In February 2019, the European Union launched an 18-month process over whether or not to maintain Cambodia’s preferential access to the EU market under the Everything But Arms (EBA) trade scheme.

An EBA withdrawal can deprive hundreds of thousands of Cambodians of decent jobs. About 28 per cent of the population, the extremely vulnerable, could be thrown into poverty. This could create conditions for social unrest and political instability. The EBA scheme allows Cambodia to export anything to the EU market, with the exception of weapons, duty-free and quota-free. Cambodia was granted access to the scheme, offered to most least developed countries, in 2001.

In 2018, exports to the European Union accounted for more than a third of Cambodia’s total exports. Textiles and footwear, prepared foodstuffs, vegetable products, rice and bicycles represent 97 per cent of Cambodia’s exports to the European Union. The textile and footwear industries alone employ more than 7,00,000 Cambodians. Losing EBA preferences can result in slower export growth for Cambodia, increase tariffs by 12 per cent in the garment sector and by 8 per cent to 17 per cent in the footwear sector.

In the meantime the EBA review has soured Cambodia’s relations with the EU, rendering Cambodia more dependent on China.

Burberry is investing heavily in transforming itself into a much more luxury-focused entity.

The transformation has seen the company putting a heavy focus on digital and introducing the B-Series limited-edition monthly drops sold on social platforms, while partnering with Instagram on the Checkout launch for in-app Instagram shopping. In the directly-operated physical space, it has been refreshing its stores and closing 38 smaller, non-strategic retail stores, a process that will continue this year. On the product front, a full-look merchandising initiative has driven improvements in cross-selling, benefiting tops, skirts and trousers. And customers have responded positively to new bags, although the overall category performance was impacted by softness in older lines.

During the year adjusted operating profit has fallen six per cent while actual operating profit has risen seven per cent. The gross margin fell 100 basis points, dented by currency exchange effects and growing investment in product. But the company was helped by cost savings. Wholesale was slightly ahead of expectations due to shipment timings and benefited in Asia Pacific with exceptional growth supported by strong Chinese spending in travel retail. Burberry continues to expect broadly stable revenue for the 2020 financial year. It was a year in which a lot happened as the firm reshaped itself into something more closely resembling the giants of European luxury goods rather than the Burberry of old.

Demeto, a European project established to build a network of like-minded organisations in the PET industry with the goal of creating disruptive recycling solutions, has announced the addition of polyester fibre producer Kolon to its Industrial Advisory.

The Demeto membership is made of a variety of organisations in the PET value chain, and Kolon’s addition signals a further step in its focus on successfully utilising available technologies to maximise the recycling of PET fibres. These firms include representatives from: home textiles, sportswear textiles, fashion textiles, along with waste collectors and recyclers.

Demeto connects companies in the polyester supply chain, facilitating collaboration in order to find a sustainable solution to the global polyester waste problem. All partners of the consortium have committed to bringing a revolutionary new way to chemically recycle PET, invented by gr3n, to scale.

Kolon Industries supplies PET based fibres and fabrics for various applications, and has recently announced its willingness to work towards a Sustainable Polymer Economy (SPE). This is a concept with which no polymer enters the landfill, minimising the sector’s environmental impact. One of the key aspects of this idea is the acceleration and scaling of chemical regeneration and polymer recycling technologies.

Brückner offers new concepts in the field of continuous dyeing. The Power-Infratherm IR pre-dryer has heating and cooling times of less than five seconds. The stripe-free drying burner segments made of special metal fiber and the large temperature control range ensure consistent and reproducible high fabric quality.

For 70 years, Brückner has been the worldwide partner for companies which are drying, coating and finishing web-shaped materials: whether clothing fabrics, nonwovens, carpet, glass or coatings. Exchange of machine data with the higher-level control station or ERP systems is easily possible with OPC-UA. This allows to rationalize processes in the textile factory and to monitor quality.

The German market leader and systems supplier offers integrated finishing systems for pigment dyeing, synthetic resin finishing and coating. All components from the entry area, padder, IR pre-dryer, minimum application unit, coating unit, stenter, curing / hotflue, cooling, to the exit area are available. Intelligent assistance systems monitor the machine settings in the background and provide the machine operator with information on how to run the system even more productively and consume less resources. A newly developed simulation tool helps optimize existing recipes. The many machine parameters to be set have been reduced to the essentials and can in future be calculated automatically on the basis of the textile key data.

