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Fabric Suppliers Facing Unprecedented Crisis

There is something going wrong with the India's fabric industry. Media reports suggest, this could be one of their worst ever crisis. All the stake holders like fibre producers, knitters, weavers, dyers, designers and retailers are flummoxed with the recent developments as this could mark the beginning of a long lasting struggle.


Experts cite two main reason for this - First one is the exodus of a large number of labour force to their home towns. Fibre industry depends a lot on the migrants and their exodus from the city means heavy loss to the entire textile chain. Sources say, these workers are not likely to return any time soon, which could result in losses to the tune of Rs 30,000 crore to the industry.


Industry insiders further reveal that over 15 % of the workforce, especially from Bihar and Andhra Pradesh, has migrated to their hometowns since September 2009 following large-scale industrial development and huge employment opportunities provided under NREGA scheme by the central government. Another state, Orissa is on a similar crossroad, which employs around 80% of the workers in the weaving sector and holds the potential to severely impact the overall fiber production.


Second reason, precipitating the current crisis is the massive decrease (around 40%) in the production of polyester fabric in the last two months. This has happened for the first time in the industry's history and is threatening the existence of SMEs in the weaving and processing sector.


The rise in the cost of other raw material has increased the cost of production substantially, which many weavers are unable to bear and in turn shutting down their units.


Fabrics manufacturers say that, the fibre prices were increased last year when the crude oil was around $70 per barrel and the prices will keep on rising as it is predicted to touch the $100 mark. Most of them are seeking government's interference about the same, with no luck so far.


The crisis isn't just India bound. Globally too, the news isn't very positive. First, the Walmart phased out their fabric department, then a similar action was followed by Hancock fabrics and its six subsidiaries.


The textile industry plays a significant role in Indian economy by providing direct employment to an estimated 35 million people. It also contributes more than 4 per cent of GDP and accounts for around 35 % of gross export earnings annually. Fabric industry is an important contributor in this big picture and any imbalance could disturb the entire ecosystem. From the Indian economy's perspective, it is very important to devise a long term strategy to counter this crisis as soon as possible.


PS: Fabric suppliers get your online catalog today and make profits by tapping the business queries being generated across the globe on the web 24/7. To know more, click on Fabric Suppliers India

Antique Furniture Suppliers Hail Switch To The Retro Mode

Our admiration of the antique is not admiration of the old, but of the natural.
- Ralph Waldo Emerson


Elvis Presley's Jail House Rock and John Travolta's Saturday Night Fever is back in the groove. Led by the desire of doing something different, B - Town is going into retro overdrive. Not withstanding the failure of a recent dud - Action Replayy, more and more directors are experimenting with the yesteryear's fashion trends.


A similar pattern is being observed among the furniture buyers, who are fuelling the demand of antique furniture. These days, its a rage to go for any piece of wood which is considered vintage and collectible. Many interior designers say that antique furniture adds a certain mark of royalty to the overall appearance of a room and hence is a preferred choice among the buyers. They further add that, its not just the style quotient, a genuine antique furniture is usually a good buy in terms of quality as well.


Experts reveal that, a traditional antique furniture wouldn't be too sophisticated and is made for basic utility needs like seats, beds, storage vessels, or they can even serve various symbolic, religious, or ultimately historical purposes.


The earliest form of furniture was simple and was made to serve only basic practical functions. As time passed by, wood craftsmen became more creative aided with the help of technical innovations and started creating masterpieces which went on to became the hallmark of any prosperous household and were considered as prized possessions by its owner.


Not so long ago, the best place to buy an antique furniture was mostly the antique shops where in a buyer could check the authenticity, apart from checking a few variety of designs. However, these days one of the popular way to shop antique is online where in, you get to see a huge list of trusted sellers and suppliers (from across the country) offering a wide range of antiques at highly competitive rates.


