Tuesday, April 01, 2008 Garments makers to boost sales
CEBU has maintained its position as a favored destination for the manufacturing of high-end garments.
With local garment exporters leveraging on the upscale market class, Cebu Garments Industries Association (CIGA) founding member Samson Tiu said Cebu is still the manufacturing and designing site for popular international apparel brands, driven by the highly skilled workers and designers in the garment industry.
Among the branded apparels manufactured in Cebu are Calvin Klein, Adidas, Tommy Hilfiger, Nike, Nautica, Abercrombie and Columbia Sports Wear, among others.
“There are still so many brands under ladies’ wear that are made in Cebu,” Tiu said in an interview with reporters recently.
In the past, some clothing lines of famous the ladies’ brand Victoria’s Secret were made in Cebu, but the company has already pulled-out its Cebu outsourcing operation, Tiu said.
However, he said Cebu’s garment industry remains competitive despite the challenges faced by the entire export sector, largely due to the appreciation of the peso against the dollar. Economists predict that the peso-dollar exchange might reach the P38-level by year-end.
Tiu said despite the volatility of the peso, a lot of sub-contractors of global brands are still operating at the Mactan Economic Zone, contrary also to the impression that subcontracting jobs for these kind of businesses has already been transferred to China.
However, he said compared to previous years, the sub-contracting works for garment manufacturing has declined.
While the local garment export players recognize China’s lead in capturing the bulk of the world’s offshore market for garment manufacturing, Cebu always has its edge in terms of the brand owners’ requirement for upscale quality and design, Tiu said.
“Quality workmanship is still our strength and unbreakable niche. We have to capitalize on this,” he added.
Vibrancy
Driven by this optimism, Tiu said CIGA is determined to revive the “vibrancy” of the organization and boost the confidence of the remaining garment exporters despite the looming problems faced by the country’s export industry.
Because the United States market is on a downturn brought about by its economic problems, he said CIGA will now intensify its presence in alternative markets, like Europe and India, where both countries are well-known to have a market of big spenders.
Tiu, who is also the general manager of Stitches and Wear Industries, also said that the Filipino’s “competitive spirit” has paved the way for a growing number of homegrown garment brands, like Penshoppe and Bench, among others, venturing into the international market.
He said the local market has been affected by globalization and other issues but there are businesses competing with the international brands and have managed to survive.
This is why Tiu said CIGA’s advocacy will center not only on attracting new members to the organization but also to promote among the garments industry players the value of being resilient amid the difficulties faced by the export sector and to help promote the Philippines as a niche for high-value manufacturing. (MMM)
