ati msotovile?!lets hope leather tanning will be the vehicle move you to sonkoville! why choose leather tanning? is my qstn. I once appraised a loan facility for a co. dealing in this and it was not a good account. The co. dealt with producing blue leather for export. the industry is so susceptible to shocks (eg drought), supplies & payments so erratic. international prices also not that great. suppliers were there nt paid in time, payment delays as well. So you are proposing to be a supplier to such a co.- what is ur comfort level about the prospects of this industry in view of my my 2 cents above?

Sorry for taking ever so long to respond, guys. @ intelligensia: My idea is a bit loco - I'm thinking vertical/horizontal integration with my focus on goats, i.e., buy them, slaughter them on order and process their hides. There's a new environmentally-friendly process developed in Mexico; it's slightly more expensive but at least it will keep NEMA off my back. Plus I have the two profit centres - goat meat and leather. Start-up costs aren't that hefty and I project ROI in maybe 8-10 months (on stock) and 24 - 30 months on land and fixtures. Project will be financed purely by savings. @Chaka I discovered a new tanning method from Mexico - the resultant waste is easily biodegradable and isn't as foul smelling as the kawa process. NEMA will be a breeze!

@maia Boss, this is Kenya. Bwana send me a link with text and graphics bila video or podcasts. My net link can hardly handle email. BTW, I did a ka-small market research in EA with Kenyan hawkers and vendors in Uganda. The going rate for leather belts is 650-750/-, 350-450/- wholesale, and they are fast movers. Generally, the accessories market for COMESA's bourgeois is sawa, even with the Chinese wreaking havoc. Anywayz, send any info you got, it will help plenty with the SWOT analysis. Thanks.