STYLERS INTERNATIONAL

(PVT.) LTD

VISION

“US Apparel will become the world’s preferred denim garment supplier by
leading in technology, service and sustainability”

Group 1
Abdur Rafay (22110215)
Daniyal Mehmood (22110333)
Fatima Sohail (22110255)
Shanzah Yousaf (22110244)
Shahzeb Younis (21020355)
Safeer Ali Khan (22020136)
 Mission Statement

“US Apparel delivers everything fashion demands, reliably.”

This can be testified through the trust that the customers place in this company

which is because of the excellent product quality provided to them. This is the

reason that they continue to pool in more clients every year.

“Unlike other suppliers, US Denim constantly improves to remain state-of-the-art

in all its processes and as a product innovator, so that customers can be

confident in partnering with us to achieve fashion leadership”

A Brief Overview of The Company

Stylers International, a US Denim mill, located in Lahore, Pakistan is a fabric mill

that supplies denim to fashion industry companies all around the world that

demand no compromise on the quality of textile and provides fast delivery at

competitive prices. There are 6 manufacturing plants under the name of ‘US

Denim Mills’ in Lahore, with the sales and design offices located in the famous

world fashion centres, such as Istanbul, London, and New York. Collectively, this

industry is known as the ‘US Group’ which is short for ‘Umar Siddique Group’.

Company History

The US Group is a family-owned business with current revenue of three hundred

and fifty million US dollars (350 USD) per annum, with nearly 16,000 workers

employed. Their history and experience in the fashion industry traces back to

1976 when two friends; Mr. Javed Bhatti and Mr. Mian Ahsan ventured into

textile trading to finance their education. They started off with a mere 2 sewing

machines and used to work part-time. From the times when the machines were
left unplugged due to no orders to the times when there was an excess of orders

that led to the expansion of the business, the passion of the founders was kept

alive due to their will to be successful. Today, after nearly 4 decades, what

started as a small part time business venture has grown to an extent that it has

become one of the largest vertically integrated denim and garment

manufacturing group of companies in Pakistan, and continues to grow.

The current chairman of the US group is Mr. Javed Bhatti, with Mr. Mian Ahsan

being the current CEO.

 Product Portfolio

“Then, just over 10 years ago, we made the strategic choice to focus on denim,

and built the most modern denim manufacturing facility possible”

Stylers international specializes in denim fabric manufacturing and denim

production. They also produce chino pants, shorts, T-shirts, jackets and Casual

Shirts. Recently, they have even made their own outlets to sell their products

locally and gain footing in the local market by branding themselves, since they

usually engage in exporting.

“We designed our plant and operations to give the best brands everything they

could demand in fashion denim, and to deliver that value reliably. Ever since,

we’ve kept our technology and machinery up to state of the art, investing in the

best tools and bringing in industry experts to transfer the latest knowledge”

There are a total of 6 plants with the latest available machinery for the

production of pants in a fast and precise way. For example, a normal worker

usually attaches 200 pockets to their respective pants, whereas Stylers

international has a machine that attaches 300 pockets in the same time but in a

more precise way.

“US Denim develops partnerships with leading brands, working with them to

create new fabric possibilities, to explore production alternatives and to

constantly improve our quality.

We celebrate the clients who choose to continue inventing their new denim

fashions with us”

“It starts with efficient planning with proper risk analysis and analysis of

constraints. Then we speed the needed materials through our auto-order

system. Fabric is brought straight to our cutting tables so quality is assured at the

source. Chemicals and threads come directly from our suppliers’ local

warehouses. We have in-house leather patch and label printing, and, of course,

our in-house testing lab”

CLIENTELE
“We’re proud of the garments we create for some of the world’s leading

brands. We’re even prouder of the partnerships we’ve formed with them over

the years.”

Stylers International and the US Group is working with some of the prominent

international denim fashion brands that include Levi’s, Primark, H&M, MANGO,

MARKS & SPENCER, next, KIABI and numerous more. The Group is a vertically

integrated provider with the capacity to produce almost 28 million meters of

fabric and 29 million units of apparel annually.

“We know how brands benefit from collaboration on design, from close

attention to quality and details, and from our fixation on reliability. US Apparel

also constantly finds new and better ways to reduce lead times – both for

development and for production – to give our customers greater flexibility”

Stylers International knows what its clients wants. If the client is a major brand, it is

likely to only bargain for the quality and not quantity. In such cases, the profit

margin is quite high since they can demand high prices in exchange for

guaranteed premium quantity. In some cases, the customer only wants quantity.

In such cases, they gain profits due to the high volumes of orders.”
 SWOT ANALYSIS

STRENGTHS

Quality:

“US Denim is a vertically integrated provider with capacity to produce 24 million meters

of fabric annually. Next year we’ll grow to produce almost 40 million meters.”

