Kitex Garments keeps investments on hold amid Covid-19 disruptions

By

Maverick Martins

Published
Jul 22, 2020

Kitex Garments Ltd, a leading player in the infant wear segment, has kept all its investment plans on hold due to the Covid-19 disruptions and market uncertainty.
 

The company had earmarked an investment of Rs 920 crore ($123.4 million) for the year, however, with the Covid-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns it has decided to take the wait and watch approach in the coming months.
 
Kitex Garments has already faced a loss of around Rs 55 crore in March and April due to the total lockdown in the county which affected the company’s production.

“Any new investment plan will be finalised after evaluating the Covid-19 situation across the global markets. We are adopting a cautious approach. The board had approved investments worth Rs 920 crore last year. The company has also envisaged a Rs 2,000-crore investment plan by 2025,” Sabu M Jacob managing director of Kitex Garments told BusinessLine.
 
“After a complete washout of March and April, the company has started shipping 3.5 lakh pieces per day since May, compared to 7.5 lakh on average in the pre-Covid-19 days. The company has faced some issues in the operations of its production units because of Covid-19 regulations,” Jacob added.
 
Kerala-based Kitex Garments, the third-largest infant garment brand in the world at present, is planning to grab the top spot by 2025. The company also engages in contract manufacturing for private labels such as Jockey, Carter, Babies R Us, Gerber, and Mothercare.