swedish retail chain - Dhaka Mirror

H&M boss backs wage hike

Admin — Wed, 05 Sep 2012 16:08:49 +0000

H&M, the Swedish retail giant for clothing, yesterday suggested the government should increase wages for garment workers to help improve their living standards.
Chief executive of the company Karl-Johan Persson also asked for an annual review of the wages of the workers.
He spoke at a press briefing at Radisson Winter Garden Hotel in Dhaka. David Savman, chief representative of H&M in Bangladesh, was also present. Persson arrived in Dhaka on Monday.
H&M is increasing its business in Bangladesh by 10-15 percent year-on-year, said Persson.
“We have a long-term commitment to buy from Bangladesh. H&M is a responsible company; it is always careful about the workers’ wages,” said Persson.
“We met Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and suggested an increase in wages and a yearly wage review for the workers in the textile industry,” the H&M boss said.
He urged the government to consider an annual review of the local minimum wage that takes national inflation and the consumer price index into consideration.
“Since 2010, there has been an increase in the inflation rate,” he said. Food inflation hit 15.38 percent in April last year in the rural areas.
Since the minimum wage for garment workers was first introduced in 1994, it has been revised twice only, in 2006 and 2010, he said.
“If a proper review system is enforced, these revisions will help address the basic needs of the workers,” he said.
This in turn will help employers and buyers work together and focus on productivity, Persson said.
“We believe it is in the interest of the Bangladeshi textile industry, as well as in our interest, that the industry continues to develop into an advanced and mature textile industry,” he said.
Stable markets in which people are treated with respect, and where the workers are properly compensated by their employers, are of the utmost importance, he said.
“Bangladesh is an important market for H&M, which has been buying from suppliers in Bangladesh since 1982 and opened a production office in Dhaka in 1983,” said Persson.
Currently H&M purchases woven garments, knitwear items, home textile, under garments and trousers from nearly 250 factories in Bangladesh.
The company also outsources from China, Vietnam and Cambodia.
As a company with a clear commitment to workers’ rights and to doing business in Bangladesh, H&M looks forward to prompt action regarding the minimum wage issue and the question of annual wage reviews for workers, Persson said.
Founded in 1947, Hennes & Mauritz — popularly known as H&M — has around 2,600 stores across the world. H&M operates under five brands: H&M, COS, Monki, Weekday and Cheap Monday.
In November last year, McKinsey & Company, a global management consulting firm, said Bangladesh’s apparel exports could triple to $42 billion by 2020.
McKinsey also said Bangladesh’s high growth in the readymade garment sector would continue for a decade. In 2011-2012, Bangladesh exported garments worth $19.09 billion.

Courtesy of The Daily Star

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H&M purchase to double in five years

Admin — Tue, 04 Sep 2012 16:44:34 +0000

Swedish retail giant seeks to buy more garments from Bangladesh
H&M, the Swedish retail giant for clothing, will double its annual outsourcing volume from Bangladesh to around $3 billion within the next five years. The biggest outsourcing company for Bangladeshi garment items said they get products at competitive prices from the country.
Leaders of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) revealed the plan of H&M at a press conference at its office in Dhaka yesterday.
Karl-Johan Persson, chief executive officer of H&M, was present at the briefing.
Persson arrived in Dhaka yesterday on a two-day visit to discuss business strategies and to meet Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
“I am grateful to be here in Bangladesh. H&M has been doing business with Bangladesh for the last 30 years. We have a long-term commitment to Bangladesh,” he said in a brief speech.
More than 100 journalists from the local and international media attended the press briefing.
This is the second such visit by a chief executive of H&M. Earlier, the then CEO of the retail chain visited Bangladesh in 1999.
“We are increasing business in Bangladesh. We are discussing different challenges in garment business,” said Persson, who is leading a five-member team of senior officials from H&M.
The team will also visit several garment factories to oversee their production process.
Currently H&M purchases woven garments, knitwear items, home textile, under garments and trousers from nearly 250 factories in Bangladesh.
The company also outsources from China, Vietnam and Cambodia.
“I sell garment items worth around $2 million to H&M per month,” said Siddiqur Rahman, a vice-president of the BGMEA.
BGMEA President Shafiul Islam Mohiuddin said the leaders of the association visited the headquarters of the company last October.
H&M has a big contribution to the garment business in Bangladesh. “The H&M officials and BGMEA leaders discussed different opportunities and challenges for the growing garment business in the country,” Mohiuddin said.
He said the garment makers have made significant progress in safety and compliance issues at the factory levels as per the requirements of the international buyers.
The BGMEA is operating some hospitals and schools for the workers’ children as part of their corporate social responsibility, he added.
“We have the opportunity to grab more market share. But, we have to think whether we have the capacity to grab that opportunity,” he said.
Jyrki Tervonen, chief financial officer of H&M, KG Fagerlin, global production manager, and David Savman, country manager for Bangladesh, accompanied the CEO at the briefing.
Founded in 1947, Hennes & Mauritz — popularly known as H&M — has around 2,600 stores across the world. H&M operates under five brands: H&M, COS, Monki, Weekday and Cheap Monday.
In November last year, McKinsey & Company, a global management consulting firm, said Bangladesh’s apparel exports could triple to $42 billion by 2020.
McKinsey also said Bangladesh’s high growth in the readymade garment sector would continue for a decade.
In 2011-2012, Bangladesh exported garments worth $19.09 billion.

Courtesy of The Daily Star

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H&M chief to visit Bangladesh

Admin — Sun, 02 Sep 2012 15:35:33 +0000

Karl-Johan Persson, chief executive officer of the Swedish retail chain H&M, is due in Bangladesh tomorrow to attend important meetings with the readymade garment manufacturers and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
Three officials from H&M, including the chief financial officer and chief of global marketing, will accompany Persson for the two-day visit, said Siddiqur Rahman, vice-president of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA).
Persson will hold meetings with the BGMEA leaders and the prime minister, along with making factory tours, according to Rahman. “I cannot disclose specifics of his visit right now,” Rahman added.
“But the CEO will definitely discuss issues surrounding the RMG sector of the country, as Bangladesh is an important outsourcing destination for H&M — the company is increasing its purchase orders every year from Bangladesh,” Rahman said.
Moreover, the company is now carrying out some important corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities in collaboration with the BGMEA, which the H&M officials are scheduled to discuss during the visit, he added.
“A high-powered Chinese business delegation, too, is now visiting Bangladesh for investing in the garment sector in the country. The business delegation has already held meetings with its Bangladeshi counterpart on this matter,” Rahman said.
H&M, thanks to its annual purchases worth nearly $1.5 billion, has overtaken Walmart, the world’s largest retail chain, as the biggest buyer of Bangladeshi readymade garment products.
Founded in 1947, Hennes & Mauritz, popularly known as H&M, has approximately 2,600 stores the world over.
H&M operates under five different brands: including H&M, COS, Monki, Weekday and Cheap Monday.

-With The Daily Star input

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