Bangladesh has established itself as a reliable supplier prompting major luxury brands to increasingly outsource their products in Bangladesh as it continued seamless supplies during global supply chain disruption due to the Covid pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war.
Many top officials of leading brands are exploring the potential of Bangladesh’s ability to deliver. There is a clear indication that fashion world attention is slowly shifting to the South Asian economy.
A leading knitwear manufacturer based in Narayanganj confirmed that a high-powered delegation of Hugo Boss has visited our factory to find out business opportunities for outsourcing for the factory. He said they were satisfied with the operations of the factory, particularly the requirement of traceability. He was highly optimistic that Hugo Boss would be placing its orders with Bangladeshi suppliers.
President of the Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), was also optimistic about numerous international luxury fashion brands shifting their orders to Bangladesh from Vietnam and China. The diversion is mainly due to its capability of Bangladesh to continue timely supplies during the pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war. US fashion brands have started transferring their orders to Bangladesh as they find Bangladesh a reliable supplier.
Bangladeshi factories previously could not avail orders of jackets priced above $25 a piece, but now they are producing jackets, the Free On Board (FOB) price of each of which is $100.
DBL Group Vice-Chairman MA Rahim that his company is producing apparel for some luxury brands such as Ralph Lauren and Hugo Boss and was earlier sourcing from China. Prices of these products are five-six times higher than that of conventional ones as their raw materials are also pricier. The price per unit of these apparel items will be $200-$250 at the retail level.
Square Group is also doing business with Ralph Lauren, Hugo Boss, and Puma, according to company sources. Viyellatex Group is also one of the suppliers of Hugo Boss.
Bitopi Group is producing formal pants and denim pants for Ralph Lauren. A top official of the company said that the group is also in talks with Hugo Boss to start doing business with them. A number of Bangladeshi textile mills are now producing high-value fabrics for some luxury brands aiming to reduce import dependency and lead time.
American fashion company Ralph Lauren Corporation is one of the world’s largest fashion brands, which had stopped sourcing garment items from Bangladesh after the infamous Rana Plaza building incident in 2013. The fashion brand resumed sourcing from Bangladesh by reopening its Dhaka office in November 2019.
