2023 sees 134 new RMG units despite global slowdown

Despite a global economic slowdown, Bangladeshi entrepreneurs came up with fresh investments in 2023 to set up some 134 new RMG factories to tap the growing potential of the thriving sector, according to industry insiders.

Most of these investors are new while some large players also joined the race to expand their business. A large number of these factories are supposed to come into production by this year.

Apparel-makers say there is a huge potential for Bangladeshi garments on the global market as many large global buyers are shifting their sourcing destination from China to other areas, preferably Bangladesh.

In some cases, buyers are moving to Bangladesh due to geopolitical reasons.

According to the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) membership data, Badsha Group of Industries, Pacific Jeans Group, Ha-Meem Group, Sadma Group, and Beximco invested in 2023 to diversify their exportable apparel items.

Among them, Badsha Group has invested Tk800 crore in its Pioneer Denim at Madhabpur, Habiganj, to set up a state-of-the-art unit with a target of $700 million export earning a year, said the group's founder Badsha Mia.

Under this project, they are constructing two buildings with seven floors as production units, two sheds for storage facilities and three sheds for dyeing and washing plants. 

The construction of a five-storey research and development building was almost complete. It already started a limited-scale operation with 10 lines on a floor from December last year.

"Production will start on a large scale at the unit in 2024 and the factory will create employment for at least 15,000 people. Currently, the group has created employment for about 25,000 people," Badsha Mia told The Business Standard.

He said they had a target to export denim garments worth $700 million a year by 2028.

Talking with TBS Md Khairul Alam Rabbi, head of HR, Admin and Compliance of Pioneer Denim, said they got the BGMEA membership last year. 

Pacific jeans, the country's largest investor in Chattogram EPZ, also invested $31.75 million in Pacific Attires Limited in the same EPZ.

The new factory will produce high-value formalwear such as suits, blazers, jackets, coats, pants, and casualwear, said Pacific Jeans Group Managing Director Syed Mohammad Tanvir.

"This new unit will create job opportunities for 9,000 people in the next three years. Once fully operational, this facility will boost our exports by $250 million," Tanvir said. 

Ha-Meem Group, one of the leading garment exporters, also invested in an outerwear factory.

Earlier, AK Azad, managing director of Ha-Meem Group, told TBS that while they initiated the outerwear project with three production lines in April 2023 and they have plans to expand capacity to 16 lines.

Azad noted that their strategic focus had shifted from garment capacity expansion to diversification, underpinning their business' sustainability in the foreseeable future.

Sadma Group Managing Director Md Nasir Uddin said they took three permanent memberships at the BGMEA in 2023.

Appropriate Apparel, a knit composite of the group, will employ 3,000 people and Mouchak Apparel, an underwear factory, will employ another 2,000 people.

Nasir hoped that by 2024 the group's total manpower will be 18,000 and its turnover will reach $250 million. The group's current turnover is $100 million.

Talking with TBS, BGMEA President Faruque Hassan said the Beximco Group got the highest number of factory memberships in the last two years.

"We are encouraging our members to invest in high-technology factories to produce diversified apparel to increase export growth," he added.

He said despite the slow demand RMG's growth gaining momentum, the industry is forward with a vision of $100 billion export by 2030 having "sustainability" at the core of our vision.

He said in 2022 and 2023, a total of 278 factories became permanent members of BGMEA, and 316 factories received provisional membership.