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Mexico’s Partner Compañía Mexicana de Trajes
Menswear specialists Compañía
Mexicana de Trajes
and Confecciones MAK
have a longstanding presence
on the Mexican and
international markets, where the duo has forged
a prestigious reputation based on the quality of
their products, excellent service and reasonable
prices.
With some 600 employees on its payroll,
Compañía Mexicana de Trajes has been acknowledged
by Mexico’s National Bank of Foreign
Trade (BANCOMEXT, for its acronym in
Spanish) as a high-volume exporter (Empresa
Altamente Exportadora or ALTEX). The company
is also certified under the Mexican Clothing
Industry Chamber’s Quality Assurance System
for Garment Production Processes.
“Compañía Mexicana de Trajes was founded
almost 50 years ago and is now one of Mexico’s
leading makers and retailers of men’s suits,
jackets and pants,” says Operations Director
Salomón Sarfati.
Originally founded on December 4, 1962,
it wasn’t until 1990 that the company was acquired
by its current owners, who boast wide
experience in the menswear department and
who also happen to be the founding partners of
Confecciones MAK, a company specializing in
pants that dates back to 1975.
Compañía Mexicana de Trajes has built up
trusting relationships with its clients, who, in the
words of Sarfati, “know they’re not likely to hear
a ‘no’ from us.”
Renowned for working closely with clients
to find the ideal product for their final consumer,
Sarfati is convinced that: “Aside from
quality and reasonable prices, it is in this standard
of personalized service that the company’s
strength lies.”
Together, Compañía Mexicana de Trajes and
Confecciones MAK have a portfolio of 550-plus
clients in Mexico. Their products, which feature
brands like Perry Ellis, Halston, Polo and Ted
Lapidus, to name just a few, can be found at over
2,400 points of sale, including most major department
stores in Mexico.
“We have all kinds of clients in Mexico, from
supermarkets to department stores like Liverpool,
Sears, El Palacio de Hierro and specialized
stores like Saks,” says Sarfati.
In addition to six stores in strategic locations
throughout Mexico City, the company also has
agreements in place with its corporate clients,
whose employees can buy designer brands
straight from the factory and finance their purchases
via a special voucher system.
Since 1996, Compañía Mexicana de Trajes
and Confecciones MAK have been exporting
to North America and the Caribbean as part of
an aggressive international expansion plan that
offers major distributors cut-make (CM), cutmake-trim
(CMT) and full-package services.
Clients such as George Weintraub Sons, HMX,
Ballin, Bremen and Berle have already signed
up for these cross-border services.
Renowned for working
closely with clients to find
the ideal product for their
final consumer, Sarfati is
convinced that: “Aside from
quality and reasonable
prices, it is in this standard of
personalized service that the
company’s strength lies.”
In the process, Compañía Mexicana de
Trajes and Confecciones MAK have been certified
by a long list of companies, including Levis,
Federated and Jos. A. Banks.
The group has two factories, one in Mexico
City and a second one in Zinacantepec, Estado
de México, both equipped with cutting-edge
machinery, like the two-shell suit-assembly
system and a modular, rapid-response one for
making pants.
It is machinery like that which enables the
company to churn out some 850 suits and 2,000
pairs of pants a day, 70% of which are sold on
the domestic market, with the remaining 30%
being exported.
“Initially,” says Sarfati, “products intended
for the Mexican market and those produced
for export to the US were very different. But
over the years, they have become increasingly
similar to the point where they are now virtually
identical.”
Smart Fashion for
Savvy Entrepreneurs
Compañía Mexicana de Trajes boasts its own
hi-tech designer line. Created with the businessman
who spends his days on the road in mind,
these garments incorporate innovative waterresistant,
natural stretch and anti-wrinkle fabrics.
“Our catalogue features our basic, restockable
product line, in addition to our annual
Spring-Summer and Fall-Winter collections,”
says Sarfati.
“Depending on what’s fashionable, our
Spring-Summer collection generally focuses on
light to medium color palettes and lightweight,
versatile fabrics like pure linen or cotton and
linen blends, and tropical wools, which are ideal
for city dwellers. In the Fall-Winter season, our
catalogue veers more toward wool serge suits
and classic raincoats, with modern variations
in cut and storm flaps in keeping with the latest
European trends in texture, finish and silhouette
design,” he continues.
A large stock of basic suits, pants and blazers
in the most popular fabrics and colors reveals
in-depth knowledge of consumer purchasing
habits and allows Compañía Mexicana de
Trajes to offer immediate delivery on plain and
fancy 100% wool, super 100s imported from
Italy and 100% Mexican wool fabrics, among
others. The company caters to a large market
segment with a permanent inventory of casual
pants in wool polyester, polyester viscose and
cotton, while a choice of models and fabrics attracts
a more diverse clientele. This capacity to
restock on-demand translates into unbeatable
services in tailored menswear products.
The “smart suit” recently launched by Compañía
Mexicana de Trajes was an immediate
hit, shooting to the top of its category in terms of
sales. Comfortable, versatile and functional, that
product is for the gentleman who strives to look
impeccably turned out at all times.
Corporate, staff and school uniforms are another
product line. These come in a wide range
of designs, from the very formal to more casual,
modern looks.
“We plan to continue increasing production
capacity because it isn’t currently sufficient to
cover sales,” reveals Sarfati, who believes now is
the perfect moment to expand.
“Right now the textile and clothing industry
is at a good place because many of the foreign clients
who left Mexico at one point are returning.
They’ve realized it’s not easy to find the service,
price and quality we offer here,” he concludes. n
www.mextrajes.com