Leather Belt Manufacturing Business: How to Start Leather Belt Manufacturing Company

Leather products are very versatile and are used to manufacture many items. Leather products include leather bags, shoes, jackets, hats and belts.

Leather belts are worn daily and are a useful bit of fashion accessory.  The business is moderately profitable and you can either manufacture or sell wholesale/retail.

You don’t need much space to manufacture leather belts. They come in different sizes, designs, colors and durability.

The buckles are manufactured differently and you find them in bronze, plastic, tin and stainless steel. Stainless steel is the most commonly used buckles because they are attractive and are made in nice designs.

How to start a leather belt manufacturing company

Leather belts are applicable for domestic market and exportation. Among top exported goods leather belts rank high. The global market is huge due largely to availability of raw materials to produce the belts.

There are many benefits of going into leather belt manufacturing such as low labor cost, government training programs. You get lots of support and availability of sales outlets in domestic and international markets

Funding

The amount of money you need is tied to how big or small your factory. A small leather belt making factory costs very little to startup. Use your personal saving or seek soft loans. Larger operations need bank loans to lease space, buy equipment and other fees.

Feasibility Study

Do a feasibility study to gain vital information about market potential and target. Understand belt making techniques, sourcing  raw materials and financial implications. Study your competitors, community and other provisions such as staff and equipment.

Registration

Register a business name and secure a trade license from local authorities. Make your small business a sole proprietorship of Limited Liability Company. If you are interested in export, secure an export license.

Register your business at the corporate affairs commission. And find out other things you might need at your countries chamber of commerce.

Learn the Trade

You need practical experience to run your production line. There are many ways to develop your belt making skill.

You can become an apprentice to an established belt maker or pay someone to teach you. Study the craft at a vocational center or trade institute.

 Learn from books, online courses or through other online resources. Other methods is attending seminars or hiring professional staff. You need to know where to source raw material, machinery needed and the production process.

Locating your Factory

The location of your factory does not impact on your sales except transportation costs. This is because your major clients are wholesalers and retailers.

However locating your business close to your source of raw material is very important. The only things to look out for are good access roads, electricity and other amenities.

Branding

Every accessory maker worth his salt has a brand name or trademark. You should differentiate your products by creating a name and logo for your products.

Commission a good graphic artist to design a logo based on the name you choose. Create a unique name and patent the brand name. Engrave the name on the leather belts and even the buckle.

Many belt makers outsource the production of the buckles to another manufacturing company. This saves money on equipment, staff and other overhead costs.

Equipment

Materials used in the manufacture of leather belts are tanned leather and buckles. Leather belt manufacturing machine and raw material include strip cutting machine, measuring tapes.

Some equipment used is perforators, scissors, hammers, leather skiving machine and dyes. They use single flatbed industrial sewing machines, creasing machines and several hand tools.

Belt Manufacturing Process

The process involves cutting the leather into strips then skive the edges. A lining of same dimension is cut.

Then the leather strips edge is folded and lining is attached to the leather with glue. The belt is then stitched and excess lining trimmed.

The leather is punched and a pre-fabricated buckle is introduced to complete the belt. The shape, size, colors are based on the design of the belt.  Maintain high quality control and market your products.

Marketing

Use any effective marketing strategy such as paid advertisement or networking. You can target wholesalers and retailers in the fashion industry. Get your belts into departmental stores or local distributors.

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