Doreen Garments sues US buyer over $678,000 unpaid dues

Apparel exporter Doreen Garments Ltd has been struggling to collect $678,412 from US-based Zinntex LLC for a shipment delivered two years ago, prompting the supplier to file a lawsuit in an American court.

The exporter had shipped 96,576 pieces of denim trousers to Zinntex but has been unable to collect payment as the buyer has since stopped responding to payment requests, according to Tahzeeb Alam Siddique, a director at Doreen Garments.

Doreen Garments filed a case in an US court one year ago over the issue, he said. The shipment was the company’s first and last order to Zinntex, which has no office in Bangladesh.

“We are hopeful that Zinntex will make the payment to us as our attorney in the US is confident about the sales and bank documents,” Director of Doreen Garments Tahzeeb Alam Siddique told The Daily Star over the phone.

“We have to go to court even if it is expensive, as the amount is big for us,” he added.

Several other Chattogram-based garment manufacturers have also been defrauded by Zinntex, according to Siddique. “This is not a big brand in the US and it mainly sources denim garment items.”

Meanwhile, on March 16, the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association  (BGMEA) sent a letter to members warning them against doing business with the company.

The association had earlier attempted to secure Doreen’s payment from the US company but received no response.

BGMEA also requested information from members who have traded with Zinntex to assess the scope of non-payment, as the association lacks data on which factories have dealt with the buyer.

“We tried to get the payment from Zinntex but the US company defrauded the local company,” said BGMEA President Mahmud Hasan Khan.

Khan said the trade body will meet with the US embassy in Dhaka after Eid to discuss the issue.

The association has identified similar payment defaults by buyers from Australia and India, as well as instances of local buying houses failing to pay suppliers, according to Khan.

BGMEA has asked buying houses to become associated members of the trade body as a condition for doing business with local manufacturers, he also said.