The second annual BrandZ Top 75 Most Valuable Global Retail Brands report by WPP and Kantar reports, the total value of world's most valuable retail brands has increased by $339 billion this year from last year. Accounting for 23 per cent of the brand value of all 75 brands, Amazon topped the list with a total brand value of $315.5 billion. The brand value of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba also increased 48 per cent to $131.2 billion, making it the brand with the second highest brand value.

The second annual BrandZ Top 75 Most Valuable Global Retail Brands report by WPP and Kantar reports, the total value of world's most valuable retail brands has increased by $339 billion this year from last year. Accounting for 23 per cent of the brand value of all 75 brands, Amazon topped the list with a total brand value of $315.5 billion. The brand value of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba also increased 48 per cent to $131.2 billion, making it the brand with the second highest brand value. Amazon, however, has more innovations than Alibaba such as partnering with Starbucks in all Alibaba properties, and disrupting its logistics model to better facilitate super-fast delivery. Online providers such as German fashion platform Zalando also registered immense growth on account of its intent focus on its services.

Adding a human touch through physical stores

Though online retail helps brands increase sales, customers also value the in-store experiences that these brands provide. Brands such as Nike and Nordstrom launched experiential stores to offer personalised shopping experiences to their customers. On the other hand, shifting from its standardised store formats, discount supermarket Aldi is adopting flexible shopping models that enhance their shopping experiences.

Capitalising on the importance of adding human touch to online retail, players are offering access to unprecedented computing power, limitless data as well as artificial intelligence and visual and voice technology interfaces. This enables the retailers and brands to absorb and process vast amounts of information in such a way that it highlights the importance of shopping experience for customers.

Nike the most valuable apparel brand

Ranked third in the report, McDonald’s is considered as the most valuable fast food brand in the world. Tapping into the growing demand for healthier food, the brand also offers innovative and eco-friendly packaging for the betterment of the planet. The brand recently improved its delivery business, which has helped it grow by over18 per cent to a brand value of $130.4 billion.

Growing by a robust 94 per cent from last year, sports and leisure wear brand Lululemon is ranked 35th. It has a total brand value of $6.9 billion. Nike with a brand value of $47.4 billion, has emerged as the most valuable apparel brand while Adidas, whose brand value increased by 13 per cent to $13.4 billion is placed 20th in the rankings.

A new entry on the list Levi’s ranked 74th with a brand value of $2.4 billion. The brand recently shifted focus back on women’s denims leading to strong growth in new markets such as Italy and China.

Luxury brands adopt new resale and rental models

Over the past five years, luxury brands have become more responsible towards social and environmental issues. Besides strengthening their online operations, these brands are adopting new resale and rental models to compete with traditional heritage luxury brands. However, some of the main players have achieved substantial growth. Gucci (ranked 11th) for example has undergone a radical creative makeover, driven by a new creative director, boosting creativity and desire for the brand, particularly amongst Chinese millennials.

Price plays an important role in brand value

The brand value of Amazon, Ikea and Aldi will continue to grow in 2019 due to the lower prices and a great shopping experience that they offer to their customers. Other retail brands – such as Adidas, Hermès and Lowe's – justify their price premium with strong equity and continue to grow their brand value. However, the brand value of Zara and H&M declined by 10 per cent and 39 per cent respectively due to rising concerns about increasing production, transportation and selling prices.

There were nine new entrants to this year's rankings. These highly differentiated and purposeful brands include outdoor sports brand The North Face at 66th position and Indian jeweler Tanishq ranked 72nd. Today, shoppers value the human connection that a brand offers alongwith other benefits like the freedom of choice, convenience and speed of delivery. The BrandZ Retail ranking and report thus hails those retailers who are offering a true value for money experiences to their customers.

Welspun’s net sales was Rs 2765.26 crores in Q4 ended March 31, 2019, as compared to Rs 2443.02 crores in Q3. Net loss was Rs 148.72 crores, as against a net profit of Rs 30.08 crores for the period ended December 31, 2018.

