Hela Clothing, a leading end-to-end apparel supply chain solutions provider in Sri Lanka, recently received a glowing accolade in the form of the Best Exporter Award, for apparel in the medium category, at the Presidential Export Awards 2021. The award was accepted on behalf of the company by A. R. Rasiah, Chairman – Hela Clothing.
Expressing his pleasure, A.R. Rasiah, Chairman – Hela Clothing, said, “It is a great honour to have been recognized at the national level for our efforts to drive Sri Lanka as a preferred destination for apparel manufacturing. Early on in our story, we embarked on a journey to become more than a simple cut-and-sew manufacturer and evolve into an end-to-end supply chain solutions provider to our global portfolio of customers. Today, we are seeing those efforts bear fruit.”
“Driven by our core values, we have built strong relationships, diversified our operations, ventured beyond our borders and established ourselves as a sustainable and socially responsible apparel manufacturer. These values laid the foundation for what became our roadmap to navigate the unprecedented challenges of the pandemic. Our agility in those early days has helped us to reach greater heights today and continue our ability to deliver exceptional value to all stakeholders,” he added.
As Hela Clothing sits on the cusp of the next stage of its growth story, the company is focused on building strategic partnerships to help strengthen supply and value chains. This process is already underway as Hela Clothing has expanded its manufacturing operations into countries in Africa, in order to leverage the strategic logistical advantages of these destinations. Through such initiatives, the company is reducing shipping times and creating more responsive and resilient supply chains.
The ceremony, which was held at the BMICH, was organized by the Export Development Board and is considered the most prestigious national-level award for exporters in Sri Lanka. Winners are required to meet the most stringent and rigorous standards for excellence in the export sector with proven documentation of those achievements. This year’s awards programme considered the performance of export industries during the financial years 2019/2020 and 2020/2021.
Hela Clothing provides manufacturing solutions to some of the world’s top apparel brands including Tommy Hilfiger, Calvin Klein, Michael Kors and VF Corp, through its 11 manufacturing facilities located in Sri Lanka, Kenya, and Ethiopia. As part of its global expansion strategy, Hela Clothing has also entered into partnerships with manufacturing facilities in Tanzania and Mozambique.