From growing up in a poverty-stricken household in Guyana to owning a company in New York City that manufactures high end garments for top designers, Tony Singh still cannot believe his success could have reached that level.
He established the Four Seasons Fashion Manufacturing Inc. 25 years ago and has been catering to the needs of popular designers like Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, Donna Karran and Isaac Mizrahi.
“Sometimes it amazes me that I’m running a US$5M company and wonder how I did it… with little education and no previous skills,” Singh told Stabroek News (SN) during an interview.
From his Midtown Manhattan factory, he produces high fashion women’s apparel, with some of the gowns fetching a price of about US$5000 while a basic pair of pants sells for US$1300.
He has over 100 employees but he may have to lay off some of them since orders were canceled because of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.
His business was closed for a few weeks during the lockdown, but it has been up and running now, mainly to serve the frontline workers.
Singh received orders from Ralph Lauren to produce 5,000 PPE (Personal Protection Equipment) gowns and 10,000 face masks.
He also has another contract from the NYC Economic Development Corporation (EDC), a non-profit organisation, to sew more of the hospital gowns.
“The government contracted them (EDC) to give (orders) to the manufacturers so we can keep the factory open,” he pointed out.
For the past three years he has been getting orders from Ralph Lauren to produce outfits for the Olympics, which was postponed from this year.
He has put the production on hold for now so as to meet the needs of the health workers.
Being involved in charitable activities for over two decades, he also pitched in with his contributions of 100 gowns to help the frontline workers to continue their jobs.
He told this newspaper that while he was “not making money, at least I am keeping my employees going…. And I am happy to be a part of society where I can make a difference.”
Odd jobs
Singh, being one of the older boys of his 11 siblings, started doing odd jobs from about age 13 to help his family to make ends meet.
Although life was tough and he could not attend school, he said “one of the good things is that my mother sent me to lessons in the evenings.”
When he came to New York, he first landed a job with top designers, Tom and Linda Platt before starting to work “at a physical garment factory,” owned by a Korean man.
His tasks involved invoicing and shipping garments to different companies.
He also “watched what the people were doing,” while learning about garment production along the way.
He recalled that the owner would “gamble and won’t find money to pay his workers.” He decided to help him by going out and finding additional markets.
Then in 1994 he got the idea to start his own business.
He asked the manager of the factory whether she would work for him and was elated when she responded positively.
He also discussed his plans with his wife and with the “few dollars I had saved,” along with help from his siblings, whom he approached, he got down to establishing his own factory.
Singh had to his advantage “a lot of connections” he made at his other jobs.
He had rented a small space with just 600 square feet, but within one year he was able to relocate to a bigger place measuring 10,000 square feet.
As his business started to grow, he employed some of his siblings and subsequently opened another factory for them to run.
Meanwhile, he is pleased that 18 of his employees are with him from the beginning. So when the company celebrated its 20th anniversary a few months ago, Singh “held a big party and gave each of them a Movado watch valued US$1000.”
He believes that he would not have been so successful if he had not moved to the US, noting that there are not many opportunities available in Guyana.
“I thank God for showing me the way and for giving me the wisdom and the knowledge because I never could have done it by myself… The Lord has brought me a far way. He has blessed me with my achievements but I would never forget where I came from… So I am not only thinking about myself,” Singh who runs the Calvary’s Mission Food Pantry in Queen, NY said.
