Indians plan to set up bonded leather plants in Bangladesh
Visitors take a close look at products at the two-day buyer-seller meet cum exhibition of Indian footwear components and accessories that began at Bangladesh China Friendship Conference Centre yesterday.Photo: STAR
Indian shoe and accessories manufacturers are eying setting up accessories and bonded leather plants in Bangladesh as the local market is growing fast.
A group of Indian shoe and shoe component manufacturers, who attended a 2-day exhibition that began at the Bangladesh China Friendship Conference Centre (BCFCC) yesterday, said Bangladesh consumers' tastes now change on the country's economic growth.
“We are conducting a market survey to enter the Bangladesh market as the local market grows. At present we are supplying the shoe accessories here, but we plan to set up a separate plant in Bangladesh after the survey,” said R Kartik, exports marketing manager at Coats India, a renowned shoe component maker.
Kartik said in the last calendar year Bangladesh exported footwear products worth US$ 145 million only and leather garment products worth $130 million with a 22 percent growth in exports.
“So, market is growing significantly with the economic changes,” he said. The Indian component industry is worth over Rs4000 crore, excluding leather, according to the fair participants.
Coats India, a concern of Madura Coats Pvt. Ltd, wants to set up its plant in Bangladesh within the next three years, said Kartik.
The company manufactures mainly zippers, shoelaces, buttons and safety pins to supply those all over India and exports to other countries, the official said.
On the sidelines of the exhibition, a director of Vacouro Leather (India) Pvt Ltd, Ketan Vyas, said his company is also conducting a survey to set up a plant for producing bonded leather here.
Vyas said Bangladesh has a huge potentiality for producing bonded leather as the usage of leather products has been increasing significantly in the country for the last few years.
Bonded leather is an item that is produced from pulps of scrap of leather and leather goods, he said.
It is a completely left-out item and in India at least 10 companies are engaged in producing the bonded leather, he said.
When asked, Vyas said at first the scrap of leather and leather goods from different shoe and other leather manufacturing companies is collected and these are turned into pulps through grinding and boiling.
He said the pulp is tanned in machine and reusable leather is produced for manufacturing shoes and other leather goods, he said.
Bangladesh has a bright prospect for bonded leather goods as its usage is on the rise, he said.
He said at present German, France, Italy and India are the key players in making bonded leather and leather products.
“Since it is an easily biodegradable product and is made from pulp, the demand for such a product is increasing all over the world,” he said.
He said the price of a product made from the bonded leather ranges from 4 euro to 8 euro.
Earlier, in the morning Commerce Adviser Dr Hossain Zillur Rahman inaugurated the two-day long 'Buyer-Seller Meet Cum Exhibition' on Indian footwear components and accessories at the BCFCC.
At the inaugural session, acting High Commissioner of India in Bangladesh Mukta D. Tomar and President of Indian Footwear Components Manufacturers' Association (IFCOMA) B D Bhaiya were present among others.
A total of 45 Indian shoe accessories manufacturers and exporters are participating in the show that concludes today.
IFCOMA, the Council for Leather Export, India and High Commission of India in Bangladesh jointly organised the exhibition to showcase the leather products.
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