Priya - Garments
Priya - Garments
INTRODUCTION
The Garment Industry of India is an Rs -one trillion industry. Almost 33 % of its knitwear
production and about 20% of its woven-garment production, both by volume, enters export
markets. Overall about 25 % of the volume of its garment production goes into export markets,
The Industry covers over one lack units and employs about 6 million workers, both
directly and indirectly in almost equal proportion. The indirect portion helps to sustain the direct
production sector in the shape of items associated with the garment industry production
including sewing/embroidery thread, buttons, buckles, zippers, metal plates, cardboard sheets,
Organized sector of the garment industry is roughly 20% of the total industry,
concentrating chiefly on exports. These are usually limited Companies while the rest are
Geographically, men's garments are largely produced in western and southern India
while production of ladies garments predominates in North India. Eastern section of India
The industry manufactures over a 100 different types of garments for men, women and
children. These includes overcoats/raincoats, suits, ensembles, jackets, dresses, skirts, trousers,
Fabric constitutes 65 to 70% of the cost of production with labour making up a further
Retail trade in India is spread over department stores, hyper markets/discount stores and
specialty stores. A number of shopping malls have sprung up all over the country, especially in
the metros. Due to this, land prices have spiraled. Attention now shifts to "B" class, "C" class
entrepreneurs resulting in a steep rise in family incomes and making available increasing levels
of disposable income in their hands. This has helped to increase purchase of garments but has
limited this purchase due to rise in prices of food grains on account of unseasonable weather.
The benefit of economic reforms has percolated down to rural areas coupled with the spread of
education.
In fact, some of rural areas enjoy a life-style comparable to or even better than that
enjoyed by Urban flock .For the last several years, 9 to 10% of the disposable income goes into
the purchase of garments and textiles in items like house-finishing, drapers, tapestries and the
like.
Export of garments and accessories from India are routed to all corners of the world.
However, the USA, EU and Canada together account for 70% of world exports. Markets in Asia,
Africa, East Europe, Australia, New Zealand and countries in the Pacific Ocean account for the
rest.
December 2004, limiting exports of textiles and garments from India, there was a 25% spurt in
exports of garments in the following year. This has since slowed down to around 10%. A number
of supplying countries from Asia have come into existence, notably, Bangladesh, Vietnam,
Srilanka, Cambodia and Pakistan resulting in cut-throat competition in the supply of popular
India has had to adopt innovative practices by upgrading the quality of product in order
to sustain (leave alone increase) her market share in the world community. In recent years,
appreciation of the Indian Rupee vs.US $ and the downslide in US economy has had a
restraining effect on garment exports from India, but the industry is now coming to terms with
the development.
As a labour-oriented industry, the activity in production and marketing has now shifted
to Asia with India and China being leading suppliers as well as markets for garments.
Chapter-II
INDUSTRY PROFILE
India is the world’s second largest producer of textiles and garments after China.
It is the world’s third largest producer of cotton—after China and the USA—and the
second largest cotton consumer after China. The Indian textile industry is as diverse and complex
as country itself and it combines with equal equanimity this immense diversity into a cohesive
whole.
The fundamental strength of this industry flows from its strong production base of
wide range of fibers / yarns from natural fibers like cotton, jute, silk and wool to synthetic /man-
made fibers like polyester, viscose, nylon and acrylic. The growth pattern of the Indian textile
industry in the last decade has been considerably more than the previous decades, primarily on
account of liberalization of trade and economic policies initiated by the Government in the
1990s. In producer-driven value chains, large, usually transnational, manufacturers play the
production, while marketers and merchandisers exercise the main leverage in buyer-driven value
chains at the design and retail stages. Apparel is an ideal industry for examining the dynamics of
exporters in the third world. Apparel is an ideal industry for examining the dynamics of buyer-
There were various stages - from a historical perspective - where the textile
industry evolved from being a domestic small-scale industry, to the status of supremacy it
currently holds.
The ‘cottage stage’ was the first stage in its history where textiles were produced on a
domestic basis. During this period cloth was made from materials including wool, flax and
cotton. The material depended on the area where the cloth was being produced, and the time they
were being made. In the later half of the medieval period in the northern parts of Europe, cotton
During the later phases of the 16th century cotton was grown in the warmer climes of
America and Asia. When the Romans ruled, wool, leather and linen were the materials used for
making clothing in Europe, while flax was the primary material used in the northern parts of
Europe.
New innovations in clothing production, manufacture and design came during the Industrial
Revolution - the new wheels, looms, and spinning processes changed clothing manufacture
forever. The ‘rag trade’, as it is referred to in the UK and Australia is the manufacture, trade and
distribution of textiles.
Nature of skill gap in garment industry:
Skill gap can be defined the gap between required level of knowledge and skill to do a
particular activity and the existing level of knowledge and skill to accomplish the work.
