Garment makers Hela Apparel gets $ 5M boost from Aavishkaar to scale up Africa operations

Aavishkaar, an Impact fund manager focused on the Global South extended the funding in partnership with KfW, a German state-owned investment and development bank.

Hela Apparel Holdings PLC provides sustainability-focused apparel supply chain solutions to some of the world’s leading apparel brands. With 10 manufacturing facilities across Sri Lanka, Kenya, Ethiopia and Egypt, and a workforce of 20,000 across the globe, this funding is hoped to boost their long-term commitment to manufacturing in Africa.   

This is part of the $250Million ESG First Fund focused on investing in Africa and Asia with a mandate to generate superior Environmental and Social Governance (ESG) outcomes, with commercial and financial returns alongside positive social impact. 

Chairman of Hela Apparel Holdings, A R Rasiah expressed his gratitude Aavishkaar for the boost.

"Hela was one the first major multinational apparel manufacturers to enter the African region in 2016, starting with just 250 employees in Kenya. We have since rapidly expanded our footprint and today employ approximately 10,000 people on the continent,” he said.

“This investment by ESG First Fund will help us to continue this fruitful journey, particularly by supporting the expansion of our Egyptian manufacturing facility to its full scale. It is also another important example of the strategic partnerships we are forging with stakeholders who share our vision for Africa as a global manufacturing hub and we look forward to strengthening the relationship with Aavishkaar over the years to come.” 

Commenting on the investment, Ashish Patel, Managing Partner, Credit, Aavishkaar Capital said they were excited to invest in Hela Apparel Holdings and in transforming the apparel and textile landscape in the region. 

“We look forward to partnering with such high growth businesses across Asia and Africa that are operating in global supply chains.” he said.