§1What this business is

White duck feathers are sorted, washed, brightened, dried and cut to 3 inches. A cork is bored with 16 holes, the feathers are glued in, tied with cotton thread, coated with gelatine and finished with a ribbon and brand sticker. Each shuttle is weighed (70–74 grains for indoor play, 82–86 for outdoor) and packed ten to a roll.

Capacity: 12,000 rolls a year (10 shuttlecocks a roll), 1,000 rolls a month; 7,200 rolls in year 1 at 60%.

§2Is it right for you?

Who it is for

Someone near a sports-goods cluster who can sell to clubs, schools and sports shops.

Who it is not for

Someone who cannot manage fine, repetitive hand work and quality checks.

Advantages

  • Shuttles wear out fast, so buyers come back often
  • Small machine set (₹2.04 L) and only 2 HP power
  • No pollution load, as the report notes
  • Proven clusters in Jalandhar, Meerut, Delhi and West Bengal

Drawbacks

  • Duck feathers are most of the raw-material bill
  • Every shuttle needs careful hand weighing and balancing
  • The report says exports are negligible due to quality and cost
  • Cheap hen-feather shuttles compete on price

Skills you need

  • Feather sorting and cutting
  • Weighing and balancing shuttles
  • Quality control
  • Selling to clubs and sports shops

Why difficulty 2/5: Simple tools, but quality and weight control decide whether players buy again.

§3Market

Who buys

  • Badminton players — men, women and children
  • Clubs, schools and sports bodies, government and private

How it sells

  • Sports-goods wholesalers and shops
  • Direct supply to clubs and academies

Good to know

  • Duck-feather shuttles are in greater demand than hen-feather ones, says the report.
  • Demand is reported across Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, MP, Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, UP and the North-East; West Bengal buys mostly in winter.

§4Raw material & machinery

ItemQtyCost
Drill machine for boring corks (¼, 0.5 HP motor)1₹7,500
Hand press double-scissors feather cutting machine2₹20,000 (₹10,000 each)
Weighing balance1₹10,000
Tools and equipmentLS₹3,000
Disc and belt sanding machine, 1200 × 150 mm, 0.5 HP1₹20,000
Pedestal grinder, 200 mm wheel, 0.5 HP1₹10,000
Surface grinder, table 550 × 200 mm, 1 HP1₹65,000
Work bench, vice, hand tools, dies, punches, measuring toolsLS₹50,000
Installation and electrification (10% of machines)LS₹18,550

From: PMEGP sample project report — Feather Shuttle Cock (prepared by Udyami/Samadhan)

  • White duck feathers16 per shuttle; 19,20,000 a year at ₹2 = ₹38.40 L
  • Cork bottoms (1 × 1 inch)1,20,000 a year at ₹3 = ₹3.60 L
  • White sheepskin crust for the bottom cap960 sq ft at ₹150 = ₹1.44 L
  • Glue, gelatine, cotton thread, robin blue, detergent₹12,000 a year
  • Cylindrical packing boxes12,000 at ₹15 = ₹1.80 L

From: PMEGP sample project report — Feather Shuttle Cock (prepared by Udyami/Samadhan)

Suppliers in Building Business Bazaar

Process cum Product Development Centre (PPDC), Meerut · Meerut →Turner and Tools · Kolkata →Turnwell Machine Tools · Kolkata →Ananda Shuttle Cock · Jalandhar →Autar Engg. Works · Jalandhar →Charan Singh Mistri · Jalandhar →K.C. Verma · Jalandhar →Nandi and Co · Howrah →

§5Licences & registration

  1. Udyam registration
  2. GST registration
  3. Trade licence from the local body
  4. Trademark for your brand (optional)
  5. BIS standard for shuttlecocks — the report advises studying it (not a licence)

We can do this registration for you

§6Schemes & subsidies

The report is built for PMEGP margin money; at ₹12.00 L it also fits MUDRA, CGTMSE and Stand-Up India.

§7Money

How the investment is worked out: Building and civil work (1,500 sq ft) ₹3.00 L + plant & machinery ₹2.04 L + furniture ₹1.00 L + pre-operative ₹0.26 L + working capital ₹5.70 L = ₹12.00 L. Finance: own ₹1.20 L, term loan ₹5.67 L, working-capital loan ₹5.13 L.

Working capital: Working capital ₹5.70 L (bank ₹5.13 L). Raw material ₹45.36 L a year at full capacity — duck feathers alone ₹38.40 L.

Year not printed on the report — check current machinery prices.

How to prepare a loan file

§8Export potential

Confirm the HS code in the DGFT ITC(HS) lookup before you export

9506.99Other articles and equipment for sports and outdoor games

Export council / board: Sports Goods Export Promotion Council (SGEPC)

  • HS codes are from the WCO HS 2022 list; confirm the 8-digit ITC(HS) line with DGFT or your customs broker.
  • You need an Import Export Code (IEC) from DGFT before the first shipment.

§9Risks — where people fail

  • Feather supply and price
  • Batch rejection for poor flight
  • Seasonal demand
  • Competition from nylon (synthetic) shuttles

§1030 / 60 / 90-day plan

A general plan that applies to any business. A plan for this business will be added after research.

  1. Days 1–30: Visit a working feather shuttlecock making unit, ask 10 buyers about price and quantity, and get quotations from 3 suppliers.
  2. Days 31–60: Udyam and the licences you need (Udyam registration, GST registration), a project report (DPR), and the scheme or loan file.
  3. Days 61–90: Space and machines, trial production, and first deliveries to 10 customers.

§11Who to connect with

Not verified yet

Associations, clusters and training institutes — the directory is being built. Connect

§12Watch

There is no episode on this business yet. Shows are coming soon on the Podcast page.

Want to start Feather Shuttlecock Making?

DPR, loan file or registration — ask us on WhatsApp.

Get a DPR / loan file made

Sources

  1. PMEGP sample project report — Feather Shuttle Cock (prepared by Udyami/Samadhan)

Data review: 6 October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Report it. For information only — not legal or financial advice.