Brandix and Ocean Lanka in US $ 20 million joint venture

MOU: Sri Lanka’s apparel sector giant Brandix will collaborate with Sri Lanka’s largest knit fabric manufacturer Ocean Lanka to invest US$ 20 million in a joint venture knit fabric mill at the Brandix Apparel City (BAC) in Andhra Pradesh, India.

Ocean Lanka is a joint venture partnership of Fountain Set (Holdings) Limited, Hong Kong, Brandix and the Hirdaramani group.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed in Colombo by Brandix CEO Ashroff Omar and HA Chung Fong, Chairman, Managing Director and Founder of the Fountain Set Group, the major shareholder in Ocean Lanka, envisages the establishment of a state-of-the art manufacturing unit.

Incorporated as Ocean India, the mill will serve the needs of apparel manufacturing units in BAC and will be the largest knit fabric mill in the South Asia region.

Commenting on this new venture, Brandix CEO Ashroff Omar said: “Ocean Lanka’s interest in investing in the BAC is a validation at the highest level of the potential for this mammoth apparel manufacturing city. Major international apparel manufacturers and other supply chain partners have expressed interest in setting up at BAC.

The presence of one of the world’s largest knit fabric manufacturers meets one of the biggest requirements of these stakeholders and underwrites the success of the project.” Fountain Set Chairman and Managing Director HA Chung Fong said: “The BAC is one of the most exciting new manufacturing locations in the world, and we are pleased to go in with a partner of the calibre of Brandix to set up this new manufacturing unit in India.”

Ocean Lanka is the latest supply-chain partner to join BAC, contributing to the Park’s proposition of a complete vertically integrated solution.

The joint venture agreement between Brandix and Ocean Lanka was signed just three weeks after an agreement between Brandix and the Hayleys Group to set up a US $ 15 million central logistics hub for the Apparel City.

Based on an innovative ‘fibre-to-store’ concept, BAC is the first of its kind in South Asia, with capabilities in spinning, fabric, accessory and apparel manufacture supported by services such as centralised logistics, training facilities, laboratories and other ancillary requirements, making it a fully-integrated one-stop-shop.

Brandix pioneered the concept of total solutions in the Sri Lankan apparel industry and is Sri Lanka’s largest exporter with a consolidated annual turnover of over US$ 320 million. Its corporate philosophy is to deliver innovative products from concept-to-shop, faster, better and at competitive prices.

Brandix has pursued an aggressive growth strategy to counter the challenges of the post quota regime. Over the last three years it has invested USD 66 million (LKR 6.6 billion) and in the last year alone the Group has invested more than USD 25 million (LKR 2.5 billion) to expand its Sri Lankan operations, with investments of US $ 35 million (LKR 3.5 billion) in the pipeline.

A joint-venture partnership of Fountain Set (Holdings) Limited, Hong Kong, Brandix and the Hirdaramani group, Ocean Lanka is Sri Lanka’s largest weft knitted fabric manufacturer.

Fountain Set, the major shareholder is one of the world’s largest circular knitted fabric manufacturers, supplying to over 40 countries to internationally renowned retail brands.