Bra Factory

I was lucky enough to get an brief look into what goes on in a bra factory. The level of detail and manual work that goes into making each bra is mind boggling. To give you an idea, to it takes on average 14 people on the factory floor up to 10 hours  to make one bra.

My contact reveals that due to the level of detail and quality of her bras (imported fabrics and lace from France and Italy respectively and a design team of ten), she pays above average rates, about 10 RMB an hour. It doesn’t seem like a lot, but it amounts to a middle class income family in Guangzhou, earning about 4000 RMB in a good month.

This is more than what other factories pay if they were doing OEM for some European and USA brands, with margins currently so low that some factories had to close down last year when these countries lowered their exports.

The main reason why she has weathered the export downsizing is because the business mainly deals with OEM for large domestic brands and is focused on her own brand Brahmin. Brahmin, is a mid to high end brand ranging around 200rmb onwards. Their catalogue is impressive, mimicking magazine layouts and giveing suggestions on accessories to match the lingerie.

Interestingly, the growth of their popularity has encouraged domestic brands to make ‘shanzai’ (copies) of their designs. When asked how she deals with it, she replies with a shrug, “We’ll just have to keep improving and innovating then.  In fact, we’re working on a new functional bra range. Business is harder but now I use QQ to get feedback on new designs from my closest and most loyal customers.”

In terms of retail strategy, Brahmin enters a market  by setting up branded stores in clothing wholesale areas or where lingerie shops congregate – there’s definitely one in every city that locals know. This lowers overheads compared to exorbitant rentals of shopping malls. This difference in strategy, likely affecting brand image and costs means bras are priced 70% less than brands that choose a shopping mall route.

Despite higher prices, it’s a fact that there is a growing proportion of people that will not blink an eye when buying lingerie priced at over 1000rmb. Therefore, my contact reveals she does have plans to launch a luxury range in the future.

I am definitely looking forward to seeing how her brand develops!

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, November 8th, 2011 at 9:19 am. It is filed under China, Fashion, Images and tagged with clothing, factory, featured, made in china. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.