Export scope and opportunities in the international market
The leather industry is one of India’s most export-oriented industries. It is one of the 8 major foreign-return producers of India. India’s leather industry is already tied up with several countries around the world like the US, France, UK, Germany and Japan. Experts say that in a few years, the leather industry would expand its reach to not just major countries, but also to developing countries.
Having said that, the leather industry has an excellent scope in the international market. Several entrepreneurs are entering into the leather industry with a purpose of securing a place in the international market arena. The leather industry has a huge variety of products to offer to the international market. A lot of Indian leather goods like leather footwear and garments have gained high demand across several countries. Thus, there is an ample space for people wanting to enter the international market realms through the leather industry.
Moving towards technology
A few decades ago, India’s leather industry was mostly hand-driven. A major part of the manufacturing process was performed manually. Manufacturing units did not use a lot of high-end machinery. As time passed by, technology picked up its pace in this sector. Production units began to use machinery, in some areas, automated technology began to run the show. The workforce was given training in machine operations. Overtime, this sector has completely transformed and is now extensively technical in nature. Along with major producers, several small and medium enterprises are beginning to mechanise and automate their setups.
This shift towards modern technology and automation is resulting in tremendous job creation in the areas like machine operations, automation, technical operations, etc. Youngsters wanting to start their career in a manufacturing technology space are more than willing to take up these exciting jobs in the leather industry.
Product design and development
A few decades ago, the leather industry of India majorly focused on the production of raw materials. However, in the recent times, India’s leather sector has begun to produce finished goods and garments, footwear, and many other leather products. The leather sector in collaboration with other growing industries like furniture and automobiles has moved into the designing sphere and is currently manufacturing a wide variety of products where some of which are customised too. This new development in the leather industry has called for certain skills which are related to designing. And a lot of youngsters who are passionate about designing are now looking for opportunities in the growing leather sector.
Institutes like the Central Leather Research Institute (CLRI) and Footwear design and development Institute (FDDI) have accelerated the designing aspect of this industry. Students availing these institutes’ opportunities are now contributing immensely to the designing segment of the leather industry.
MSMEs and rural enterprises
As we all know, the leather industry is a major economy booster. What we do not know is that the majority of economic contribution is made by the unorganised, rural-based and small-scale industries. The leather industry in the rural regions is now picking up and the unorganised units are slowly evolving into organised setups. Also, many government schemes are being implemented in this sphere. It is important to acknowledge that a huge number of women-centric leather manufacturing units have also come up in the recent times. As the leather industry is growing, rural employment is being generated and already established entities are going through a vigorous transformation.
Entrepreneurial opportunities
You might be a student or an individual who is passionate about fashion designing. After looking at all the opportunities that are available, you finally decide to enter the leather industry by starting a leather apparel and accessories business. For people just like you who is passionate about becoming an entrepreneur, this leather industry is open to everybody with an idea and the required skills. The industry is flexible enough to allow newcomers into a wide range of realms. An enthusiastic entrepreneur wanting to try his luck in the leather industry can choose to start his startup in the manufacturing space, the research space, or the designing space. All that the leather industry looks for is the requisite skill set. If you have the skill set, you are already there.
