Company

Pionier Peles, Lda based in Lousada, is an additional production of Nova Pelteci Peles, Lda based in Alcanena. The name of the tannery Pionier is german and stands for Pionieer. "Peles" is a portuguese word meaning Skins. The mix of both languages represents the international roots of the company.

With the new, additional production, we are closer to the main places of the Portuguese Footwear Industry and also closer to our international clients moving closer to the airport Francisco Sá Carneiro nearby Porto.

The operation has highlighted the intention to consolidate an industrial connection for the research and development of new products featuring an increase of production capacity.   

History 

The company has a long tanning tradition since the sixties of 20th century. The production of our Tannery has stood out for exquisite quality and specialization in Nubuck article.  

Nova Pelteci Peles facilities and Pionier Peles work in a cooperation covering the whole chain of leather production. That allows us to produce the cleanest and the most environmental friendly leather. 

The company’s objective is to guarantee excellence in selection, manufacture and finishing leather. Pionier Peles strives every day to develop a high-quality and environmentally friendly production.

Sustainability

PIONIER Tannery was designed, constructed and equipped with a strong focus on environmental sustainability. 

A caring attitude toward the natural environment is our core value. 

• Water consumption has been reduced by 20% 
• Around 15% of all the water we use is rainwater
• Our carbon footprint is kept low as we cooperate with nearby European suppliers of raw skins
• For internal transportation, we use electric vehicles
• The 2000 sq.m roof photovoltaic system provides clean, green energy
• Thanks to the most efficient modern machinery, we keep overall energy savings at 30% 
• We use minimal chemical substances in production thanks to combining filtered, local water with low-PH, and rainwater
• We produce biodegradable leather, which ends its life cycle by disintegrating into water, carbon and biomass (ISO 20136).* By the end of 2024, PIONIER will become a 100% sulphide-free production using only enzymes, environmentally-friendly “agents of change”, in the tanning process.

The PIONIER team takes pride in running one of the cleanest and most environmentally friendly tanneries worldwide, so we call our products GREENPIECE. 

The GREENPIECE brand marks all the leather items produced by the PIONIER. 

*Under controlled environmental conditions, the leather and waste are biodegradable in around 30 days.