There is enormous potential for developing clothing brands in the domestic market as the economy of Bangladesh is growing first and people here are getting more fashionable keeping up with the global fashion trend, said Reaz Uddin Al-Mamoon, managing director of Epyllion Group, one of the leading apparel exporting entity of the country. ‘Right now our domestic apparel market is not so big but the market would be lucrative for the international brands within next five to 10 year as the purchasing capacity of our people is increasing day by day,’ he told New Age in an exclusive interview at the Group’s corporate office at Tejgaon in the capital. Mamoon, who has developed a local brand named Sailor, thinks that this is the right time for setting strategies for the domestic apparel market. ‘If we fail to develop market strategy, obviously global brands would grab the opportunity as our people are becoming fashion conscious,’ he said. Sailor has opened five outlets in the capital, Dhaka, with products of garment wears, shoes and ladies’ bags. ‘It is a big advantage for the local businesses that we are familiar with the taste and culture of the vicinity and this is why some of the companies have started to develop local brands.’ To gain the opportunity of growing domestic market, the country’s apparel exporters will also have to pay attention to the demand of local people and the manufacturers will have to promote designers and merchandisers on priority basis, Mamoon said. ‘Though the domestic market is not so big yet but it will expand as our boys and girls are becoming more fashionable through a number of television channels and the size of middle-income group is getting bigger,’ he said. Mamoon thought that there were lack of efficient designers, merchandisers and office bearers for the local market and if the country failed to develop human resources, it would be difficult to manage the local demand after 5-10 years. To develop human resources, the Epyllion managing director suggested necessary changes in the national curriculum. Epyllion Group started its journey in 1994 and is now operating 16 concerns across the country, of which seven are knitwear factories and three textile industries. The Group produces apparel products for global renowned brands such as C&A, M&S, G-Star, H&M, Ceilo, Original Marine, Next and S Oliver. Over 90 per cent of its exports go to Europe while 8 per cent to the US market. ‘We concentrate on the EU and the US markets for export and considering the size of world economy we have lots of scopes to explore more ground in the markets,’ Mamoon said. For the sustainability of the RMG sector, Bangladesh will have to concentrate more on the markets as the US and the EU are the world’s largest markets and the US imports cloths worth more than $300 billion a year while the EU more than $350 billion a year, he said. ‘Till now we are producing basic items for the markets and we have more potential to cater to high value-added products for the markets,’ Mamoon said. On the present situation of the country’s readymade garment sector he said, ‘The sector got a good shape in last three years, but it still lags behind in terms of research and development, most important issues for sustainability.’ ‘Without R&D and investment for more strong marketing the sector cannot be sustainable,’ Mamoon said. Increasing efficiency of the industry was one of the key components of sustainable industry and industrial engineering is a must to do this, he said. But unfortunately IE is mostly absent in the country, the Epyllion managing director said. Amid growing demand for gas, electricity and water, the industry would have to introduce latest technology for the maximum utilisation of limited resources, Mamoon said. He identified devaluation of the US dollar, poor infrastructure, energy shortage and lack of skilled manpower as challenges for the export-oriented RMG sector.
