Furniture cluster to come up in Kozhikode

31 January 2012: The age old furniture industry in Kozhikode, located perhaps in one of the largest timber trading regions in the world and comprising hundreds of micro manufacturing units and related facilities, is set to be developed in a cluster mode. A special purpose vehicle (SPV), Zamorians Furniture Consortium Private Ltd, has finalised plans to set up a common facility centre to catalyse the development of the cluster, which, among other things, aims to bring in import substitution for knocked-down furniture from countries like Malaysia, China, Indonesia and Thailand.

The common facility centre is being established by the SPV, which at presently has around 35 stakeholders on a public-private partnership basis at an estimated outlay of Rs 15 crore. The Centre will contribute a grant-in-aid of 70 per cent of the cost under its Micro and Small Enterprises Cluster Development Programme, the State Government 20 per cent and the stakeholders the remaining 10 per cent.

Source: Hindu Business Line