You've probably already met the monster snake that's eating the Everglades. The Burmese Python, which the State of Florida has already invested millions of dollars into trying to remove. Its a scourge that has been eating native wildlife and multiplying fast, but what's interesting about these snakes is their patterned skin. No two snakes are the same, and while snakeskin products are nothing new, their popularity in the State of Florida, is.
"Yeah there is definitely not a shortage of snakes, that's the problem, I wouldn't mind if there was a shortage..."
At first glance, "Orchid Envy" in Downtown Venice might look like just any other flower shop. But with her boots, and python skin belt, Natalee Mckinney is no normal orchid shop owner.
"So when we were just throwing them to the wayside, what can we do? Someone mentioned leather? I didn't really get that, but then once I wrapped my head around the whole leather thing, I realized oh I can get boots? And they were like, yes." Mckinney said.
Natalee loves python skin, in fact she's participated in the python challenge before. But back in 2019, with so many Pythons being caught in the state, she saw an untapped market for leather.
"I had no idea what it was going to cost me, or what I was going to go through to get them. I was one of the first to have them, and that was interesting in itself, because first we were processing them, doing like a tanned preservation on the skins, but that's not quality enough to turn them into boots." She said.
Turning a serpent into a Satchel isn't as easy as you might think. In a lengthy process of trial and error, Natalee worked with vendors across the country to process her surplus of skins into something workable.
"So shipping out skins to different tanneries, waiting and getting them back, and just not being real thrilled with the products they were sending me." Mckinney mentioned, "The hard part was finding production companies to work with, I tried to keep it all Florida based, but that was impossible. My first company that I still work with was out of Massachusetts, I still work with them, they do high quality men's leather, things like that."
Most python leather products are lined with cowhide, as snakeskin can be thin and delicate. But the variety of patterns and the difficult in acquiring and processing them means they don't come cheap.
"Its considered an exotic hide, it is quite expensive, you have the time into hunting the snake, the time processing it, production, so by the time it hits the public it gets kind of pricey, and not everyone does this in the United States, the making and production of leather." Mckinney said, "Its not your cheapest products on the market, its very time consuming, you get these snakes, you'll be out hunting for 4 days and get nothing, on top of the work that goes into making these things in the first place."
Despite the price point, Mckinney says the popularity has only grown since she has started. In fact she says the plan is to open a store completely separate from her Orchid business, and even add more python skin products to her line.
"Just awareness in itself helps the everglades, helps the state of Florida really, its not just the everglades anymore, this is going to affect the state of Florida in a big way!"
So can we wear our way out of this python problem? Maybe not through clothes, shoes and accessories alone, but as far as Mckinney is concerned, every little bit helps.