CLASS ecohub, the international platform empowering professionals with responsible tools, materials and services, is organizing a panel that involves visionary innovators in the circular economy panorama who will share valuable case histories, out-of-the-box approaches and their ongoing projects. The event - under the patronage of the Municipality of Milan - is scheduled on September 28, the first day of Milano Design City, the citywide festival celebrating innovation, style and creativity through design-thinking.

The panel will present challenges and opportunities of creating new circular economy-driven business models across multiple disciplines. Giusy Bettoni, CEO and Founder of CLASS, moderates Chiara Catgiu, Senior Analyst Make Fashion Circular at Ellen MacArthur Foundation, Clara Mattioli, Head of Global Communication at Wolford, Barbara Guarducci, creative director of Mending for Good, Giulia Giglio, Innovation Manager at Krill Design and Francesco Giberti, founder and CEO of MyFoody and Babaco Market.

The event is part of Smart Voices, the virtual program of CLASS which brings together innovators, thinkers and designers determined to make fashion and design more responsible, ethical and sustainable.

The Asian Development Bank has revised upward its economic projection for Cambodia, forecasting gross domestic product would contract by 4 per cent this year, rather than the 5.5 per cent forecast in Jun

According to the ADB's Asian Development Outlook 2020 Update, Cambodia's agricultural exports rose 17 per cent on the year in the first six months of 2020, while ‘strong demand’ for work-from-home electronics had boosted exports from Cambodia and other Asian countries. Cambodia's non-garment, non-footwear and non-travel goods exports increased by 30 per cent.

The agency foresees a relatively strong economic recovery for Cambodia, which has avoided an uncontrolled outbreak of coronavirus cases. The agency expects growth to rebound to 5.9 per cent in 2021, boosted by supportive government policies, social assistance for the poor, and financing support for small and medium-sized enterprises.

In the first seven months of the year, Cambodia shipped $3.4 billion worth of goods to the US, up from $2.7 billion for the same period in 2019. For comparison, the US accounted for 26.8 per cent of Cambodia's exports last year, slightly more than the EU's 25 per cent, according to World Bank data, a gap that looks set to widen in 2020.

The top three exports to the U.S. through July this year were garments, travel goods and footwear. Electronics, responsible for about $118 million in export value in the first seven months, saw the largest growth, soaring more than 1,000 per cent year on year.

Prepared in compliance with the Global Reporting Initiative Standards core option, this Calik Denim’s second sustainability report includes information about the company’s goals for 2025 and the contribution it aims to provide in terms of Sustainable Development Goals.

The report has been prepared on the principles of United Nations Global Compact signed in 2019. alik Denim allocated 4.1 million Turkish Lira to environmental investments and expenditures, while it reduced the amount of water used per product by 11% in the last three years and increased the amount of electricity generated from solar energy to 10 MWh in 2019.

Calik further progress focuses on different areas such as R&D, product quality and safety, and sustainable raw material supply, on local social and economic development, occupational health and safety, human rights, climate change, energy, water management and chemicals management with the aim to reduce its impact on the environment.

Calik Denim has set the Goals for 2025 under four topics, recognizing 2016 as the base year. They are: Environmental Sustainability, Sustainable Raw Material Supply, Innovation and Thought Leadership, Internal and External Stakeholder Rights.

Cambodia’s garment manufacturers association has brought up a case against the European Commission at the EU court of justice following the withdrawal of duty-free and quota-free access to the EU market over the summer.

According to the plaintiffs, the EU executive failed to properly assess the proportionality” of the move for the garments, footwear and travel goods sectors, and has violated the industry’s “right to good administration under the EU treaties.

Garments, footwear and travel goods sectors totaling €1.1 billion in exports are now subject to general World Trade Organization tariffs, in a move aimed at putting economic weight behind the EU’s calls for an improvement of the human rights situation in the country.

The European Commission began the procedure to partially withdraw Cambodia’s preferential access to the single market in 2018. The EU’s decision came after the dissolution in November 2017 of the only viable opposition party in the country, the Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP), accompanied by treason charges brought against its leader, Kem Sokha.

Before the withdrawal, the union reported 30,000-40,000 layoffs, from the 150,000 people employed by the industry at the beginning of the year. The organization said the numbers represent a “crushing impact of the pandemic on global demand for footwear.

Aero Club, which sells footwear, apparel and accessories under the Woodland brand, is being forced to rationalize its store count/expenses. However, it will expand its online business at the same time.

The company currently has an exclusive retail chain of over 600 stores in a CO-CO (company owned, company operated) model.

The company is also renegotiating rentals for its existing stores. At the same time, to compensate, Aero Club is expanding its online business.

Due to the lockdown customers were not stepping out to shop and were turning to online platforms. This trend helped the company register 40-50 percent growth in online sales. Post-lockdown, Aero Club has witnessed momentum picking up for both apparel and footwear.

Aero Club plans to expand its online business to reach out to the masses with its range, over and above the key styles offered by e-commerce partners. It has started seeing demand reviving for both apparel and footwear. Singh feels the festive season will help it achieve at least 40 percent of its FY21 revenue target.

