New York City-based JA Apparel Corp., manufacturer of men’s tailored jackets and trousers under the
Joseph Abboud brand, has opened a new 75,000-square-foot distribution center at its New Bedford,
Mass., plant. Due to its close proximity to the manufacturing facility, the distribution center now
enables the company to produce and ship suits in just seven days.
“Historically it can take as long as 12 weeks to make a fine tailored men’s suit,
particularly if labor is being done overseas,” said Marty Staff, president and CEO. “But our
workers are beginning to embrace our ‘Lean Manufacturing’ techniques and we continue to find ways
to shorten the amount of time it takes to manufacture our suits and deliver them to retailers and
customers.”
Close to 90 jobs have been added at the company in the past year, bringing the total to 590 —
520 of which are held by union members.
“The fact that we have so many new workers in the last year tells me we are on to something
good here,” said Anthony Sapienza, president and COO, Joseph Abboud Manufacturing Corp.
January/February 2007
