The Bulgarian ready-to-wear garments manufacturer Fashion Supply, with stable market positions in Europe, is the first developed company that is planning its IPO on the Bulgarian Stock Exchange’s *BEAM growth market. The investors would be presented an opportunity to acquire shares in a company with a proven business model, a company that is independent from the global supply chain problems and profitable even at times of economic uncertainty.
Fashion Supply has been successfully positioned on the European market for more than ten years, primarily in The Netherlands and in the United Kingdom, with its own designer collections in one of the fastest-growing trends in the fashion industry – clothing in non-standard sizes. Also, the manufacturer is a preferred partner of some of the biggest fashion companies in the segment – MS Mode, The Sting (with its brands Seven Sisters, Revelation, Bien Bleu, Melting Stockholm), Cotton Club, Miss Etam, Terranova, and others. The process in the factory in the city of Blagoevgrad is continuously optimized via technological innovation with the goal of increasing overall efficiency. The company has gained a sustainable competitive advantage in Europe. For two years, fashion has been among the most negatively impacted industries by the COVID-19 pandemic. The global supply chain and raw-materials issues escalated because of the war on Ukraine. However, the innovative approach of Fashion Supply, strengthened by strategic partnerships with several tailor shops that fulfill its orders with priority, and it has provided for a unique competitive advantage for the company. It can produce and ship collections in smaller series and with much shorter deadlines than those offered by the Asian competitors, ultimately leading to higher profit margins.
Fashion Supply is another successful project of the serial entrepreneur Dimitar Stoykov, founder of the bottling company for spring water Rilana and the industrial unit for bottling beverages in cans – Can Supply. Stoykov has implemented a unique, entirely automated production model at Fashion Supply. The factory staff creates fashion collections modeled by in-house designers via digital development of patterns (using contemporary CAD/CAM technologies) and cut out in a fully robotized process. The system at Fashion Supply saves significant expenses made by other manufacturers and is also environmentally friendly.
The company’s goal is to raise 4 million BGN from the BEAM market and expand the operations of the stable and prospective business model.
„Positioning the company with an IPO on the BEAM market is an essential and natural next step in our long-term investment strategy. The growing demand for garments with non-standard sizes across Europe, met by our flexible business model, guarantees fast and low-cost supplies, gives us an additional assurance that we can move on to the next level. We will expand the business with our brand and add several innovative solutions, including a new digital printing technology and a transition to sustainable energy with a photovoltaic installation,” Dimitar Stoykov, CEO at Fashion Supply, comments.
Investment plan:
The main focus of the investment plan will be on implementing the next high-tech project at Fashion Supply – a new digital printing system for textile; enriching the manufacturing and warehouse infrastructures; launching their brand. The innovation will provide more opportunities for design and color combinations under competitive conditions and care for the environment. The capability to produce smaller collections series is a priority for the big brands in an unstable environment with new challenges for the supply chains. It is also vital for the boutique and developing fashion brands in Europe.
Fashion Supply has seen significant growth in revenue until the end of 2019. The effects of the pandemic in 2020 were met by the great financial conditions of the company, and at the end of the most intense crisis, its financial results, although declining, remained in positive territory, and the drop in revenue did not affect its human capital. The results are expected to return to the pre-COVID levels in the first half of 2022.
The lead investment manager in charge of the process is the investment intermediary MK Brokers AD. The legal consultant for the deal is the law firm Buzalov & Chanova.
*BEAM was launched in 2020 to allow small and medium-sized enterprises to seek listings under simplified procedures compared to the regulated market.
