Korean shoemaker switches track, from Tamil Nadu to Andhra Pradesh
VISAKHAPATNAM: South Korean global conglomerate Hwaseung will make its India entry with an investment of $150 million in non-leather sports shoe manufacturing in Andhra Pradesh.
Hwaseung, a key supplier to global brands such as Adidas, had in August signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Tamil Nadu government for a plant. It has now decided to shift base to Kuppam, the assembly constituency of Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu.
"Our investment is mostly about employment," Bob Shorrock, CEO of Hwaseung's footwear division, told ET.
"When we have fully completed our three phases, we will have about 20,000 employees."He said the plant will manufacture about 20 million pairs of sports shoes per year. "This will be primarily for export, but in future we will manufacture for domestic use as well."Hwaseung has been allotted 100 acres of land in two villages in Kuppam.
A government order to this effect has been issued.
This will be the company's first investment in India. It currently operates facilities in South Korea, Taiwan, Vietnam, Indonesia, and China.
Shorrock said the company was evaluating different countries to set up facilities. "We are a labour intensive industry. Even with automation we are labour intensive," he said. "When we looked at alternative countries for investment, we evaluated lots of different countries. India offers the most promise. This is because it has a big young population and a good education system. We will be able to recruit a lot of skilled manpower. Trained engineers are important for our business."
The company approached Invest India to understand its requirements. The agency suggested Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, Shorrock said. Hwaseung first signed an MoU with Tamil Nadu, only to switch to Andhra Pradesh this month.
"We worked closely with Guidance in Tamil Nadu and Economic Development Board (EDB) in Andhra Pradesh and after our long review, we felt Andhra Pradesh is the right place to come," Shorrock said.He said both the states "are very very good," offering good land packages and good working population.
Hwaseung, a key supplier to global brands such as Adidas, had in August signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Tamil Nadu government for a plant. It has now decided to shift base to Kuppam, the assembly constituency of Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu.
"Our investment is mostly about employment," Bob Shorrock, CEO of Hwaseung's footwear division, told ET.
"When we have fully completed our three phases, we will have about 20,000 employees."He said the plant will manufacture about 20 million pairs of sports shoes per year. "This will be primarily for export, but in future we will manufacture for domestic use as well."Hwaseung has been allotted 100 acres of land in two villages in Kuppam.
A government order to this effect has been issued.
This will be the company's first investment in India. It currently operates facilities in South Korea, Taiwan, Vietnam, Indonesia, and China.
Shorrock said the company was evaluating different countries to set up facilities. "We are a labour intensive industry. Even with automation we are labour intensive," he said. "When we looked at alternative countries for investment, we evaluated lots of different countries. India offers the most promise. This is because it has a big young population and a good education system. We will be able to recruit a lot of skilled manpower. Trained engineers are important for our business."
The company approached Invest India to understand its requirements. The agency suggested Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, Shorrock said. Hwaseung first signed an MoU with Tamil Nadu, only to switch to Andhra Pradesh this month.
"We worked closely with Guidance in Tamil Nadu and Economic Development Board (EDB) in Andhra Pradesh and after our long review, we felt Andhra Pradesh is the right place to come," Shorrock said.He said both the states "are very very good," offering good land packages and good working population.
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