Being a top-tier production company, Stylers International produces high-quality

apparels. Quality is one of the core things that the company competes on and high-

quality products provide Stylers International with a competitive edge in the market.

Being one of company’s core strengths, quality is a factor which is not compromised.

The company has effectively segmented its customer base in two segments.

The company produces low cost products for one segment while the other segment

demands high quality. The high profile clients of the company are provided with high

quality products, which not only gives Stylers an edge against the competitors in this

market, but also enable them to generate higher profits as these high profile clients are

ready to pay higher prices as long as the quality is up to the mark.

Costs of Production:

“Our advantages allow us to offer unbeatable value”

Cost of production is another strength of the company. Since cost is something that
companies of today compete on, Stylers manages to keep their costs of production

low, giving them an edge over their competitors. Keeping the costs low allows the

company to offer their products at lower prices, generating higher demand for their

products. By creating higher demand for their products, Stylers International manages

to achieve Economies of Scale and efficiency in production, enabling them to produce

at costs lower than the competitors in the market for this apparel.

Stylers International is usually able to keep their costs below the monthly targets, as

reported by the financial controller of the company, helping them in keeping the prices

low and competitive. Lower costs are a strength of this company as achieving

efficiency in production is difficult and any firm in the market that manages to achieve

that can not only generate higher profit margins, but can also grab greater market

share by competing on price.

Automation/Technology:
Availability of advanced technology and more automation “At US Denim, we
always invest in
is another strength of Stylers International. Stylers has
the best and
acquired advanced machines that make their production most modern
machinery for
more efficient, which has not only allowed them to increase efficiency,
quality and
production, but also reduce costs. The availability of sustainability, like
E-Flow
Advanced sewing machines, state-of-the-art Washing
technology –
Processes and automation on other levels makes the using nano-
bubbles for
company more competitive as these advanced machines application of
washes, dyes
are not usually found with domestic manufacturers.
and treatments --
Consequently, Stylers International gets more customers. enhancing
productivity,
saving”

“We’re known for our research, development and innovation strengths – both in

our fabric and in our garments production. And for our leadership in sustainable

production and use of Fair Trade and organic fiber, etc. Mainly, our customers

know us for our reliability and quality”.

 WEAKNESSES

Not at the most Efficient level of production yet

Even though the company is quite efficient with their production processes,

there still is some room for cutting costs. Stylers hasn’t managed to take

advantage of the most efficient level of production, due to which they cannot

reduce the costs of production to the potentially lowest level.

Time Wasted in Reconciliation for Deviations

As reported by the Financial Controller of the company, Stylers International’s

management reporting is in calendar years while the audits are based on

financial years. This results in a misalignment in the reported figures and a need

for reconciliation rises to account for these deviations. The reconciliation process

wastes precious time and resources, which could be utilized in other areas.
Supply Time of the Product

The head of productions department believes that the company must reduce

the supply time/transit time of the products and raw materials. With an inflated

supply time, the company bears extra transport costs, storage costs and a

higher time-to-market, making it slightly less competitive.

OPPORTUNITIES

New Markets:

Considering the type, quality and cost of products that Stylers International is

producing, there is an opportunity for the company to expand into newer

markets. Since Stylers is a large company with a large framework and high

capacity, they can afford to export their products to new markets. Countries

such as Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Australia are being eyed by Stylers

International since these countries have great and untapped potential, which

could serve the company with greater profits of it manages to effectively enter

the markets in these countries. Since these countries aren’t as hyped as the

usual American or European markets, the competition in these countries is

slightly less, providing Stylers International with an opportunity to grab significant

market share in these countries.

More Market Share:

As identified by several representatives of the company, the market for Denim is

growing internationally, as well as domestically. A growing market not only

provides an opportunity to multiply the existing orders but also to attract a better

mix of customers. The company participates in shows and exhibitions which are

good opportunities for the company to interact with potential clients.

THREATS

Increased Competition:

With the market for denim growing, the competition has also been swelling over

the past few years. This has made it difficult for the company to retain clients

and add new ones to the customer base. Increased competition has led to the

price competition becoming more intense, hence exerting pressure on the

company to reduce costs and operate on lower profit margins.

New firms entering this market has become a threat for the company and this

increase in competition must be dealt with strategically to retain the customer

base.
 Corporate and Competitive Strategy

A corporate strategy identifies the set of businesses, markets, or industries in

which the organisation competes and the distribution of resources among those

businesses. These include concentration strategies, vertical integration strategy,

concentric diversification and Conglomerate diversification.

By looking at Stylers International’s product portfolio we can assume that it

pursues a concentration strategy i.e. it focuses on a single business and operates

in a single industry. This business focuses on denim products such as jeans, shirts

etc and then sells them to various brands ranging from H&M and Mango to

TopShop, Primark, and Marks & Spencer. US Denim has effectively achieved

organic growth as a part of its corporate strategy and has expanded its

operations from Lahore to New York, Istanbul and London.

