I think we can all agree 2020 has been a roller coaster. Within a few short months, our lives have been forced to change and everyone is feeling a little uncertain about the future. The lock down caused many people to reflect and do a bit of soul searching.
Are you following your passion? Is there a future in your career? Would you rather be living in another country, or another city? Many people came through with more questions and a few people came out with a clearer vision of where they would like to be heading. In.It Apparel has been no different.
Key staff have decided to follow a different path and discover their passions, and we wish them all the best for it. The business as a whole has also seen a massive change and is currently in a transformative stage. Digging deep during the lockdown we formed a clearer vision for the near- and long-term future. Quality, consistency, streamlining processes and service delivery have become the forefront and essence of the brand.
Stating that this is a tough and testing transformation is an understatement. The entire business model has had to be up routed. We have brought all manufacturing in house and are currently in the process of expanding and investing in new sewing machinery and employing key and talented people into the manufacturing process. We are happy to say that the quality of garments has instantly seen a drastic increase and that we can provide products of a retail quality.
This transformation has seen numerous unforeseen complications. Lockdown level 5 meant no production could take place and level 4 limited the number of staff allowed to operate at any given time. Hiring new staff during this time has been close to impossible as human movements were limited. This means that we began to experience a backlog of orders and unfortunately are unable to keep to our standard lead times, and therefore letting down numerous customers. But not wishing to compromise on the new level of quality, we decided it would be better to take it slow and not rush through orders for sake of getting them out.
Hiring the right people is also an essential part of keeping our standards high and improving on our client services. This is another area that cannot be compromised and rushed into simply because we are under pressure to fulfill and meet expectations.
This has meant numerous late nights as we continue to fulfil orders day and night.
Slowly we are beginning to see the light. Nothing worth doing ever comes easy and it certainly won’t happen overnight, but if this is anything to go by in.it apparel is looking at a positive future and we are looking forward to meeting and building strong relationships within the talented South African and international communities.
