Leather firms seek fresh pastures

SHANGHAI: Cost and environmental concerns are forcing many leather goods manufacturers in the coastal regions of Zhejiang and Guangdong provinces to relocate part of their operations to the less developed inland regions.

Taking the lead is Aokang, a well-known shoemaker from Wenzhou in Zhejiang. The company began moving parts of its operations about five years ago to Chongqing, where the production cost was at least 20 percent lower than in its home turf.

Soon after, many other leather producers from Zhejiang and Guangdong followed suit. In the early days, only a few small- to medium-sized producers saw the need to move. Now, "even companies with mass production capabilities are planning or have already moved, though most of them are not willing to talk," said Su Chaoying, secretary-general of China Leather Industry Association. Indeed, turning their back on a home that nourished them isn't something tradition minding Chinese companies wants to talk about.