It's still plastic.All of these answers only go to show that none of you have ever had or tried on a (non-leather) Hermès strap for the Apple Watch. They just ooze quality and are in no way comparable to your typical Aliexpress crap. If that quality is worth 350$ (to you) is another question entirely, of course.
Edit: also, the article is wrong. The blue and beige ones are available for the larger Watch.