Leather delivery note: what a tannery's packing list must show
The invoice tells you what you pay. The delivery note tells you what actually arrived, and it is the only document you can check against the crates on your floor before the first hide is cut.
A guide by TL San Martín, a tannery of origin in Elda (Alicante, Spain) since 1995, LWG Gold certified under the Leather Manufacturer standard.
A tannery's delivery note should identify the lot, not just the goods: order reference, article and finish, colour reference, batch number, thickness, number of hides, the area of each hide and the total, and net and gross weight. If any of these is missing you cannot reconcile what arrived against what you ordered, or trace a problem to a batch later.
Why does the delivery note matter more than the invoice?
The invoice is a financial document: it states a price against a description. The delivery note, often combined with a packing list, is the physical record. It says which lot left the tannery, how many hides it contained and how much leather that adds up to. When something is wrong, it is the delivery note you compare to the crates, and it is the document the claim is built on.
First-time buyers rarely read it, because leather arrives in a hurry and the production schedule is waiting. That is the moment to read it. What the invoice commits the supplier to is covered in what your leather invoice actually commits to; this guide is its companion for the goods themselves.
What fields should a leather delivery note carry?
| Field | What it tells you | Why you need it |
|---|---|---|
| Your order reference | Which purchase order this is | Matches the delivery to what you ordered |
| Article name and finish | The leather you bought | Confirms the library article, not a look-alike |
| Colour reference | The approved colour | Ties the lot to your signed lab dip or sample |
| Batch (lot) number | The production batch | Lets you trace a defect and reorder the same colour |
| Thickness | The thickness range of the lot | Checks it against the range you specified |
| Number of hides | Count of pieces | Reconciles against the crates |
| Area per hide and total | The quantity you pay for | Leather is bought by area |
| Net and gross weight | What is leather and what is packaging | Checks the delivery and supports transport paperwork |
| Delivery date and packing units | Which crates or rolls | Lets you count what arrived |
Two of these deserve a second look.
Why do the batch number and the colour reference matter most?
Leather is dyed in a drum, one batch at a time, and no two drums are identical. The batch number is how a colour is repeated and how a problem is traced to the lot that caused it. A delivery note without one means the next order cannot be tied to this one, which is the root of the shade difference described in why the second batch costs more.
The colour reference should point to what you approved: the lab dip or the sample you signed. If the delivery note names a colour and the approval document names another, you have a documentary mismatch before you have a visual one. How a sample is held against the bulk is in sample vs bulk leather.
How is the area declared, and what do you check?
Leather is priced by surface, so the area on the note is the quantity you are charged for. Each hide has its own area, and the total is their sum. Hides are measured, not weighed: an irregular natural shape has no fixed size, which is why a note that gives only a total and no per-hide figures is hard to verify. The price logic is explained in leather price per square foot.
Ask the tannery two things in advance: the unit it will declare in (square feet or square decimetres) and how the area is measured. Then, on arrival:
- Count the hides against the number on the note.
- Spot-check the declared area of a few hides, with your own measurement or at a cutting table, on a flat hide.
- Check the thickness range against your specification; a measurement method is covered in leather thickness for shoe uppers.
- Compare the lot's colour against your approved reference under the same light.
- Photograph the crates and the note on the day. A claim raised later has to rest on the day-of evidence.
What happens when the delivery note and the goods disagree?
Write to the supplier the same day, attach the photographs and the note, and quote the field that does not match: the count, the area, the batch or the colour. Do not cut the lot first. Cutting can weaken a claim, and a disagreement about the area or the shade is much harder to settle once the hides are in pieces. The technical commitments you can ask a supplier to make in writing are set out in the technical data sheet and what it commits to, and the test evidence that goes with a batch in the test report for a batch.
What about customs paperwork?
If the leather crosses a border, the delivery note and the commercial invoice must describe the same goods: the same weight, the same description and the same quantity. The commodity code that goes on the declaration is for you and your customs broker to confirm against the official tariff, the EU TARIC database or the UK Integrated Online Tariff on GOV.UK; we are a tannery, not a customs adviser, and what we can supply is the material description and weights. The practical side of shipping is in how to export leather goods.
Buying leather for your first collection?
Post what you need on the open Business Board, in Materials or RFQ · Production: article, area, colour and delivery date. To see the leather before you order, request samples, and read the sourcing basics in leather for shoes and tannery vs leather distributor.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a delivery note and a packing list?
A packing list describes what is in each crate or roll: units, weight and contents. A delivery note records that the goods were delivered against an order. Many tanneries combine them in one document; what matters is that it carries the fields above.
Why does a leather delivery note list area per hide?
Because leather is sold by area and every hide is a different size. Per-hide figures let you verify the total you are charged for, which a single total cannot.
Should I accept a lot with no batch number?
Ask for it before you cut. Without a batch number you cannot trace a defect to its lot, and you cannot ask for the same colour on a reorder. A tannery that dyes in batches has one.
How long do I have to raise a problem?
Agree it in the purchase order, because it is a contractual term and not a standard. As a rule, write the same day the goods arrive and before any cutting.
TL San Martín tans and finishes leather in Elda, Alicante, since 1995: LWG Gold under the Leather Manufacturer standard — the only standard under which a Gold medal exists at all; a Trader tops out at “Approved”. Request samples before you specify anything.