Entry Level Qualification 

8

Career Fields 

Apparel & Accessories

For Specially Abled 

Career Entrance Exam 

No Entrance Exam

About Career 

1. As a Leather Goods Maker (Sticher), you will be involved in all the work involved in making or constructing various types of leather goods such as shoes, bags, belts, leather apparel, and other leather accessories. In the construction of leather goods, your key role will be stitching various parts of leather goods together to make it a complete product. Once your work is completed, the goods will be sent for the finishing process.

2. You will find work in leather goods factories - small, medium, or large - where you will operate various machinery which is used for making leather products. You may get involved in preparing and processing leather, making patterns on leather, cutting leather as per patterns, etc. but your key role will be stitching various parts together to make a complete product. You will be using stitching machines and sewing machines to perform your tasks. In some small factories, you may also do stitching by hand.

3. You will sew fabric, leather, fur, and synthetic materials. You will follow the designing section instructions before starting your stitching work. It is like teamwork, and proper communication among team members brings effective work. Being a stitcher, you will create intricate designs and maintain a proper quality of product stitching. Sometimes, you will give suggestions on stitching and leather goods to bring out an efficient product.

Key roles and responsibilities

1. Cutting leather to size and shape using industrial cutting machines.

2. Joining leather pieces together through stitching, rivets, or adhesives.

3. Stuffing certain leather products with hair or flocks.

4. Attaching decorations and embossing decorative patterns on leather goods.

5. Care and maintenance of hand tools and machines used in leatherworking.

Career Entry Pathway 

Class 8 with any subject - 1-Year Diploma in Leather Goods Maker/Footwear Management.

Leather making requires a bare minimum educational qualification, as being a Class 8 pass from any state or national board makes you eligible to enroll in a diploma course as a Leather Goods Maker from any Vocational Institute or ITI. You should also seek out an independent Craft Instructor (i.e. someone already gainfully working as a skilled leatherworker) since that may boost your qualifications and allow you to network in the trade.

Required Qualification & Competencies 

To work as a Leather Goods Sticher, you require very minimum educational qualifications. If you complete your secondary level school studies till class 8, you can enroll in a Diploma course in Leather Goods Maker. After completing this course, you can get jobs in the same field. However, you should complete your entire secondary level school studies, that is, till class 10, just in case you want to get further qualifications in this field.

Competencies Required

Occupational Interests

1. Realistic - You should be interested in doing a realistic occupation that requires you to be realistic and hands-on.

2. Conventional - You should be interested in doing a conventional occupation that requires you to do repetitive and routine tasks every day.

Knowledge

1. Creative Design: Knowledge of various techniques, methods, and specifications for creating and developing designs for various products and materials such as textiles, clothes, interiors, furniture, accessories, jewelry, animation, graphics, materials, film, video, web, user interfaces of digital devices, photography, etc.

Skills

1. Active Listening - paying complete attention to what other people are saying and understanding their point of view.

2. Critical Thinking - use logic and reasoning abilities to identify and solve problems.

3. Speaking - able to communicate well with co-workers as well as outsiders.

4. Reading Comprehension - able to understand written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.

5. Coordination - willing to adjust personal actions about others’ actions.

Abilities

1. Abstract Reasoning: The ability to understand ideas that are not expressed in words or numbers; the ability to understand concepts that are not clearly expressed verbally or otherwise.

2. Deductive Reasoning: The ability to apply general rules and common logic to specific problems to produce answers that are logical and make sense. For example, understanding the reasons behind an event or a situation using general rules and common logic.

3. Originality: The ability to come up with unusual or innovative ideas about a given topic or situation, or to develop creative ways to solve a problem.

4. Selective Attention: The ability to concentrate on a task over a long period without being distracted.

5. Spatial Ability: The ability to visualize three-dimensional objects by looking at the objects on paper or visualize objects mentally in three dimensions.

6. Visualization: The ability to imagine how something will look after it is moved around or when its parts are moved or rearranged.

Personality

1. You are always imaginative in most situations.

2. You always prefer to experience new things and have new experiences or you mostly do.

3. You are somewhat organized in your day-to-day life and activities.

4. You trust others sometimes but not always.

5. You are mostly impulsive in your actions and behavior.

Career - Job Opportunities & Profiles 

You will get job opportunities for roles like:

1. Leather Worker (Sticher)

2. Leather Worker

3. Handicraft Worker

4. Leather Technician

5. Leather Line Worker

Some of the corporate or public sector factories, workshops, and firms that will require your services are in industries like:

1. Leather

2. Textiles, Leather and Related Materials

Work environment

As a Leather Goods Maker, you will be working in a factory setting, be it production units, or tanneries. Your work setting will be both noisy and stressful. Also, sometimes, you may be surrounded by unpleasant odors (tanneries, especially). You will have to work nearly 40-50 hours a week.

Specialisation Tracks In This Career

1. Shoe Maker

Shoes are one of the biggest leather goods industries and many craftsmen specialize in the shoe manufacturing process or open their bespoke shoemaking business.

2. Saddlery

This specialization involves making equipment - such as saddles, bridles, etc for animal riding and sports involving animals.

3. Leather Goods Sales

You will be the point of contact between leather-working shops and wholesalers helping them push leather products or work as a salesman for a solo/boutique leather goods outfit.

Career Growth

Although career growth opportunities in this field are limited, from a Leather Goods Sticher, you can switch to more specialized roles such as Leather Garment Maker / Leather Shoemaker / Leather Sports Goods Maker, etc, after you’ve gained enough industry experience in leather goods production. Also, you can grow into senior-level roles such as a Supervisor / Foreman.

Salary Offered  

1. At the beginning of your career, you can expect to earn about Rs. 7,000 - 10,000 per month.

2. After you’ve gained 2-5 years of experience, you may earn about Rs. 10,000 - 15,000 per month.

3. After 6-12 years of experience, you can expect to earn about Rs. 15,000 - 20,000 or more per month.

4. With over 15 years of experience, your average monthly salary will range anywhere between Rs. 20,000 - 40,000.

Monthly Earnings In Indian Rupee

1. Entry level: 0 - 2 years of work experience

2. Junior Level: From 1 to 12 years of work experience

3. Mid Level: From 5 to 20+ years of work experience

4. Senior Level: From 10 to 25+ years of work experience (there could be exceptions in some high-end technical, financial, engineering, creative, management, sports, and other careers; also shortly, people will reach these levels much faster in many careers and some careers, these levels will have no meaning as those careers will be completely tech skill driven such as even now, there is almost no level in a Cyber Security Expert’s job)

Famous Personalities 

Not Available

Work Activities 

1. Handling and moving objects and materials: Using hands or otherwise using physical strength to handle and move objects and materials; maneuver, install, lift, place, manipulate, etc.

2. Communicating with co-workers and others: Calculating or computing using various mathematical formulas and functions using computers or otherwise; doing financial or commercial calculations or computations.

3. Inspecting equipment, systems, structures, and materials: Inspecting equipment, systems, structures, and materials to ascertain quality, performance, defects, causes of errors, etc.

4. Organizing, planning, and prioritizing tasks: Planning and organizing tasks to achieve work goals; prioritizing tasks to achieve goals and making the best use of the time available.

5. Assessing and evaluating quality: Assessing and evaluating the quality of materials, systems, processes, products, services, etc.

6. Scheduling tasks: Scheduling project timelines, tasks and activities.