Apparel Online Bangladesh Magazine January Issue 2019 | Page 28

BUSINESS BLUEPRINT - 2018 HAVE YOUR SAY BREAKING NEWS Tell us your news by emailing at [email protected] To read the latest sustainability news, go to https://apparelresources.com/business-news/sustainability/  Hydroxide << Knitwear Ltd. < < going ‘East’ for market expansion Sonia & Sweaters Embracing << Automation for Business Viability… < < Mahmud Jeans Limited – Surging Proudly with Automation as its Key Strength Catering to a host of clients in Europe namely Debenhams, Zara, Burberry, Vero Moda, Walmart, Pull&Bear etc., in diverse range of sweaters, pullovers, cardigans and other knit products from wool, cotton, acrylic, rayon and blended yarns, Hydroxide Knitwear Limited is a renowned garment manufacturer from Bangladesh. November 2018 Sonia & Sweaters Limited and Mahmud Jeans are two big names in the realm of sweater and denim manufacturing. If Sonia & Sweaters Limited is helmed by Enayetuddin Md. Kaiser Khan as Managing Director, Gazi Mahbubul Alam is the Director of Mahmud Group. December 2018 / June 2018 Omar Chowdhury, Managing Director, Hydroxide Knitwear Limited The Challenge: The erstwhile export destinations of US and Europe are not as prospective as they used to be once. And the Solution: We are now planning to look towards East rather than concentrating only on the West. We see Japan, South Korea, China, etc., as markets with great potential… I also have a feeling that the buying capacity of the European retailers is also on the wane. Most of the retail stores are now selling their products on discounts. Even the end customers have become very price- sensitive. We, as manufacturers, are now feeling that pressure. Whereas on the other hand, the middle-class in countries like South Korea, China and Japan is not only increasing but their buying capacities have also increased substantially. The Challenge: If increased production cost has emerged as a major challenge for both the entities, Sonia & Sweaters Limited is also worried about the changing retail landscape globally. And the Solution: Sonia & Sweaters: Flexibility & Efficiency Increase: If wastage has come down to a great extent, it has also helped us cut down manpower and attain production flexibility… (Sonia & Sweaters has installed around 500 automatic machines while plans are on to add more automats in a year or two to take the total number of automatic machines to 1,000. Khan is of the opinion that automation is not an answer to bargain better price points from the buyers but definitely is an option to cut cost and wastage, which ultimately reflects in the production cost.) Enayetuddin Md. Kaiser Khan, Managing Director, Sonia & Sweaters Limited 28 Apparel Online Bangladesh | January 2019 | www.apparelresources.com Mahmud Jeans: When I bought Vibemac machines in 2008, everybody said that it’s a waste of money. I am proud today to prove others wrong as, in the present circumstances, you cannot even imagine to make a factory viable without investing in automation… There are less chances of women workers coming back to the factory once they get married due to family pressure. So, instead of searching for workers, I went for more automation to reduce human involvement and, at the same time, to be more productive and deliver quality. Technology for innovation, sustainable processes and better control of quality are our focus for further investments. Gazi Mahbubul Alam, Director, Mahmud Group