This means that factories located in the LGAs of concern (Bayside, Blacktown, Burwood, Campbelltown, Canterbury-Bankstown, Cumberland, Fairfield, Georges River, Liverpool, Parramatta, Strathfield and some suburbs of Penrith) can only roster on workers who live in their same LGA. 

Factories outside of those LGAs are also affected, since any workers who live in those LGAs can’t leave. 

As a result, factories are operating at about 50 per cent capacity, and Ryan is concerned that any additional pressure could cause this already fragile industry to collapse. 

“If we want to have local manufacturing, we’ve got to support it,” she told Inside Retail.

The restrictions on garment workers are especially frustrating given the government’s recent decision to make warehouse workers exempt from them. 

“By not supporting our local industry, and having warehousing open, they’re advocating for offshore brands,” she said. 

Ryan has sent a proposal to the NSW government asking for garment workers to be treated like warehouse or construction workers, who are currently allowed to travel into and out of the LGAs of concern for work. She is still waiting for a response.

“There have been lots of conversations in the government [around] bringing manufacturing back into Australia, and now, when the local industry actually needs government support, it’s just not there,” she said.

Bassike’s garments have been made locally since Ryan and Deborah Sams started the brand in 2006. 

“At the time, there was a lot of manufacturing that had moved offshore. It was definitely an industry that was in decline,” Ryan said. 

However, the co-founders were drawn to the idea of working closely with their manufacturers and actually visiting and being involved in the production process. 

“I love that I can go into the factories constantly,” Ryan said. “We’ll sit out on the crate and have our coffee…it’s really a beautiful relationship.”

While it isn’t easy to build a business that supports the “true cost” of local manufacturing, she believes the end result is worth it.

“When I look at the Bassike product, and I touch it and I feel it and [think of] the process, from knitting our fabric in Melbourne to making our garments in Sydney, at the end of the day, I think it really sets the Bassike product apart and it’s why we have such unique hand feel,” Ryan said.

Now, she is doing anything she can to support the people behind those products. 

“We’re working very closely with them to understand what their capacities are for our order requirements,” she said. 

Going offshore isn’t an option, even in the current circumstances.

“We’re such an advocate for local manufacturing that it just doesn’t really enter into our thinking,” she said.

“Getting [garment workers] onto the authorised workers list, getting our partners up and running and back to capacity, that’s our focus.”

Ryan has been working closely with the Australian Fashion Council (AFC) on this issue, along with other brands that manufacture locally, such as Bec & Bridge and Matteau.  

In a recent report, the AFC found that 24 per cent of fashion industry professionals see local manufacturing as their biggest opportunity, ahead of sustainability and even digital channels. 

Fashion and textile manufacturing contributed $1.5 billion to the Australian economy in FY21, according to the report.