Market Analysis for Textile and Apparel
Mauritius is not exporting much of its textile products to Malawi. There is a niche market to tap
despite the strong presence of second-hand clothing characterising the Malawian textile and
clothing market.
“Kaunjika” is the Malawian name given to second-hand clothing market
targeting the mass.
Size of Market
USD Thousand
Malawi's Imports of Main Textile and Apparel items - 2012
20,000,000
18,000,000
16,000,000
14,000,000
12,000,000
10,000,000
8,000,000
6,000,000
4,000,000
2,000,000
0
HS 52
Cotton
HS 53
HS 54
HS 55
HS 56
HS 61
Vegetable Manmade Manmade Wadding, Articles of
textile fibres filaments staple fibres
felt,
apparel,
nes, paper
nonwovens, accessories,
yarn, woven
yarns, twine, knit or
fabric
cordage, etc crochet
Product categories
Source: Trademap
In 2012, Malawi’s imports of main textile and apparel products stood at USD 31 million with
manmade staple fibres category accounting for a large proportion of USD 19.3 million, followed
by articles of apparel at USD 3.1 million and cotton products at USD 3.0 million.
Swot Analysis for Textile and Clothing Market
Strengths of Mauritian products

Opportunities for Mauritian Exporters
Good image of Mauritian

High demand for value added products
products among key players

High demand for kidswear, printed

High quality

Competitive price

Niche market for branded products

Duty free (COMESA/SADC)

High potential to invest in Malawi’s
shirts, polo shirts, etc.
cotton production, spinning and
finishing processes.
Weaknesses of Malawian market

A devalued currency

Low purchasing power and low
disposable income

Prohibitive freight costs

Inadequate supply of foreign
exchange.
Threats for Mauritian products

Second hand clothing – (imports from
US and Europe)

Competition from South Africa, China,
Dubai, Turkey and India

Imitation of popular brands e.g
Lacoste, etc.
Sourcing Markets
The main sourcing markets for Malawian Textile and Clothing industry are:

China

Thailand

India

South Africa
Demand Analysis – Key Importers
The market for textile and apparel can be segmented as follows:

Fully owned South African subsidiaries incorporated in Malawi – big players

Local Malawian companies (small to medium size).
The decision making process of South African companies in Malawi is centralised at the head
office based in Johannesburg/Pretoria/Cape Town.
The major Malawian importers for textile and apparel are:
1. T-Shirts, Polo Shirts, Blouses, Shirts and Jeans – Mr Price, Pep Stores and Dapp
2. Kidswear and Babywear – White Rose, Kidsworld, Pep Stores and Dapp
3. Lingerie and Swimwear – Pep Stores, Mr Price and Game Stores.
South African Stores Segment
PEPco Malawi
PEP is a South African company based in Cape Town with presence in Malawi, Mozambique,
Zambia, Angola, Zimbabwe and Nigeria. In Malawi, the group has 22 retail garments stores. It
has a central procurement system with sourcing mainly from Cape Town. PEPco Malawi may
source from local Malawian companies if some product lines are more competitive. Mauritian
companies may target the retail stores by appointing a local agent. PEP group is already
sourcing textile garments from Mauritius.
Local Importers Segment
White Rose
White Rose is a retail shop which sells a wide range of garments. The company currently
imports from Dubai. It used to source from China but has ceased due to the long leadtime
involved. With a view to explore the potential for exporting textile and apparel products to
Malawi, a meeting was arranged with Ms Patel of White Rose. She was of the view that the
market is currently invaded by second hand clothing from the USA. The lower segment of the
market which cannot afford buying in retail shops has the choice of always buying second-hand
clothes from the informal market (Kaunjika market).
The samples were rated as good quality but expensive though. A three-piece set is sold at USD
5.20 while a similar set from a Mauritian Manufacturer is sold at USD 3.25 fob. Moreover, she
claimed that Malawian consumers look for fancy clothes with embroidery, print and so on.
Ms Patel stated that she has clothes which have been in the shop for more than a year. Hence, she
is not interested to import from Mauritius given the high price and the fact that she is unable to
clear the present stock.
Devraj Store
According to Mr Savjani, the Director, the company is currently sourcing from India, Thailand
and Turkey. Upon presentation of the samples, Mr Savjani found the Jeans to be of good quality
and suitable designs. He further mentioned that retail price for high quality jeans ranges between
USD 50-60. It is to be pointed out that the company usually imports 400 pair of Jeans on a
monthly basis and he has expressed interest in sourcing Jeans from Mauritius.
Product Analysis – Mauritian Samples
Samples presented to the various textile companies are:

Denim garments

T Shirt (short and long sleeves)

Ladies top

Kidswear

Polo

Lingerie and

Swimwear.
OPPORTUNITY MATRIX: TEXTILE AND APPAREL
We have mapped out the feedback gathered on market growth and trend from importers and the
potential of Mauritian products to compete on the Malawian market below:
MARKET GROWTH
High







Swimwear
Long Sleeves
Shirts
Lingerie
Kidswear
T-shirts
Polo Shirts
Ladies Blouse

Low
Jeans
MARKET
POTENTIAL
Low
High
It can be concluded that Kidswear, T-Shirts, Polo shirts and Ladies Blouse have high potential to
penetrate Malawi and the market is expected to grow. On the other hand, swimwear, long
sleeves shirts and lingerie have low potential to penetrate the market, demand being very low and
not expected to increase in the future.
Swimwear
Being a landlocked country, Malawi does not attract demand for beachwear attire naturally.
However, beachwear products can be marketed in hotels’ textile boutiques and a few upmarket
shops in the cities. The potential to penetrate Malawi can be described as low.
T-Shirts
In general, T Shirts marketed in Malawi are of average quality compared to the Mauritian
samples. There is definitely scope for good demand for T-Shirts in Malawi. However, the
present constraint put forward by Malawian businessmen is that the price of trend clothing is not
competitive for the Mauritian products despite its premium quality.
According to the
businessmen, the fob prices for short sleeves t-shirts if proposed at less than USD 4, stand a
better chance to penetrate the Malawian market relative to the imported garments from China,
India and Bangladesh, which are of average quality. It is worth noting that marketing strategy
will have to lay emphasis on quality/cost combination.
Long sleeves T-Shirts have absolutely no market potential, on account of the warm climate.
T-shirts with print have good potential. Surprisingly although the mass market looks for low
price T Shirts, a good percentage is ready to pay a premium for higher quality.
Denim Garments
Mauritian Denim products are described to be of high quality.
However, these products,
according to Malawian businessmen, are largely meant for the upmarket with a proposed fob
price of less than USD 12.
Mass market usually consumes denim products at less than USD 10.
Kidswear
Babieswear and kidswear sourced from Mauritius are of very good quality compared to what are
presently available on the market. Even the prices are relatively competitive. Good market
potential for babieswear and kidswear is definitely present, with fob prices ranging between USD
3.15 to USD 4.00.