Without an iota of doubt, the antique furniture suppliers are grinning from ear to ear, at the recent turn of events which is helping them post higher profits. Even though everything seems to go hunky dory, there are still some voices which speak about the need of government assistance and increased mass awareness for a wider consumer base. All in all it seems that, the antique furniture sellers will have some real exciting times in the upcoming future.


PS: Antique furniture supplier get your online catalog today and make profits by tapping the business queries being generated across the globe on the web 24/7. To know more, click on antique wood furniture

Leather Jackets Suppliers Steady On a Dusty Road Ahead

There are very few leather garments which can ever match the iconic status like that of a leather jacket. Leather jackets make a bold style statement. It symbolises power, or better say, brute power. As it is often bracketed with bikers, military aviators, rock stars and others, leather jackets have developed an intensely loyal cult following.


Before we go any further, let's delve deep into some of the interesting facts about the leather jacket industry. Most of the leather jackets produced are made for fashion purposes and a few ones are also made as protective gears. Leather jackets designed as protective gears are full on safety measures, heavier and thicker whereas the one made for fashion purposes are high on style quotient and less on the fabric quality.


As far as the colours are concerned, leather jackets are typically offered in a variety of hues of two predominant colours, black and brown. Black leather jackets are considered a bit more formal, offer better fittings and are perfect for those looking to appear semi formal. Brown leather jackets while delivering a vintage look, are more casual mainly due to their earthy tones.


Last but not the least, lets examine the texture. The most popular skin-hides used for leather jacket making is lambskin, sheep and cow leather. Lambskin leather gives a more polished and sophisticated look whereas a cow or sheep leather jacket is hard and gives a rough texture for an urban cowboy look.


Last year, leather jacket suppliers observed a sharp increase in orders in comparison to 2009. This could be attributed to the fact that market's mood was upbeat and the sales were on the rise in almost all the sectors.


Leather garments and jackets are an essential segment of any fashion week. As more and more designers are experimenting with the new texture and colour possibilities, a plethora of exciting designs are about to mob the buyers soon.


Internationally, Leather jacket suppliers from china are causing a heartburn among most of the leather jacket suppliers due to high competition. Apart from it, rising cost of raw material is an additional cause of concern. Despite of all the challenges Indian leather jacket industry is all set to brave the odds and is capable of thriving in this highly competitive scenario. Most of the industry analysts are unanimous about the bright future of the Indian leather industry, who are trying their level best to stay ahead in this competition and surpass customer's expectations.


PS: Leather jackets manufacturers get your online catalog today and make profits by tapping the business queries being generated across the globe on the web 24/7. To know more, click on leather jackets india

Limestone Suppliers Hooked On To Twittermania

Breaking News: Rapper 50 cent’s one tweet reportedly helped a company make 8 million dollars in a day. Sounds incredible, right. Now comes the caveat, he has a stake of $30 million in shares in the company he promoted. Though 50 cent faced criticism for unabashed promotion of his company (without any disclosures) , he indirectly led the foundation of a new trend, celebrity endorsement through their social networking sites. The additional point which I am trying to drive across is – social media can be used to generate a substantial revenue for your business.

Another trend which is being spotted off late is that I see many b2b sites using social media with an altogether renewed approach. From the blunt sales pitch to the creative user engagement – A sea change is being observed in the way companies run their social media campaigns, nowadays.

I had a chance encounter with a friend of mine who happens to be a lime stone supplier with a limited internet knowledge and told me that twitter and other social networking sites are helping him get some new clients for his business.

What under any other circumstances could have been a 5 minute encounter turned into an hour long idea marathon. The refreshing insight which i gained during this interaction was – Indian stone suppliers specially those who have online presence have begun to use twitter and other networking sites to attract new customers especially the bigger clients based in USA, UK and other western countries.

A quick analysis of the limestone industry reveals that a significant portion of the global limestone industry is shared by limestone suppliers from India. Western architects and designers use it a lot to enhance the overall look of their constructions.

