A study on the marketing strategies of Indian garment exporters post-multi-fiber arrangement

After the phase-out of the Multi-Fiber Arrangement (MFA), Indian exporters face many obstacles to overcome. One of the major challenges is severe competition from China, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and many other countries in terms of price, value addition, delivery period, production capabilities and flexibility. Indian exporters also face many challenges on the account of low labor productivity and Indian labor laws, Rupee appreciation, inadequate infrastructure, and the existence of long and complex supply chains causing lengthening of lead-time. Buyers now have a wide choice of suppliers to choose from across different countries around the world, and exporters now export to various countries across the world. Therefore, companies have to come up with new marketing strategies in order to maintain and improve their position in the market, satisfying their existing customers and also acquiring new customers.

The present study was carried out to identify the challenges that garment exporters are facing and strategies that are adopted to compete successfully in the marketplace. The objectives of the study were to find the exporters’ perceptions of the challenges and competition faced by them, to find out whether the exporters have brought about a change in their marketing strategies after the phase-out of MFA, and to find out if the exporters are fully equipped in coping with competition from competitors like China and Bangladesh. Based on the outcome of the research it is possible to understand the textile export scenario post-MFA better, and suggest some better marketing strategies. The study was carried out among the garment export houses in Tirupur and Bangalore. The data was collected directly from a sample of fifty garment exporters through a structured questionnaire and also by interviewing the owners/managers of the garment export houses.