The Oliver Compact Wallet is a versatile, attractive, and as the name suggests, compact wallet. On first inspection, you might be fooled to think the Compact Wallet is a little basic or unimaginative – but you would be wrong. The Oliver company, based in London, have put their own spin on the traditional wallet crafting them out of ethically sourced low-impact Apple Leather (you heard that right). 

You might be wondering what on earth Apple Leather is and how on earth you can create leather out of something as biodegradable as fruit. The leather is actually a combination of 50% Apple Waste and uses the fruit juice in combination with recycled polyester. The technique involves squeezing apples for their juices and utilizing a solid waste material called pomace that overtime solidifies. Due to its high cellulose content, it can then be used in combination with the PU Leather to form an environmentally friendly wallet. 

When I first unboxed the Compact wallet I was surprised by the fact I couldn’t distinguish it from normal leather. This is good and bad. The leather isn’t the highest quality leather in the world. I’d compare it more to Genuine leather in style and appearance as opposed to full-grain leather. That being said the Compact Wallet does have a beautiful grain to it and a soft touch. It’s going to take time to really see if the wallet outperforms different types of animal leather.

In terms of the wallet’s functionality, the Compact Wallet does a fantastic job. The wallet can store up to 12 credit/debit cards easily and at only 110 mm x 70 mm x 10 mm, it’s a fantastic size for a strong capacity. These 12 cards are stored in a range of card slots in a functional layout (see picture). The wallet doesn’t have a full-width slot for banknotes but can easily be stored in one of the many internal slots folded.

Overall, I found the Compact Wallet by Oliver Company a joy to use. I love a brand that stands for something more than profit and it’s clear by The Apple Leather and their environmentally conscious attitude they are doing more than most. The Compact Wallet comes in at a price tag of $86.00 (£65.00) which is a decent price for what you get. For more information on the Compact Wallet check out their official website using the link below.