The rapid increase of unregulated retail is severely hurting the clothing retail business in Zimbabwe, says Edgar Stores Managing Director Linda Masterson. Competition with outlets that do not pay taxes and source most of their items from China, South Africa, Botswana and Tanzania has driven formal retailers into a price war that will ultimately affect the consumer, according to Ms. Masterson.

Although the Zimbabwean authorities have forbidden the import of used clothes in 2015, Industry minister Mike Bimha has recently admitted that this measure is unenforceable due to the indigenous industry’s incapacity of meeting demand. Industry experts agree that local manufacturing can only cater to a about a fourth of the market.

Edgar Stores working on taking measures that engage the informal sector, namely saying that financial inclusion would be important to tackle the issue. Simultaneously, cost cutting measures had to be adopted and operating loss last year was already at $1.4 million, less than half of the previous year.