Factory Closure after protests, Bangladesh - 2025
In Ashulia, an industrial area near Savar (Bangladesh), the garment factory Fashion Forum Ltd. has been shut down indefinitely following worker protests.
On Monday morning (October 13th 2025), the management of Fashion Forum Ltd., which belongs to the IDS Group and is located in the Jamgara area of Ashulia, announced the indefinite closure of the factory. A notice was posted at the factory’s main gate. According to the industrial police, several thousand workers had stopped production the previous day in protest over various grievances, causing unrest. This eventually led to clashes with the management. As a result, the company declared the factory closed indefinitely under Section 13(1) of labor law. In the morning, workers attempted to enter the factory but returned home after seeing the closure notice. To prevent any untoward incidents, additional police forces were deployed at the site. The protesters demanded that the outstanding payments for annual leave and severance benefits be settled immediately. Fashion Forum Ltd. Is listed in the Open Supply Hub as a supplier to Next PLC as well as to a member / members of Partnership for Sustainable Textiles (Textilbündnis). On its own website IDS Group mentions Fashion Forum Ltd. and Fashion Forum Ltd. Unit 2 as part of the group (https://www.idsbd.com/company/about.html). It is not clear which of the two units has been closed. According to its own website IDS Group produces or produced for brands like C&A, Walmart, Wrangler, Next, Primark and others (https://www.idsbd.com/pages/client.html).
Basic Information
Case ID: 2025.016
Identification Number from Open Supply Hub (OS-ID): BD2019248XH8RK1
Affected Country: Bangladesh
Date of occurrence: 2025-10-14
Social Sector Risks concerned:
- Dismissals / factory closures
Supplier Details
IDS Group
House# 12, Road# 104,
Gulshan-2
Dhaka
Bangladesh
Production Site
Fashion Forum Ltd.
Plot - 53-54, Hazi Liakot Ali Road, Block - Q, Jamgora
Ashulia, Savar, Dhaka
1349
Bangladesh
Phone number of production site: 02222286063, 01730735126
Total number of workers/employees:
3950
Number of female workers: 2000
Workers movement
No information about unions available.
No information about workers commitee available.
Business Relations
Known Buyer/Brands:
- Next Germany GmbH
Source of information buyers:
https://opensupplyhub.org/facilities/BD2019248XH8RK1
It is not known, whether at least one of the buyers has the duty to report according to the Supply Chain Act / CSDDD.
Follow up
Sources
Name of reporting organisation: Bbarta24.net
bbarta24.net is an online news portal based in Bangladesh. The platform serves both Bangla and English-speaking audiences. It is headquartered in Dhaka and has been active since 2015.
Source of information about the case:
Contributor: SÜDWIND
- Last updated on .