Competitive strategy, on the other hand, is defined as the long term plan of a

particular company in order to gain competitive advantage over

its competitors in the industry. In order to sustain success in a market, it is

important for a business to set up an effective competitive strategy. Stylers

International has kept its main focus on cost cutting recently. International

brands such as H&M, Levis, Next etc are facing a fall in their demands due to

high level of competition. As a part of stock clearance, they put items mostly on

sales and promotions. Since there is a threat to these businesses, they might be

forced to shut down in future if they don’t stay profitable. In order for them to
remain in the market, it is important for the business to keep its prices low so they

can continue to afford it and don’t shift to cheaper alternatives. So it is

important for Stylers to keep prices as low and affordable as possible. While

keeping a check at the costs so the prices remain low, they also need to

continue using the best quality material because quality is what gives them a

competitive edge over others. Compromising on quality could damage their

reputation and this is something they can not afford in such a dynamic and

competitive business environment.

Stylers International also excels in extremely talented human resource.

Recruitment process is very strict which tests communication skills, coordination

skills and the efficiency of problem solving of an employee. They even include

the assessment of leadership skills of individual employees. Managers employed

are inherently open-minded, curious, motivated, efficient solvers of an intricate

problem and trained in shaping and polishing employee’s skills to help them

reach their untapped potential. They are also keen learners and are persistently

searching for margin of improvement in their own competencies and skills. This

excellence of communication and coordination skills of employees and

managers assist Stylers stay aware of all the activities in the organization and

react swiftly to a problem. This does not only saves time for organization which

could be used to focus on other vital areas of the organization but also keeps it

cost-efficient. Other than that Stylers differentiation strategy to gain competitive

edge in market rests in its technological advancement. They have

technological edge in sewing machines which is expensive and internationally

imported. These machines sew cloths five times the speed of a traditional sewing

machines available to their competitors which provides them with efficiency of

time and larger quantity with quality preserved. This leads to greater demand for

their products in market, therefore, earning them higher profits

The business mainly focuses on two market segments. First one being the lower

and middle-class profile clientele. This segment prefers minimal quality, low cost

and high quantity products. Due to high quantity demand, efficiency is

achieved. Since a compromise on quality is acceptable, cheaper suppliers are

contacted for this purpose. Production in high quantity could also result in

economies of scale and the savings in cost could be utilised elsewhere such as

that for the second segment. The second segment consists of high profile

clientele who prefer quality over cost, hence, demand for expensive and high

fashioned garments. Any increase in costs faced due to the high quality

material are then covered by the highly priced products.

US Denim is currently in the fifth generation of the business which involves

producing cheaper and better: the best combination of price and quality. While

there are several businesses working in the same field, producing the same

product and trying to access the same market, Stylers has to come up with

something that would give it a competitive edge. In this regard, they are trying
to work in areas where they are more productive and they are doing this by

installing fully automated machinery and working on training of employees so

they are efficient and productive while working with those machines. For

instance, a machine does the stitching of around 100 pants in an hour and does

not stitch it’s outer pockets, leaving it to be done manually by a worker. Another

machine, which is more advanced stitches equal amount of pants but also

stitches its outer pockets automatically. The business could make a strategic

decision of replacing all of its old machines with this new one. Alternatively, it

could replace some of the machines, if not all. This would allow the worker to

spend time on some other task such as operating another machine and making

another batch of jeans ready. Any delays in deliveries could also be avoided by

this practice.

The business already has good sales and a wide customer base in three

countries; France, Germany and Spain. As a part of its corporate plan, it is

aiming to expand its target market to smaller countries where they see good

potential of gaining a wide market share. It is trying to break into Scandinavian

markets such as Denmark, Sweden, Norway and towards Australia too. Brands

here are already into this business but US Denim aims to capture this market by

offering them a lower price along with better quality. Seeing this as a great

opportunity, the business is currently working on the tactics it would use to

successfully enter the market.

On the other hand, marketing also holds great significance in maintaining and

improving the position of a business in the market. Effective marketing also helps

it to establish brand loyalty and a brand image that gives the product a unique

identity and sets up high chances of growth. At US denim marketing is done

through several ways such as promotions, advertisements, use of social media,

and a user friendly website etc. One of these is showing samples of the

produced cloth and finished products to the interested brands at international

exhibitions - three to four times a year - visited by a wide range of potential

customers. The products are displayed in appealing ways to attract as many

customers as possible. Designers then carefully examine the products and check

if it fulfils their requirements, and then proceed according to the decision made.

To maintain smooth and good relationships with the customers and in order to

retain them US Denim makes sure that their deliveries are on time. This would also

give them a competitive edge as delays in delivery can lead to production halts

and in such large firms, even small pauses could result in huge losses. Timely

deliveries are something that helps it gain its customer’s trust and be reliable

suppliers for them. Customer dissatisfaction could be extremely damaging

specially in today’s era when there are a hundred other options available.
 Organogram

Stylers international had a Board of Directors in the top management position.

