Apparel Online India Magazine July 1st Issue 2018 | Page 57

EYES & EARS
Stanley/Stella may start sourcing
from India
D
edicated to organic and
sustainable garments,
Belgium-based Stanley/Stella, a
company catering to B2B and B2C
European markets (Germany,
Belgium, France, and few other
countries), may explore the options
of sourcing from India. The
company with about 100 employees
sold nearly 9 million pieces in 2017,
recording a turnover of US $ 47
million. As of now, its 98 per cent
garments are being sourced from
5 factories in Bangladesh while
rest is from China. The company
mainly offers tees, sweatshirts,
pants, and jackets and is further
expecting 20 per cent growth in
the current fiscal.
Bruno Van Sieleghem, PR,
Sustainability and Internal
Communication Manager of the
company who was recently in
Coimbatore told Apparel Online,
“I can’t promise, but there is a
good chance that we start sourcing
from India as we are growing and
may need some more factories.
Majority of cotton which is being
used in our products is coming
from India and goes to China for
further processing. Also, 95 per
cent of our products are made by
organic cotton while rest is made
of sustainable materials. And we
want to stay close to the supply
chain, so working with Indian
apparel manufacturers can be a
good idea. While sourcing from
India, we can follow-up the supply
chain better from the cotton farm
to the garment factory. It seems
to be a potentially advantageous
move for us, in the future.”
“I can’t promise, but there
is a good chance that we
start sourcing from India
as we are growing and
may need some more
factories.ˮ
– Bruno Van Sieleghem,
PR, Sustainability and Internal
Communication Manag er,
Stanley/Stella
The company has a liaison office in
Dhaka with a team of 16 people and
Bruno is quite happy to source from
Bangladesh. Sourcing from Dhaka
was a choice at the beginning, as
Jean Chabert, Founder and CEO of
this 6 year-old company (previously
associated with The Cotton Group,
B&C brand) has deep roots in
Bangladesh. He strongly aims at
changing the rules in the fashion
industry and puts sustainability on
the top of the charts.
Stanley/Stella was ranked 10 by
textile exchange in organic cotton
consumption and the company
wants to become a leading company
committed to a more sustainable
textile industry. It is associated
with Fair Wear Foundation, GOTS,
OE 100, OE Blended, Oeko-Tex,
and REACH.
www.apparelresources.com | JULY 1-15, 2018 | Apparel Online India
57