Treger Products sets US$15million exports target

10 Mar, 2019 - 00:03 0 Views
Treger  Products sets US$15million exports target Senator Judith Ncube

The Sunday News

Dumisani Nsingo, Business Reporter

ONE of Africa’s largest manufacturers of household wares and appliances, Treger Products has set a target of generating US$15 million in revenue this year from exports through fortifying its markets in the region.

In her briefing on Friday to the Minister of Industry and Commerce, Hon Nqobizitha Mangaliso Ndlovu and the Minister of State for Provincial Affairs in Bulawayo, Cde Judith Ncube after a tour of Kango Products factory, Treger Group of Companies financial director Ms Charmaine Kecr said the group had set a target of generating US$15 million from exports as part of its efforts of keeping its business afloat.

Incentives play a huge part of exporting. We have got a target of US$15 million this year and last year we managed US$11 million,” she said.

The Bulawayo-headquartered company has five manufacturing divisions namely Monarch Steel, Kango Products, Treger Plastics, Zimbabwe Grain Bag and Tregers Harare. Ms Kecr said the group relies more on exports for foreign currency as it virtually imports all of its raw materials.

“We are a net importer, any material that you have seen in our factories we are unable to buy 99 percent of it in Zimbabwe. We have to import it either in South Africa or overseas, most in China or India. We have an appetite of US$4 million a month at a 100 percent capacity,” she said.

The group successfully exports its products to Botswana, South Africa, Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique. In the last 10 years it has supplied window and door frames and other building materials to a number of Botswana and Zambia housing projects.

“We are trying to further explore this end of Zambia closer to us, which is the Copperbelt and further along in Mozambique and Malawi and further up into the continent as well,” said Ms Kecr.

Locally the company is not projecting much business largely due to the imminent drought. 

“The local market is performing as well as it can be expected. We are waiting on tobacco because of our range of products we are mostly agricultural oriented, we go with the season. So at the moment we are at the low end of our sales, so as soon as the tobacco floors come in our sales will improve but obviously we are in a drought year so it will not be good as it is,” said Ms Kecr.

The group is optimistic that recently introduced interbank foreign exchange system would ease its foreign currency challenges.

“We are facing a challenge of lack of foreign currency like everyone else but hopefully with this new interbank system that will change,” said Ms Kecr. 

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