The company closed FY20 with almost Rs 1,300 crore in revenue as against Rs 1,250 crore for FY19. Almost 60 percent of the turnover came from footwear and the rest from apparel and accessories.

With the ban on Chinese products reducing import of Chinese circular knitted polyester cloth to 200 tons, Surat –based manufacturers are gearing up to produce the fabric, used in the T-shirts for IPL players, in their facilities. There are 150 manufacturers of circular knitted polyester fabrics in the city who have about 3,000 machines. Labor cost in creating these fabrics is only 50 paise per meter as compared to normal fabrics, and the demand in the local market is very high. Polyester fabrics made by circular knitting industry are in demand for its multipurpose uses, including the making of shoes, suitcases, baby frocks, swimming costumes, leggings and T-shirts.

Before the pandemic, Surat imported 800 tons of polyester knitted fabrics from China, which has now reduced to 200 ton. In comparison, Surat manufacturers produce more than Rs 5.5 crore worth of textiles at an estimated 4.5 lakh kg per day. About 80 per cent of this fabric that is used across the country is produced in Surat, while 20 per cent of the fabrics are exported to Arab countries.

United Sewing Automation Inc (USA) has reported excellent results for the testing of its American-sourced and manufactured face masks in an ISO 17025 accredited laboratory, reports the Textile World. These American-sourced and manufactured masks now comply with the Berry Amendment and qualify for Department of Defense contracts.

America’s reliance on imported PPE has caused supply chain issues. In addition, the country has been flooded with cheap, imported, inferior-quality face masks that do not provide adequate protection to fight the spread of COVID-19. In response, USA’s ownership team has invested in automated equipment to manufacture American-made medical grade masks that provide proper protection for Americans.

Made from high-quality, US-sourced materials, these face masks feature a three-ply design with a built-in adjustable nose bridge and ear loops made of nylon and Spandex, providing a better fit than traditional disposable masks. USA’s ownership team has many years of experience in the textile and apparel industry and aims to bring apparel manufacturing back to Mount Airy, NC through automation. The company recently installed high-tech ultrasonic welding machines and automated production equipment capable of producing over 1,000,000 facemasks per week, with the ability to expand to meet market demand.

Organizers of Paris fashion trade show Tranoï have cancelled the upcoming edition scheduled to be held during Paris Fashion Week from October 2 to 5, reports Sportswear International. Instead, Tranoï has launched a digital platform, Tranoï Link, which has registered 250 concept and department stores from around the globe including renowned names such as Galeries Lafayette, United Arrows, Biffi, Lane Crawford and Nitty Gritty.

It will showcase 60 ready-to-wear and accessories brands including emerging designers and international brands such as Coralie Marabelle from France, YanJiang Studio from Switzerland, Alufai from Taïwan and Orange Culture from Nigeria among others.

Tranoï Link offers fashion brands their own B2B site where they can promote their collections and share news with the audience. Buyers can search for products for current or upcoming seasons, discover brand innovations such as drops and collaborations and get ideas from weekly fashion editorials and advice.

Textile manufacturers and exporters in Tirupur plan to decentralize by setting up textile parks in other districts. Manufacturers say, this would cut production costs by about 10 per cent. The first such park will be set up by the Tirupur Exporters’ and Manufacturers’ Association (TEMA) in Vedaranyam taluk of Nagapattinam. TEMA will set up similar parks in Ramanathapuram, Tiruvannamalai, Tirunelveli, Tenkasi and Tuticorin districts in future.

The Vedaranyam Textile Park would be spread over 50 acre and set up at a cost of Rs 120 crore, of which 67 per cent would be central and state government subsidies. Around 36 exporters and manufacturers would set up their units in this park, which would employ 7,000 people. The park will have cutting, sewing, packing and dispatching units. A skill development centre for workers and creche for their children will also be set up. The project has been approved by the state government and it will commence in December.

According to Banupriya Sentilkumar, the project will help the industry save 10 per cent of accommodation and transport costs of workers.

The Lycra Company exhibited its latest products designed to meet consumer needs at Intertextile Shanghai, held from September 23 to 5. The company showcases new Lycra Anti-Slip fiber technology alongwith other well-received technologies such as Lycra FitSense technology, Lycra MyFit fiber and Coolmax freshFX technology

Lycra Anti-Slip fiber technology is an exceptional denim seam slippage solution for applications in single core spandex fabrics that require durable stretch and good recovery power. Designed to help prevent seam slippage and improve garment quality and yield, this patent pending fiber helps maintain garment appearance wash after wash and wear after wear.

Lycra FitSense technology is a patented, water-based dispersion that features the same molecules as LYCRA fiber, but in liquid form. This revolutionary innovation provides lightweight, targeted support across a range of garment types. It also helps streamline garment manufacturing through the potential elimination of double-layers and extra seams and offers unlimited design possibilities for brands and retailers.

Lycra MyFit fiber is a patent-pending, fiber technology engineered with a polymer designed to deliver improved comfort and fit. It gives greater shape tolerance and a customized fit experience for a differing range of body shapes. Ultimately, it gives brands and retailers the potential to higher customer satisfaction, minimize returns, reduce SKUs and costs by undercutting patterns.