Prada seeks help from Indian artisans
After viral photos from a Milan fashion show drew criticism from Indian artisans who make the sandals - named after the historic city of Kolhapur in Maharashtra state - Prada was forced late last month to acknowledge that its new open-toe footwear was inspired by ancient Indian designs.
The furore even saw sales of Indian sandals boom, with sellers and artisans seeing the controversy as a way to promote the heritage craft by tapping into nationalist pride.
Prada said in a statement to Reuters that it held talks remotely on Friday with the Maharashtra Chamber of Commerce, which represents 3,000 Kolhapuri sandal artisans, and discussed potential opportunities for future collaboration.
"The next step will be for Prada's supply chain team to meet a range of artisanal footwear manufacturers," the company said.
The Maharashtra Chamber of Commerce said that Lorenzo Bertelli, son of Prada's owners and head of its corporate social responsibility, joined the talks on Friday.
The chamber of commerce said that during the talks Prada said it aimed to launch a limited-edition "Made in India" Kolhapuri-inspired collection of sandals in partnership with Indian artisans.
India's luxury market is small but growing, with the rich splurging on designer fashion, top end sports cars and pricey watches.
Prada does not have any retail stores in India, and its products are usually reserved for the super rich who shop overseas.
The sandal scandal left the social media abuzz for days with criticism and sarcastic memes, with Indian politicians, artisans and the Maharashtra Chamber of Commerce demanding due credit to Indian heritage.
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Express Tribune
9 hours ago
- Express Tribune
Prada seeks help from Indian artisans
Prada is looking to collaborate with "artisanal footwear" makers in India in a partnership, it said on Friday, two weeks after the Italian luxury group triggered a controversy by debuting ethnic sandals resembling 12th-century Indian ones. After viral photos from a Milan fashion show drew criticism from Indian artisans who make the sandals - named after the historic city of Kolhapur in Maharashtra state - Prada was forced late last month to acknowledge that its new open-toe footwear was inspired by ancient Indian designs. The furore even saw sales of Indian sandals boom, with sellers and artisans seeing the controversy as a way to promote the heritage craft by tapping into nationalist pride. Prada said in a statement to Reuters that it held talks remotely on Friday with the Maharashtra Chamber of Commerce, which represents 3,000 Kolhapuri sandal artisans, and discussed potential opportunities for future collaboration. "The next step will be for Prada's supply chain team to meet a range of artisanal footwear manufacturers," the company said. The Maharashtra Chamber of Commerce said that Lorenzo Bertelli, son of Prada's owners and head of its corporate social responsibility, joined the talks on Friday. The chamber of commerce said that during the talks Prada said it aimed to launch a limited-edition "Made in India" Kolhapuri-inspired collection of sandals in partnership with Indian artisans. India's luxury market is small but growing, with the rich splurging on designer fashion, top end sports cars and pricey watches. Prada does not have any retail stores in India, and its products are usually reserved for the super rich who shop overseas. The sandal scandal left the social media abuzz for days with criticism and sarcastic memes, with Indian politicians, artisans and the Maharashtra Chamber of Commerce demanding due credit to Indian heritage.
Express Tribune
10 hours ago
- Express Tribune
Pink salt's export potential remains untapped
Beneath Karachi's blistering sun, a salt farmer harvests shimmering sea crystals in a coastal area — a backbreaking labour that yields just Rs1,000 a day. Each grain tells a story of toil, endurance, and the quiet dignity of labour. PHOTO: ONLINE Even though India's ban on Pakistani pink salt has opened up new opportunities for local traders in other international markets, the true potential of the profitable sector remains untapped since Pakistan, till date, has not been able to develop a value-adding system for processing and rebranding what many consider to be the world's healthiest salt. A local salt exporter, Muhammad Riaz, revealed that even in the past, governments were advised to export Pakistan's unique salt with value addition, but none took serious steps while India continued to market Pakistani salt as its own across global markets. "Indian traders are currently obtaining salt through Dubai. During the tenure of Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, a proposal had been made for Pakistan to export salt directly to other countries rather than allowing India to benefit from it. Presently, Pakistani salt exporters are again emphasizing that salt should not be exported as a raw material but instead should be processed and branded, enabling Pakistan to boost exports and earn valuable foreign exchange," noted Riaz. Sources indicate that the ongoing political tensions between Pakistan and India have severely affected trade, pushing traders on both sides to adopt new strategies. From November 2023 to October 2024, Pakistan remained a major exporter of pink salt. During this period, 3,789 shipments of Himalayan salt were exported, marking a 10 percent increase compared to the previous year. In 2023, India had imported 462 metric tons of Himalayan pink salt from Pakistan, which increased to 642 metric tons in 2024. However, these numbers are still significantly lower compared to 2018 (74,457 metric tons) and 2019 (72,631 metric tons). After India imposed a direct ban on the import of Pakistani salt in 2019, trade was completely halted. As a result, India lost access to the inexpensive pink salt it used to source from Pakistan. However, Indian traders continue to import this salt through other countries, rebrand it, and sell it under their own labels. Although the volume of trade has decreased, indirect exports of Pakistani salt to India are still ongoing. For years, India earned substantial profits by purchasing this salt at low prices and selling it for much more. Previously, India used to receive cheap salt via the Wagah land route, but now it has to pay significantly more to acquire it. Since the complete suspension of trade through Wagah following the Pahalgam incident, relations between the two countries have become increasingly strained. In the meantime, Indian traders have started importing Pakistani pink salt via third countries. In this way, Indian companies are continuing to trade Pakistani salt through indirect means and earning profits through value addition. After the Pulwama attack in 2019, India imposed a 200 per cent tariff on Pakistani goods, which drastically reduced trade. As a result, exports of Pakistani pink salt to India became negligible. In 2025, a complete ban was enforced on salt trade, and now it is expected that even indirect trade through third countries may come to a halt. Due to the halt in the import of Pakistani Himalayan pink salt, local prices in India have surged. Salt that was previously sold for 45 to 50 Indian rupees per kilogram is now priced at up to 150 Indian rupees per kilogram. Hence, India is now looking towards countries like the United Arab Emirates, Malaysia, Iran, Australia, and Afghanistan to meet its salt requirements. In the meanwhile, during the first five months of 2025, Pakistan's salt exports to China increased by 38 per cent. Exporters say that in Punjab, the Mines and Minerals Department is actively extracting salt from mines, and salt reserves have been leased to the private sector. This has enabled private companies to play a more active role in increasing exports. "The government needs to stop the export of raw salt entirely and focus on value-added products," implored Riaz.