Under the Board of Director comes the Managing Director who looks after

several departments such as Finance, Operations, Sales, Marketing, Utility and

Admin. On the other hand, there are internal auditors, who then have an

internal control team under them.

 Organizational Design and Structure

An organizational structure is a system that outlines how certain activities are

directed in order to achieve the goals of an organization. These activities can

include rules, roles and responsibilities. The organizational structure also

determines how information flows from level to level within the company.

Stylers International follows a functional organizational structure, which means it

is based on specialized functional areas such as IT, production, marketing and

finance. A hierarchy is a system in which members of an organization or society

are ranked according to relative status or authority. This organization has

different hierarchy systems according to the nature of their work, for example

production department have a long hierarchy from managers to supervisors,

followed by the production workers. Whereas some departments have critical

nature but they have narrow and small hierarchy system, like fabric

procurement consists of 4-5 people.

 Organization’s Authority Structure

The amount of authority increases with each level higher a person or

organization is in hierarchy. The ultimate power remains with the person or

organization at the very top of the hierarchy, with that position holding the

authority to make final decisions in all matters. The board of directors are at the

top of the authority structure, followed by a CEO. Under the CEO, there are the

MDs (managing directors) of the company whom the HODs report to. The HODs

are the head of departments, who are further assigned chiefs, for example, CFO

(chief financial owner) or the COO (chief operations owner).

Span of Control

The span of control, however differs department wise. It is the number of

subordinates that a manager or a supervisor can directly control. In this

organization this number varies with the type of work: complex; variable work

reduces it to six, whereas routine, fixed work increases it to twenty or more. This

exists in departments like marketing and production, where the senior managers

have more general managers reporting to them, unlike IT or HR who have less

number of general managers working under senior ones. Furthermore, in the

hierarchy there are deputy general managers assigned with supervisors in some

departments who have authority over workers or employees.

 Level of Decentralization

A decentralized organization is one in which most decisions are made by mid-

level or lower-level managers, rather than being made centrally by the head of

the company. It's the opposite of a centralized organization, in which all

decisions are made at the top. Here each level of hierarchy have different

levels of authority, where the top management takes decisions of critical

situations or about strategies at corporate level and HODs and MDs have a

wider say on the day to day decisions made. They do require feedback from

the lower levels of management but the final decision is done by the upper and

mid-level managers.

Therefore, we can say that Stylers International is decentralized, but to a certain

extent because some significant decisions are still made by the top

management only. Talking about management style or the employee

participation in business, we can say that employees are actually active and do

have a say in what is happening in the business. The HR department has kept a

feedback box in each department, through which all the employees

communicate to the top management. Their opinions, are noted and

considered while making a decision because they are sometimes seeing the

problems raised at first hand. This way both the employers and employees feel
motivated, and committed to the business. Employees feel sense of belonging

to the organization, and employer gets to make the final decision.

Analysis and Recommendations

Porter’s Five Force Analysis

1. Competitive Rivalry: Stylers International is facing an increasing

amount of rivals as more and more people are entering the ever-

expanding textile business. The rivalry is getting intense, so Styers

international must attract customers using competitive pricing,

combined with effective marketing campaigns. But most

important thing is to focus on establishing brand loyalty in order to

avoid losing customers as competition rises. This can be done

through effective Customer Relationship Management (CRM).

Also, in the market with lots of rivals, Stylers International’s suppliers

and buyers can go elsewhere if they feel that they're not getting

a good deal from them.

2. Supplier Power: Stylers is supplied the fabric by one of US group’s

own factories, so there is no incentive in increasing or decreasing

the prices by the suppliers, since its basically shifting profits from

one factory to another, while in totality, they remain the same. A

price change may even cause losses, since Stylers might choose

to shift to a cheaper supplier.

3. Buyer Power: As mentioned earlier, brands such as H&M, Levis,

Next etc are facing a decline in their demands due to high levels

of competition in the fashion industry. As a result of this, they put

items mostly on sales and promotions for clearance. Since there is

a threat to the supplier businesses, they might be forced to shut

down in future if they don’t stay profitable. In order to stop this

from happening, it is crucial for Stylers International to keep its

prices low so they can continue to afford it and don’t shift to

cheaper alternatives. Hence, buyers have considerable power in

demanding a fair price. However, as some brands only demand

premium product quality, these buyers have considerably less

negotiation power since their main focus is quality at the expense

of price.

4. Threat of Substitution: The likelihood of Stylers International’s

customers finding a substitute is less likely under the prevailing

conditions. The market image and trust that its buyers place in it is

pretty positive
5. Threat of New Entry: Stylers International's position can be

affected by the ability of others to enter the supply market.

