CLOSE TO THE NEEDLE!!
How closed are your suppliers to your manufacturing
operations?
With the demand and pressure in the market specially in Central America to
deliver within two weeks, all of the trim and accessories vendors most be able
to supply your needs within one week of order placing.
For many years the suppliers have been able to maintain inventory in the region
based on projections provided by merchandising and/or customers in the USA. And
this has worked fine for those programs that use products in a repetitive
manner, but it really does not work for products that change with every order.
Products like labels need to be made in the region to be able to provide a quick
response, companies like Mayfair International and
Labels Industries have manufacturing operations in the region and
have hired TTS to sell their products (woven and printed labels).
With this new relationship our customers will be able to purchase from a local
manufacturer of woven Labels and Printed Labels their identification needs.
Labels Insdustries is located in El Salvador and they manufacture all types of
woven labels. Mayfair International is located in Choloma and they manufacture
printed labels.
We will soon be able to offer Heat Transfer Labels from INSTA Graphics as well
as their machines to place their labels in the garments.
We are now seeing a lot of new investment in the region to be able to
manufacture closer to the needle.
We believe that this investment tendency will continue and vendors will
consolidate to be able to service the market as it is required... You will find
a couple of examples in this newsletter of this new investments and
consolidations to get closer to the needle! enjoy...
Thread and Trim
Suppliers S. A. expands its sales force in Central America
To be able to
personally cover more customers and to properly follow up their request, we have
added a sales representative in Nicaragua and a sales representative in
Honduras.
 Oscar
Martinez is our new Sales Representative
for Honduras. He has a long experience in sales and administration and he
represents an important asset to our local sales tem. Oscar is an Electric
Engineer with special training in Telecommunications. When selling
telecommunication services Oscar was able to develop a good customer based in
the apparel industry located in Honduras. This will be a valuable asset for him
in this new professional path that he has chosen.
 Adlein
Gurdian is the newest member of our team.
She is in charge of sales and business development in Nicaragua. Adlein lived 12
year in Brazil being Portuguese her mother tongue. Her parents are from
Nicaragua so she also learned Spanish when growing up. Adlein learned English
and French as second languages. She is currently an honor student in her
University where she's earning a degree in Marketing and Publicity. We have
great expectation from the work that this dedicated young lady will bring to our
business development in Nicaragua.
In addition to our
expansion in our sales team we have added a person in customer service. We do
this to make sure that our growth in sales does not have a negative impact in
our service to our valuable customer base.
Yenny Sanabria
is in charge of Reception and Customer Service aid. She helps in Invoice and
Documentations duties and also helps in the areas of Sales and General
Administration in the office. We welcome Yenny as our newest member of our team.
At TTS we are very familiar with quick response to the needs of our customers,
and we put our best effort to service within 24 hrs of the orders.
With many customers that know how their orders need to be fulfill, we are able
to work with their information to bring inventory into our warehouses ahead of
time. Constant communication is vital to obtain our 24 hr service.
Our Mission is to help you in the process of sourcing your trims and notions for
your Full Package programs or your CMT Contracts. And be your local supplier for
those trims and notions needed in your programs.
Our Products:
Non Woven Interlinings, Buttons, Twill Tapes, Military Spect Tapes, Draw Cords,
Insert Elastic, Nylon Ribbon, Metal Snaps, Metal Logo Buttons, Grommets &
Eyelets, Plastic Snaps, Clear Elastic (mobilon tape), Zippers, Buckles, D-Rings
and Sliders, Hook & Bar, Heat Transfer Labels, Pocketing...
Wellstone, Grupo Karim's
To Build Yarn Facility In Honduras
Textile News
April 3, 2007
 The
Greenville-based Wellstone Group has entered into a joint venture with
Honduras-based Grupo Karim’s to build a state-of-the-art yarn production
facility in Honduras. Construction of the plant will begin immediately, and the
companies hope to ship the first product by the end of this year. The plant will
focus on producing 100-percent cotton and blended yarns.
 “Grupo
Karim’s and Wellstone Group have jointly served the growing Central American
customer base through its existing exclusive distribution arrangement,” said
Naiden Kremenliev, CFO, Wellstone. “The formation of this joint venture is a
logical outgrowth of that successful relationship. A yarn manufacturing complex
located in Honduras will allow us to serve our growing customer base in a more
timely and efficient [manner].”
Avery Dennison To Acquire Paxar
Textile News
April 3, 2007
 The Boards of
Directors of Pasadena, Calif.-based Avery Dennison Corp. — a developer and
manufacturer of pressure-sensitive labeling materials; office products; and
retail tag, ticketing and branding systems — and White Plains, N.Y.-based Paxar
Corp. — a developer of identification solutions to the apparel and retail
industry — have approved an agreement whereby Avery Dennison will acquire all
outstanding shares of Paxar for $30.50 a share in a cash transaction valued at
$1.34 billion. The transaction is expected to close by the end of 2007.
