Under this partnership, SFI, owned by Artistic Milliners, is poised to offer its customers access to one of the largest garment production facilities in Guatemala. In return, Denimville, owned by Denimatrix LLC, will gain entry to SFI's design development centre and a team of seasoned professionals located in Los Angeles.
SFI began its western hemisphere expansion back in April when it partnered with Artistic Milliners.
SFI's strategy entails building a comprehensive network of sourcing solutions across the Western Hemisphere, with a central hub located in Commerce, California, near its Los Angeles-area headquarters. The company already maintains existing agreements with sourcing partners in Mexico and the US.
This network encompasses a supply chain of fabric sourced from the US, Mexico, and Central America. It enables manufacturers and brands to capitalise on cost savings through importation under trade agreements such as the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) and the Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR).
The agreement comes on the heels of SFI's announcement in June 2023 that it had inaugurated its first office in Guatemala City under the leadership of Alejandro Arias, SFI's vice president of sourcing, Central America.
Arias expressed the company's commitment to meeting the demand for high-quality textile sourcing, garment manufacturing, and denim finishing in proximity to the US: “We are establishing relationships with the best factories in the region to allow our customers to realise speed, flexibility and ease of doing business while maintaining high-calibre standards for production and sustainability.”
Daniel Hernandez, CEO of Denimville said: “Partnering with SFI expands our reach internationally and gives us a presence in Los Angeles at SFI’s design development centre and the opportunity to work with their team of denim design experts.”
Sergio Turbay, executive vice president of global sales and strategy for SFI, highlighted the localised expertise and technology that SFI provides to its customers and explained that customers are guided through design, development and production processes by experienced teams in the US, Mexico and Central America.
