next Sourcing celebrates 19 years of operation

• Recognises long standing team contribution in Sri Lanka and India

next Sourcing, a wholly owned subsidiary of next Plc, UK, the retail clothing and accessory giant, hosted the Long Service Awards 2013 in Sri Lanka recently. The company organised an employee recognition awards program which was held at the Grand Ballroom, Hilton Colombo amidst a gathering of next team members, and was graced by Chanaka Perera, Regional Director for Sri Lanka, South India and Pakistan, Hugh McConnell, Senior Technical Manager and Wilhelm Elias, Senior Merchandise Manager.

Chanaka Perera, Regional Director – next Sourcing for Sri Lanka, South India and Pakistan, commending the teamwork, said: “Our team consists of nearly 300 members in the region and I am honoured to acknowledge each and every team member for driving our organisation to where it is now, with a focus of reaching greater heights in the future.

“We have experienced an unprecedented growth over the 19 years of operations because of your commitment and dedication. What gives us even more pride and pleasure is to see such a large proportion of our team members staying with us and developing long term careers with next. We thank you all for your loyalty.”

Hugh McConnell, Senior Technical Manager – next Sourcing noted: “A main strength of next Sourcing is the ability to consistently deliverer goods that meet the customers’ performance standards. The office has the best quality performance record of any supplier to next over several years and it is a credit to the skill and dedication of our technical and quality assurance staff who have worked professionally to train new employees and build relationships with UK technologists in their designated departments. I have been managing the department for over 10 years and am very proud of their achievements.”

The “next-Long Service Awards’ recognised a total of 71 employees in the region.

Wilhelm Elias, Senior Merchandise Manager – next Sourcing, added: “Having joined the business at its early stages, most of us have seen our business go through several phases. The making of a successful business in trying times is a business that faces challenges head on and this is what our offices are renowned for. Our team of merchandisers, technical and support staff are a team of diligent, hardworking and committed individuals that take pride in the product we sell to next which is key to our success.”

Mihiri Ranasinghe, Head of HR – next Sourcing, elaborating further said: “Our most important asset in the organisation is our people. This felicitation ceremony was organised to recognise longstanding service excellence among the next family who have passionately built our operations throughout the regions we operate in. Because our team is embedded within our company values, we have reasons to be proud.”

next Retail is a chain of more than 500 stores in the UK and in Europe. next Sourcing designs and sources clothing, accessories and products through its global network of offices and suppliers, negotiating market leading prices and managing production, ensuring on time delivery on behalf of next Plc.

next Sourcing has 11 offices across eight countries worldwide including Leicester, London, Turkey, Egypt, Bangladesh, North India, South India, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Cambodia, Vietnam, Hong Kong and Shanghai.