Apparel Online Bangladesh Magazine January Issue 2019 | Page 29

BUSINESS BLUEPRINT - 2018
Grameen Group: The Torchbearer
<< of Social Entrepreneurship < <
in Bangladesh
Social entrepreneurship may be a novel concept for many, but Bangladesh – considered
a least developed country – still boasts of what is seen by many as the epitome of social
entrepreneurship. And the case in point is none other than the Grameen Group, considered a
torchbearer in this field. May 2018
The Challenge:
It would be wrong to term Grameen taking
up social entrepreneurship as a fallout
of any challenge rather its endeavour
is to popularise this concept within the
Bangladesh garment industry.
Even though the motivation for a business
entrepreneur and social entrepreneur may
be somewhat similar, their missions are
different. If business entrepreneur is driven
by the desire to innovate and excel within
a commercial market where his/her success
is gauged by how much wealth he/she
creates, for a social entrepreneur wealth
creation is equally important but is only to
be used as a tool to effect social changes.
And the Solution:
Social business becomes even more
significant at a time when almost 50
per cent of the world’s total wealth is
concentrated amongst only one per cent
of the population, and this gap is
increasing fast.
This is driving the conflict between the
ultra-rich and the poor, thereby vitiating the
order of the society… Social business is a
cause-driven business. In social business,
the investors/owners can gradually recoup
the money invested, but cannot take any
dividend beyond that point.
Despite Challenges,
DBL Upbeat about
<< the Future of its < <
Integrated Textile &
Garment Facility
in Ethiopia
Production cost in Bangladesh has increased
by leaps and bounds in the last few years,
which has forced manufacturers to look
for cheaper alternatives. Taking advantage
of African Growth and Opportunity Act
(AGOA), Ethiopia has emerged as a strong
alternative option. One of the top-of-the-
line manufacturers in Bangladesh, DBL
Group utilised this opportunity to set up an
integrated textile and garment facility there.
November 2018
Though we are catering to both fabrics and
readymade garments now, we do not have
a dedicated manufacturing unit yet.
We’re looking forward to export again
and the good news is we’ve already got
approval of the sample of both fabrics and
garments from some buyers in USA. Profit
will be ploughed back to our producers, and
also to our workers and to our employees.
MA Jabbar, Managing Director, DBL Group
The Challenge:
Increased production cost in Bangladesh.
Md. Ashraful Hassan, Managing Director, Grameen Shamogree
And the Solution:
We started operations in May this year
and from August, we have also started to
export…We have trained around 1,800
people while taking in 200 more from
Bangladesh to kick start our operations in
Ethiopia. Top management from Lacoste
visited our facility recently and hopefully
more buyers will approach in the coming
days. We are making all the investments
with the future in perspective.
www.apparelresources.com | January 2019 | Apparel Online Bangladesh
29