Provided the ease of availability of the capital and machinery,

the path to entry is relatively easier for new entrants, although

they may not be able to maintain footing. It takes a fair amount

of money and effort to enter the textile market and compete

effectively, Stylers can preserve a favourable position even in

face of new competitors due to its brand name and image, and

take fair advantage of it.

 Analysis

The current management practices of Stylers international makes it a successful

firm. However, there are some misalignments in its practices that could be sorted

out to improve its overall performance.

In order to fully benefit from the new machinery, it is important for employees to

be trained as required by the manual to operate the latest machinery for

maximum productivity and cost minimization. The existing employees are not

properly trained, as they should be upon the introduction of new machines and

are expected to keep up to date about operating the latest machinery

themselves. In case, they fail to do so, the obsolete labor is removed and new

workers, who have knowledge of how to operate the machinery is hired.

Although this looks like a smart thing to do, it points to one very major concern.

The hardworking, loyal and star-performers are let go because they did not

know how to use the new machinery. This is a major loss for the firm relating to

the quality of its capital, as the new workers might have the required skillset but

might be under-performers.

This could also potentially cause the labor turnover of the company to rise,

imposing additional costs of recruiting and hiring, alongside the time and

resources wasted.
Hence, it is optimal to begin training programs upon the induction of new

technology for the existing labor. The initial cost of training would be high and

also take considerable amount of time but in the long term, these employees

would feel much more confident that would fulfil their need of self-actualization.

They would feel secure about their job which will help them work in a more

dedicated way. On the other hand, such perks keep them motivated and give

them a sense of belonging to the company, overall increasing their productivity

and leading to low costs in the future.

Secondly, since Stylers International is looking forward to entering into new

markets including Denmark, Norway, Australia etc., it is important conduct

thorough research in order to minimize the risks associated with entering new

markets. Failure to do so may result difficulties in achieving the set objectives as

in the external factors greatly affect the success of the business and if they are

not properly analyzed, entry into the new market could be risky.

Hence, the company should conduct a proper PEST analysis to consider the

Political, Economic, Social and Technological factors before entering new

countries. They should also assess the market carefully to identify what kind of

marketing and products would help them succeed and what potential

difficulties the business could expect in the initial years of operating in new

countries.
Producing cheaper products might mean that the business would have to

compromise on its quality. Doing this could lower its costs but also lead to a loss

of sales if the ‘quality conscious’ customers do not accept the low-quality

materials. Thus, this risk might drive the firm out of business if taken. Therefore,

Stylers International should focus on other methods of cost cutting, not just lower-

quality materials. It could do this by increasing the productivity of the

employees, providing them benefits that would motivate them to work towards

the corporate goals of the firm. Moreover, cost cutting could be done through

achieving different economies of scale, such as marketing economies, financial

economies etc. As it is already one big firm, it is able to benefit from lower

average costs due to bulk buying. More of these could be achieved through

combined marketing of its products and technical economies could also be

achieved by using efficient machinery.

The functional organization system encourages specialization which makes

Stylers International productive and the work is done efficient and effectively.

This not only provides them a competitive edge over their competitors but also

has operational clarity. The responsibilities and allocation of tasks are clearly

identified, this saves time because there is no duplication of tasks and employers

easily direct the message to appropriate employees. However, this results in lack

of coordination sometimes because the departments are isolated. Cooperation

between the departments is relatively less which leads to disagreements

between the HODs over the decisions to be made. Hence, the company should

improve the coordination between departments by cultivating a more

interactive environment, conducting job rotation exercises and other exercises

that could improve integration within the organization.

The assigned authority to each level of management helps to make decisions

on time because they are more aware of the problems in their respective

departments. Also they are more closely related with the consumers and

employees, so they better understand their requirements. The benefit of the

designed authority structure is that the critical decisions are only made by the

top management, meaning secrecy is maintained and HODs and managers

handle the other ongoing issues in the organization, making Stylers International

a well organized company, reducing conflicts to a greater extent.

Interview: Senior Manager Marketing

Mr. Raheem Umar

Q1) When did you join the company and how have you seen it grow over the

years?

Ans) For me It’s been around ten months in the company, before that I was in

CBM (stonage company). A little introduction about this company would be

that this company is one of the leading exporters of linen and has eight

factories. This is unit 7. The company is already providing levis H&M and other

leading brands. Different units cater to different markets, for example unit 1

caters to Primark, tesco, mothercare etc. Unit 3 and 4 caters to H&M etc. This

unit 7 caters to german, French and Spanish markets. In terms of growth, initially

this unit was doing smaller runs but overtime we have filtered out smaller

customers and stick with bigger customers such as KABI, it’s a French customer

and we are doing 4million garments a year for them. Overall capacity our unit

capacity is 700,000 a month. Thus overtime, we have switched our focus

towards customers to which we provide more volume. Let me clarify, if a

company is working on its full capacity, that means that its working on its break

even point. If we can extract profit from it when its working on its full potential

that for me is growth.

