Souk Cherratine's business is built on a supply chain that starts at the city's tanneries and ends on the souk's shelves. Raw hides go through a long, traditional process before they ever reach a shop: soaking in lime to loosen hair and fat, treatment with natural materials such as pigeon droppings and bran to soften and clean the hide, then extended tanning. Only after this lengthy preparation, which can take weeks, does the leather move on to be cut, shaped, and stitched into the finished goods sold in the souk.

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One leather merchant working in the souk since 1968 describes it as a trade that's existed for well over 150 to 200 years, predating Moroccan independence, making it one of the older continuously operating specialty souks in the Medina. He also notes that Souk Cherratine sits at the top of a wider supply chain: as many as 11 or 12 related crafts and trades, cobblers, saddle-makers, basket-and-pannier sellers, bag-makers, depend on the leather that moves through this souk as their raw material.