How mending luxury leather products

Chun Powhughe, the 60-year-old co-owner of Kim Brothers at Jor Bagh in New Delhi, is as comfortable as an old shoe in his 300 sq ft store that is brimming over with his own brand of handcrafted shoes and hundreds of old Louis Vuittons, Tod's and Christian Louboutins.

Chun, whose family migrated from China to Kolkata in the 1930s, is visibly unfazed that his shoes, once extremely popular among Delhi's glitterati and used by late prime ministers PV Narasimha Rao and Indira Gandhi and many of the nation's top industrialists, are jostling for shelf space amid growing competition from the foreign luxury brands. Instead, like many other Chinese shoemakers and fledgling Indian firms,Latest Trends in Wholesale gucci handbags, Wallets and more‎. he has turned this into an opportunity and is minting money repairing and restoring these expensive luxury bags and shoes.

"Some of my regular clients, especially their children, have switched to foreign brands. But they still have to come to me,welcome to replica jewelry web,Free shipping‎!" he says with a grin, and an eye on his 22-year old nephew, who is busy infusing a fresh lease of life in a pair of red leather shoes that costs Rs 30,000.

The trend is not confined to Delhi. Chitra Ambareesh, partner at the Bangalore-based ShoeVival-The Shoe Laundry says about 10-15 % of all shoes ShowVival gets every month are high-end luxury brands and business is growing at over 15% "In India, even the rich loathe to throw away their expensive shoes easily. The trend has become more palpable in the last few months," she adds.

All these companies are riding on the luxury boom in India during the last few years, and the current slowdown which is pinching their wallets as much as their expensive shoes. Sale of luxury goods grew more than 25% year on year especially after foreign brands were allowed to open their own stores. Rich Indians bought designer handbags, wallets, shoes, belts and jackets priced several lakhs of rupees, sometimes crores, as they grew richer in a booming economy. But the current slowdown is not only keeping the rich away from these stores, many of them have been forced to pull out their old stuff for a polish.

"Repairing, cleaning and restoring branded luxury products is adding to our core business of made to measure shoes," says Kenneth Lee, owner of KK Lee in Delhi's Khan Market, whose family, like Chun's, had started in the shoe making business in the 1950s.

"Last winter, one of my clients walked out of a luxury store at the Vasant Kunj mall and spilled ice-cream on her Rs 5-lakh handbag while getting into her car. Next day, she came rushing to me,Shop for Michael Kors Satchel in many colors and styles at hotmkbags." says Lee. Had the lady gone back to the store, she would have to spend a few lakhs to undo the damage.Find a great selection of christian louboutin boots deals ! Click on any of the links below. "We did it for a few thousands and did it pretty well," he says.

Indian startups like ColorSpa,Welcome to Replica Louis Vuitton outlet online store and buy latest replica louis vuitton handbags together with free shipping and best service. ShoeSpa, Reboot have taken the cue and are thriving on cleaning, restoring and repairing luxury leather products. Be it colouring the exteriors of an LV bag damaged while playing Holi, or giving a remake to a Gucci purse that had the bad luck of a solvent-based liquid being dropped on to it.

Mumbai-based Reboot Shoe Laundry that has A-list Bollywood celebrities as its clients is even considering expansion across India through franchise route. "In the last 2-3 years, consumers have understood the concept well and now we are getting inquiries from people across India who want to start the business in their own cities," says Vinnie Chadha, founder of Reboot Shoe Laundry. Her business is currently small with about Rs 25 lakh annual turnover, but is growing at a fast pace. "We broke even in the first year and have been approached by a couple of PE players for fund raising also," she says.

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