Q2) How will you define the corporate goals of the organization?

Ans) The corporate goals of the organization are that we have to start a new

market. We are trying break into scandavian markets such as Denmark, Norway,

Sweden etc also towards Australian markets.

Q3) Strategy to achieve this goal?

Ans) We’re in the fifth generation of business. Which involves lower prices. In

order to succeed you have to deliver the best product in the cheapest price.

We are trying to work in the areas where we are more productive. We are

installing fully automated machines which increases productivity and decreases

cost.

Q4) Is your decision making decentralized?

Ans) In our company there is a proper hierarchy system. In the top management

level they make management decisions such as where to buy goods from or

suppliers etc. Then comes the lower management (general manager), they

make decisions like making new products or making more of the same products

to get more profits. Then comes the senior manager level, who is more involved

in day to day business such as decision regarding dispatch of samples or goods

etc. Then comes deputy managers, assistant managers and so forth. They make

decisions regarding quality control and things such as colors stitching etc.

Q5) How are you managing the employees?

Ans) We have HR department, we have admin. The employs activities are being

monitored. If an employ doesn’t perform, then it is the HR that warns the employ

through a formal process such as a warning letter. HR also provides appraisals,

promotion, scores etc. All of this is in a standard monitored by the HR

department.

Q6) How do you attract the customers in new markets?

Ans) Sales and marketing are different. Sales are For example in the case of

Levis, they have given a capacity of 300,00 to us and we go to them and offer

them new fabrics which other competitors are not offering, thus increasing the

capacity or quota Levis have given us. Marketing on the other hand, is by

showing our fabric samples to new markets around the world by going to

exhibitions etc and then their designers will decide based on what they like. In

order to attract customers in new markets, we will market them something

special and unique, something they don’t have so far. Another way is by selling

at lower price and lower cost of production.

Interview Transcript-Financial Controller

Mr. Rizwan Ghani

Interviewers: how long have you been a part of this company and how have

you seen this company grow?

Interviewee: I joined this company in February 2014 and before that company

had already seen its growth. Initially I joined U.S Apparel and before coming to

Stylers International I did article ship at AF Ferguson & Co. I joined Ferguson as a

Manager of Financial Systems in Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and gained

my major experience at that post. In late 2014, I got an offer from Stylers

International for a post in department of finance. Since then I have been

working in the finance department of Stylers.

Interviewers: What is your post in the finance department? Are you working as a

department head?

Interviewee: I designated as financial controller which is second to the Chief

Financial Officer (CFO).

Interviewers: How do you ensure communication and coordination between

different departments within the company? Are they personally developed or is

there some kind of hierarchy reporting system?

Interviewee: Every department has their own Head of Director (HoD) and each

HoD eventually reports to Managing Director (MD) of the company. Moreover,

there is no direct reporting for finance department.

Interviewers: Who has the highest authority in this company? And how is

authority hierarchized within the company?

Interviewee: HoD has the highest authority in their respective department. At the

top comes the Board of Directors (BoD) who share the highest authority in the

company. Then comes the MDs who control and ensure overall efficiency of the

operations of the company. After MDs, there are different departments which

are assigned different HoDs. In hierarchy, all the senior managers, general

managers, deputy general managers come under respective HoDs. Different

departments have different hierarchy styles; some departments have big

hierarchy and some, regardless of their critical nature, have narrow and small

hierarchy reporting system. For example, department of fabric procurement

consists of 4-5 people, hence, small hierarchy system.

Interviewers: How do you attract more clients in an already expanding

market with the producers getting more competitive and consumers rational

day by day?

Interviewee: Generally, this challenge is progressing day by day at every

sector. In textile sector, U.S apparel division is one of those sub-sectors which
are growing at good pace. As we are dealing with international market,

competition from international companies is not a new thing for us but within

Pakistan competition is increasing gradually. Due to the growth of apparel

division in textile sector, investors have started to invest in this market.

Maintaining and growing the clientele in Pakistan has become challenging.

Our market strategy to attract more clientele we divide our clientele base in

two segments. First, lower and middle-class profile clientele who prefer

minimal quality, low cost and high quantity products. Due to high quantity

demand our efficiency is achieved. Second, we segment high profile

clientele who prefer quality over cost, hence, demand for expensive and

high fashioned garments. Our competitive edge is our uncompromising

quality that we provide to this segment base. We have very technologically

advanced sewing machines as compared to local jeans manufactures who

lack these cost-efficient and technologically advanced machines. We do

not talk about prices our main aim is to ensure high quality products to these

customers.

Interviewers: What would you say are the strengths of the company that

you’ve noticed in your tenure here?