As most part of the talk went hunky dory, the inflection point of our conversation was whether he was able to get the right kind of target audience for his business. He gave an assured reply that even though the numbers are few as of now, there are enough curious souls who want to know more about his business indirectly, helping him spread a buzz around it and in turn help him create a longer brand recall.

This led to our mutual conclusion that even though twitter’s core aim is to tell the – pulse of the masses ( in real time) on almost any subject, from every part of the world, it certainly can be used to share special offers, interesting facts etc. to help create a better online presence for one’s business.

Evidently, we ended up agreeing that – it certainly makes a strong business sense for most of the businesses including the slate stone suppliers make use of one of the most influential media of our times and reap higher profits specially, when our main customers are based in those countries wherein internet usage is amongst the highest.

Sandstone Suppliers Conquering Every Frontier

It seems as if, after many false starts, Indian sandstone has truly arrived on the globe scene . Most of the demand-supply charts show positive figures which is another testimony to the buzz around it. This leads to our investigative journey on – what makes indian sandstone such an attractive proposition to its buyers across the world.

Increased Domestic consumption
Indian real estate is on the boom and the new age builders are experimenting with new looks to give the indian household a foreign locale kind of experience. In this over hyped hoopla of selling Indian made western style homes, sandstone is becoming an important contributor.

Sandstone in often used for cladding in residential houses, commercial buildings, hotels and resorts. For better exterior applications sandstone honed tiles and dressed stones are used. One of the best kept secret of using sandstone lies in its biggest advantage which is – negligible maintenance. Overall the domestic consumption of sandstone is increasing at a decent pace and the sandstone suppliers have every reason to have a big wide grin on their face.

Consistent Demand from Middle East
Over the years, Middle East has emerged as a consistent source of demand for indian sandstone slabs and tiles. Countries such as Oman, Bahrain, UAE, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait have always held indian sandstone in high regard and the suppliers always get a good margin on their sales. After that comes, USA, Uk and other European countries who further fuel the demand of sandstones items from india.

Why India?
Cost advantage, great finished products and simplified solutions. Most of the exporters use simple edge cutting machines with single and double cutters to process the finishing of sandstone tiles in a speedy manner.Also many home developed solutions are replacing the age old traditional machines for calibration which are very cost effective and do the job in a more efficient way.

Additional usages
Apart from the construction usages which I mentioned above, sandstone is used in a number of ways including though not restricted to construction of special monuments, artefacts , fountains, pedestals, columns, arches, balusters, railings etc.

Constant Supply
At least for as of now, India seems to provide an endless stream of high quality sandstone which is quite suitable for multiple purposes. Some of the biggest hubs of sandstone production are found in Andra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Bihar, Gujrat, Karnataka, Orissa, Tamil Nadu and Madhya Pradesh.

The future
Sandstone tiles known for infusing life into lifeless stones will continue to remain in demand in the times to come. Their usability and availability in a wide range of colours, designs, patterns, specifications and combinations will keep them in strong contention as one of the most sought after stone by the builders etc. All in all it appears, this is the time for Indian sandstone suppliers to consolidate their position in the global arena forever.

PS : If you are a sandstone supplier get your online catalog today and make profits by tapping the business queries being generated across the globe on the web 24/7 . To know more , click on sandstone tiles suppliers

Office Furniture Manufacturers on a Winning Spree

Office furniture is a multi billion dollar industry which is growing by leaps and bounds post recession. As more and more real estate developers are jumping into the fray of commercial construction, the demand for office furniture is getting fuelled like never before.


Furniture demand in India has dramatically expanded during the last decade amid rapid urbanization. This incredible growth story can also be attributed to two other factors - increase in disposable income and changing life style. Even in the midst of economic downturn, the furniture industry stood strong and posted year on year (Y-O-Y) growth in 2009. Moreover, the office furniture demand is anticipated to grow at more than 10% during the next fiscal year, making India one of the most attractive furniture markets in the world.


Among the office furniture items, modular furniture and portable cubicles are the ones which never run out favour. The main benefit of a modular office furniture (within a large work space) is that one can create a variety of smaller work environments which have now become an essential requirement .


