BRANDIX APPAREL
INSPIRING BEYOND
The Brandix story of inspired people delivering inspired solutions to customers, communities and the world at large
For many organisations, inspiration is a buzzword. Yet at Brandix, it’s a way of life – a core element of the Brandix DNA that courses through the veins of the entire organisation and spills over into the multiple communities that it touches.
The theme of ‘Inspiring Beyond’ translates to how Brandix is moved in terms of its team to provide inspired solutions for customers, communities and the environment.
Brandix adopts a holistic approach when providing apparel solutions to its global clientele. These include its commitment to long-term environmental and social sustainability with a track record of introducing many world firsts in ethical manufacturing.
The Brandix DNA legacy comprises 50 years of building connections with customers, employees, communities and partners, who share its purpose and drive to celebrate what it means to be human while inspiring a prosperous future for all. Its DNA is built on a simple mantra of inspired people delivering inspired solutions every day, which extends beyond commercial returns.
The inspired people of Brandix live and work by their RITE values of Respect, Integrity, Teamwork and Excellence. This culture is fundamental to inspired solutions that help Brandix win in the marketplace and enable it to ‘Inspire Beyond.’
Inspiring Communities
Brandix is driven to leave behind a legacy whereby all communities in which it operates are enriched and empowered so that they can be socially, economically and sustainably benefitted through the micro economy of its factories.
Manusathkara is the CSR arm through which the organisation demonstrates the true essence of being human – being kind, respectful and selfless by investing in its communities. The company’s investment in communities goes beyond a corporate donation and instead delivers specifically curated projects based on challenges being faced by the different communities in which it operates.
These projects are implemented by the inspired people of Brandix who are on a mission to inspire others around them. They are carried out in the vicinity of Brandix factories, a radius that keeps increasing with the years.
“Manusathkara is built on the premise of empowering and enhancing our own team members, their families and the communities we operate in so that they are all positively impacted by our presence,” says Group Head of CSR at Brandix Malika Samaraweera.
Manusathkara, which operates on three strategic pillars – Provide, Educate and Engage, has been rolled out in all the geographies in which Brandix operates and encompasses around 60,000 team members (30,000 in Sri Lanka, 20,000 in India and 10,000 in Bangladesh). The company will also be launched in Haiti in 2023.
Under the Provide pillar, the organisation has initiated and continues operating a wide array of projects beginning with Diyawara. Under this project, which commenced in 2017, clean drinking water is provided to the households of Brandix team members.
Over 4,500 projects have been implemented across more than 300 rural communities in Sri Lanka. These solutions include wells, tube wells and extensions of water sources, which directly support Brandix’s female team members, who would otherwise have to spend hours travelling long distances to fetch water for their families.
Another initiative under the Provide pillar is the Brandix Model Village programme that was launched in 2015 as a community capacity building initiative. Focussed on providing and maintaining community level water and sanitation infrastructure – the programme that began in a 10 kilometre radius around Brandix plants has now expanded to a radius of 15 kilometres.
Over the years, it has delivered more than 300 projects, benefitted more than 260,000 people and uplifted the infrastructure of public places such as schools, religious establishments, public health offices, maternity clinics and police stations in the districts of Batticaloa, Colombo, Galle, Gampaha, Kegalle, Kurunegala, Polonnaruwa and Ratnapura.
Another key initiative is the annual blood donation project. Brandix has been the largest corporate blood donor for the last 10 years and has donated over 36,000 pints from 2009-2019. Although the project was on hold for two years due to the pandemic, it was reactivated in 2022 and has been steadily working towards its target of gathering 5,000 pints.
The newest initiative for Manusathkara under its ‘Provide’ pillar is Krushi Sangramaya, which is designed to provide solutions to Sri Lanka’s rising food inflation and food security issues.
In partnership with the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Public Administration, and with technical assistance from the UNDP, over 500 acres of cultivable land across 11 districts have been earmarked to help small-scale farmers. Launched in 2022, the pilot project brought onboard 538 small farmers who work across 450+ acres to cultivate quick turnaround crops such as cowpea and mung bean between the Yala and Maha crop seasons.