Alternatively it can also be identified by the gap in the demand and supply of skilled workers at
Skill gap may be at varying levels in different sort of activities in a garment unit.
Further skill gap can be found at different hierarchical levels of an organization, example at
operative level, supervisory level, middle management level, and senior management level. So
remove the skill gap at various levels, different strategies should be adopted.
Profile of Readymade Garment Industry In India
While presenting the profile of RMG sector in India, this chapter also presents profile
of the target centers identified for the proposed Workers’ Service Centers in the project.
The textile industry including readymade garments occupies a unique position in the
Indian economy. Its predominant presence in the Indian economy is manifested in terms of its
exchange earnings.
The RMG or also called as the apparel sector is the final stage of the textile value
chain and the maximum value addition takes place at this stage. In India RMG industry is
fragmented and pre-dominantly in the small/scale sector. Therefore, the sector is low investment
employment to the rural population, as this sector does not need sophisticated skill sets.
The RMG industry contributes around 8 per cent of India’s exports, 7 per cent of
industrial output and is the largest employment generator after agriculture. It contributes about
14% to the industrial production and about 4% to the GDP. It has immense potential for
employment generation particularly in the rural and remote areas of the country on account of its
The contribution of this industry to the gross export earnings of the country is about
37% while it adds only 1 – 1.5% to the gross import bill of the country. It is the only industry
which is self reliant and complete in value chain i.e. from raw material to the highest value added
products i.e. garments/made ups. As a corollary to this the growth and promotion of this industry
Production Units –Garment production units in India are spread across the country
The clusters are also specialized in terms (a) types of garments manufactured
(either woven or knitted) and (b) variety of products produced (i.e. Men’s Women’s of
Children’s). Major manufacturing centers (19) are Kolkata, Mumbai. Tirupur, Indore, Banglaore,
Chennai, Okhla, Gurgaon, Noida, Jaipur, Ludhiana, Bellary, Kanpur, Ahmedabad, Jabalpur,
for 95% of total production of the country. Almost 92% of total units situated in the following 12
Idappadi-637102,Salem dealing in various types of men casual shirts and trousers. The casual
wear brand from the house of Tee enterprises is sure to emerge as an instant hit with Young
India. Trendy casual shirts and innovatively designed jeans including fashionable washed denims
Taleta formal Shirts Fashion and style in bottom wear takes a whole new dimension
when denim styling and chinos fabrics come in unison. Casual shirts, a range of highly stylized
cotton trousers offers you a new range of clothing for the youth.
Casual shirts
oriented youth who care for nothing but the best in clothing. Taleta
affordable pricing.
Taleta
start a cult with its styling and washes. Coordinated with trendy
market. Over the years, it has successfully established its footprint across a wide spectrum of
categories from fabrics to trendy casual wear, semi-formal and formal wear to finely crafted
Premium wear.
Tee’s credentials are both an achievement and a pointer to the excellent prospects
for the future. Tee’s financial strength and tremendous Corporate goodwill is the envy of many a
company. It is the largest manufacturer of blended fabrics in India. Tee is the Creator and Owner
it a strong competitive advantage. Years of experience and domain knowledge gives Tee’s an
muscle in the marketplace .Tee Enterprises has professionally managed woven/knitted garment
manufacturers in India, which has got a high technical caliber in both woven and knitwear,
Tee Enterprise takes a lot of care in ensuring all its manufacturing units are socially
& technically conformed to requirements of it’s clients. Over the period, our manufacturing units
have been audited by various agencies/NGOs. Its factories are SA-8000, WRAP certified, which
Apart from fresh orders, we are also dealing with left over stocks available in the
Clothing industry is highly fashion driven in western world and most of the
innovative designing takes place in foreign land done by fashion designers of foreign buyers.
Production takes place in Asian countries like India and China. Indian garment industry is not
very technologically advanced. Evidences show that very limited investment is done in
technology up gradation to improve productivity and product quality. It is still skill driven.
Skills
In times of cut throat competition continuous up gradation of skills if also must along
with modernization of plant and machinery. Along with modernization there arises need for
skilled workers to run the hi-tech machines efficiently, understand the modern production
quantity, many firms in industry are hesitant to expand their scale of operations or enter into hi-
(1) To understand the problems and prospects of Ready made Garment industry in the context of
employment.
(2) To understand the skill requirements of the industry to equip workers for upgrading their
(3) To understand the living conditions of the labour force in the centre, their lifestyles, needs
(4) To provide opportunities to the labour force in the area for capacity building and improving
their employment potential, better their quality of life, and encourage them for forming their
organisations for addressing to the common goals of attaining better and secured living.
(5) To carry on garment business anywhere in India and/or elsewhere the business of
drappers and dealers in cloth of all types and every description to act as tailors.
