§1How big it is

§2Ways to get started

  • Footwear upper stitching job-work for Agra/Ambur exporters
  • Leather bags, wallets and belts workshop (buys finished leather)
  • Non-leather / PU footwear assembly
  • Saddlery and harness (Kanpur)
  • Shoe components (insoles, soles) unit

See the Business Encyclopedia

§3Hubs and clusters

  • Kanpur and Agra (UP) - leather products (Towns of Export Excellence)
  • Ambur (Tamil Nadu) - leather products (TEE)
  • Tamil Nadu - Chennai, Ambur, Ranipet; West Bengal - Kolkata; UP - Kanpur, Agra, Noida, Saharanpur; Punjab - Jalandhar; Karnataka - Bengaluru (CLE list)

§4Licences and registration

  1. BIS certification under footwear Quality Control Orders (leather and non-leather footwear QCOs notified by DPIIT; check current scope and MSME relaxations on BIS site)
  2. SPCB consent: tanneries remain Red category; leather footwear and leather products (without tanning) moved to White category in the 2025 harmonised list
  3. RCMC from Council for Leather Exports for export benefits
  4. Udyam Registration (MSME) - free, online, PAN + Aadhaar based
  5. GST registration (mandatory above turnover threshold or for inter-state supply / e-commerce sale)
  6. Shops & Establishment registration or Factory Licence (Factories Act / state rules) depending on size and power use
  7. Consent to Establish and Consent to Operate from the State Pollution Control Board - category (Red/Orange/Green/White) as per CPCB 2025 harmonised list; White category is exempt from consent
  8. IEC (Importer Exporter Code) from DGFT if you import or export

§5Regulators

  • DPIIT (leather sector development)
  • BIS (footwear QCOs)
  • State Pollution Control Board (tanneries are Red category)

§6Government help

  • Indian Footwear and Leather Development Programme (IFLDP) - check current status
  • Budget 2025-26: Focus Product Scheme for footwear and leather sector (announced; details to be confirmed)
  • Mega Leather Footwear and Accessories Cluster (MLFAC) sub-scheme
  • PLI - not available for leather
  • Cross-sector schemes that also apply (detailed in the programmes file): Udyam benefits, PMEGP, PM Mudra Yojana, CGTMSE credit guarantee, Stand-Up India, MSE-CDP (cluster development), RAMP, MSME ZED and Lean certification, MSME Champions, TReDS, Startup India (SISFS seed fund, Fund of Funds, CGSS), RoDTEP, EPCG, Advance Authorisation, Districts as Export Hubs, ODOP (One District One Product)

All schemes

§7For exports

  • Council for Leather Exports (CLE)

§8Pros and cons

Merits

  • Downstream product making (without tanning) is White category for pollution consent - lower compliance [CLE notice on CPCB 2025]
  • Large export markets: USA ~21.6% of exports in 2024-25 [CLE 2025]
  • Own raw material base - 20% of world cattle and buffalo [CLE 2025]

Demerits

  • Exports were nearly flat (+3%) in 2024-25 [CLE 2025] and figures for 2025-26 conflict across CLE documents
  • Tanning is Red category with effluent norms - most tanneries are clustered around CETPs; new tanneries are hard to set up
  • Footwear QCOs add BIS testing cost
  • Dependence on US and EU buyers exposes firms to tariff changes

Sources

  1. Council for Leather Exports (Commerce Ministry EPC): Overview of Indian Leather Industry 2025
  2. DGFT Foreign Trade Policy Appendix 1B - List of Towns of Export Excellence
  3. CLE notice: CPCB direction on harmonised Red/Orange/Green/White/Blue categories (leather footwear/products moved to White; tanneries stay Red)
  4. Bureau of Indian Standards - Quality Control Orders