The project saw the inspired people of Brandix helping the farming communities in Batticaloa, Galle and Kurunegala with seeds, fertiliser and other support. This effort will help farmers earn extra income and also learn about intermediate harvests, which will help them in the future as well.
The Educate pillar of Manusathkara oversees the children of Brandix team members and those in Model Village locations. Over the years, Brandix has provided children with the entire stationery pack required for the school year under the Thilina initiative. Over 92,000 packs have been distributed in Sri Lanka and India since the inception of this project.
In order to focus on the learning and development of its team members, the company has also launched its P.A.C.E. (Personal Advancement and Career Enhancement) initiative. Introduced by a Brandix client over five years ago, the project has been rolled out across all factories in Sri Lanka, India and Bangladesh where associates are educated on six modules, which include financial skills, legal literature, health and wellness to name a few.
For team members who haven’t completed their GCE O-Level exam, Brandix offers its Shilpa programme, which is an NVQ Level 4 qualification that is equivalent to A-Level qualifications. This programme helps people progress to diplomas and degree programmes if they wish to, with no bonds signed with the organisation. The Shilpa initiative is focussed on nurturing educated and empowered Sri Lankan citizens.
In line with the company’s vision to educate the next generation of leaders, a scholarship programme has been designed for children of team members who have successfully completing their Grade V, O-Level and A-Level exams.
The University Scholarship Programme, which was launched in 2021, supports community students who have scored high in their A-Level exam, with a monthly stipend throughout their four years in university. This programme has benefitted 18 students in 18 locations around the island with Brandix’s own inspired Manusathkara Champions volunteering to fund these students.
Brandix also carries out many community support initiatives in India that cover health, sanitation and educational infrastructure. Its signature projects include eye camps hosted to combat ocular issues, which are significantly prevalent there. As of now, Brandix has hosted 95 eye camps that have benefitted over 36,000 people.
Inspiring Sustainability
Haritha Thirasara is Brandix’s sustainability approach, which focusses on reducing the company’s negative impact on the environment while enhancing the communities in which it operates.
The focus at Brandix has always been to reduce the organisation’s negative environmental impact while leaving behind a lasting positive influence on the community.
Brandix’s sustainability journey began in 2007 with a highly scientific approach to tackle the adverse effects of the global climate crisis. Global recognition as the World’s First LEED Platinum Rated Apparel Manufacturing Facility and the World’s First Net Zero Carbon Apparel Manufacturing Facility are testaments to the company’s proactive sustainability approach, and showcase its importance across business operations.
The organisation’s Sustainability Framework is anchored with the pillars of Air, Water and Earth. This enables the company to focus on several initiatives in the environmental sustainability sphere.
Under the Air pillar, Brandix has made impressive strides in the realm of renewable energy and resource optimisation, predominantly through rooftop solar power and investments in state-of-the-art technology. Such efforts are not only environmentally viable but remain sustainable in the long run given its constructional elements.
“From the orientation of the building to the construction material used, for instance in Batticaloa, we’ve tried to reduce the heat gain of the building making it more cost effective in operations while ensuring a more comfortable working experience for our team members,” says Group Sustainability Engineer at Brandix Vinura Jayewardene.
Inspired beyond the company’s success with its facilities, Brandix is committed to achieving net zero carbon status across all operations in Sri Lanka by 2023, India by 2025 and Bangladesh by 2028. This is facilitated largely by the group’s Solar PV project, which is expected to reach a total of 20 MW by 2023.
From a water perspective, Brandix has taken innovative steps to increase the percentage of water it recycles alongside harvesting more rainwater to ensure its intake is optimised. Progressing further, the company’s ultimate goal is to achieve net water positive status by replenishing more water than it consumes.
Similarly, under the Earth pillar, Brandix hopes to recycle and/or reuse all its solid waste by the year 2025 with the prospect of achieving material circularity in operations.
Known for its progress in the area of sustainability, Brandix continues to build upon its strong foundation to leave behind a better imprint on people and the planet, and become a true net zero impact producer.
