South African clothes sellers eye fast local supply as rivals land

Cape Town

SOUTH African retailers are waking up to the need to work more closely with a resurgent domestic textile industry to help fend off global fashion giants muscling in on the continent's most lucrative market.

Cheap Chinese clothes imports almost broke the back of local garment makers, but the sector has started to recover after the government invested more than two billion rand (S$205 million) in upgraded production lines and more innovative technology.