Great River expects $40m more from exports

TOKYO (JP): Publicly listed garment producer Great River International (GRI) has said it expects to raise US$100 million from exports this year, up from $60 million in 1998.

Great River's president director, Sunjoto Tanudjaja, said on Tuesday that the company's export target was realistic given that demand had increased steadily over the last few months.

"Last year we generated $60 million in export sales. Next year we expect to gain $140 million from exports," he said on the sidelines of a meeting with Japanese importers here.

Sunyoto, who is in Japan with an Indonesian trade mission, said the company boosted export revenues by 113 percent to $60 million in 1998.

He said the sharp increase was partly due to the company's decision to switch from using imported fabrics to locally made substitutes, a move which resulted in a significant cuts in production costs.

"Using local fabrics has allowed us to sell our products at lower prices," he said, adding that the company was now producing garments for 45 international brands, including names such as Choya, Triumph, Saville Row and Elle, compared to 20 international brands last year.

The company manufactures a range of garments, including shirts, men's and women's underwear, children's clothes and swimsuits.

He said that 60 percent of the company's output was sold to Japan, the company's largest single buyer. The second largest share of output is bought by the United States.

"Japan in the biggest buyer of our products. We have more than a dozen buyers here. A men's shirt produced for Choya leads the market here. That product alone generated $2 million in exports to Japan last year."

Sunjoto said domestic sales were expected to increase slightly this year after stagnant sales in 1998.

He said a further increase in sales of underwear was expected following a 30 percent increase in demand last year. (gis)