Brandix Apparel stronger after pandemic in Bangladesh
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Brandix Casualwear Bangladesh Ltd is aggressively continuing its digital transformation journey while constantly innovating its product portfolio amid multiple challenges after the pandemic.
Having started operations in its second factory in 2021, the company has ramped up about 50 per cent of the capacity, Sanuja Herath Chief Operating Officer, Brandix Casualwear Bangladesh Ltd told the Business Times in an interview in Dhaka recently. “We are now over a decade in Bangladesh after starting our first factory in 2010. Sri Lanka is focused on the fast, high-end, and highly technical products. We wanted to focus on more volume-driven businesses when we decided to expand and identifiy Bangladesh as the right place to do so.” This is when the company acquired a manufacturing plant in Cummila near the Dhaka Chittagong Highway. “It is situated in an export processing zone and is 110 km away from the airport as well as 130 km away from the Chittagong seaport,” Mr. Herath added.
Of the Bangladeshi exports, 50 per cent are apparel which accounts for US$45 billion as per last year’s figure and this is a sector that the government is focusing on developing. “With the economy and political stability, there is a consistency in policy which helps us to run our business,” Mr Herath added. He said apart from this, the other advantage that Bangladesh has is the relatively low manufacturing cost. “We also benefit from the utilities, and gas is the most used in manufacturing which is widely available in Bangladesh.”
He said to mitigate the risks in the country the company has heavily invested in the latest technologies, machinery, and innovation to bring the advantage of reducing the manufacturing costs to be competitive.
He said that Bangladesh is not competitive enough with the lead time, which is a disadvantage. Hence, the idea is to place more volume driven businesses in the country with higher lead times.
Mr. Herath added that Bangladesh can supply to India as it will be a bigger market in two to three years’ time.