Potential Disruption to Fashion Giants from Bangladesh Protests

Hennes & Mauritz, Uniqlo, and Zara might face setbacks in receiving their fresh apparel assortments due to the ongoing political unrest in Bangladesh.

These style merchants, along with numerous others, depend on the clothing factories in the nation, which have been indefinitely closed during the demonstrations, as per reports by Reuters.

In the wake of the resignation and exit of Bangladesh’s Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday (5 August) following a crackdown on protests that resulted in nearly 300 casualties, the situation has turned turbulent.

By the end of last year, Bangladesh was positioned as the globe’s third-biggest distributor of attire following China and the European Union, based on the data provided by the World Trade Organization.

Hennes & Mauritz articulated concerns regarding the circumstances in Bangladesh, where it acquires garments from around 10,000 factories.

Zara possesses 12 production hubs, with a focus on 98% of its manufacturing in 2022 – among which Bangladesh is included. Fast Retailing, the parent company of Uniqlo, procures from roughly 29 factories within Bangladesh.

This setback compounds the disturbances witnessed in the apparel supply chain due to the prevailing discord in the Red Sea vicinity.

Hennes & Mauritz had to halt certain spring/summer initiatives because of transport delays and is heightening endeavors to relocate manufacturing proximate and urging advance consignments from suppliers to diminish interruptions.

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