Express Tribune
11 hours ago
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US customs duties top $100b for first time
A woman who is seeking asylum has her fingerprints taken by a US Customs and Border patrol officer at a pedestrian port of entry from Mexico to the United States, in McAllen, Texas, US, May 10, 2017. PHOTO: REUTERS Listen to article US customs duty collections surged again in June as President Donald Trump's tariffs gained steam, topping $100 billion for the first time during a fiscal year and helping to produce a surprise $27 billion budget surplus for the month, the Treasury Department reported on Friday. The budget data showed that tariffs are starting to build into a significant revenue contributor for the federal government, with customs duties in June hitting new records, quadrupling to $27.2 billion on a gross basis and $26.6 billion on a net basis after refunds. The budget results are likely to reinforce Trump's view of tariffs as a lucrative revenue source and as a hammer to enforce non-trade foreign policy. He said on Tuesday that "the big money" would start to flow in after he imposes higher reciprocal tariffs on US trading partners on August 1. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on X that the results show the US is "reaping the rewards" from Trump's tariff agenda. "As President Trump works hard to take back our nation's economic sovereignty, today's (Friday's) Monthly Treasury Statement is demonstrating record customs duties – and with no inflation!" Bessent said. For the first nine months of fiscal year 2025, the customs' take reached records of $113.3 billion on a gross basis and $108 billion on a net basis, nearly double the prior year collections. The government's fiscal year ends on September 30. Based on those results, tariffs have now grown into the fourth-largest revenue source for the federal government, behind individual withheld receipts at $2.683 trillion for the fiscal year, non-withheld individual receipts at $965 billion and corporate taxes at $392 billion. In the space of roughly four months, tariffs as a share of federal revenue have more than doubled to around 5% from about 2% historically. The June budget surplus represented a turnaround from the $71 billion deficit in June 2024. The new tariff-related revenue helped boost total budget receipts last month by 13%, or $60 billion, to $526 billion, a record for that month, the Treasury said. Outlays in June fell 7%, or $38 billion, to $499 billion. But adjusting for calendar shifts of some revenue and benefit payments, it said there would have been a budget deficit of $70 billion in June along with a year-ago adjusted deficit of $143 billion. The overall year-to-date deficit, however, increased 5%, or $64 billion, to $1.337 trillion, as outlays rose for healthcare programmes, Social Security retirement benefits, defence needs, debt interest and the Department of Homeland Security, the Treasury said. Receipts for the first nine months of the fiscal year rose 7%, or $254 billion, to a record $4.008 trillion, driven in part by withheld taxes from higher employment and wages, while outlays grew 6%, or $318 billion, to a record $5.346 trillion. The Treasury's interest costs on the national debt continued to grow, exceeding all other individual outlays at $921 billion for the first nine months of the fiscal year, up 6%, or $53 billion, from the year-ago period. But the Treasury's weighted average interest rate largely had stabilised at 3.3% at the end of June, up two basis points from a year ago, a Treasury official said. Bessent earlier this week suggested a steeper ramp-up in tariff collections, telling a cabinet meeting that calendar year 2025 collections could grow to $300 billion by the end of December. At the June run rate, gross customs collections would hit $276.5 billion in six months' time, which means reaching Bessent's target would require some increases. Ernie Tedeschi, Economics Director of the Budget Lab at Yale University, said it may take more time for the tariff revenue to fully ramp up because businesses and consumers have sought to front-run the duties by buying ahead. Once that effect fades and Trump implements higher reciprocal tariff rates after an August 1 deadline, the Treasury may collect an extra $10 billion in tariffs per month, bringing the total to $37 billion, he said.
