International quality, Asian prices
Laguna Clothing produces top quality shirts for menswear brands like Thomas Pink, Tommy Hilfiger and others. Managing Director Sarbajit Ghose tells Meher Castelino how the company has leveraged its factories in India, Madagascar and Mauritius.
Some 60 km from Bengaluru is a state-of-the-art shirt-making factory that produces the most amazing shirts for top global labels. It was the coming together of Tessitura Monti SpA, Italy and Aquarelle Group, Mauritius that gave birth to Laguna Clothing in India, the company that owns this factory.
Laguna Clothing, with an annual capacity of 6 million shirts, produces top quality apparel for the world's best menswear brands like Thomas Pink, Tommy Hilfiger, Hackett London, Dressmann, Mango, Charles Tyrwhitt - Jermyn Street London, and more. The shirts are in the latest styles with an emphasis on fabrics, designs, collars and cuffs that match international levels of quality and production. The company has a credible customer service base with marketing platforms in India, Mauritius and Italy, besides dedicated teams for merchandising and product development. A network of agents covers major markets, and exhibiting at PV and Milano Unica is part of the company's marketing programme.
The integration between Tessitura Monti India and Laguna Clothing acts as a vertical that provides a one-stop solution where there are quicker product developments and lower lead times for bulk repeats. At the same time, Mauritius and Madagascar provide the supply chain with the integrated CFL Mauritius. An express service is available through tie-ups with Far East fabric mills.
Excerpts from a tête-à-tête:
What is the USP of the shirts made by Laguna Clothing?
The USP of the shirts is the exceptional quality and unbeatable value for men's formal shirts. We provide European quality at great Asian prices and have access to fabric collections from Monti and other European as well as Indian mills. Besides that, exclusive ranges can be created at the Monti studio in Italy and CFL mills in Mauritius should the need arise for special fabrics.
Tell us about Laguna Clothing.
Laguna Clothing LLP is a 50-50 joint venture between Tessitura Monti, Italy and Aquarelle Group, Mauritius that was started in 2006. It is an ultra-modern setup that offers the best in design, production quality and fabrics to the top brands for men's shirting in the world.
Tessitura Monti is a century-old Italian leader, well known in the premium shirting fabrics and has its headquarters near Venice, with manufacturing units in Italy, the Czech Republic and India. It has an annual capacity in India of 12 million metres. The Indian mill is in Kolhapur with state-of-the-art facilities like design studio, dyeing, yarn / fabric testing labs, yarn storage, IT-based infrastructure, along with water treatment and effluent treatment plants.
The Aquarelle Group is part of CIEL Textiles, which has 20 factories across India, Mauritius, Madagascar and Bangladesh producing premium shirts, sweaters and fine knits.
Which are the foreign brands for which you manufacture shirts?
Apart from the listed brands on the website, we make shirts for Polo Ralph Lauren, North Sails, Brax, Bugatti, Nicestuff, Harmont & Blaine, Berkeley, Moss Bross and Tiger, Hugo Boss, De Fursac, Thomas Pink, Charles Tyrwhitt Jeremy Street, Marks & Spencer, Benetton, Sisley, Lacoste, Brooke Brothers, Dressmann in India. In Madagascar, it is Dillards, Cremieux, Amazon, Espirit, Woolworths, Express LLC, Devred SAS, John Craig, MatalanMaurley, Sacentro SA. In Mauritius, we supply to Suitsupply, Orvis, Ermenegildo Zegna, Celio, Lozio, Thomas Dean, Savile Row Company, Wills Lifestyle, Louis Philippe, Luxure by Louis Philippe, Massimo Dutti, Untuckit, Sandro, Cortefiel, Superdry, Ike Behar, Men's Wearhouse, Woolworths, Dillard's Murano and Rodd & Gunn.
The three factories cater to different brands. In India we produce 5,000,000 shirts per year, while in Mauritius and Madagascar we produce 1,000,000 shirts each per year.
How strict is the quality control? Who handles it-the brands or Laguna?
Quality control is very strict; we rarely have complaints or returns. We have a separate department under a CSO (customer satisfaction officer) who makes the final check on the garments as per the AQL (acceptable quantity limit). Customers can also use external agencies for a final audit. Very few brands have their own third-party auditors.
What is the staff strength in the three factories? How many machines are there in these factories?
