South Africa is fighting to revive its ailing clothing industry. The industry contributes 3.3 % to the country’s GDP but it has been hit by cheap imports, shedding jobs and shuttering factories.
Christopher Kinross, the owner of Kinross Clothing, says staying open is a fight. Kinross, who has been in the industry for over 50 years, says he is battling cheap Chinese imports on one hands and international fast fashion brands like Zara and H&M on the other.
“Every time you go in to a Zara, there is something new for you. They attract the customer again and again and again, that the secret. We have tried to develop ourselves as a Zara type supplier,” says Kinross.
Smuggling is another challenge. The clothing and Textile Workers Union estimates that almost half of all clothes are imported illegally to avoid taxes. And in the last 20 years the industry shed around two thirds of jobs.
Government grants and loans have helped slow down the rate of job losses in the industry but is this enough.
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