Inspiring People
“We provide systemic infrastructure to inspired people because inspired employees give inspired solutions,” says Group Human Resources Director Dr. Roland Smith as he encapsulates Brandix’s people philosophy.
He notes: “To be inspired means to excite or encourage – but in reality it means to breathe life into something. To provide inspired solutions, we need an inspiring environment where people can feel like they belong, and have friends and leaders who treat them with integrity. Most companies are very clear about their customer value proposition. At Brandix, we firmly believe that we need an employee value proposition that says how it feels to work for us.”
The company upholds diversity and inclusion across its workforce, and places emphasis on providing training, and other learning and development initiatives for the benefit of its associates, executives, management, leadership and team members. Training programmes range from bootcamps and those offered by the Brandix Corporate Campus to mentoring, coaching and other development driven endeavours.
Group Chief People Officer at Brandix Ishan Dantanarayana says that the people philosophy of the organisation is connected to its RITE values. Employees are not only trained in terms of technical and soft skills but also on how to live the RITE values, and through these inculcate the RITE culture in the organisation.
Furthermore, the RITE values are aligned with several policies to ensure that the working environment is safe, free from abuse and harassment, and enables team members to achieve goals as ‘One Brandix.’
He adds that the company employs a diverse mix of people including those from the communities it operates in, as well as differently abled persons. Brandix is passionate about empowering employees to be unique at work and outside. Under the Brandix Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) concept, the organisation is keen to continue uplifting and forming an inclusive culture beyond the workplace.
To encourage the talents of team members, Brandix provides an array of opportunities for them to showcase their capabilities, which go beyond their normal work routine.
The Rasadiya Mangalya is one such initiative where Brandix employees are provided with a platform to display their creativity and artistic talent including singing, dancing and announcing on stage.
Brandix Rambukkana’s hearing-impaired dance team, which took part in Rasadiya Mangalya, was invited to perform at an event celebrating the International Day of Sign Languages 2022. This event was organised by the Department of Social Services and the Ministry of Women, Child Affairs and Social Empowerment.
And in 2018, three hearing-impaired team members from the Brandix Koggala plant participated in the T20 Cricket World Cup for hearing-impaired persons, and brought home the championship title.
Rasadiya Kusalanaya (Brandix Volleyball tournament), the Mech Challenge that’s held to recognise excellence in mechanics, Employee of the Year and Supervisor of the Year are other initiatives that Brandix employees look forward to annually.
During times of crisis, safeguarding the mental and physical wellbeing of team members is of utmost importance. In order to enable employees to have a good work-life balance, Brandix has meticulously developed a structured approach to counselling services at all its locations. With the support of a qualified team comprising experienced counsellors who are led by a professional with global exposure, these services extend beyond team members and include their families too.
Inspiring Leadership
At Brandix, inspiration stems from leadership that trickles down to the entire organisation, and enables people to offer inspired solutions to customers, suppliers, communities and all stakeholders.
“We believe in instilling a solutions driven culture where we can provide resolutions to inspire our stakeholders by thinking beyond current parameters and the rule book,” notes Chief Strategy Officer and Group Finance Director Hasitha Premaratne.
He stresses the company’s focus is on empowering people in its transformation journey: “We believe that to be inspired, you need to be empowered. So we will roll out an empowerment driven agenda through a structured framework to enable team members to make decisions across all levels and be accountable for what they do.”
The past few years have not provided a smooth ride for Sri Lanka with the Easter attacks, the pandemic and the economic crisis. And now, the global economic and retail slowdown is bringing in a new set of challenges.
“In spite of multiple crises, we have stayed strong and resilient, and countered the challenges successfully. Each time we were tested, we have continued to live our RITE values and our inspired team has come out with win-win solutions for all our stakeholders,” avers Premaratne.
Brandix will develop a new strategy framework to transform the organisation to meet the ever-changing global business environment. This framework will translate the organisation’s broader vision and direction at all levels.
Premaratne says that this journey will begin in 2023. He notes: “We will structure the organisation to improve our value proposition and drive the strategy to ensure that it will be a win-win situation for our stakeholders. More importantly, our team members will be more empowered to stay resilient during turbulent times and keep our flag flying high.”
