humain - alran

Our team

For generations, the men and women working in our tannery have been passing on age-old knowledge and skills, to ensure we continue to offer you an ever-evolving range of colourful products.

The environment

We believe that our world is a precious resource. This conviction drives us to invest in improving wastewater treatment processes and to make reducing waste and recycling by-products a priority.

Mégisserie Arnal - cuir de chèvre
Mégisserie Arnal - cuir de chèvre
Mégisserie Arnal - cuir de chèvre
Mégisserie Arnal - cuir de chèvre

Whether you specialize in book binding, leather wrapping, leather goods, boot or shoemaking, we will work closely with you throughout the entire development process.

We assist and guide stylists, pattern makers and workshops at every step.