Liz Claiborne to increase China sourcing

US clothing retailer Liz Claiborne, maker of brands such as Juicy Couture, is to increase its China sourcing to up to 80 pct by 2010, following the lifting of quotas on Chinese apparel imports in 2008, the South China Morning Post reported. The company’s senior vice president Robert Zane was cited as saying that China now accounts for 25 pct of Liz Claiborne’s global sourcing of apparel and accessories, which is worth more than two bln usd annually.

Speaking at an apparel forum in Hong Kong, Zane was cited as saying that he expects to see massive consolidation in the global clothing trade and that his firm expects to reduce sourcing from 340 factories in 40 countries to 125 factories in 15 countries.

Liz Claiborne will increasingly source from large factories, each employing tens of thousands of workers while offering supply chain services besides manufacturing garments, according to the report. One such supplier is Hong Kong-listed Luen Thai Holding, which has extensive manufacturing and supply chain facilities in Guangdong province, the paper said. Following the end of the global textile quota system on Jan 1 last year, China’s share of the US textile and apparel market jumped to 27.7 pct from 20.3 pct in 2004.

29 March 2006