After having its two manufacturing units in Myanmar, Japanese apparel retailer Honeys is expanding its base in the country as it is now considering the construction of third unit there. Currently its two plants are manufacturing around half a million pieces per month, which is about 20-30% of the company’s sales in Japan.
Honeys was the first Japanese manufacturer to start production in Myanmar. Also, it increased production lines at its second factory from 5 to 34. Its Yangon plant is producing shirts and jackets destined for Japan. The workforce at the plant has increased seven times and now it has 2,600 workers while it was only 300 in the beginning.
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Takeshi Iguchi, Head of the company in Myanmar said that it is not only the production capacity but even productivity, skill set of the workers that has increased significantly. This unit can produce trench coats, which needs high-level skill. Cheap labour cost is also one of the biggest factors attracting investment in Myanmar garment industry. MGMA (The Myanmar Garment Manufacturers Association) currently has 400 members, up by around 100 since 2015.