(6) All types of readymade garments all dresses made up of natural synthetic or blended
clothing include:
their export oriented units. This has allowed them to achieve large scale in terms of labour
force employed in each manufacturing facility and reap the benefit of scale economies and
use the latest advanced machinery from developed countries. India, in contrast, because of
fragmentation of units and small scale (to avoid labour laws applicable to employees above
100 and procedural biases and rigidities), has purchased relatively less of such advanced
machinery.
though the national highways are improving, this is not true of connectivity to
all sources and destinations. The turn around time in major ports of India and movement of
cargo between ships and source or destination within India is still plagued by monopolistic
bureaucratic structures with little accountability and incentives for efficient service delivery
India‘s textile products, including handlooms and handicrafts, are exported to more
than a hundred countries. However, the USA and the EU, account for about two-third of India‘s
textiles exports. The other major export destinations are Canada, U.A.E., Japan, Saudi Arabia,
Republic of Korea, Bangladesh, Turkey, etc. In the post-quota period, India has emerged as a
major sourcing destination for new buyers. As a measure of growing interest in the Indian textile
and clothing sector a number of buyers have opened their sourcing/ liaison office in India.
Commercially, the buoyant retailers across the world are looking for options of increasing their
Only 16.9% reported 8 hours of work, and 22.3% said they worked for 9 hours. Half the
However, they had no complaints about working more hours, as they were paid
overtime rate for working above 8 hours.39.9 % worked in shifts.Therefore,41.9 % said they
voluntarily worked overtime, as overtime rate was double, as reported by 33.1%. 39.9% had
weekly off, while 57.4% did not. This was as they were on contract or temporary, hence they did
toilet(98%),drinkingwater(100%),washingfacilities(87.2%),restroom(88.5%),crèches(73%),lunch
room(98%),work breaks(100%).
Almost 98% of workers reported that their factory managements had a health and
Safety Committee and safety officer, though they did not perceive any serious safety hazard in
their workplaces.
About 40.5% said that their managements had set up Committee for preventing sexual
harassment in their workplaces, with a woman heading the committee. However,91.2% of them
said that they had not perceived any case of sexual harassment that needed action by the
committee, though one respondent reported being harassed at work by her supervisor.
She too did not envisage taking any action to redress her complaint, and said that she
reported to her supervisor, who handled it discreetly. Most workers appeared to have cordial
Though 26.4% said they did not have any training at workplace, and 38.5% did not
respond at all, 35.1% reported to have received training at their workplace. Besides,91.2% were
Yes 52 35.1
No 39 26.4
However, during interviews they mentioned that they had neither the extra money to pay
for the training, nor the time to take break from work, as all these courses were held during the
day time. There were extremely rare cases where the employer sponsored the courses and were
gracious enough to allow the worker to take a break for the required skill training.
responded to a questionnaire sent to them:
Though this was collected for a separate study on contract labour in RMG
industry, also conducted by the AILS, it was felt that it would provide interesting inputs to
understand the overall working of the industry as it has evolved in the present set-up. Some
a. Wages/salaries
b. Hours of work
e. Overtime/shifts
f. Absenteeism
g. Labour Turnover
i. Contract workers
All the brand retailers stated that there is a positive change at ground level due to
awareness created by multiple stake holders including the Brands. Initially they found that many
suppliers did not have the basic requirements as time but eventually the BSCI standard can be
a. Minimum Wages are guaranteed with timely and transparent payment procedures. Wages at a
minimum wage level is a first request and has to be met. However they still find some suppliers
b. Most retailers opined that working hours are very much controlled and mostly within
allowed limits.
However, they were also aware that hours of work / overtime / shifts is a difficult
subject to improve, and they have many suppliers where workers work more than 60 hr/week.
They are also aware of the link between buying practices and working time, but admitted that
c. Basic health and safety conditions are improved in a big way. Work places conditions are
often a problem found during audits, but also get improved on a big scale. Improved worksite
applicable laws. Application & adoption of legislation is a general issue in all producing
countries, this is why even BSCI audit results show non-compliances. This is not something we
e. Due to control on working hours, overtime work is also controlled and shift culture has
started. Reduction in overtime if was excessive, and improved systems giving workers right to
decline is observed. Increased attention is being paid to ensure better work hours management.
f. Absenteeism is still a challenge but has improved over the years. So also labour turnover
g. Workers have become aware and they are aware of their rights and privileges.
Workers’ rights definitely get improved in many companies, especially after the CAP advises the
h. However, this is a difficult issue to really convince the management. Better protection of
rights given workers have contracts if did not have before or more legally compliant contracts.
i. The BSCI does not specifically look at labour turnover; however, it might be noticed
during an audit and written down in the audit report. One retailer reported observing reduction in
worker turnover but has not yet seen documented evidence in India.
