Garment work orders coming back slowly
With the reopening of outlets of key clothing merchants and brands in the EU and US, the inflow of work orders at local garment factories has been increasing, albeit on a restricted scale.
Local factory owners said most of them are functioning at 80 per cent capacity as the buyers are coming back with work orders.
The apparel suppliers also said the quantity of fresh work orders is much less as the buyers are either reclaiming goods already created or executing old work orders.
Therefore, the inflow of fresh work orders continues to be not at the expected level although they will be hoping that the problem would improve further at the end of this calendar year if the coronavirus pandemic can be controlled.
Garment makers now fear that retail revenue found in the EU and US will decelerate again if a brand new wave of an infection spreads at those major export destinations.
A slump in sales under western culture for any reason will have an effect about the inflow of do the job orders for Bangladesh.
The large units have been receiving a handsome level of work orders however the country's small and medium apparel companies remain suffering.
Suppliers said they might manage to achieve in least 80 per cent of their focus on for exports by the end of this year if the existing inflow of work orders remains stable.
"Inflow of new work orders is definitely low. We are catering to good old work orders now. There will be a nearly 30 % gap in acquiring work orders this season compared to this past year," explained KM Rezaul Hasanat, chairman and CEO of Viyellatex Group, a respected garment exporter.
The outlets have been opening up little by little but the presence of customers continues to be thin due to Covid-19, Hasanat told The Daily Star over phone.
"Up till August, the current inflow of function orders will make due within my factories. But September onwards, the quantity of confirmed job orders is minimizing. I am negotiating with my potential buyers for new do the job orders," explained MA Jabbar, taking care of director of DBL Group, another leading garment exporter.
"The inflow of job orders is not steady now. I can achieve nearly 80 per cent of my annual concentrate on of export by the end of this year," he said.
With local suppliers on the point of begin full-scale operations, the number of new coronavirus patients in the US has increased by a lot more than 40,000 a day, especially after July 4, when restrictions on public activity were withdrawn to tag the country's Independence Day.
So this new wave of people in america might force its government to prolong the shutdown methods for retailers.
"More than 50 % of my goods will be shipped to Germany. So far, the inflow of do the job orders in my own factory is very good," said Fazlul Hoque, taking care of director of Plummy Fashions, a Narayanganj-structured garment factory.
Suppliers mailing garment shipments to Germany are within an advantageous position as they faced less purchase cancellations found in March, April and May.
Not only that, gleam steady inflow of do the job orders with their factories even amid the Covid-19 pandemic as the German market has been comparatively less damaged simply by the virus till date.
"I could achieve 85 per cent of by export aim for by the end of the year," said Hoque.
The major problem is that practically 100 western retailers and brands have filed applications seeking salvation from bankruptcy. Of the applicants, most purchase apparel things from Bangladesh, Hoque explained.
In the same way, Bakhtiar U Ahmed, chief procedures officer at Fakir Apparels, said his buyers had been now reclaiming their old orders. Therefore the level of new orders is normally relatively low now, he said.
Purchasers stated that they might not cancel any work orders however they would take the time to take items that have recently been manufactured, he said.
They will boost the level of new work orders after the old inventory was sold, he added. So by the end of this year you will have nearly 10 per cent lesser work orders when compared to same time this past year, he also said.
Mahmud Hasan Khan Babu, managing director of Growing Group, said he has an adequate number of job orders for knitwear things but in circumstance of woven things, he could not take on orders because he had a need to import fabrics, mainly from China.
So currently, he may execute 85 % of knitwear orders and make use of 60 per cent of the capability for woven, Babu said.
Tariqul Islam, managing director of most Weather conditions Fashions, said he closed his factory in March as he was facing an emergency of latest work orders from the buyers.
He shut down his unit which employed 473 workers as he was as well facing issues in paying bank loans as well.
Before closing his factory, he used to export goods worth Tk 50 crore annually. On the other hand, the worthiness of his exports dropped to Tk 37 crore in 2019 due to a slump in function orders at his tiny factory in Pubail.
Between January and March this season, he could export garment items value Tk 12 crore, said Tariqul, adding that he would reopen his unit again in September this season as buyers were coming back.
KI Hossain, president of the Bangladesh Garment Shopping for House Association, said native buying residences were facing an emergency of work orders because so many retailers and brands didn't prefer to travel to factories or carry meetings either nearly or any other third vacation spot, except Bangladesh.
"We are in an uncertainty right now," he said.
