poly nation

General information

Our 3 Ground Rules

We try be as flexible and versatile to our clients as possible, but since we started our business in 1995, there are 3 principles that define Poly Nation;

Principle 1: We would manufacture in South Africa

Not so long ago, the clothing and textiles industry was the second largest local employer. Unfortunately, more than half these jobs have been shed – mostly due to cheap Asian imports. This has added to our horrifying national unemployment rate of 27%. Against this troubling background, PolyNation made a bold commitment to be a proudly South African manufacturer.

Principle 2: We would invest in people before machines

If we can manufacture by hand and we can produce a high-quality product at a competitive price, we will always favour people over machines.

The word “manufacturing” is based on the Latin word “manu” which means hand-made. (By contrast, what most companies are doing today should rather be called “mechafacturing” as so much is done by automated, robotized machinery.)

It makes sense, in our industry, to invest in good, skilled people before splashing out on costly, job-depriving machinery. And by introducing smart, new ways of applying traditional skills, we are able to offer hand-crafted quality at a competitive price.

And with our exemplary staff retention rates, we are constantly able to up-skill workers, and build new teams of talented, trustworthy colleagues.

Principle 3: We’d produce quality products at a competitive price

All our manufacturing processes are done in-house – from the cutting to the sewing, printing, embroidery, labelling and packaging. This “one stop shop” model enables our production flows to run smoothly and efficiently.

By introducing smart, new ways of applying traditional skills, we are able to offer hand-crafted quality product at a competitive price.

This also makes us more flexible with orders and timing. And being fully hands-on, we are always in better control of our product, our service, and our financial position.

We can do small minimum orders, or novel customised detailing – and deliver in less time that it takes some companies just to calibrate their machinery.