Did you know that humans started making and using leather goods more than 7,000 years ago?

At that time, though, the use of leather (in its crude form) was more for the purposes of protection than fashion. As times changed and technology developed, we learned how to preserve the material better, soften it, and dye it in vivid colors. When on one hand the strength, durability, and versatility of leather made it very popular, on the other the number of animals killed to manufacture the products and the pollution created by the industry raised many eyebrows. This led to the hunt for alternatives to leather.

The marketArtificial leather looks and feels like natural leather, but is made on a fabric base rather than from animal skin. The fabric, due to its leather-like finish, acts as a substitute for leather and is fast replacing it in many industries such as footwear, upholstery, and automobiles.

Today, the leather alternatives market in India and abroad is witnessing good growth, and the demand is expected to further intensify in the future. According to Rishabh Jain of Rishabh Velveleen, “In the next few years, this industry is expected to boom, thanks to better technology, animal cruelty issue, pollution, etc.” In comparison to the demand, the current supply of synthetic leather lags far behind, especially in the domestic market.” Says Jain, “Currently, nearly nine to 10 times of what is being produced domestically is imported from China.” Moreover, of the synthetic leather that is produced in India, only about 15 to 20 percent is exported; the rest is used for domestic consumption. This demand–supply gap coupled with the fact that synthetic leather is fast replacing natural leather from various industries is opening doors for more entrepreneurs in this sector.

In India, the market for synthetic leather is highly unorganized, there are only a handful of players in the organized sector. As Jain puts it, “At present there are 10 leading players constituting the organized market, and about 150 to 200 small or medium level players who cater to the local market.” Among the major names are Mayur Uniquoters, Rishabh Velveleen, and Manish Vinyls. Indian synthetic leather is exported to European countries and also to the US.

The businessThough many alternatives to leather are now available, most synthetic leather is made from PVC and PU. On the basis of the process used, it can be classified into four types. The cheapest is made by a process called ‘calendering’, in which the PVC sheet is laminated to a fabric. “The other three are basically coating processes in which there are three categories – 100% PVC, semi-PU, and 100% PU,” elaborates Jain. “In semi-PU, there is one layer of PU mixed with a layer of PVC and then the skin is transferred to a fabric. In 100% PU, there will not be any PVC but only layers of PU.” Besides these, there is another type of artificial leather known as split leather or pleather. However, its inclusion in the synthetic leather category is debatable as it does not use a fabric base, but is manufactured from the second layer of skin (the first layer is used for making natural leather) obtained from animals.

Compared to PVC, PU leather cloth is more flexible with a higher tensile, tearing, and bursting strength. Due to this, PU leather cloth has an advantage when used in making products with high stress tolerance like shoes and luggage bags. Another difference between PU and PVC leather cloth is that the former is washable, can be dry-cleaned, and allows some air to flow through. On the other hand, PVC leather cloth does not breathe and cannot be dry-cleaned, because that can make it stiff.

The synthetic leather is made into different thicknesses depending on the end use. “If you take shoes, the inner lining is around 0.6 mm and the outer cover is 1.3 mm. If you take furnishings, it would be 1 mm. The general range of synthetic leather starts from 0.6 mm to 1.4 mm. For the purpose of clothing, it can go as low as 0.4 mm, which is rare. The thickness depends on how much PU or PVC you are coating,” Jain adds. The companies manufacturing synthetic leather sell the product under a brand name of their own

The synthetic leather industry is now on a high growth trajectory. One of the reasons for this is the high-pitched campaign against cruelty meted out to animals in the leather industry. This has resulted in growing awareness for an alternative to leather. The level of pollution (both air and water) created by tanneries has also led to an increase in the popularity of alternative leather. Besides this, a huge demand–supply gap exists in the natural leather industry. This, coupled with the high price of leather, has also been a boon in disguise for the industry. On its part, synthetic leather is cheaper and has a lower manufacturing cost.Earlier inferior technology was one factor holding back the growth of the artificial leather industry. However, with technological advancements, synthetic leather being produced now is much smoother, looks similar, and feels like leather. The fabric is versatile and is fast replacing leather in a number of industries.

Synthetic leather can be made from several processes. Some of the common ones include direct coating process, transfer coating process, and wet process.

Direct coating process: This was the original technology used to manufacture artificial cloth. In this process the plastisol was directly coated to a woven fabric before passing through the oven and then embossed. However, the end product made from this process had limited use in industries such as the bag and luggage industry.

Transfer coating process: In this process the coating is done on a release paper and then the film is released and laminated on to the fabric, usually knitted fabric. The end product from this process can be used in several industries such as upholstery, shoes, bags, etc.

Wet process or coagulation: This process is used for producing PU cloth. The fabric is dipped into a bath of PU and the PU is then impregnated into the fabric. Split leather is also made using this process.

ChallengesOne of the major challenges for this industry is competition from Chinese synthetic leather. China is one of the major producers of synthetic leather, and up to 10 times the amount produced domestically in India is imported from China. This is due to two reasons – one, the demand for synthetic leather is high in India compared to the supply, and two, India still does not produce good PU leather cloth, which accounts for major imports. Another challenge is the sourcing for PU. Says Jain, “There are not many good manufacturers for PU resin. It is generally imported from Italy or China.” This also adds to the manufacturing cost of artificial leather. In India, another problem is that there is no communication platform for manufacturers. No association or industry body exists either. Besides these, this business also requires several clearances from the government such a pollution certificate. There are other quality certifications also, such as the ISO 14000 and ISO 9000, but they are not mandatory.

In sum, despite several challenges, it appears that the artificial leather industry in India is an industry to watch out for in future.