Vignesh Leathers

Our workshop is at No. 291/ C5 on Thiruvalluvar Street in Puliyanthangal. When you walk in, the first thing you notice is the heavy smell of tanned leather. It’s a smell that stays on your clothes even after you go home. We have big tables where we spread out the hides and look for any marks before we start cutting. It’s slow work because you have to be careful with the material. We use a lot of hand tools and some older machines that have been with us for years. They make a lot of noise, but they still work better than the new stuff sometimes. The street outside is narrow and can get pretty cramped when deliveries are arriving. We have a small crew of guys who have been working with leather since they were kids, so they know exactly what they are doing. It’s a bit messy with leather shavings and glue jars sitting around, but we know where everything is. We don't have a fancy front office; if you want to talk to us, you just come right into the work area. We spend our days making sure the edges are smooth and the stitching is tight. It’s hard on the hands, especially when the weather is dry, but we like seeing the finished products stacked up and ready to go out to the shops.