Let's play patch-up

Load the glue gun, cue the Q-tips. As India warms up to repair services, see who's mending their own business

- Tanisha Saxena

Who knew there was so much power in a single cotton bud? In repairing videos online, the little sticks tease grime from the corners of expensive leather pouches. They apply the right shade of red to the scuffed sole of a designer shoe. They turn ASMR content into a rallying call for fixing, reusing and making a pricey product last a little longer.

Cotton buds have been doing careful, precise work in India's repair industry. Services that started out primarily for the super-rich are now extending to salaried urban folks who want to give their precious purchases a little TLC. Of course, the work calls for more than Q-tips. See how three companies are making repairing glam, one tweak at a time.

Sole purposes: The Shoe Laundry

Mumbai entrepreneur Sandeep Gajakas says he was keen on cleanliness even as a child. His friends at boarding school in Panchgani would marvel at how meticulously he'd clean his shoes. He was in college when he realised that there was money in cleaning and repairing other people's footwear and established The Shoe Laundry in 2003.

The business gets clients from as far away as Dehradun, West Bengal and Karnataka. Gym-weary Nikes and Reeboks come in for a spruce-up. Designer pairs from Gucci and Prada are sent in after a night of partying. On a good day, Gajakas and his eight-member team handle 15 pairs.