Interviewee: Our strength is that we are a cost-efficient manufacturing

company. Moreover, our “washing process machines” of garment is a state

of an art which is not easily available in market. This provides us competitive

edge over our competitors in the market.

Interviewers: Do you think these strengths can be further nurtured or

organization can be improved than its current state?

Interviewee: look, regardless of how much an organization has grown with

the span of time there still remains a margin of cost-cutting and better

customer portfolio. There comes a stage where you just want to maximize the

production capacity. Then, there comes a stage where after maximizing your

production capacity you tend to choose your customer, preferably high

profile customer to earn high profit margins.

Interviewers: What kinds of reports does upper management require?

Interviewee: Board of directors require monthly financial reports with the

standards of management accounting. These are simple reports which have

some key areas which states deviation from approved budgets,

improvements in the different operations of organization, if any. Moreover,

reports which we, finance department, require from our team are cash

forecast. We try to match cash inflows with our outflows. Using these forecast

we try to preplan the strategies to counter any cash flow problems.

Furthermore, we require our team to report for cash flows on daily basis. In

addition to that, we check and monitor stock levels on daily basis. If we do

not keep check and balance for stock level then there is a chance that

stocks pile up and organization face cash flow problems.

Interviewers: What is the level of centralization of decentralization of decision

making within the organization?

Interviewee: HoDs are responsible for their job description. They are basically

responsible for the areas which they control and to that level they make

decision by themselves. Generally, Decision making is decentralized unless

managers encounter decision which require very careful execution then they

tend to cater senior officers. Same rule apply to finance department,

managers are well able to handle situations regarding cash flows and audits

until unless they get stuck in a more intricate circumstances which they then

leave it for senior officials to resolve.

Interviewers: how do you evaluate organization’s financial performance?

Interviewee: We evaluate our performance by comparing the deviation

between forecasted and actual profit of every month. Forecasted profit are

calculated using the projection of historical data and clientele base of the
company. In reality, we often deviation due to different reasons beyond our

control. As a result, we tend to discuss these deviations with different

concerned departments and try to reach to the root of the problem so that it

never happens again, unless it is due some reasons which are beyond our

control like currency devaluation.

Interviewers: have you ever disagreed to a decision taken by the upper

hierarchy management which you thought to be inefficient and

unreasonable?

Interviewee: Yes, there are many occasions where you have different

perspective of the problem. For example, over here our management

reporting is in calendar years and our audits are based on financial years

which causes deviations which are then to be reconciled. This reconciliation

process wastes our important time. It does not make any difference if the

organization decides to start to produce management reports based on

financial years. But what can we do? We only pitch our dissatisfaction and

concerns with the immediate upper managers, ultimately, we are forced to

obey the organization’s decisions.

Interviewers: Who sets the objectives for the organization? Upper

management or the HoDs of respective departments?

Interviewee: Upper management gives us the borderline for the targets to be

achieved. It is the responsibility of each HoD to equip different strategies to

achieve departmental targets which aids in attaining overall organization’s

objective set by upper management.

Interviewers: How do you compare your company’s performance? Do you

compare it with your past records or with the industry you operate in?

Interviewee: We compare it with overall industry. Look, if we compare it with

our own previous records then we will always be satisfied with our

performance results regardless of the flaws and deviations in performance. If

we compare it with the industry then it would reflect that there is a margin to

improve.

Interviewers: What opportunities do you see in the market right now?

Interviewee: Opportunity we see in the market is better customer mix. There

many customers and gap in the market which are still untapped.
Interviewers: What are the promotion opportunities for hard-workers in this

organization? Basically, the reward and punishment system?

Interviewee: Look, when a particular company is growing they provide

different opportunities at different stages. For example, if you look at Human

Resource (HR) policies in a multinational, they are more rewarding for an

efficient and direr for an inefficient worker as compared to a company

which is still at its growth stage. With the passage of time companies learn

and mend their policies.

Interviewers: How do you overcome the problem of inefficient workers? What

are the implications on mischief maker creating unwanted problem in

organization and people who support their actions?

Interviewee: One of the extreme ways is to fire that person and people who

support their actions, however, these implication have their own

consequences. Therefore, we have to overcome these problems very

technically and precisely. Tactical strategy we employ is that we try to shuffle

human resource between different sections in each department so that

internal bonding is interrupted. Hence, retaliation is reduced.

Interviewers: How do you ensure motivation of employees working under

you?

Interviewee: See, to keep employees motivated financial factor is not the

only way to opt for. There are other ways as well such a providing training,

guiding them about career. There is a time factor as well employee gets

bored of doing same job again and again. Therefore, we make sure that we

keep shuffling employees between different areas. It is a win-win situation as

employees get to learn new things and stay motivated.

Interviewers: Thank you!

INTERVIEW- General Manager of Operations

Mr. Shahzad Akram Gill

Q1) How long have you been part of this company and how have you seen this

company grow?

