Provenance gives a sourcing story its starting point. For saddlery from Kanpur, that starting point is an official one: the geographical indication register maintained by Intellectual Property India contains a record for Kanpur Saddlery. The record documents a link between a product name and a place, and it lists the businesses authorised to use it. It does not, by itself, establish the quality, capacity or suitability of every business associated with the city.

What the register records

The record, application number 159, names the applicant as the Harness and Saddlery Exporters Association, with an address on Kalpi Road, Kanpur. The application was filed on 9 February 2009 in class 18, with the goods listed as handicraft and the geographical area given as Uttar Pradesh. The record cites journal number 54 and an availability date of 28 November 2013, and certificate number 204 was issued on 31 March 2014. The register shows the status as registered and the registration as valid until 8 February 2029; its document list includes renewal details dated 12 July 2021.

The documents attached to the record trace the process between filing and registration: a formality check report in 2009, examination reports in 2009, 2011 and 2013, consultative group meetings in 2010 and replies from the applicant, before the certificate of registration in 2014.

Authorised users

The record lists 201 authorised users, numbered in sequence from AU/3903/GI/159/1 to AU/37303/GI/159/201. Of these, 178 entries show a registered status on the public page and 23 show no status. The first entry is S. B. International and the most recent, number 201, is Yaar Equestrian.

For a buyer, the authorised user list is the practical check. A supplier that describes its goods as Kanpur Saddlery can be looked up on the public record by name and authorised user number. A listing confirms that status on the register; it does not show that a particular product, batch or order meets a buyer’s specification.

Where the trade meets

The record sits alongside trade channels in India and the UK. IIPTF, which describes itself as a business-to-business pet trade fair and lists the NESCO Exhibition Center in Mumbai as its venue, includes an equine category on its business visitor page covering saddles, harnesses, reins, bridles, back protectors, bareback pads and browbands. In the UK, the British Equestrian Trade Association represents equestrian manufacturing, wholesale and retail, says it has more than 800 member companies and publishes a member directory.

Neither listing is evidence about an individual maker. A trade fair category describes what may be shown, and a directory entry is a discovery aid.

Equanine’s reading

  • Check a supplier’s authorised user number and status on the IP India record before repeating a GI claim in product descriptions or marketing.
  • Treat the GI as evidence of origin and identity only. Price, export volume, capacity and performance claims need separate, product-specific evidence, and none appears on the register.
  • Note the validity date. The register shows the registration running to 8 February 2029, so a long-term supply agreement that relies on the indication should allow for renewal.