E-Commerce, Sustainability, and Market Access Support to Women-led Leather Goods Enterprise, Bangladesh

Year(s): 2021
Client: Canadian Trade and Investment Facility for Development (CTIF)
​Origin of funding: Global Affairs Canada
Sector(s): Manufacturing (Leather Goods)
​Country(s): Canada, United States, Bangladesh

The goal of this project was to support Leatherina in strengthening its sustainability and growth prospects through the development of an                 e-commerce platform and digital marketing strategy. Two online platforms and a corresponding digital marketing strategy was created. A business-to-business (B2B) platform (www.leatherina.com) and digital marketing strategy focused on the North American market with an emphasis on showcasing Leatherina’s status as a women-owned, environmentally sustainable, and socially conscious organization from Bangladesh. In addition to the B2B website, and to support the thriving local market where business-to-consumer (B2C) sales are in popular demand, a B2C e-commerce platform was created for the Bangladeshi market (www.gootipa.com). The platform maintains the internal technological capabilities to be expanded to other international markets in the future, specifically North America. 
Gender and social inclusion was at the forefront of every task of the project. Environmental sustainability and climate change were equally addressed within the project tasks, through the review and development of Leatherina’s environmental policies and the now externally promoted Mission Zero Waste (MISSION ∅ WASTE) initiative.