Focus on high-end apparel items needed for sustainable growth: BGMEA

BGMEA President Farque Hassan has said that apparel exporters in Bangladesh need to focus more on value-added, high-end apparel items, like technical apparel, as their demand remains high in the global market.

“The demand for man-made fibre (MMF) based garment items is on the rise in the global market and Bangladeshi apparel exporters should make use of this opportunity,” he said while addressing a meeting organised by Bangladesh Apparel Youth Leaders Association at Westin on Tuesday.

“It’s a good sign that orders from brands and retailers are coming to Bangladesh following the reopening of economies of the European countries and the USA and it would help Bangladesh RMG industry to recover from the pandemic fallout.”

“To make the business sustainable amidst the fierce competition in the global market, Bangladesh should aim to pursue a higher growth vision through diversifying textile material from cotton to non-cotton,” he added.

“Now is time to take a turn from quantity to quality, from volume to value,” he said.

He also invited foreign investment in Bangladesh’s non-cotton textile industry as production of MMF-based apparel will create demand for artificial fibres and other raw materials in the local market.

Mohammad Ali Khokon, president of Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA), Mohammad Hatem, executive president of Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA), SM Rashidul Islam, general secretary of Economic Reporters Forum, Rafez Alam Chowdhury, former president of Bangladesh Garment Accessories and Packaging Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGAPMEA), also spoke on the occasion.