The Fabric Of Success

MAS Holdings focusses on reinventing brand appeal during the pandemic

At a time when the rules of engagement in global trade are altering rapidly in a pandemic driven market, MAS Holdings continues to strengthen Sri Lanka’s image as a fast adapting and technologically advanced design to delivery apparel solutions provider.

A reliable ‘Made in Sri Lanka’ brand, over the past three decades, MAS has nurtured perceptions of high value, quality and innovation due to the company’s constant drive to reinvent itself, delivering products and services that have consistently met the demands of the industry, as well as in a COVID induced evolution of the world today.

Change and innovation have organically become part of the company’s DNA, forming a significant facet of MAS’ corporate brand.

Established in 1987 as a contract apparel manufacturer for global brands, MAS is today a diversified conglomerate with largely invested interests in apparel and textiles, IT, private industrial parks, brands, logistics and warehousing operations, adding to the incremental growth in exports of brands registered in Sri Lanka.

The company’s apparel division alone has evolved into a US$ 2 billion business with a growing global workforce of over 99,000 employees spread across 53 state-of-the-art apparel manufacturing facilities in 16 countries. MAS continues to grow its international brand presence, commanding a leading position for apparel and textile manufacturing in South Asia.

Indeed, the approach to build an authentic brand within a highly conventional industry was revolutionary. MAS Holdings ventured into groundbreaking partnerships and joint ventures with some of the largest contract manufacturers, importers and distributors of apparel in the world.

Today, MAS continues its journey of value creation and market innovation, powered by sustainable and ethical business practices, displaying industry-wide dominance and leadership – locally and regionally.

The resulting brand reputation reflects the courage the company is renowned for and the culture of innovation that empowers its people to believe that working at MAS amounts for something more than a mere job; and brand association and brand loyalty also play a part in this.


Product Innovation – Identifying Gaps in a Seemingly Crowded Market

With extensive R&D on material science, nanotechnology and e-textiles, MAS Holdings has contributed to the impetus of the global fashion revolution by integrating innovation in both product and process.

MAS works with some of the world’s leading experts in the realms of engineering and technology, entrepreneurs, researchers, customers and end consumers, launching fashion and lifestyle products that are more time appropriate and future proof.

In 2013, a strategic business unit, Twinery – Innovations by MAS, was established as a platform to ignite, launch and implement first in the world concepts, in an environment that encouraged and nurtured freethinking.

Twinery primarily focusses on three areas: innovation, digitisation and sustainability. Collaborating with a network of global development partners, MAS has experimented with over 50 disruptive technologies in lighting, heating, odour, protection and aqua repellence, reengineering multiple aspects of apparel to create high value added products.

The result is an aggressively growing portfolio of consumer technologies even during an unprecedented crisis; MAS relentlessly ventured into new product development including medical apparel and other pioneering new market developments in the digital space that have successfully been taken to market. The company has embraced new opportunities in FemTech – i.e. technology and services focussing on women’s health.

MAS also invested in one of the world’s most advanced smart accessories, Spryng – a wireless active pneumatic compression wrap that mimics natural muscle contractions in the calves.

Spryng effectively improves blood circulation, flushes lactic acid and increases oxygenation to muscle tissues, addressing the most pressing challenge of passive compression accessories that only work when the muscles are active.

This breakthrough (patent pending) WaveTech compression technology is considered highly beneficial for those suffering from mobility challenges, spinal injuries and related disabilities.

Twinery also partnered with Odlo – a global pioneer in function sportswear with clim8 – deemed to be the most advanced intelligent thermal technology to launch an intelligent middle layer of clothing for high climate performers, I-Thermic.

Using intelligent active heating technology, Twinery has integrated wire level heating to create a safe, durable, stretchy, breathable and washable garment that provides warmth during periods of inactivity, such as time on the ski lift, and regulates the temperature when the body warms up during rigorous activity. This garment has eliminated the need for multiple layers of clothing in extreme temperatures.

Impact protection has also been a focus area at MAS, which led to the creation of customisable protective headgear using MAS’ patented injection foam mould technology. By utilising this technology, the world’s longstanding leader of rugby clothing, kit and gear – Canterbury – introduced the Canterbury Reinforcer Headguard.

Ergonomically designed with high impact absorbing foam to maximise protective zones, the gear provides full coverage to the head to reduce risk of cuts and abrasions.

Conforming to World Rugby specifications, the Canterbury Reinforcer was worn by players during the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan.

Process Innovation – Reimagining How Things Are Done Better, Faster

Yet another element that has enabled MAS to fast adapt to the global crisis is the journey of turnaround and transformation implemented across MAS in 2018, resulting in greatly increasing operating efficiencies and eliminating unnecessary expenditure through smarter business practices.

Its operation was augmented by cost-effective production methodologies and faster replenishment cycles, supported by multiple digital platforms. This two-year-long process is said to have strengthened MAS’ position as a tech enabled global enterprise with the resources and reserves to support its business continuity.

MAS also entered into a new joint venture with global logistics solutions provider Hellmann Worldwide Logistics to form the ‘Hellmann MAS Supply Chain’ in 2019. This enabled MAS to extend a service offering beyond the traditional value proposition to clients: enhanced agility and speed to market.

