Shoppers Stop, Pantaloons to stay shut on Monday.
It’s not just garment manufacturers who are set to express their ire against the10 per cent excise duty on branded apparel proposed in the Union Budget for 2011-12. After the strike announced for tomorrow by the Clothing Manufacturers’ Association of India (CMAI), top apparel retailers such as Pantaloons, Shoppers Stop and Arvind Brands, among others, will observe a day’s strike on Monday, to press the same point.
“We will be shutting our 400 stores, including outlets of Megamart, Flying Machine, Arrow, US Polo, Izod, GANT, and Energie. As of now, we just want the Ministry of Finance to roll back the proposal for 10 per cent excise duty on branded apparel,” said J Suresh, chief executive officer, Arvind Brands and Retail.
According to Rahul Mehta, president of CMAI, which has 22,000 members across the country, “In what has been defined by the finance ministry, a branded apparel is any garment which has a name, label, tag, logo or any identification mark. This brings virtually every apparel player in the excise duty net. We are preparing representations and trying to present our case to the ministry. However, several members across the country wanted to express their ire and hence the strike has been announced.”
Shoppers Stop is also set to shut its 36 stores in 13 cities on Monday. “The excise duty is an untimely and additional burden on manufacturers and retailers. Which is why we have joined hands with the CMAI. Simultaneously, we are approaching the ministry to reconsider the decision and hope to witness positive results out of it,” said Govind Shrikhande, managing director, Shoppers’ Stop.
“This industry is second in employment generation in the country. The excise proposed by the finance minister will not only make clothing costlier but also threaten the employment of thousands of workers in this industry,” said Vijay Purohit, president of the Gujarat Garment Manufacturers’ Association.