SWOT ANALYSIS
Strength:
Attributes of the person or company that are helpful to achieving the objectives.
6. Third largest cotton producer as well a the largest area under cultivation
Attributes of the person or company that are harmful to achieving the objectives
1. Fragmented industry
7. The export-import policy of India changes too frequently due to which it becomes very
difficult for importers to import goods.
4. Large Indian Expatriate community. Hence there is large demand for Indian Garments.
Threats:
Competition will not only increasing in international or export market but also in domestic
market. With removal of cap on non export sector, large textile mills are stepping into domestic
hosiery sector. For example
Also, there is threat of imports of cheap hosiery products from countries like China and
Bangladesh. India is already importing cheap woven garments from China. In times to come,
hosiery products may be imported from China.
In last few years developed markets have seen extensive development in the for of
increased consciousness on issues such as use of polluting dyes, usage of child labor, unhealthy
working conditions.
This is putting pressure on industry to follow international labor and environmental laws.
Regional alliances:
Regional trading blocs plays very influential role in international trade in the form of
preferential duty structure.
For example :
Mexico having free trade agreement (FTA) with US and Canada has edge over India and
China. This will continue to dominate the international trade equation even in the times to come.
CHAPTER-IV
FINDINGS
The prevailing answer to the first question are that this is done by the enterprise
management. In the survey the two question purposefully follow one after another and the
difference in the answer indicates that the question are not misunderstood. It seems that early as
the order is placed, the contractor provides further subcontracting for certain activities or under
certain condition
Label are sewn onto clothes in almost all enterprises. This is not the case in small
workshop. At the same time, there are other small firms whose only activity is sewing labels. For
example there is a firm in the town of Gotse Delchev, in which about 10 workers are only sewing
labels onto clothes, packaging them and dispatching the production of several workshop from
neighbour villages. It is surprising that in a big enterprises like “bulfanco”, labels are not always
sewn.
How much is work is done for the company? Just one operation, such as embroidery, or
Home workers usually perform one operation only (see above). In enterprises this is
different at the first level of subcontracting in bulgaria (receiving an order from abroad) and
mainly in big enterprises, there are cases when the sample of the garment is provided and the
entire manufacture has to be done by the enterprises –cutting, sewing, trimming, ironing,
The enterprises itself may decide to further subcontract home workers or other
enterprises to perform some of the operations. In the majority of cases, however, in medium-size
and small enterprises, the fabrics are received pre-cut it is only the sewing that has to be done.
The follow up operation (trimming, packaging) can also be subcontracted to home workers or
firms.
Are there different agents (intermediaries) /subcontractors/home workers for each new
There are variety of cases with intermediaries. Some enterprises, mostly the big
ones, work with one intermediary for all order- usually this is a trade company that is the only
one maintaining contacts with various international buyers (“brilliant investors” AD-Sofia for
“Brilliant” AD Sofia and Plovdiv, “contex Druzhba “ Ltd.- Sofia for “Druzhba Style” AD Varna
etc.).
How many suppliers are there to a particular manufacturer?
The delivery of materials and accessories are usually done by the contractors. There
are some cases of delivery materials by a third party- “Vida style” receives orders from spain,
materials from Portugal, and produces and exports for the US.
It is very seldom for Bulgarian firms to deliver the materials and accessories. An
interesting trend is being observed with the settling in Bulgaria of leading textiles firms. Thus a
This is how the italian textiles company “Mirogilo” with 4 textile enterprises in the
country has acted and has started the production of a garments collection of their own with the
brand MOTIVI.
There are two types of units operating within the garment industry .
1. Manufacturers:
yarn), design developments, cutting operation, folding & ironing (sometimes), packaging and
These proprietorship units are closely held by the members of the family. Integrated units
(very few in the industry) undertake other operations like knitting (for knit garments)
2. Jobbers:
Involved in knitting, stitching, embroidery, accessory fixing, ironing, processing etc. There is,
however, few number of cut –to-pack jobbers operating in the industry. They obtain orders from
However, sometimes even manufacturers undertake jobbing operation after obtaining fabric and
1 Formal 19%
2 Casual 54%
3 Style 17%
4 Other 10%
TOTAL 100%
Vinayaga garments has created a notable place in the minds of the people.
But new arrivals of various other brands have really shaken its market in an expected
manner.
But better services like after sales service, free service, customer relation will
retain the existing user in the same brand.
This can be successfully carried out only by rendering services in a satisfying manner.
If it is properly executed then the company will be ranked first in the market.
Thus the behavioral changes of customers before and after the purchase of
Outfuits is based on the new trend and design
Most of the respondents are satisfied with the Vinayaga garments products.
Less charge and the quality and the trendy collections are three major parameters in
demand.