32/APPAREL VIEWS BANGLADESH/MAY - JUN 2014

Bangladesh has become one of the most important

centres for denim apparel production and export

across the world. It is the second largest producer

of denim products after China, ships around 180 mn pieces

of denim jeans around the world annually. Diversion of

orders from China has opened up new opportunity for local

denim goods producers and very soon it will replace China

as the world's biggest denim exporter. Not only China, but

also some other rival countries including India, Pakistan,

Vietnam and Indonesia are also losing their market share

to Bangladesh for denim goods to the US and the EU

market. In fact, it has come up as the third most important

exporter of denim apparel to the US after Mexico and China

and second highest to the EU after China.

With thousands of small and big garment units in

Bangladesh, it is also one of the cheapest production centre

for apparel around the world centered in and around the

city of Dhaka and some around Chittagaong. In recent times

denim manufacturers are enjoying good export orders

mainly due to an increase in denim consumption across the

globe. The new export orders for denim goods have surged

by nearly 20 per cent. To meet the growing demand of denim

the existing players are going for expansion and upgradation

and many new investors are setting up large plants in the

country. A number of new spinning and weaving mills have

come up in the country and these include denim weaving

POISED TO BECOME NO.1 EXPORTER IN THE WORLD

mills also. While Bangladesh has traditionally been a fabric

importer, the emergence of these mills is changing the

equation for the exporters of fabrics to this country.

According to BTMA data, Bangladesh has 25 denim fabric

manufacturers, which produces 30 mn yards of denim a

month against monthly demand of nearly 60 mn yards;

needs to import 50 per cent fabric from other countries like

India, Pakistan and China. But the share of imported

fabrics is decreasing by the day as the capacities of

Bangladesh denim mills keeps on increasing every year.

The number of denim mills may go over 30 from 25 at

present by the next year.

Better quality and competitive price range more than 66

international brands includes Charles Voegele, G-Star, Jack

and Jones, Oliver, River Island, H&M, C&A, PVH and GAP

have turned to Bangladesh in the last couple of years for

denim product imports. In 2013-14, exports of denim

products to the US and the EU markets rose by

approximately 20 per cent.

Last year, the country's garment makers exported approx.

185 mn pairs of denim jeans in men's and boys’ category

to the world market including about 74 mn pieces to the

US and around 140 mn pieces of jeans to Europe. Already

an important player in the $60 bn plus global denim-wear

BANGLADESH denim industry

32/APPAREL VIEWS BANGLADESH/MAY - JUN 2014

APPAREL VIEWS BANGLADESH/MAY - JUN 2014/33

market, Bangladesh now export jeans and other denim

products worth more than $3.5 bn or worth Tk 25,000

cr annually mainly to these two markets. The growth

of exports of denim apparel to the US in the first five

months of 2014 is about 1.6 per cent and is expected to

rise further.

Bangladesh denim industry got off the ground nearly

two decades ago with mainly in mid and low segment

and continued with basic denims. But in the last couple

of years, some manufacturers installed capacity for

developing mid-range and superior grade denims. Now

industry has been upbeat about Bangladesh gaining

fresh grounds in overseas denim market with fashion

and high end products. Fashion denims like that used

spandex fibres are now being produced in the country

and the industry is going for valued-added dyeing,

finishing, coating and mercerizing in denims with laser

applications, replacing the age-old sand blasting.

The future of Bangladesh’s denim industry is bright as

global importers have realised that Bangladesh is not

only competitive in price but can also make hi fashion

denims. Hence, Bangladesh’s denim industry is poised

to enter a new era with massive expansion and significant

up-gradation buoyed by confidence of global buyers.

In line with the policy of updating its readers in general,

Apparel Views Bangladesh Editorial Team interviewed

cross section of the denim supply chain to know more

about the key trends, growth drivers and major issues

and challenges faced by the Bangladesh denim industry.

Their views are covered in next few pages

BY THE NUMBERS

MONTHLY DENIM PRODUCTION

30 mn yards

TOTAL INVESTMENT

TK 6,500 cr

ANNUAL EXPORTS

$3.5 bn

NUMBER OF DENIM MILLS

25

APPAREL VIEWS BANGLADESH/MAY - JUN 2014/33

The wide consumption of denim by fashion

connoisseurs globally has created a new opportunity

for Bangladesh, the second largest exporter of the

item after China. Demand is expected to grow at 4-

5 per cent over next five years. Denim will be the

next item to brand Bangladesh as it is capable of

producing a high quality product at competitive

prices. Bangladesh would make four in five denim

items for the European market by 2020.

