§1What this business is
A court shoe is a formal closed shoe worn with office dress; the profile says heel height and design vary and that it is used mainly in developed countries. The unit cuts upper and lining leather on a clicking press, thins the edges on a skiving machine and stitches the uppers on flat-bed, post-bed and cylinder-bed machines. The upper is shaped on a PVC last, and a ready-made PU, PVC or TPR unit sole is stuck on with adhesive under a press. The shoe is then finished, polished, stamped and boxed. The profile plans 60,000 pairs a year.
Capacity: 60,000 pairs of court shoes a year at ₹400 a pair, total value ₹2,40,00,000. The raw material table is worked out for 5,000 pairs a month.
§2Is it right for you?
Who it is for
Someone trained in footwear making or design who has buyers among shoe wholesalers, brands or exporters.
Who it is not for
Someone without footwear experience or without the money to hold three months of leather and soles.
Advantages
- Unit soles are bought ready-made, so no sole-moulding plant is needed
- The profile says Indian calf and kid leather is valued abroad and Indian shoes have a price advantage
- Leather waste can be sold to small units that make chappals, coin purses and key chains
- Break-even in the profile is low at 34.83%
Drawbacks
- Raw material alone costs ₹15,30,000 a month in the profile
- Most of the sewing, clicking and skiving machines in the profile are imported
- The profile allows one year to set the unit up
- The profile says shoe units in general ran at only 60 to 65% of capacity
Skills you need
- Shoe design, pattern cutting and last selection
- Judging and cutting upper leather with little waste
- Upper stitching, lasting and sole cementing
- Size-wise production planning and finishing checks
Why difficulty 4/5: Skilled craft work, imported machines and a large stock of leather and soles.
§3Market
Who buys
- Footwear wholesalers and retail shoe shops
- Shoe brands that buy from contract makers
- Export buyers and buying agents
How it sells
- Supply to wholesalers and shoe shops
- Contract manufacturing for brands
- Export orders through buyers and market agencies
Good to know
- The profile names the U.S.A., Germany, the U.K., France and other European countries as the main importers of Indian footwear.
- The profile prices a pair at ₹400 (2003 prices).
- Standards named in the profile: IS 2051 (footwear), IS 578 (chrome leather), IS 11543 (leather shoe), IS 576 (glazed kid) and IS 3840 (lining leather).
§4Raw material & machinery
| Item | Qty | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Single-needle flat-bed sewing machine (imported) | 5 | ₹1,05,000 |
| Single-needle post-bed sewing machine (imported) | 2 | ₹82,000 |
| Single-needle cylinder-bed sewing machine (imported) | 1 | ₹67,000 |
| Hydraulic swing-arm upper clicking press (imported) | 1 | ₹2,50,000 |
| Upper leather skiving machine (imported) | 1 | ₹42,000 |
| Zig-zag sewing machine (imported) | 1 | ₹43,000 |
| 4-station stuck-on sole press with compressor | 1 | ₹25,000 |
| Finishing and polishing machine | 1 | ₹15,000 |
| Strap cutting machine | 1 | ₹17,000 |
| Power stamping machine (imported) | 1 | ₹80,400 |
| Heat activator | 1 | ₹7,000 |
| PVC shoe lasts | 400 pairs | ₹2,00,000 |
| Tools and equipment | — | ₹25,000 |
From: DC-MSME project profile — Court Shoe (2003)
- Upper leather (goat, softy and similar)90,000 units a month at ₹5 each = ₹4,50,000; the profile prints the unit as "Dcu" (2003 prices)
- Lining leather20,000 sq ft a month at ₹25 per sq ft = ₹5,00,000
- Lining cloth500 m a month at ₹20 per m = ₹10,000
- Insoles, toe puffs and stiffenersfor 5,000 pairs at ₹20 a pair = ₹1,00,000
- PU adhesive, grinderies and decorative trimsfor 5,000 pairs at ₹30 a pair = ₹1,50,000
- Unit soles (PU, PVC or TPR)5,000 pairs at ₹50 a pair = ₹2,50,000
- Packing materialfor 5,000 pairs at ₹14 a pair = ₹70,000
From: DC-MSME project profile — Court Shoe (2003)
§5Licences & registration
- Udyam registration
- GST registration
- Factory licence
- BIS certification under the footwear Quality Control Orders — check the current dates and any relief for micro and small units
- Trade licence from the local body
- Import Export Code (IEC) if you export
Start it in your state
Pick your state: today’s cost, central + state subsidy, raw material, land and help, on one page.
§6Schemes & subsidies
Even at 2003 prices the project is ₹72,07,100, above the PMEGP ceiling of ₹50 lakh for manufacturing, and today's cost will be higher — check it before you apply anywhere. CGTMSE covers loans up to ₹10 crore without collateral.
§7Money
How the investment is worked out: Land and building are owned in this profile. Fixed capital ₹23,13,800 (land ₹2,50,000, shed ₹5,40,000, office-cum-store rooms ₹4,00,000; machinery, shoe lasts, tools, furniture and electrification ₹11,23,800) + working capital for 3 months ₹48,93,300 = ₹72,07,100.
Working capital: Recurring cost is ₹16,31,100 a month: raw material ₹15,30,000, staff ₹69,600, power and water ₹15,000 and other expenses ₹16,500. The profile keeps 3 months of this, ₹48,93,300, as working capital.
Prices from 2003 — land, building, machinery and wage costs will be much higher now.
§8Export potential
Export council / board: Council for Leather Exports
- The profile prints no HS code. Look up the correct code for leather footwear in the DGFT ITC-HS list before you export.
§9Risks — where people fail
- Leather price and quality changing from lot to lot
- Unsold stock in the wrong sizes or styles
- Export orders rejected for quality or late delivery
- Skilled upper stitchers leaving
§1030 / 60 / 90-day plan
A general plan that applies to any business. A plan for this business will be added after research.
- Days 1–30: Visit a working court shoes (formal leather slip-on shoes) unit, ask 10 buyers about price and quantity, and get quotations from 3 suppliers.
- Days 31–60: Udyam and the licences you need (Udyam registration, GST registration), a project report (DPR), and the scheme or loan file.
- Days 61–90: Space and machines, trial production, and first deliveries to 10 customers.
§11Who to connect with
§12Watch
There is no episode on this business yet. Shows are coming soon on the Podcast page.
Want to start Court Shoes (Formal Leather Slip-On Shoes)?
DPR, loan file or registration — ask us on WhatsApp.
¶Sources
Data review: 6 October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Report it. For information only — not legal or financial advice.