In Guatemala, a textile company with 53,000 m2 under construction is planned to be built.
CentralAmericaData's "Commercial Feasibility Studies" includes an up-to-date list of public and private construction projects that have submitted Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA) to the respective institutions in each country.
In order to reduce costs and take advantage of the country's geographical location, executives of the clothing manufacturing company confirmed that they will move two plants currently located in the US and Spain to Guatemala.
The announcement of the transfer of the factories' operations was made by Manuel Martos, representative of Nextil Group, in the context of the forum "Strengthening Regional Value Chains for Economic and Social Reactivation", organized by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the Government of Guatemala.
In Guatemala, a Korean business group plans to invest in the start-up of a fabric factory in the municipality of Villa Nueva.
The fabrics that will be manufactured in the new industrial plant will be specialized and will supply other factories in the region, informed authorities and businessmen of the sector.
According to directors of the Garment and Textile Commission (Vestex), Korean businessmen interested in investing have already visited industrial parks in the country to learn about the operations of other factories.
Under the brand of Tiendas Rechido, Corporación Megapaca opened its first store selling second-hand clothing in the city of Morelia, Michoacan.
The new store operating in the Mexican market will make available to the public 50 thousand garments and the business strategy of the business group is to enter the Mexican market as an environmentally sustainable fashion option.
After the impact caused by the covid-19 outbreak, Nicaraguan businessmen in the sector estimate that in the first seven months of the year the maquila industry have stopped exporting close to $300 million and have had to lay off some 6 thousand employees.
The drop in demand in the United States, which is one of the main destination markets for exports of clothing made in Nicaragua, explains part of the drop in income for companies operating in the country.
After 20 years of operation, Modas B.I. Apparel, a company specialized in the manufacture of clothing, decided to close its doors due to the economic crisis caused by the outbreak of covid-19.
The company operated an industrial plant that employed 800 workers and was located at Kilometer 8 of the Atlantic Highway, in the jurisdiction of the Department of Guatemala.
Against the backdrop of an imbalance in trade and restrictions decreed in several markets around the world, Central American companies in the garment business are operating and generating export earnings at levels that merely allow them to subsist.
Data from the Office of Textiles and Apparel, of the U.S. International Trade Administration, say that between the first half of 2019 and the same period in 2020, Central American textile exports to the U.S. decreased by 34%, from $ 17,593 million to $ 11,553 million.
Before the process of reopening the economy, the garment and textile export sector operated with 15 thousand workers, but with the elimination of some restrictions, the activity of the companies increased and now employs 45 thousand people.
After the demand for clothing fell in the world's main markets due to the health crisis, Salvadoran entrepreneurs are confident that in the coming months it is possible to recover part of the sales initially projected for this year.
The social distancing decreed due to the covid-19 outbreak caused consumer preferences to change in the main markets, as the demand for comfortable clothing to be at home has now rebounded.
Proquinal Costa Rica announced that it will reinvest $20 million in its coated fabric manufacturing plant, which is located in Spradling Free Zone Park in Coyol de Alajuela.
This reinvestment will allow the implementation of a new process within the plant that will increase its export capacity. The company manufactures coated fabrics for high performance markets such as hospitals, yachts, school buses, stadiums, airports and hotels, reported the Costa Rican Development Initiative Coalition (Cinde).
For the next few months, it is estimated that in the Guatemalan market, sales of men's pants will decrease by about 5% from the levels reported prior to the change in the business scenario.
Uncertainty over a possible second wave of covid-19 cases globally will prevent Salvadoran textile industry exports from recovering for the rest of 2020.
Official data show that from January to May 2020, El Salvador's exports in the textile and clothing sector amounted to $619 million, an amount that is 42% lower than the $1,072 million registered in the same period in 2019.
Considerable investments in the digitalization of operations, the closure of small stores and the expansion of the commercial area of the best located sales points, is part of the strategy that companies are beginning to implement in the new context of business transformation.
Managers of large corporations agree that several companies were already making progress in digitizing sales and operations, but the pandemic ended up persuading decision makers of the need to focus on online sales, and simultaneously accompany it with a plan to transform physical stores.
The impact that the crisis will have on companies related to the textile, leather and clothing sector in Central America is estimated to be explained, to a greater extent, by the expected drop in sales of carpets and curtains.
The "Information System for the Impact Analysis of Covid-19 on Business", developed by the Trade Intelligence Unit of CentralAmericaData, measures the degree of impact that the crisis will have on companies according to their sector or economic activity, during the coming months.
According to businessmen in the country's textile sector, as a result of the covid-19 pandemic, a reduction in work orders is expected during the second half of the year.
Representatives of the Nicaraguan Association of the Textile and Clothing Industry (Anitec), predict that with the closure of the stores of several of their clients, sales will be reduced considerably and inventory levels will increase.
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