The Hellman MAS Supply Chain (HMSC) combined Hellman’s existing contract logistics business in Sri Lanka and in-house logistics of MAS.

By formalising the new joint venture, the existing Hellman business in Sri Lanka transitioned into a focussed air and sea unit, while the joint venture took on contract logistics and fourth party logistics (4PL) services in Sri Lanka.

In addition to the existing local Hellmann contract logistics business being transferred to the new joint venture, a new fashion logistics facility was formed at the MAS compound in the Katunayake Export Promotion Zone (KEPZ).

This supports the overarching vision of HMSC to create a pull model supply chain, resulting in Sri Lanka steadily scaling and progressing as a regional export hub for major global fashion brands.

The Growing Importance of E-Commerce and Digitisation

While traditional channels of manufacturing and distribution are being disrupted following the pandemic, the world has witnessed the rise of e-commerce in fashion retail among other industries.

With the introduction of the pull model, HMSC has been able to facilitate direct e-commerce channels from the source to enable near real-time response and speed to market for clients –especially in the hardest hit Western hemisphere.

HMSC looked to address this requirement of innovatively improving Sri Lanka’s cross border e-commerce process to offer inventory agility by reducing movement of goods across borders.

Other services offered by HMSC include climate controlled warehousing with inventory management, and a number of value added services such as packing, labelling, folding, tagging, ratio packing and 4PL logistics services, all offered to potential exporters from Sri Lanka, further boosting and augmenting Sri Lanka’s revived export economy.


MAS is also collaborating with global apparel companies to combine physical and digital interactions between consumers, customers and the supply chain through ‘seamless inventory’ – an industry first demand planning solution to change how brands respond to market demand.

Seamless inventory was a collaboration of cross-functional teams from MAS and customers working together for over 24 months to architect an innovative and cost-effective pull model, where a unit is manufactured to global specification and shipped just in time as demand is triggered across the globe.

Through seamless inventory, MAS has unlocked the next level of inventory replenishment by creating the opportunities for clients to have globally responsive products in a rapidly changing post-pandemic market, making value added services a reality in the fast-paced world of fashion.

Sustainable Manufacturing Centred Around Innovation and Circularity

Beyond apparel, MAS’ innovation mindset extends to sustainability, which is a familiar refrain in today’s global fashion industry.

However, be it a trend or self-realisation, consumers are focussing on conscious fashion like never before, thereby derailing ill-equipped fast fashion brands that display no interest in tackling the pressing environmental and social challenges of our time.

From deforestation to chemical misuse, MAS is committed to supporting a thriving planet by championing climate change. A more ambitious goal for 2025 set by MAS sees Twinery accelerating its journey towards ‘zero waste apparel.’

As consumer awareness increases about the apparel industry’s significant contribution to waste and pollution, Twinery introduced the innovative Truecycled process in collaboration with BPL Holdings that recycles plastic PET bottles into polyester yarn. This breakthrough fabric was used to produce the Sri Lankan national cricket team’s jerseys for the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup.

While international markets continue to consider price and quality as paramount factors when selecting sourcing partners, environmental and quality management systems have become an important feature that is frequently evaluated in the selection process.

Despite uncontrollable external threats including the emergence of low-cost manufacturers from Asia and Africa, regional political tensions and global trade wars, the ‘Made in Sri Lanka’ brand remains a top sourcing option for high quality and ethically manufactured products.

MAS too continues to adhere to internationally accepted ISO standards for quality management and assurance, environmental management, occupational safety and information security management. Such benchmarks across the local export sector have been considered the norm through voluntary adoption rather than regulatory practice over the years, a clear advantage in European and US markets, as well as other new markets that Sri Lanka’s export sector is now looking to penetrate.

Global Inspiration for Local Exporters

The apparel industry is the country’s leading export vertical and one of the hardest hit during the COVID-19 pandemic, with supply chain disruptions and market constraints. In its capacity as a pioneer in the industry, MAS has sought to continuously set a precedent in the need to adapt swiftly by revisiting its value proposition as an exporter.

The company has proven that by thinking and acting differently, Sri Lanka can reinvent its value proposition to the global market with a long-term visionary strategy, which can be supported by a solid political framework and trade liberalisation – two key trade enablers in developed countries.

MAS takes its role as an exemplary industry leader seriously, steering the economy and the country forward, towards continuous change and evolution.

Due to its enhanced degree of flexibility to adapt and respond to external variables, the company views the post-pandemic open market as an opportunity to collaborate and create sustainable value for customers, supporting them to win back their hard hit consumer markets.

Just as developed economies encourage rapid and innovative responses from the private sector, to increase competition and attract foreign investment, MAS’ approach has nurtured better conditions for trade networks and partnerships to develop between Sri Lanka and established global counterparts.

Such partnerships and brand loyalties are crucial in resetting global and local economies in 2021, a new year saddled with trepidation and uncertainties. The foresight MAS had to set a new vision and targets for 2025 has strengthened its business – financially, behaviourally and capability-wise – and has been the very extra bit of muscle and brand loyalty that is needed to get over this hurdle.