Italian Product Culture
European standards, direct communication and product-development thinking from the first brief to final execution.
Italian management. Indian execution.
Your Product Office in India.
Product development, sourcing and manufacturing support for footwear, leather goods, accessories and technical products — with Italian management and direct factory control in India.
Years
Working with India
Specialists
Across Italy and India
Partners
Manufacturing relationships
Why brands work with Gusto
A stronger way to work with India.
Gusto combines Italian product culture with local manufacturing control, helping brands work with India without losing visibility, quality or execution discipline.
Local Manufacturing Control
Supplier management, daily factory supervision, production follow-up and quality control directly on the ground.
Evolving Material Ecosystem
Leather, PU, synthetics, crochet, components and technical materials within a rapidly evolving Indian supply chain.
Flexible Production Solutions
India-first manufacturing approach with access to selected Bangladesh opportunities when strategically appropriate.
Selected experience
Experience across international footwear, fashion and performance brands.
A focused network of brand experience and strategic relationships built across footwear, leather goods, technical products and manufacturing ecosystems.
Brand experience
Clarks
DKNY
Karl Lagerfeld
Lumberjack
Alpinestars
Forte_Forte
Kenneth Cole
Strategic relationships with
Tata International
Superhouse Group
BBK
Trio Leather Group
Meet the Team Behind Gusto
Italian product expertise. Local manufacturing execution.
Unlike traditional sourcing offices, our clients work directly with a management team that understands both European product expectations and Indian manufacturing realities.
NF
Nerio Fusina
Co-Founder & Head of Product Development
AG
Alex Gorham
Co-Founder & Director
LF
Lorenzo Fusina
Client Success & Product Development
P
Prabaker
Indian Office Director
Why India Today
Why more brands are looking at India.
India is becoming one of the most attractive sourcing destinations for footwear, leather goods and accessories. While many Asian manufacturing hubs focus on large-scale standardized production, India combines industrial capability with flexibility, craftsmanship and a deep leather ecosystem.
Leather Ecosystem
Strong tanning industry, material availability and decades of leather know-how across footwear, bags and accessories.
Flexible MOQ
Lower minimum quantities, more colour variations and greater flexibility for collections compared to large-scale Asian hubs.
Craftsmanship
Manual skills for handwoven, artisanal and labour-intensive constructions that are increasingly difficult to source elsewhere.
Competitive & Strategic
Competitive labour costs, strong component supply chains and improving trade advantages with Europe and the United States.
Featured projects
Real manufacturing challenges. Real solutions.
Three examples of how Gusto creates value: factory transformation, supplier discovery and hybrid manufacturing strategy.
Building a High-Performance Motorsport Manufacturing Platform in India
Challenge: A leading international motorcycle-equipment brand wanted to transfer a significant part of its leather footwear and technical apparel sourcing to India, in a highly specialized segment with extremely strict technical and safety requirements.
What We Did: Gusto identified and developed the right manufacturing partners — companies that had never previously produced motorcycle footwear or technical riding apparel, but demonstrated strong skills, investment capacity and long-term commitment.
- Material and component development
- Product construction and industrialization
- Best-practice production procedures
- Quality assurance, regular testing and continuous validation
Outcome: a specialized Indian manufacturing platform capable of supporting leather footwear and technical apparel for a global performance brand.
Building an India–Italy Handcrafted Leather Platform
Challenge: In 2019, an Italian fashion brand approached Gusto to develop handwoven leather uppers and leather bags in India. The project started with limited quantities, many colour variations and a high level of execution complexity.
What We Did: Gusto identified and developed specialized manufacturing partners in India, refined the product over the first year and built a stable workflow connecting Indian handwoven production with selected Italian suppliers for final completion.
- Handwoven leather uppers and bags developed in India
- Two collections managed every year since 2019
- Increasing share of handwoven products within the collection
- Competitive cost structure compared to European production
- Quality guaranteed through Gusto’s control system
- India–Italy process managed end to end
Outcome: a long-term India–Italy production model combining Indian handcrafting capabilities, Italian finishing and Made in Italy positioning.
Hybrid India–Italy Manufacturing Model
Challenge: A premium leather-goods brand wanted Made in Italy positioning with improved cost efficiency.
What We Did: Gusto developed a hybrid model, combining manufacturing activities in India with final processing and completion in Italy.
- Maintained premium quality standards
- Preserved Italian finishing processes
- Improved cost efficiency
- Created a scalable production model
Outcome: luxury-quality products with a more competitive manufacturing structure.
Product Categories
One sourcing office, different product worlds.
From fashion footwear and bags to outdoor, motorsport and safety products, Gusto supports categories that require different suppliers, materials, tests and quality priorities.
Fashion & Lifestyle Footwear
Design interpretation, sampling and production support for fashion-driven collections.
Bags & Leather Goods
Bags, small leather goods, finished leathers, components and accessories.
Outdoor & Performance
Technical construction, fit, durability, materials and production consistency.
Motorsport & Riding Gear
Certified motorcycle footwear, technical apparel and protective equipment.
Safety & Workwear
Supplier onboarding, compliance, testing and production management.
Start a conversation
Planning a project in India?
Book a 30-minute discovery call. Tell us what you are developing, your target market, expected volumes and the kind of support you need.
- Company: Gusto Footwear Pvt Ltd
- Location: Chennai, India
- Email: info@gustofootwear.in
- Direct: lorefus@gustofootwear.in