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Sep 02, 2023

Classic Fashion, garment maker to Walmart, opens first U.S. plant in Santa Ana

Classic Fashion, a Jordan-based maker of sportswear and casual clothing for

Classic Fashion, a Jordan-based maker of sportswear and casual clothing for Walmart, Target and other big retailers, has opened its first U.S. production facility in Santa Ana.

The company signed a five-year lease at 1939 S. Susan St. for a 12,000-square-foot manufacturing plant and 7,200 square feet of warehouse space. It will cut and sew apparel exclusively for Walmart. The plant will initially employ 125 workers, but the company expects to expand to 350 employees in the next five years.

Classic Fashion invested $4 million in the new facility, which is already in operation and expected to be in full production by mid-November, company officials said.

Garment workers sit at sewing machines at the Classic Fashion facility in Santa Ana on Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2022. The facility is the company's first production facility in the United States and is a Walmart clothing supplier, bringing 125 new jobs to the region with more planned in the coming years. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Garment worker, Rene Alarcon, sews a top at the Classic Fashion facility in Santa Ana on Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2022. The facility is the company's first production facility in the United States and is a Walmart clothing supplier, bringing 125 new jobs to the region with more planned in the coming years. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Large rolls of fabric are piled on shelves at the Classic Fashion facility in Santa Ana on Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2022. The facility is the company's first production facility in the United States and is a Walmart clothing supplier, bringing 125 new jobs to the region with more planned in the coming years. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Garment worker, Maria Isabel Cruz, sews a top at the Classic Fashion facility in Santa Ana on Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2022. The facility is the company's first production facility in the United States and is a Walmart clothing supplier, bringing 125 new jobs to the region with more planned in the coming years. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Large spools of thread feed to a sewing machine used by a garment worker at the Classic Fashion facility in Santa Ana on Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2022. The facility is the company's first production facility in the United States and is a Walmart clothing supplier, bringing 125 new jobs to the region with more planned in the coming years. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)

A garment worker sews a top at the Classic Fashion facility in Santa Ana on Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2022. The facility is the company's first production facility in the United States and is a Walmart clothing supplier, bringing 125 new jobs to the region with more planned in the coming years. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)

A worker operates a fabric cutting machine at the Classic Fashion facility on Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2022, in Santa Ana. The facility is the company's first production facility in the United States and is a Walmart clothing supplier, bringing 125 new jobs to the region with more planned in the coming years. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)

A worker operates a fabric cutting machine at the Classic Fashion facility in Santa Ana on Wednesday, Oct.5, 2022. The facility is the company's first production facility in the United States and is a Walmart clothing supplier, bringing 125 new jobs to the region with more planned in the coming years. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Garment workers sit at sewing machines at the Classic Fashion facility in Santa Ana on Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2022. The facility is the company's first production facility in the United States and is a Walmart supplier, bringing 125 new jobs to the region with more planned in the coming years. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Walmart, which named Classic Fashion a general merchandise Supplier of the Year in 2018 and 2020, hosted a ribbon cutting for the production/warehouse plant on Thursday, Oct. 6. The apparel company said it earned that title by adhering to Walmart's strict compliance, quality, performance and sustainability goals.

The clothing industry, like scores of others, has been heavily affected by supply chain delays during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Eighty-nine percent of fashion executives polled in a Feb. 2022 survey from Statistica said the rising cost of raw materials would impact their supply chain throughout the year, and 85% expect that to continue into 2023.

The survey also showed 87% of respondents were concerned about increased shipping costs, 79% were worried about port delays and disruptions and 78% said they were impacted by temporary vendor shutdowns.

Other top concerns were centered around the availability of raw materials, consumer demand volatility, international trade tensions and changes in consumer preferences.

Classic Fashion was established 20 years ago and has supplied products to Walmart for 16 years. Most of the company's clothing — including swimwear, golfwear, jackets and jeans — is marketed under the private-label brands of its customers.

Large rolls of fabric are piled on shelves at the Classic Fashion facility in Santa Ana on Wednesday, October 5, 2022. The facility is the company's first production facility in the United States and is a Walmart clothing supplier, bringing 125 new jobs to the region with more planned in the coming years. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)

A worker operates a fabric cutting machine at the Classic Fashion facility in Santa Ana on Wednesday, Oct.5, 2022. The facility is the company's first production facility in the United States and is a Walmart clothing supplier, bringing 125 new jobs to the region with more planned in the coming years. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Clothing pieces are stacked on a table after being cut and before they are sewn together at the Classic Fashion facility in Santa Ana on Wednesday, October 5, 2022. The facility is the company's first production facility in the United States and is a Walmart clothing supplier, bringing 125 new jobs to the region with more planned in the coming years. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)

A worker operates a fabric cutting machine at the Classic Fashion facility on Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2022, in Santa Ana. The facility is the company's first production facility in the United States and is a Walmart clothing supplier, bringing 125 new jobs to the region with more planned in the coming years. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Large rolls of fabric are piled on shelves at the Classic Fashion facility in Santa Ana on Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2022. The facility is the company's first production facility in the United States and is a Walmart clothing supplier, bringing 125 new jobs to the region with more planned in the coming years. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)

In addition to the biggest retailer in the U.S., the client list includes Sam's Club, Target, J.C. Penny, Adidas, Kirkland, Nautica, American Eagle, Hanes, Reebok and Tommy Hilfiger, among others.

In an industry that's been plagued by wage theft, Classic Fashion says it pays the prevailing minimum wage with overtime allowances. The company says its production environments are "healthy and productive with popular music of the choice of the workers played in a volume level that is pleasing to the workers without being a disturbance to their work."

Sanal Kumar, Classic Fashion's chairman and managing director, offered some perspective on the company's partnership with Walmart in a statement released in May 2021.

"I started my operations in 2003, and Walmart joined me in 2005," he said. "Since then, we have grown in leaps and bounds. And today I have over a $300 million relationship with Walmart."

Kumar said as much as 45% of $628 million in business revenue for 2021 came from Walmart.

The company said it chose Santa Ana for its first U.S. manufacturing site because of the city's skilled workforce.

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