As you walk in you are instantly hailed into a burst of colour and diversity. Its spacious interiors offer you the comfort of shopping to your hearts content for the entire family and still save considerably with its attractive discounted prices.
Words Kamalika Jayathilaka Photographs Damith Wickramasinghe
The Factory Outlet (TFO), as suggested by its name promotes the concept of retail clothing just out of the factory for a bargain price, but with the best of quality. I mingled with a crowd of shoppers to find out what’s in store…
The ladies‘ section displayed stacks of stylish attire for the working woman along with a range of day and evening wear. The highlight of the store however, are its copious selections of casual wear. Don’t forget to check out the fascinating range of accessories that include elegant costume jewellery, classy handbags and even shoes of a range of styles and designs at the Factory Outlet.
“This store is a part of an effort to promote the ‘factory outlet’ concept in Sri Lanka, which is already present in many other parts of the world. We believe that the name will give out the message that the products are given at discounted prices. Likewise, we offer quality clothing and accessories at very reasonable pricing for men women as well as children,” stated Sharhan Mansoor, Managing Director of The Factory Outlet.
Having opened to the public nearly two years ago, The Factory Outlet has won the hearts and confidence of a discerning clientele within a short time-span and has received an exceptional response from customers that regularly visit the store from all parts of the country. TFO is also popular among foreign expatriats, diplomats and tourists.
Apart from ladies’ wear the store houses an attractive collection of kids’ day wear and eye-catching party wear along with shoes, bags and school accessories. An array of formal wear are offered for men at The Factory Outlet, not to mention casual and sports wear including sought after cricket team t-shirts and trendy beach slippers and much more. TFO is also a hotspot for buying gifts.
The products available at TFO are largely bought from Sri Lankan manufacturers who cater to the European market, while a share of clothing and accessories are imported from countries such as India, Bangladesh and Vietnam. “But we also do our own manufacturing under the labels of TFO and EZIO. We already produce a range of casual wear and footwear under the TFO label as well as shirts and pants under the name EZIO,” added Mansoor.
Open seven days a week with extended operational hours during festive seasons, TFO has ample parking and is at a central and easily accessible location in Colombo. “We only close on Labour Day each year and during seasonal and festive times we keep the store open till 11.00 pm for the convenience of our clients,” stated the Managing Director. Clients are also given a variety of special offers and promotions as well as discounts, about which the clients are made aware through a SMS portal and their Facebook fan page which already has close to 28,000 fans.
“We have plans for expansion in the near future with primarily two branches in Mount Lavinia and Palawatta, Battaramulla which will be up and running by April 2013. But we hope to open a chain starting with two more in 2014 and more outlets in other major cities in the country,” concluded Sharhan Mansoor.
Thus, TFO, the avant-garde fashion retailer which has already made a mark in the clothing industry in Sri Lanka, is gearing up to further serve their discerning clients with more choices in quality products at amazing prices, not only in Colombo but all over Sri Lanka in the foreseeable future.
192, Havelock Road, Colombo 5
Tel: (+94 11) 255 5600
tfostore.com
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