Separate from its natural beauty, one tiny island off the southeast coast of Africa is making big noise about its manufacturing capabilities.
Participating in what was an 80-strong company Africa pavilion at Sourcing at MAGIC in Las Vegas last month, seven manufacturers from Mauritius touted their duty free trade relationship with the U.S., which has become ever more vital to American buyers still hoping to make margins in a price-pressured market.
“Mauritius has already established itself a solid international reputation as a reliable supplier of quality and competitive apparel,” said, Arvind Radhakrishna, CEO of Enterprise Mauritius, the country’s export promotion agency. “When it comes to apparel and textiles, as the days go by we see that there are more buyers looking for alternative sourcing destinations. They want to shift from China and a lot of them want to look at Mauritius.”
For Firemount Denim Co., a Mauritian exhibitor at Sourcing, being vertically integrated has helped ease buyers’ minds about speed to market. And beyond that, its competitive advantage has earned it long-term relationships with companies like PVH, which manufactures Tommy Hilfiger and Calvin Klein product with Firemount.
The company has been in business for 26 years and now produces denim from cotton to garments, making more than 700,000 pieces a month, with an annual turnover of $100 million.
Read more at Sourcing Journal.
