Durban, KZN, SA - In the last issue you had an article from proudly South African focusing on job creation. Unfortunately, it will not work if government doesn’t get involved and start cleaning up the illegal imports and fakes that are sold for billions of rand that are affecting manufacturers and retailers who work by the book.
      Over the last few years, most of the independent retailers who used to support local manufacturers closed because they couldn’t compete with the foreign nationals who operate businesses. These guys don’t pay taxes, none of their workers are registered etc., so look at the advantages they have against us.
      Why don’t SARS and labour officials do their jobs instead of only worrying those that are registered and battling to survive?
      The other big irony: Locals are crying for jobs, but they support these guys (the people selling fakes). Last week I stood at the entrance of my factory watching my workers coming in. Of the 140 people, only about 5 were wearing local footwear. More education needs to be given to the general public on the impact of not buying ‘made in China’. I pray we get the days back when the shoe industry employed 48000 workers compared to the 8000 that we currently employ.

Cape Town, W. Cape, SA - South Africa’s chain retailers are waiting – in some cases, apparently, impatiently – for the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) to finalise its rules of origin for textiles and clothing ahead of the June deadline set by the AfCFTA Council of Ministers.
      “Onshoring is a very strong ambition for retailers for 2 simple reasons,” said National Clothing Retail Federation of SA (NCRF) executive director Michael Lawrence: “The cost of shipping, and quicker response times.
      Recently back from a CRALAC conference in Rwanda on the AfCFTA, where the NCRF was “keeping a watching brief”, he said onshoring “should be providing huge opportunities for value chains across the continent, and these are areas that are very good for everyone, but it’s a very technical process these days.”
      He said retailers “can’t speak on which rules of origin should be applied”.
      “It’s for the production side to tell us how they will operate, and then retail can make decisions, but until that happens, retail can’t make purchasing decisions, regardless of the developmental or commercial opportunities identified.”

Johannesburg, Gauteng, SA - In a press release today, the association Proudly South African – which advocates buying locally-made goods to encourage job creation – says South Africa currently “has one of the highest unemployment rates in the world…which is even worse when looking at youth unemployment”.
It said overall unemployment stood at 32.9 % in the first quarter (Q1) of 2023 according to the Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS), and at 62.1% for job-seekers aged between 15 and 24 years old.
“The results of the survey also indicated that 179 000 jobs were lost between the fourth quarter of 2022 and the first quarter of 2023. The total number of persons unemployed was 7.9 million in Q1 2023.
      It said Proudly South African was “determined to be part of the solution”.
      It has started a new campaign, entitled ‘Second Half’, which focuses on 8 labour intensive industries which have government-encouraged sectoral masterplans: agro-processing, furniture, clothing – textile – footwear – leather (CTFL), steel & construction, manufacturing, aviation, automotive, and food & beverages.
“The new campaign is an analogy of a sports match. Proudly SA views the years leading up to the Covid-19 pandemic as the first half of the ‘game’ of job creation and poverty alleviation, showcased in their previous consumer campaign known as the ‘First Half’ narrated by South African actor, Dr John Kani. As the title suggests, ‘Second Half’ represents the time where the country needed to regroup, recover, revisit the game plan, rethink our loyalty to South African products and services as well as collectively push forward for a win in economic restoration for South Africa and its people.
“Every Rand spent on local products helps to rebuild the South African economy and contributes to retaining and creating jobs. Proudly South African’s message is clear: buying locally manufactured goods and services helps to create a demand for local jobs which has a direct impact on today’s youth and future generations. Many countries, such as China, are thriving because of the strength in localisation and export powers. This compels us as South Africans to be more intentional and robust about localising the goods that we consume or use.
      “Says Eustace Mashimbye, CEO of Proudly South African: ‘The current state of youth unemployment is alarming, and we have to act urgently to counteract the impact of job losses on the local economy. If we do not change the course of our country’s future through localisation, the consequences are likely to be dire. This is why it is crucial to restrategise and revise our own approaches to combatting this situation that affects us all. We must stop the culture of dependency and strive to be the protagonists in cultivating the change we want to see in our own lives. This is done, first and foremost, by having pride in our own goods and services, and stopping at nothing to see our country advance from the economic darkness that our current purchasing habits are leading us to.’”

Durban, KZN, SA - The price of imported synthetic upper materials is influenced not just by the exchange rate between the SA Rand and the Chinese Yuan Renminbi, but also between the US dollar and the Chinese currency, said Garth Ribbink of materials importer A. Greenaways (Natal).
      “No-one is accepting price increases, because of pressure from retail,” he said, “but those increases are a reality. Mainly it’s because of the Rand’s depreciation against the Renminbi, but the Renminbi has also weakened against the Dollar since the beginning of last year.“
      “We are ALL falling into a hole, and no getting out.”
      In addition, he said there was little direction in fashion. “It’s too risky for component suppliers to bring in fashion materials because of the risk of cancellations cascading down from retailer to supplier.”

Muhammad Laher, Bombay’s of Nigel/Sports Fusion
Nigel, Gauteng, SA - This has been the toughest start to the year for many years. There are many issues, including of course load shedding and the rising costs of essential products.
      That is reflected in the spending patterns in apparel - our school wear sales are doing much better than fashion wear.
      There’s not much we can do except to reduce margins, buy smaller quantities, and offer less variety. I believe all retailers, including the chains, are doing much the same.

Anonymous
Johannesburg, Gauteng, SA - Things are very quiet, and there are many factors affecting us: Load shedding, the exchange rate, people not having money.
      As an independent, here on the floor, I see how consumers are battling, but I’m sure the chains are affected the same way.
      Our customers are the middle class, and they’re having to make a lot of grudge purchases, like boreholes and solar panels, and that doesn’t leave much for footwear.
      Maybe we could do better, but we’re doing the best we know how, for example by doing a lot of our own importing – but the government is no friend to small businesses, with all their duties and rules.