Despite of the fact that the furniture industry posted positive figures, it still did not remain immune to the worsening global economic situation. Furniture industry's revenues could have been better, had they not, witnessed a decline in orders in the middle of 2009. However, by the end of 2010, there was a considerable increase in the consumption which improved the rather gloomy scenario.


On the global scene, USA is still the market leader. According to the latest research reports, the furniture manufacturing industry in the US generates about $65 billion in sales from 20,000 companies. Some sectors, such as metal office furniture, are highly concentrated, but the industry as a whole is fragmented.


One of the upcoming trend that is being seen among the office furniture manufacturers is that they are hiring a space planners or professional office designers who help their clients take a better decision. Some manufacturers (specially those, who specialize in modular office furniture or cubicles) offer free space planning as a part of their offerings to further enhance their clientele.


Another trend which is being observed is the growing awareness and demand for ergonomic office furniture. Due to long working hours and mostly sitting jobs, some new age medical complications are arising like cervical problems etc. which is why, offices are leaving no stone unturned to keep their employees fit by providing the ergonomic furniture to ensure healthy working conditions.


All in all, office furniture manufacturers are looking forward to the forthcoming exciting times to reap in best of revenue and post record profits in 2011.


PS : If you are an office furniture manufacturer get your online catalog today and make profits by tapping the business queries being generated across the globe on the web 24/7 . To know more , click on office furniture India.

Leather Suppliers in Top Gear in 2011

Online search for a leather jacket : Almost free
Buying a stylish leather jacket online : A few hundred dollars
Style quotient acquired to impress peers : Priceless


Leather evokes emotion and mostly the strong ones. Some get thrilled, some get intimidated and some get furious because of the insensitivity shown to animals during its extraction. Irrespective of the intensified campaigning by the animal rights activists, the sale of leather products is unapologetically - on the rise ! Leather lovers around the world are basking in the glory of trendsetting leather designs which are getting showcased at a neck breaking speed.


Industry experts in a candid confession admit that leather apparel has been one of the hottest flavour of this season and its popularity is shooting up enormously. New trends in the leather apparel are being spotted in almost every fashion week. Innovative and different forms of leather such as crocodile, alligator, snakeskin and stingrays are attracting new segment of buyers, all across the globe. Leather apparels are now available in never before seen textures and colours with the help of latest innovations in the apparel sector.


Earlier many use to think that leather apparels would be suitable only for winters however with the help of state of art technology, a lot of experimentation is being carried out to make leather - an all season fabric.


As per the last statistic available, Indian Leather Industry employs about 2.5 million people. It is an important contributor to our foreign exchange and is on the verge of aggressive growth, post recession.


Indian leather suppliers export a wide array of leather products like jackets, shoes, belts, pants, hats and jewellery, which can be paired in different ways and are in great demand as an extended set of fashion accessory.


On the downside, one of the major challenge for the leather suppliers in the upcoming times, will be to make peace with the environmentalists and animal rights advocates for a hassle free long run. Globally new laws are being drafted to mitigate the problem of toxic waste arising out of leather manufacturing and toning and leather suppliers themselves should initiate a solution rather than taking a laid back approach on this issue.


In addition to it, leather suppliers are struggling to post higher profits, these days, due to the increase in the price of the raw material. Moreover, buyers too are getting selective as they don't shy off from demanding sophisticated leather products with natural look or innovative textures.


Despite of the issues discussed above, leather industry is on a high due to the ever increasing demand for the leather products. Overall, 2011 seems to be the year where in Indian leather suppliers will be able to make a mark for themselves and consolidate the gains made in 2010.

Marble Suppliers Post Recession on an Adrenaline Rush

Man cannot remake himself without suffering, for he is both the marble and the sculptor.- Alexis Carrel

Next time you wish to invest, you may get to see a surprise listing of marble stones on your favourite stock exchange! News reports suggest that Turkey, which sells marble and stone to 154 countries, will establish the world’s first marble and stone exchange in Kocaeli. The Ministry of Industry and Trade have completed their preparations for the establishment of the exchange, which will market 121 kinds of marble produced.

