A number of buyers from the Philippines, including president of Conqueror International Lolito Lopez, vice president of Charter International Inc., Jose Enrique and Vincent Castro of Strategia Boutique, attended the 15th International Leather Fair, held May 18-20 in New Delhi, placing orders for leather, footwear and components.
Mr Lopez reported that the Indian leather industry appeared to be growing with support from the government. He told www.leatherbiz.com that Indian finished leather is of high quality and that it offers particularly good grains compared with those seen in neighbouring countries. However, he also pointed out that prices can be rather high and that there have been booking/delivery problems at times.
He has been buying shoe uppers, footwear, components and finished leather from India for five years and imports two to three 40 ft. containers annually. His shoe factory produces approximately 1,100 pairs per day and the company has 170 stores across the Philippines. He added that import duty and VAT on finished shoes was 15% and 12%, respectively, while it was 3% and 12% for components.