34/APPAREL VIEWS BANGLADESH/MAY - JUN 2014

Many of our most loyal customers

are from Bangladesh, so we

have a long-lasting relationship with

them. In my personal opinion, the

Bangladeshi manufacturers that I

know are really smart, precise and

know well how to work and to

improve their production. They also

Alice TonelloMarketing and R&D ManagerTonello srl

have a strong focus on ethics and

innovation like us, that’s why we

work in really good symbiosis with

them. For our customers, this is

what makes the difference between

being just another supplier and being

a real partner.

Jeans manufacturing consumes lots of

water which is not eco-friendly. We

were always aware of the problem

and we do care about it. Since our

foundation, we have invested a lot in

research; the intent was to create

sustainable technologies which can

reduce to minimum the

environmental impact and risks for

the operators. An example of our

technologies combining these values

is Laser Blaze and our ozone washing

machine – ECOfree - for creating

vintage effects on denim and fabric in

general with a very low quantity of

water and no chemicals at all.

Sustainability and safety are the

present and future of denim. People

love to wear beautiful garments but

also want to wear healthy garments,

now more than ever. To compensate

this, we produce sustainable

technologies able to reproduce

manual and conventional dangerous

processes, maintaining the same

attractive look, while reducing to

zero the risks for operators and final

customers, reducing also the

environmental impact.

The competition from Pakistan, from

our point of view, depends on their

capacity of controlling production

costs to increase the total amount of

the treated garments. To remain

competitive, Bangladeshi

manufacturers have to invest a lot in

new sustainable technologies and

automation. This is the only way to

keep them updated in a market

changing really quickly.

In my opinion the government should

give some facilitations and benefits

to companies that are committed to

innovation and invest a lot in

sustainability. It is also a way to

incentivise sustainability itself. As

far as our company is concerned, we

have a really important project now

under development that, in my

opinion, will become the most

sustainable finishing system in the

world, able to replace many

dangerous and manual processes

unfortunately are already in use

in the industry

The technology what we have is

still not like Japanese but we

have covered many technologies in

terms of quality production.

Bangladeshi denim mills are really

trying very hard to reach maximum

Manik ChowdhuryManaging DirectorEastman Technocrafts Ltd.

level and for sure will soon achieve

overall world appreciation. Jeans

manufacturing consumes lots of

water, which is not eco-friendly. As

a technology manufacturer we have

opted two methods: 1st Method

with Soko Chemica from Italy.

We have excellent technology from

Soko Chemica from Italy; they

have created a new stone wash

technology that is drastically

reducing the water consumption.

Thanks to a brand new method,

the garments are stonewashed

without the traditional bath of

water, achieving a very beautiful

result in terms of look and water

saving. In fact, for the full process

only few liters of water per

garment are used; achieving a

great vintage look, with a more

authentic look, full and soft touch

of the denim, with a better 3D and

maintaining a cost similar to the

traditional stone wash systems.

This method is an exclusivity of

Soko Chimica Italy, represented in

Bangladesh by Eastman

Technocrafts Ltd, Bangladesh.

2nd Method: By Brongo Washing

Machine L4200*. Also further

development in terms of eco-friendly

and saving water by using our

Brongo washing & dyeing machine

from Italy. As we informed you

before, we redesigned the L 4200

model to be more eco-friendly. We

decreased the water consumption for

traditional treatments reducing to

the minimum all the empty spaces.

In the meantime Brongo Company is

developing a new way to transfer

some chemical products to the

garments. With this innovative

system we can reduce drastically the

water consumption to a few litres per

kg of denim.

In Bangladesh domestic market still

we are far from other countries but

within few years it might be possible

to get huge market share, and after

certain period of time Bangladesh will

not be importing denim garments

from outside. As I know most of the

jeans manufacturers are thinking for

local consumption which is already

tested and we already have seen their

quality but it is better than export

I n d u s t r y C o m m e n t s