The workforce across the three factories is around 4,000. We have around 1,500-1,600 machines across all factories with India having 800, Mauritius 400 and Madagascar 400. The machines comprise the best like Juki, Kannegiesser, Veit, Nagai Shing and Brother. There are engineered workstations using folder stackers and special purpose machines. The operations are managed through ERP from order to shipping and we have in-house textile design development capabilities.
Where are the fabrics and other raw materials procured from? Are those specially woven?
As a vertical setup, we procure fabrics from Tessitura Monti. We also source fabrics from various mills in India like Vardhaman, Raymond Zambaiti, NSL, Morarjee, Arvind, Soktas and Ashima. In China, we source from Lu Thai, Youngor and Lianfa. We also get fabrics from Italian mills like Monti, Leggiuno and Canclini. For trims, we source mainly from India and Hong Kong. Trims and accessories are from Wendler, Chargeurs, Freudenberg DHJ, Permess and Kufner Interlinings.
Yes, sometimes the fabrics are specially woven. When there is demand from a customer for fabrics with mélange or Tencel, we have them specially woven.
Are styles provided by brands, or does Laguna Clothing have a designing cell?
Yes, we have a designing cell, which offers product specification, fabric and designs to the brands. We also receive styles from the brands depending on their requirement. It works both ways.
What are the advantages of having three factories in three countries? What is the turnover?
India benefits because the Monti mill is in India. Mauritius and Madagascar are duty-free to both the US and Europe. Post-cure non-iron shirts are currently produced only in Mauritius and Madagascar. The turnover for all three factories is ₹600 crore, which works out to India with ₹370 crore, and both Mauritius and Madagascar with ₹230 crore.
What are the quantities that the different brands ask for?
We have customers providing us business ranging from 20,000 to 10,00,000 pieces annually, which is a mix of small, medium and large volume customers.
What are the environmental-sustainability measures that you have taken?
There are several eco-initiatives that Laguna Clothing has undertaken with respect to energy, water and waste management. One of the projects is that of working closely with global retailer Marks & Spencer in implementation of their Plan A, which is its own initiative on responsible sourcing, reducing waste and helping communities. In 2014, Marks & Spencer certified Laguna Clothing as a Plan A compliant factory, which is an endorsement of its green initiatives. Besides this, Laguna Clothing supports and respects the protection of internationally proclaimed human rights and follows relevant national laws and regulations for labour practices. Laguna Clothing maintains a healthy business relationship with not only its customers, but also suppliers.
How many styles, colour ways and sizes are produced for each brand? Is the production seasonal?
We normally do 600 pieces per colour per style and the sizes range from XS to 2XL. We have classic formal shirts, which are made of fine count 2-ply cotton with Italian finish. We also use Giza and Pima yarns as well as world class interlining buttons and threads. The styles are classic, slim and tailored fits and we have a library of collars and cuffs; our fine stitching can go up to 21 SPI. For the semi-formal washed shirts, we use compact fabrics, wash treatments, embroidery and have other special features. For the non-iron shirts, it's easy care, pre-cure and garment dip.
We normally follow seasons based on the customer calendars, which is normally 2-4 seasons per year but a bestseller customer has six seasons. The price range is $49-200.
What are the different certifications that Laguna Clothing has?
We are ISO 26000 certified, and hold certifications like Sedex, Flocert, GOTS, Oeko-Tex and Higg Index.
How do you handle global competition?
When it comes to international competition, we aim to provide shirts of exceptional quality and unbeatable value to the world's top retailers and brands.
How long does it take from order to delivery of the garments?
Normally, the lead time is about 90 days. We also execute express orders in 60 days for select fabrics. If it is transit by sea to Europe, then 25 days, and to the US 35 days. By air it is five days. The delivery of garments from India is four weeks, while from Madagascar and Mauritius it is 5-6 weeks.
What are the plans for the future?
The plan for Laguna Clothing includes a new production facility at Ranchi next year, which will be a green factory with an annual capacity of 4 million shirts. Laguna India is also planning to start post cure non-iron shirt production. Laguna Mauritius and Madagascar are planning to double production in the next three years.
What has been the growth story? What is the target for the next couple of years?
We have been growing steadily at 15-20 per cent. Our target is to double up capacity in the next three years and start non-iron shirt production in India.
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