The 20th edition of the India International Leather Fair (IILF) opened on January 31 in Chennai, India, welcoming 280 participants from 62 countries – including a team from Pakistan. The show, which ran until February 3, covered a net area of 4,800 m2 and hosted country-level delegations from Brazil, Bangladesh, and Italy. The four-day event, organised by the India Trade Promotion Organisation (ITPO) was opened by Shipping Minister T.R. Baalu and Minister of State for Commerce and Industry E.V.K.S. Elangovan.
The first evening consisted of an awards ceremony presented by the Council for Leather Exports. Superhouse Leather Ltd of Kanpur received the gold trophy for overall exports, whilst New Delhi's Bharatiya International Ltd won the brand promotion award. The footwear export prize went to Chennai's United India Shoes and the industrial leather export award to Zenith Exports Ltd of Kolkata.
From next year, the fair will become South-East Asian rather than purely Indian as neighbouring countries will be invited to showcase the potential of the region as a whole in leather, leather products and accessories.
