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ReturnIndia:Now, foreign investors have designs on handloom sector
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PublishDate：
2005-09-14 14:55:00
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NEW DELHI: Desi looms are fast changing into dollar minting machines. Growing demand for ethnic Indian products abroad has caught attention of foreign entrepreneurs.
Foreign interest is not confined to trading alone. The Gulf-based entrepreneurs are interested to invest in the domestic silk industry. Says the commissioner of Madhya Pradesh Directorate of Sericulture AN Tiwari: “We have received a proposal from Indian Business & Promotion Council (IBPC) in Sharjah to invest $15m in sericulture and silk textiles.” The investment decision was taken during a visit of Gulf-based NRIs, long exploring outsourcing options of handloom products.
Alarmed by the growing foreign interests in Indian handicrafts business, domestic exporters have decided to set up handicrafts and handloom stores abroad. The Export Promotion Council for Handicrafts (EPCH) has decided open such outlets in the US, UK and Germany along the lines of pavilion in Dallas.
The council also proposed to set up permanent showrooms in Atlanta, Chicago, New York and Los Angles. “There are local retail stores who prefer sourcing directly from Indian showrooms. We are considering to open permanent showrooms in European cities such as Frankfurt, Hamburg and London with warehousing facilities,” says EPCH executive director Rakesh Kumar. The council is expecting to achieve a target of Rs 32,700 crore by ’10 from Rs 15,000 crore in ’04-05.
In order to gain large market-share, Madhya Pradesh has roped in a graduate from the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT), New York to help handloom weavers with the designs. “The intention is to hold exhibitions of silks in Japan and Kuala Lumpur,” adds Ivy Miller Chahal, principal secretary of Madhya Pradesh.
Enthused by the growing popularity of Indian handloom products abroad, the textile ministry is also planning to involve the National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) in developing handloom clusters. “The NIFTs in Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai, Gandhinagar, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Mumbai can help the clusters of their respective states in design development and marketing,” says an official in the textile ministry.
Meantime, ’Sari Safari,’ the US-based virtual store, is making a killing on Indian ethnic saris. “I do my best to quality control and verify the fiber content of every piece that I offer,” says its proprietor Melinda Williams. Her virtual enterprise offers a range of saris: Varanasi silk, ikat of Orissa, tant & baluchari of Bengal, chanderi of Madhya Pradesh and pochampalli of Andhra.
