The India International Leather Fair (IILF) will be held from January 31st to February 3rd 2008 at Chennai Trade Center in Chennai, Tamil Nadu Province, India.

This year BASF will be focusing on "Fashion and Inspiration" for the leather industry. The "Fashionova concept" for the leather industry in South Asia consists of 5 x 5 advantages and a tool kit of 25 carefully selected products that can address almost the entire spectrum of classic and elegant fashion leathers.

Creativity plays a major role in this concept. BASF will exhibit 5 effects that can be applied to all kinds of leather and have been designed especially for the South Asian market: Film, Texture, Optics, Pattern and Up-gradation. Each variant has its own range of values, and their permutations and combinations open up a world of possibilities.

Furthermore, the focus is on 5 segments with their respective experts and products: footwear, garment, leather goods, accessories and hybrids; as well as on 5 target consumer lifestyles: Formal, Casual, Sporty, Trendy and Fusion.

25 products in 5 product groups ¨C these are the key chemicals of the Fashionova concept. The range is completed by all the required tools of chemistry, which in the hands of skilled craftsmen can result in numerous varieties of elegant, fashion leathers.

Representatives from the 5 competence centers in Mumbai, Chennai, Ranipet, Kanpur and Kolkata will be at the BASF booth in to advice customers and inform them about the innovative new developments and the extensive range of established, high-quality products.

The Fashionova concept, the result of a thorough evaluation of the market, is the creation of the market analysis department at BASF India Limited. They explain, that today fashion cycles and consumer moods are changing at an ever faster pace.

BAS is also presenting "Inspirations for leather", twelve new trendsetting leather types for the spring-summer season of 2009. The collection combines the bright colors of the Venetian carnival with a variety of unusual features.

The spring collection features fine stripes in fresh pastel shades. Leather in bright colors with wild two-tone brushstroke effects are a perfect match for elegant summer evening wear, and spots and polka dots are an excellent accompaniment to relaxed leisure wear. A marbled texture is a novel feature that gives the leather a slightly vintage look.

The collection is rounded off with classical and extravagant brown shades. BASF fashion experts from Europe have supported their Indian colleagues with the latest trends from the fashion capitals of Italy and Spain.

"The leather market in India is one of our most important prospective markets", says Thomas Sattler, responsible for the global leather business at BASF. "The two concepts will help us to maintain our leading position as the complete solution provider in the South Asian leather industry.

The South Asian and particularly the Indian leather industry has lots of similarities to Italy and Spain in terms oftheir outlook on fashion. We hope to be able to contribute our global expertise for the benefit of customers in this part of the world."