“When I tell people there are at least a hundred steps in the production of one of our belts, they don’t believe me,” says Anderson’s CEO Riccardo Valenti. “A suit or shoe, yes. But a belt?”

Of course, you don’t have to do it the Anderson’s way. You could cut down on the ruthless culling of inferior hides. You could cut back on the hand-shaping, trimming, die-cutting, die-stamping, methodical stab-stitching, loose-thread sealing and hand-finishing and polishing using hard natural wax. And you could start by not spending up to six months naturally tanning your hides with oak barks and natural tannins.

You could make manufacturing a lot easier but then that isn’t the Anderson’s way. You could also cut back on the styles you offered, the infinite variety suitable for any occasion. You might not offer the stretch woven multicolour woven belt in so many different colour combinations, from eye-popping to simply playful.

You might not bother with ostrich, crocodile and lizard skin and rule out high sophistication. And not go to the trouble of pre-softening and ageing a hand-braided leather belt, giving it the glow and patina of a life well-lived.
But then, that wouldn’t be the Anderson’s way either.