Large clothing retail brands start lining back at Sri Lankan doors

The Sri Lankan apparel manufacturing sector has started luring several new key overseas buyers, which includes big names such as H&M, in addition to the current M&S and NEXT, giving the industry a further boost.

Some of the world’s leading apparel buyers had shifted their sourcing towards low cost countries such as Bangladesh, Vietnam and Cambodia in the light of the global economic turmoil. However, high quality services levels offered by Sri Lankan manufacturers have not only enabled retaining current buyers but also attracted new buyers to the Country

“The sturdy growth shows that Sri Lanka Apparel’s overall offer is still relevant with our customers” said Channa Palansuriya, Managing Director of Orit Apparels and Chairman of Joint Apparel Association Forum’s (JAAF) Image Building Committee. “The strong relationships developed together with a stable economic climate are the main reasons for the buyers being attracted to our country” pointed out Palansuriya.

“The end of the war has also marked certain changes in the mindset of potential buyers. The target of the Sri Lankan apparel industry was a revenue of USD 4 billion by the end of 2015 but we have come closer to that target much earlier than planned and may reach it within the end of this financial year”, he noted.

Palansuriya went on to add that during the last financial year, the apparel exports had increased by 34% to European countries and by 22% to the United States. Other than US and European markets, Countries like Russia and those in Asia and Australia have imported our apparel which has generated more than USD 340 million during the period January to November 2011. The total revenue from apparel exports have been USD 3.8 billion during this period. This shows that Sri Lanka has managed not only to sustain but also maintain growth in the United States and European market, and also increase market share by 57 % in other countries as well.

“The decades long relationships we have built with our customers have helped move us from mere transactional to more strategic partnerships. So by adding more value we are likely to grow with existing customers and attract lots more new customers. H&M, the largest and fastest growing European apparel retail chain has over 2,300 stores in 43 countries and has annual revenue of 127 billion Euros. This year H&M has established a sourcing office in Sri Lanka in addition to current large buyers such as M&S and NEXT, which emphasizes the level of confidence placed in our industry” said an upbeat Palansuriya.

Sri Lanka’s exports to Europe continued to grow in spite of the recession and the withdrawal of GSP+ benefits in August 2010. In 2005, when the country gained duty-free status to Europe, apparel exports posted US $1 billion revenues in the year. In 2009, at the height of the recession, Sri Lanka’s exports to the EU stood at US $1.65 billion and in 2010, despite the negative sentiment created with the removal of the duty free concession, our exports maintained a higher growth level of 34% in the 1st 12 months of 2011, compared with the previous year.