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DAILY NEWS RECORD, FRiday, nové
Americano cons
Find Big Market On the Continent
BRUSSELS. American jeans sell like hot cakes in Europe.
Ask any of the three major United States manufacturers with operations here Levi Strauss, Blue Bell or H. D. Lee about their business and the replies range from "fantastic" to "couldn't be better."
There should be sharp competition be- tween the three, since they basically sell the same products here: Jeans and casual slacks. But there isn't. The market is too big.
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All three firms have expanded their manufacturing facilities in Belgium, but they cannot keep up with the demand. In fact, all three_import considerable amount of goods from the United States. The market, which includes all of West- ern Europe and a bit of North Africa, has been growing at a tremendous rate since the three companies arrived in the Eura..
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pean scene, some 10 years ago.
Murray Adams of Blue Bell has this to say: "Sales growth is much greater here than in the United States."
Walter Mooromsky of Levi Strauss adds: "The standard of living has risen consider- .ably in the past 10 years. The population
growth is great.”
There are striking similarities in the way these three companies conduct their busi- › ness, and some differences.
All three, for example, made Belgium the launching pad for their European op- erations for similar reasons. The three managing directors point out that it's a geographical siutation. They note that the Government is receptive to foreign invest- ments, there is a modern banking commu- nity, and there is an ample supply of labor.
Jules Robijn of H. D. Lee, the only Bel- gian in the trio, explains that Belgium has had a textile tradition for centuries and the country, is known for its skilled workers.
Robijn is also the only one of the three willing to admit that the labor sunnly in his part of the country was not always good.
H. D. Lee started its European opera- tion in 1963 with a plant in St. Niklaas, a region known for its knitwear industry. "When I came here I found it difficult to obtain skilled workers," explains Ro-· bijn. "I started by training girls myself." Today the St. Miklaas plant employs about 350 and for the first time this summer Robijn has put potential workers on a waiting list.
H. D. Lee's major obstacle in attracting workers nearly a decade ago was Ameri- can production methods.
"In Belgium the majority of the textile firms pay hourly wages based on produc- : tion standards," says Robijn. "If the stand- ard is set, for example, at 100, not one girl will produce more. There are two reasons. Not only because she will not earn more. money, but also because she will become unpopular with the other girls. If enough girls in a production unit produce more than the minimum, the standard will be raised almost automatically. And the girls will have to turn out more goods for, the same pay."
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Robijn still finds it difficult to keep an his sewing machines manned-II. D. Lee has opened a new plant at Ieper and is currently expanding Its St. Niklaas plant.
Murray Adams at Blue Bell points out that his company has no severe labor problems. "Apart from some minor problems in the mid-manage-
no serious labor, ment section, we have had headaches."
The reason for this, Adams believes, is that and Blue Bell's two Belgian plants-Cenk
Huesden-are outside the typical textile regions. They are located in the heavy industry area.
Levi Strauss' labor position is slightly different.. The company is still working with a Belgian manufacturer. "You could not call it a joint venture because we control the Coppen^ile rlant," notes Mooromsky. "This has a certain advantage since some of the employes prefer to work for a Belgian boss rather than an American."
All three company spokesmen agree that it's essential to have local plant management.
The three firms also produce their products from American patterns and fabrics. Production methods are also American,
At one time or another all three have tried to buy their fabrics in Europe, but without success. It was believed that IT Burojan labrics were used, transportation costs, import duties and warehouse expenses would be trimmed. Quality, price and available supplies did not meet the needs of the manufacturers.
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"It is beneficial to buy in the United States because we may not been able to find a factory large enough to provide us with the quantities : we need.” Mooromsky says.
Machines, however, come from Europe. "When I started," says Robijn, "I had new machines that were made in the United States. That was a mistake. Agents who had to service the machines were not too happy about it be cause they had not received commission of the sale of the equipment."
Adams and Mooromsky agree that the best policy of obtaining machines is to buy them locally.
In the relatively short time the three have been in Europe, they have expanded their production facilities.
H. D. Lee has started a new pilot plant at Ieper and pending the labor market is planning a new plant in that region. It is expected to employ about 450-300 workers.
Levi Strauss is enlarging its production capacity both inside and outside Belgium. Notes Robijn: "Business is so strong that the items are shinned after production-we have no time to bund up inventories.
The company has already started a second production plant on what might be called the "outskirts" of the Continent, Scotland. Blue Bell, too, has a second plant on the island of Malta,
Distribution patterns vary among the three companies. II. D. Lee, the smallest, produces its goods in Belgium and sells directly to the Netherlands, France and Germany. But since its · production-about 7,000 units a day--is not large enough to meet the demand, goods are imported from the United States. The rest of H. D. Lee's distribution in Europe is supplied directly from the United States. All sales and advertising is handled by the firm's international division in New York. The company also deals with only one distributor in each country, ·
Blue Bell and Levi Strauss both occupy.elabor- ate offices here, which serve as their European headquarters.
For Germany, Britain, France and other coun- tries that represent strong distribution, chese companies have their own sales organizations. They both use international and national adver- tising campaigns.
The three managing directors admit they plan to broaden their lines for the European market, but decline to detail specific programs.
It may be that they fear one another's position. However, they all have their hands full to keep
• up with the demand for their icans.
-WILL RECKMAN,
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