Ryan Zimmerman is the founder and CEO of Arzee, an apparel manufacturing company. Since 2016, Arzee has been working with national brands, high-end designers, as well as small startups to manufacture best-in-class apparel.
“Arzee was born as I realized the great need for reliable manufacturing with a customer-centric approach. Before Arzee, I launched my label under the same name. However, I struggled to find quality manufacturing that truly offered the services needed for a new designer,” Zimmerman says.
“I ended up partnering with one factory in the United States, opening an office next to their production line, and creating the Arzee we know today. At that time, I couldn’t find someone forward-thinking with their finger on the pulse of the fashion industry to fulfill my manufacturing needs. However, that gave me an idea for a new business. I knew I could create a company that provides both great service and quality,” Zimmerman explains.
In discussing his move into Mexico, Ryan Zimmerman points out: overseas manufacturing comes with lower costs, but it can be very unpredictable. “Many companies opt for overseas manufacturing due to cheap labor prices. However, it takes quite a while for your product to reach your stores. After the COVID-19 outbreak, global supply chains, especially those in Asia, have become unreliable. This increased the need for local manufacturing. ” Zimmerman says.
Even though the pandemic caught Arzee by surprise, Zimmerman and his team quickly thought of a solution. “This pandemic has been our greatest challenge but also our biggest success. In March 2020, our business completely collapsed. All orders were canceled. Knowing that demand would continue to shift out of Asia, we worked during the pandemic to set up a new facility in Mexico. Everything happened so quickly, and we were able to go back to work sooner than we expected,” Zimmerman says.
Arzee is opening a new office in Mexico City in April 2021 to expand its Mexico manufacturing and export arm. As Zimmerman points out, the quality of Arzee products is top-notch from both locations. The only difference is that Mexico offers a cost advantage and a much faster shipping time to the US compared to China.
“Manufacturing is most efficient when production is made close to the end customer. This enables brands to match supply with demand better and improve working capital through holding less inventory. We already have a robust US operation, and we are expanding into Mexico to be in a strong position for this unpredictable global environment,” Zimmerman says. Considering this, Ryan Zimmerman believes that expanding into Mexico is one of the best decisions he could have made for Arzee.
