10^th August 2021, Colombo: Hela Clothing, a global apparel manufacturer with factories across Kenya, Ethiopia and Sri Lanka, was recently presented with the 2021 Collaboration Award at the latest Tesco Non-Food Partner Conference. This is the third such international award won by the company from its customers in 2021 having received the Most Sustainable Vendor and Most Sustainable Factory Award earlier this year from both Tesco and ASDA respectively.

Hela Clothing has been a strategic partner of Tesco’s for several years. By proactively pitching new business creation ideas to Tesco, based on consumer insights, market trends and developments in technology, the company was able to open the doors to numerous product development possibilities for the retailer’s range of products in the kids category. This also demonstrates Hela’s willingness to go beyond the standard approach of being an apparel manufacturer in order to deliver innovation and excellence to its customers.

In addition, Hela Clothing’s recent investment in state-of-the-art 3D design and fitting capabilities has bolstered its ability to innovate, cut lead times and further streamline collaboration. For Tesco, Hela has implemented a direct-to-retail (DTR) model for licensed products from Disney intellectual properties in which the company acquires the license, creates the designs, manufactures the clothes, and ships them to the customer. Further facilitating this service is that Hela has received Facility and Merchandise Authorization (FAMA) from Disney thus allowing Disney branded products to be manufactured at the company’s factories. This DTR model is yet another service Hela offers that has made it a strategic partner to many of its customers.

Sanath Amaratunga, CEO of Hela Casual, said, “We are proud to be recognized as the leader in collaboration by Tesco especially given the importance of Co-Creation in this industry. Working closely with our partners along the entire supply chain is one of our greatest strengths and is the foundation of our success. We believe that these efforts ultimately allow us to provide sustainability focused disruptive solutions, adapt to rapidly changing market conditions and create greater value for our customers. This is why we have reinforced this belief with internal policies, dedicated teams to service brands backed by state-of-the-art technology.”

Hela Clothing is a US$250 million company that provides sustainability-focused apparel supply chain solutions. The company works closely with global brands, from design to delivery, in the intimate, sleepwear and children’s product ranges. With 10 factories across three countries and a workforce of over 15,000 across the globe, Hela leads the industry in ethical and sustainable working environments.