Globally, China leads the world in marble production, followed by other countries like India , Turkey etc. USA continues to remain the largest buyer followed by UK, Spain, Canada, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Israel and Russia.

Marble has traditionally been used in making sculptures, construction purpose and some industrial usages as well. Though granite is giving some tough competition to marble as it is fast becoming buyer's favourite stone for flooring etc. even then marble still remains the first choice of the construction community worldwide.

On the Indian front, marble industry has been flourishing for a long long time, which has made India the fourth largest producer of marble in the world. The Indian marble suppliers are not only confined to production or supply of the marbles but are also the epicentre of export of highly acclaimed stones such as blocks, flooring, calibrated (ready to fix tiles), monuments, slabs, structural slabs, tomb stones etc.

Indian marble stones are in great demand mainly due to their low cost - high quality attribution and state of the art marble extraction machinery . In recent years more marble producing regions have been discovered. So far, Makarana and Ambaji were the only regions (in Rajasthan) which were producing marble on large scale but currently more sites are being discovered to maintain a consistent supply.

The Indian government too has realized the importance of the marble industry and is leaving no stone unturned to fuel its growth. It recently announced the removal of excise duty (up to the annual sales of Rs.1 Crore) along with drafting a new marble policy which instructs the state to empower the search for new marble regions.

Global economic downturn took its toll on the marble export figures in 2009 which is now in the correction mode since last quarter of 2010 . Overall it seems that 2011 should be a promising year for the Indian marble suppliers and they should make every possible effort to make the most of it and post record profits.

Granite Suppliers To Toe “The Yes Minister” Line

India's Enviornment Minister Jairam Ramesh's aggressive green activism is giving extra cold jitters to granite and other stone suppliers across the country. The minister worked overtime in 2010 rejecting green signals to Vedanta Resources, Posco and Lavasa and is now proposing to draft a policy where in more than half of the nation's forests could be moved out of exclusive state control.


Granite suppliers are increasingly becoming wary of him as they don't know which surprise may come their way in the name of policy change and turn their revenue chart head over heels.


Indian granite industry is already reeling under tremendous pressure and was left in dire strait during the recent downturn. Government didn't announce any mega relief packages and industry was clueless about its survival as the export orders came plummeting down one by one.


Last year, most of the granite importing countries such as the USA, China, Italy reduced their requirements and India’s granite and natural stone export was almost down by 15-20 per cent. Even though since September' 2010 the industry is in a recovery mode even then the actual recovery has been less than desirable. A quick view on the industry would help us understand what is really bugging the great Indian granite story !


Most of the experts are unanimous in admitting that India has been blessed by nature with the widest variety of the most beautiful granites. Yet, when it comes to processing facilities or their development, it has been way below its potential. Red tapism, bureaucracy blues and populist policy drafting has been India's nemesis for a long long time.


On the domestic front one of the major problem area for the industry has been the payment of 12.5 per cent service tax on the commission paid to agents abroad for getting business. The agents are willing to receive 3-4 % of business every month on a 10-12 per cent commission (based on invoice price). Moreover the tax paid to the government further erodes the leftover profit margins.


On the international front, china is fast emerging as a formidable competitor for the Indian granite suppliers. China is one country whose impact will be felt in almost each and every sector and the granite industry will not remain untouched.


On the positive side, post September 2010, the market recovery has begun. Also many reports suggest that granite is now emerging as one of the popular stone in the household & office construction purpose. Chances are, it could even dethrone marble from its top spot in the long run. Most airport projects in recent years have used granite as a flooring material.

All in all, it seems imperative that, this is a high time for the Indian granite suppliers to take some bold steps and find a way out of their current situation. All we can do is, hope that 2011 will help these suppliers evolve as an upcoming formidable force in the world market.

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