Secretary of the Hanoi Party Committee Vuong Dinh Hue has hailed Garment 10 Corporation, one of Vietnam’s leading companies in garment and textile industry, for its swift transition from clothing to face mask production.

Overview of the meeting.

With growing demand for face masks globally, Garment 10 has received big orders, Hue said during a visit to the company on April 7, adding businesses should grasp opportunities to save themselves instead of waiting for government support.

Than Duc Viet, general director of Garment 10, said the pandemic caused a 30% decline in the number of orders in April, but the company’s shift to face mask production would partially offset the impact.

In addition to cloth face masks, Garment 10 is preparing for medical mask production, Viet said.

According to Viet, the company has received an order of 400 million medical masks worth US$52 million, equivalent to 30% of Garment 10’s revenue in 2020, with shipment starting in July.

Meanwhile, a US buyer also ordered 20 million face masks with six-week delivery time and another from Germany ordered two million cloth face masks and six million medical face masks.

Garment 10 last month produced five million cloth face masks and earned revenue of VND35 billion (US$1.5 million).

“Face mask production is less profitable compared to garments, but we are trying to adapt to the situation and cover the losses, for the welfare of 12,000 employees,” Viet shared.

Hanoi's Party chief Hue said the pandemic is disrupting production chains globally and directly impacting aviation, services, textile and footwear industries, among others. For Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, the impact is more severe.

Hue expected the company to strictly follow government’s instructions to ensure safe operation during the Covid-19 pandemic. The city would continue to provide support for the business community, including online training for employees.

Hue requested local authorities to address bottlenecks in disbursement of public investment funds, and urged companies to be ready for operation once the pandemic is contained.

“Enterprises in Hanoi should try to maintain production and businesses. The city is putting efforts to maintain reasonable economic growth to ensure sufficient state budget revenue collection and stable social security,” Hue stressed.