For years, the executive leather office chair has been depicted as the epitome of class, success, prestige, and wealth. Look at almost any TV show or movie that features an office figure that is looked up to and admired and take a look at what kind of chair they are sitting in. The vast majority of the time the chair they are sitting in is a leather office chair. Even just imagining a leather office chair, the first person that comes to my mind when I think who would be sitting in it would be some high powered executive. Although notoriously reputable and sought after, leather office chairs like any other kind of chair comes with both advantages and disadvantages.
One of the key advantages of owning a leather office chair over a chair with a fabric material is the ease of maintenance. Leather upholstery is generally easy to maintain and can be cleaned simply by wiping the chair with a clean damp cloth. Applying a special leather cleaner every six months or so also maintains the overall appearance of the chair. If carefully maintained, a good quality hide upholstered chair will develop its own patina to give your chair a distinctive appearance as it matures and ages.
Along with being easy to maintain, leather office chairs also give off the aura of prestige and power. Not only do leather chairs give off an aura of power, but they also look very nice and are appropriate in any business setting, whether you are at work or at home. Some leather office chair manufacturers also provide a variety of custom colored upholstered choices so those that want a more unique chair can purchase that green leather office chair they have been dying to get. Although about 90% of leather office chairs produced typically come in the standard black color, with white and burgundy being close second and thirds as far as color popularity.
One problem some people seem to find with leather is the tendency for it to put a shine on your clothing, especially for those that wear expensive outfits or business suits to work. You may find that your clothes wear out more quickly than before if you were sitting in a fabric or mesh chair.
If you work in an office that does not have air conditioning or gets really hot in temperature, especially during the summer months, you may find that your leather office chair will cause you to sweat and perspire excessively. However, some top quality leathers do come with a breathable finish which will help reduce or even eliminate this problem.
A big disadvantage that is not necessarily the chairs fault, is that people get fooled into purchasing chairs that are advertised as cheap leather office chairs. They believe they are getting an unbelievable bargain price when in actuality really cheap chairs with leather upholstery will always be a compromise, frequently they are made from off cuts and scraps of very low quality leather that have been pieced together to cover the chair. This leather can be thin and brittle, meaning the chair will not last long and will begin to tear as time goes by.
As aforementioned, with any chair or in reality any product, there are pros and cons. Whether you can outweigh the positives for the negatives is ultimately your decision but most importantly as a rule of thumb, if a chair sounds too good to be true, it probably is.