MW Clothing from Nelson is discharging about 50 percent of its employees as the company is not able to survive competition posed by cheap imports flooding local markets.
Official sources of MW Clothing inform that about 16 full and part-time workers will lose their jobs next week.
Giving the reason for this lay-off, Mike Stevenson, Managing Director, cited cheap imports, especially from China for several years.
Decision will also affect a department store, H & J Smith in Nelson and Blenheim, which would be closed next month causing 54 redundancies.