For AW26, SHAO introduces vegan leather made from 100% microfiber with recycled materials. The material appears throughout Underworld Royale: Darkness Under Neon Lights, the brand’s A/W 2026 collection presented at Labelhood Shanghai Fashion Week.
Designed by Shao Yang, the collection draws from the visual language of 1990s Golden Age Triad cinema, translating its codes of power, control, and character into contemporary tailoring. Across the collection, sharp monochromatic silhouettes, strong shoulders, elongated forms, and controlled volume define the world of Underworld Royale.
What Is Vegan Leather?
Vegan leather refers to leather-like materials made without animal hides. Animal leather is usually made from the skin of animals, most commonly cattle from the beef industry, though it can also come from pigs, sheep, snakes, horses, and other animals. Vegan leather, also called faux leather, is designed to imitate the look and feel of leather without using animal-derived hides.
The category is broad. Vegan leather can be made from synthetic materials, plant-based inputs, recycled materials, or a blend of these. Some versions use mushroom, pineapple leaves, cactus, cork, apple peel, or other plant-based sources, while many conventional vegan leathers are made with PU or PVC. Because of this, the sustainability of vegan leather depends on the material’s composition, production, durability, and end-of-life impact.
For SHAO AW26, the choice is specific: 100% microfiber made with recycled materials, selected as a non-animal option with the structure, finish, and durability needed for tailoring, trousers, boots, and outerwear.
Faux Versus Real Leather
The comparison between faux leather and real leather is not simple. Real leather is valued for durability and aging, but animal leather supply chains can raise concerns around traceability, cattle production, land use, deforestation risk, and animal welfare. WWF has identified traceability and deforestation-free sourcing as key priorities for more responsible leather supply chains.
Faux leather avoids animal hides and can offer a consistent surface for structured design, especially when finish, color, and shape control matter. Recycled-content vegan leather can also reduce reliance on virgin inputs. Still, vegan does not automatically mean sustainable. For SHAO, the focus is on using non-animal materials thoughtfully, choosing recycled inputs where possible, producing in limited quantities, and designing pieces with longevity in mind.
Why Material Choice Matters
Sustainability in fashion is not defined by one material label. Textile Exchange describes preferred materials through a broader lens, including climate impact, water, chemicals, land use, resource use, waste, biodiversity, human rights, and animal welfare.
For SHAO, that means material choice has to support both the design and the garment’s life. A fabric must hold the silhouette, work with the construction, and stay relevant beyond a single season. The AW26 vegan leather was selected because it supports SHAO’s architectural shapes while offering a non-animal material direction.
Vegan Leather in the AW26 Collection
In Underworld Royale, vegan leather supports the collection’s darker, cinematic mood. It appears across silhouettes that need structure, polish, and edge, including leather-effect trousers, cropped tailoring, boots, and outerwear.
Key pieces include the Mid Rise Boots Vegan Leather and Vegan Leather Biker Dress. These pieces extend the collection’s noir tailoring language through a non-animal material choice, balancing sharp construction with a strong visual surface.
Shop the SHAO AW26 Underworld Royale collection
A Non-Animal Option With Structure
SHAO’s vegan leather gives the AW26 collection a non-animal option while preserving the visual strength associated with leather. The material works with the brand’s sharp proportions, architectural silhouettes, and noir-inspired styling without relying on animal hides.
In the context of Underworld Royale, the result is precise and controlled: cropped jackets with defined structure, trousers with sculptural volume, boots with a directional finish, and outerwear that carries the collection’s protective mood.
From Runway to SHAO Bespoke
Beyond AW26, the same thinking extends into SHAO Bespoke, where clients can select vegan suiting options for custom tailoring. For SHAO, bespoke is about precision and personal choice: fit, proportion, fabric, and values all become part of the garment.
Offering vegan options allows clients to approach tailoring through both design and material preference. It aligns with the brand’s larger purpose: creating clothes with presence, longevity, and a point of view.
Built for Longevity
SHAO’s approach to sustainability starts with limited production and clothing designed to stay in the wardrobe. Vegan leather fits into that direction when it is selected carefully: non-animal, recycled-content where possible, durable enough to hold shape, and strong enough to support the brand’s tailoring language.
For Underworld Royale, vegan leather is not used as a trend. It is part of SHAO’s evolving material vocabulary: sharp, considered, and designed with a longer life in mind.
