Background:
The symposium was jointly hosted by Mainland Headwear Holdings Limited (“Mainland Headwear”; stock code: 1100) and New Era Cap Company, Inc. (“New Era”) on 23 and 24 April 2009 in Shenzhen. It brought together more than 40 participants and featured speakers from different organisations, including the Fair Labor Association (“FLA”), University of Notre Dame, and University of Florida, as well as representatives from New Era Cap and Mainland Headwear. The focus was on how to achieve greater supply chain labor compliance through strong partnerships.
Key Accomplishments:
- Raised awareness about stakeholder perspectives.
Each of the stakeholders represented – from the FLA, university community, Mainland Headwear and New Era Cap - described their approaches to compliance and goals for 2009 and beyond.
Compliance management systems and approaches were compared and contrasted, highlighting key components to a safety culture, methods of employee engagement, and the contributions of Lean manufacturing to compliance goals.
. During one activity participants’ assumptions about other stakeholders’ perspectives and priorities were explored and discussed. The exercise highlighted commonalities and differences among the participating organizations and individuals.
- Provided a platform for dialogue
. Participants raised additional questions, challenges and issues to address in further dialogue and collaboration.
Key Quotes:
Michael Low, Director of Licensing at the University of Notre Dame - “It (The Symposium) provided me with an inside view of the New Era – Mainland Headwear relationship and their emphasis on Code compliance and the need to provide employees with educational opportunities that identifies best practices and generates a commitment to continuous improvement.”
Debbie Gay, Licensing Manager at the University of Florida - “I found the symposium to be a most incredible and invaluable experience,” said. “To have the opportunity to meet the wonderful people of Mainland Headwear, tour their facilities, and engage in open dialog, provided me with much clearer understanding of both their directives and challenges. I look forward to continuing to build upon both the knowledge I gained and experience.”
Mr. Timothy Freer, New Era’s Vice President, Global Human Resources - “As industry leaders, both New Era and Mainland Headwear share a strong interest and commitment to labor standards, as reflected in the guidelines and code of conduct of the FLA. We hope all participants in the symposium gained a new and deeper understanding of the value of a good compliance program. We believe that ‘doing the right thing’ can add value to business.”
Mrs. Pauline Ngan, Deputy Chairman and Managing Director of Mainland Headwear - “I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to New Era and FLA for their support, bringing all participants together to promote greater compliance awareness. As globalisation progresses, the international community is also raising the bar on labour protection. Enhancing compliance in the supply chain is not only a social responsibility of an enterprise, but can also add to the enterprise’s competitiveness, especially in today’s testing economic environment.”
Photos:
For more photos and information, go to: www.neweracap.com/mainlandevent
(From left to right) Ms. Roopa Nair, Code Implementation and Monitoring Director of FLA; Mr. Ngan Hei Keung, Chairman of Mainland Headwear; Mr. Timothy Freer, Vice President Global Human Resources of New Era; and Mrs. Pauline Ngan, Deputy Chairman and Managing Director of Mainland Headwear at the symposium.
About New Era Cap (www.neweracap.com)
Founded in 1920, New Era Cap Company, Inc., the leading headwear manufacturer and creator of New Era Apparel, brings to market products that transcend time, culture, sport and fashion. Producing more than 35 million caps per year, New Era is the exclusive manufacturer and marketer of the official on-field cap worn by every Major League Baseball team and their Minor League affiliates and maintaining agreements with other licensed entities. On the street, New Era is known as the Originator of the True Fitted for its signature cap style, the 59FIFTY. The Company is headquartered in Buffalo, New York and operates facilities in Alabama, Canada, Europe, Japan and Hong Kong. New Era Cap is a Participating Company (PC) of the Fair Labor Association.
About Mainland Headwear Holdings Limited (www.mainlandheadwear.com / www.mainland.com.hk)
Mainland Headwear was established in 1986 and listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2000. The Group is principally engaged in the design, manufacture and distribution of quality headwear. With its own manufacturing plants in Shenzhen, Dongguan and Panyu, the Group manufactures licensed and branded headwear with annual production capacity of over 30 million hats in more than 5,000 designs. In 2004, the Group obtained the headwear licence for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. It also commenced retail business in the same year to open headwear outlets in Hong Kong and the PRC under the LIDS store brand. In 2005, the Group obtained the exclusive license to design, manufacture and sell all SANRIO products in the PRC. In 2006, the Group acquired Kangol Headwear (Panyu) Limited which manufactures about 85% of “Kangol” headwear, extending the Group’s product offerings to fashion headwear. In 2007, the Group obtained the worldwide exclusive manufacturing rights and exclusive distribution rights in Greater China and Japan of The Fédération Internationale de Football Association ("FIFA") branded headwear between 2007 and 2014. In 2008, the Group formed a joint venture with Yue Yuen Industrial (Holdings) Limited (stock code: 551) and Large Forever Limited to invest in Keen Idea Group Ltd., a headwear manufacturer based in Vietnam, and became its largest shareholder. In the same year, the Group also acquired 100% stake of a tourist-souvenir retailer (???????????????) to expand its retail network, and also signed a seven-year manufacturing agreement with New Era Cap Co., Inc., the largest and fastest growing headwear manufacturer in the United States.
For more information:
New Era Cap Company
Dana Marciniak 716.604-9259 dana.marciniak@neweracap.com