“Combining with Avery Dennison provides substantial benefits to our customers
while delivering compelling value to Paxar shareholders,” said Rob van der Merwe,
chairman, president and CEO, Paxar Corp. “In particular, the broader
capabilities of the combined company will better meet customer demands for
improved quality, product innovation and speed of delivery.”
 Customer benefits also include the combined companies’ ability to better serve
customers in Europe, Latin America, Asia and the Middle East due to
complementary geographic territories.
Avery Dennison and Paxar report they will develop an integration plan with the
goal of retaining systems and people from both companies, although overlapping
positions will be reduced.
WHAT IS PFP?
The Precision Textiles division of Precision Custom Coatings LLC (PCC) is
a pivotal supplier of nonwoven fabrics as well as coated, laminated and
multi-layered materials to the industrial market, serving manufacturers in the
bedding, automotive, healthcare, home furnishings, footwear, luggage, food
packaging, protective clothing, and a range of other industries. Precision
Textiles produces an expansive range of products from allergen-proof fabrics for
mattress and pillow encasings that are mold and dust mite impermeable to novel,
cost-saving pipe-liner fabrics that provide safe, simple solutions for mending
civil plumbing.
Our prime focus and competitive
advantage is centered on our talent for innovation. We have been selected by
many of the world’s leading end-use manufacturers throughout a gamut of
industries because of our ability to develop new and value-added fabrics that
provide solutions to our customers’ needs.
From integrated collaboration tools and rapid product development cycles, to a
highly skilled employee base, Precision Textiles’ knack for flexibility allowing
for fast response to changing customer and market needs.
Precision Textiles’ success lies in
partnering with end-use manufacturers to provide products that consistently
exceed their expectations at the best possible price. More than simply a valued
supplier, Precision Textiles assists customers in every aspect of the
manufacturing process, from research and Development through production and
quality control.
Precision Flame Protection (PFP) is a line
of fabrics developed to offer chemical-free options for mattress manufacturers
looking to produce a high quality, luxuriously soft feel in a safer, quality
mattress that meets the open flame U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC)
Federal Standard 16 CFR 1633.
PFP is a
fiber-inherent product, in that the fire retardant qualities are contained
within the fiber and do not require the use of additional treatments.
Under Armour
The apparel
strategist
There really hasn’t been much activity in the IPO market for apparel companies
over the past several years. With the supply side of the industry in a state of
flux and the retail tide shifting (to end up who knows where), the markets have
been hesitant to cough up the dough to subsidize the growth, and own a piece of,
companies in the business of making and marketing apparel.
But the past year saw a couple of new entrants to
the public markets, including Under Armour, with their skin-tight,
moisture-wicking athletic t-shirts, shorts, and other apparel. So far the
company has rewarded those who ponied up to get a piece of their action. Sales
growth has been explosive, earnings have been following along the same path, and
their stock has risen over 200% since their initial public offering. Is this
athletic company ready to run the marathon, or will they get “winded” as the
race progresses and growth becomes more difficult?
Business
Pretty much the “classic” apparel success story, Under Armour was started by
then University of Maryland football player, Kevin Plank. Cotton t-shirts were
the undergarment of the day...Plank made a t-shirt for himself out of high tech,
moisture-wicking fabric, then had some made for his teammates. Here we are ten
years later, and I doubt anyone who watches even a little sports on TV or has
been in a sporting goods store has not heard of or seen Under Armour.
The majority of their
business is their performance apparel for men, women, and children, accounting
for 91% of sales in 2005 and 83% for the first six months of fiscal 2006. Their
performance gear comes in three “temperatures” for heat, cold, and all-season,
and also comes in three fits: “compression” or tight fitting, a fitted athletic
cut, and loose. The men’s segment is their largest, with 68% of apparel sales,
while women’s accounted for 24% and children’s 8% for the first half of this
year.
Footwear is a new
business for Under Armour, and for the first six months of 2006 generated
revenues of around $15.5M. Accessories generated $7.5M in revenues last year and
$7.7M for the first half of 2006, and licensing generated $4.3M and $5.8M
respectively.
Under Armour
boasts wide retail distribution, with 8,700 doors worldwide selling
their goods...not bad for a ten-year-old company. Only a small portion, about
5%, of their business is outside the US, and they also have a direct-to-consumer
(and athlete) business that contributed 6% of their revenues in 2005. Last year,
their two largest customers were Dick’s Sporting Goods and The Sports Authority,
together accounting for 36% of revenues. They also sell to Modell’s, Cabela’s,
Hibbett, and many independent and specialty retailers.
Growth has
been nothing short of spectacular for Under Armour. Sales increased
14-fold from 2001 to 2005, and grew 50% in the first half of this year, with
substantial gains across all products and segments. Net income grew from $3.0M
in 2001 to $19.7M last year, and for the first six months of 2006 nearly
tripled. Their footwear business went from nothing to $15M in less than a year,
and the licensing and international markets have barely been tapped by Under
Armour.
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One
market... one region... one source. July 31 -
August 2, 2007