Intimate Apparel who is one of our key suppliers of lingerie advised us of its intention to close its doors at the end of November subject to consultation and any alternatives. The reason given to us is that the high costs of labour associated with the manufacturing of lingerie and the wage differential with their international competitors have made it impossible for them to compete with overseas suppliers and so to sustain a commercially viable business. This means we will lose a key supplier of lingerie and in order to ensure continuity and quality of supply to our customers we will need to source an alternative supplier as a matter of urgency. The closing down of a South African clothing manufacturer is of concern to Woolworths. However, we understand our supplier’s reasons. Please attribute the statement to Brett Kaplan, Divisional Director: Clothing and General Merchandise at Woolworths.