Ans) When I joined it was a small company with a production of 6000 per day.

There was only Unit 1, which had low production. However now there is unit 1

and 2. I look after the operations and productions of the company. We produce

26000 per day, that means 750000 per month is its capacity. Unit 2 also known as

AFL was started at the bottom level and this unit 1 was started 2 years ago.

Q2) Since you look after all the departments how do communicate with all of

those and keep a balance?

Ans) Communication is by mail, hardcopy, whatsapp etc. Every department has

a HOD and every day there is a time for an executive meeting where each

department head presents their issues and results etc thus keeping everyone up

to date. That is how we discuss together to create solution to the issues and

procedures etc.

Q3) How often or frequency do these meetings take place?

Ans) That depends on the situation at hand. The general meeting takes place

daily at its given time and in that meeting all the HODs come together to

discuss. Apart from that, If the matter is serious then the meetings could increase

to two to three times a day.

Q4) What the daily expenditures and overheads?

Ans) We have a monthly target of the costs that includes salaries and utilities. It

can vary a bit, being more or less, but generally it is approximately close to the

monthly target we have set up. If the expenditures go up we look into it and see

if there is any extra employ that is causing this or there are some utilities that are

taking a lot of energy and that is how we deal with it.

Q5) What are the list of products you deal with?

Ans) We have shirts jackets etc.

Q6) What firms do you cater to?

Ans) We cater international companies and export our products. We mainly

target three markets that are Spanish, French and German markets. The names

of the brands are mustang, taco, brother and sisters Etc.

Q1) Are you catering to only the clients you have so far, or are you catering to

new clients as the market is expanding?

Ans) Apart from the three mentioned countries, we’re also trying to approach

clients in the US and UK.

Q2) How do you attract the clients in foreign countries?

Ans) We take part in shows and exhibitions around the world, and put up our

own stalls of fabrics. People from around the world come to these exhibitions

and that is how they interact with us. We take part in such shows and exhibitions

three to four times a year.

Q3) What about the international rules and regulations that have to be abided in

order to export?

Ans) We have all of such rules and regulations compiled and before making any

agreement with a client we show them all of such rules, regulations and

limitations.

Q4) You have been working in this country for a while, what have you learned

about the strengths and weaknesses of the company that makes it stand out?

Ans) Strengths: We have great quality, low cost of production

Improvements: We need to work on the supply time of the products, such as the

travel time etc, apart from that we also need to work on quality and cost of

production.

Q5) What about the promotion oppurtunities for workers that are honest and

work hard?

Ans) We provide them rewards in various forms such as praises, money and even

promotions.
Q5) What about the disruptors of the company and those who don’t work hard at

all?

Ans) We put them on supervision or probation and give them a time to change

and improve themselves. If we don’t see results we kick them out.

Q6) What about your reward and punishment system, is it justified or is there still

space to improve on it?

Ans) It’s a standard procedure and its compliant aswell. Whenever we do an

agreement with a new employ we base it on his performance. If he is able to

perform upto the standards then he receives the job.

Q7) What about the hierarchy structure of the firm? (5-5:40)

Ans) There is our head (FD OR MD CANT UNDERSTAND). All of us heads of various

department report to him. Then there are people under me such as deputy

manager, managers, supervisory staff and then so forth.

Q7) Do employ have to abide to the hierarchy system incase of an issue or

question, or can they directly come to you?

Ans) There is an open door policy, if there is an issue we can discuss it together.

There is also a feedback system.

Q8) Tell me about the Feedback system?

Ans) So basically at every department, the HR department has put up feedback

boxes at various locations. So if an employ has any learning problem, any issue,

any ideas etc they can share it through this feedback system.

Q8) What about your competitive strategy, how do you ensure that your

competitors donot steal your clients?

Ans) In the industry of garment every company competes on the core things

that are Supply time, cost of production and quality. And this is how we ensure

we are ahead.

Q9) If there is a disagreement between the lower management and the upper

management, is it solved through meetings if not then how?

Ans) As I told you, there Is an open door policy in our department and we are

very flexible in this case. We believe there is freedom of expression and speech

in our company as every employ is able to approach or even the MD. And that

is how they can share their opinions, issue and even ideas, Thus making the

company better.

Q10) What about the external threats the company is facing or may face in the

future?

Ans) Our main threat to our company is basically competition. Other than that,

generally the prices of various companies such as Diesel, levis and H&M has

fallen due to low demand and even the companies putting up sale. Therefore in
our next meeting these companies force us to reduce the price or they switch to

our competitors. That is the biggest threat for us.

PICTURES

Stylers Factory

Stylers Reception
Checking and Storage Department
 Cutting Department

Prominent Clients of Stylers International

Warehouse
Storage for Products ready to ship and Offices

Pic 8- Sewing Department