Recently, Esquel Group announced plans to invest in Penang. Insiders say that the reason for this move is probably soon to be concluded Malaysia-US FTA.
General Manager Loo Lee Lian had said a press meet that this FTA had the potential to attract not only reinvestments but also new investments in the garment industry.
Talking to Fibre2fashion, Joseph Liao, Marketing & Communications Senior Manager, clarified, “We are not shifting manufacturing from China to Penang. We are moving some of the manufacturing processes to Penang to make garment manufacturing more efficient.”
As for bringing their focus on Penang again, Liao says, “Esquel Group and its owners started investing in Penang in the mid 1970's.”
He adds, “This particular factory has had continuous investment and improvement since its founding, therefore we do not see our most recent plans as ending a long break in investment.”