No cattle is slaughtered merely for its hide. This is in deep contrast with seal and other animals. It is, without a doubt, the oldest by-product used by humans since the ice age. No hide is equal to another. Every hide shows the marks from the life of a cow, bull, or oxen in the same way that our skin shows the marks from a surgical operation, the scar from a cut, a tattoo, etc.
Every hide is unique.
While leather has been used since the ice age, fabrics are a more recent product. Vinyl is still a very young technology. Leather has a special appeal to humans as it has shown its worth through centuries of tradition. People do not sweat in leather. That is why we all wear leather shoes.