Net annual sales were Rs 2765.26 crores for the fiscal ended March 31, 2019, as compared to Rs 1311.02 crores in the previous year. Net loss was Rs 148.72 crores as against Rs 4.52 crores for the period ended March 31, 2018. Net sales were Rs 9088.12 crores during the 12 month period ended March 31, 2019, as compared to Rs 6492.12 crores during the 12 month period ended March 31, 2018. Net loss was Rs 13.25 crores for the 12 month period ended March 31, 2019, as against net profit of Rs 158.30 crores for the 12 month period ended March 31, 2018. EPS was Rs 0.50 for the 12 month period ended March 31, 2019, as compared to Rs 5.97 for the 12 month period ended March 31, 2018.

For the fourth quarter Vardhman’s revenue rose 17 per cent. Net profit was up 10 per cent. For the full financial year Vardhman’s net profit rose 26 per cent. Sales were up ten per cent. Vardhman is a textile and apparel major. During the year, Vardhman also got into a strategic partnership with Future Group to develop affordable fashion apparel products. Vardhman is into manufacturing of high-end premium quality shirts for large retail brands Van Heusen, Benetton, Sisley, Color Plus, among many others.

Vardhman, which began operations in 1965, is engaged in the business of manufacturing yarn, fabric, acrylic fiber, garments, sewing threads and alloy steel. The group has over the years developed as a business conglomerate with a presence in India and in 75 countries across the globe. It is one of India’s largest textile manufacturers with a substantial market share. The company is a one-stop shop for all kinds of spun yarn offering a variety of contemporary blends and shades. Yarn constitutes the largest business at Vardhman. The company also manufactures organic cotton, melange, core spun yarns, ultra yarns, gassed mercerised, superfine yarns, slub and cellulose yarns and fancy yarns for hand knitting. The company is also expanding its total fabric capacity.

Retailers in the US are struggling due to the trade war with China. The US has proposed a new list of tariffs that targets imports from China like performance wear, windbreakers, headbands, gloves, bathing suits and ski suits. Tariffs on Chinese imports could accelerate pressure on these companies’ profit margins to the point where major store closures become a real possibility.

Many retailers — and specifically those that sell clothing — have already been struggling, with the threat of tariffs hanging over them. Companies like Victoria’s Secret and Gap have been shutting stores, struggling to find ways to differentiate themselves from popular fast-fashion brands and up-start brands. Store closures announced by retailers in the US this year have already surpassed those announced in 2018. Imposing tariffs on US companies’ imports from China – goods that support US manufacturing and provide consumers with affordable products – are seen as jeopardizing American jobs and increasing costs for consumers.

In 2017, China accounted for about 41 per cent of all apparel, 72 per cent of all footwear and 84 per cent of all travel goods imported into the US. It is estimated another round of tariffs could cost an average family of four $500 a year, not accounting for other price increases suppliers might implement, beyond what the retailers are forced to do.

Sri Sowbarnika Tex, based in Tirupur, makes clothing for pets in the US. The company venture into this space in a small way and mainly to keep workers engaged, when knitwear garment exports started to slide. A buyer in the US was impressed with the samples and since then there has been no looking back. The unit has in the last year alone shipped 2.5 lakh pieces. Brightly colored pieces are in demand.

Americans used to source pet clothing from China but now with sanctions in place have started looking to India. Barely a handful of Indian exporters are engaged in pet clothing. Exporters in North India have been supplying accessories such as pillows and bedspread for pets. When it comes to clothing, the stitching and other processes are similar. But testing norms are stringent. Margins are pretty low and the space is highly competitive.

About six lakh employees work for 6,500 knitwear and apparel units in Tirupur, helping to earn Rs 50,000 crores in exports a year. Exports of Tirupur in the last financial year have gone down by 5.6 per cent from the previous year. Among the reasons are the changes in duty and tax structure such as GST.

Bangladesh’s garments shipments to non-traditional, mostly major markets grew by 29.62 per cent year-on-year to $3.15 billion in the first nine months (July–march) of FY2018-19 compared to $ 2.43 billion during the same period last year. This growth has been possible because of an incentive package and access to duty-free markets. The government had announced a cash incentive of 5 per cent in 2010 for exports to non-traditional markets. Another reason is that most of the non-traditional markets have offered duty-free access to Bangladeshi apparel exporters.

In the July–March period of FY2018–19, Bangladesh earned $ 386.47 million from its exports to China, showing a growth of 43.68 per cent. China, the world’s largest apparel supplier, has started importing products from Bangladesh after the Chinese government allowed duty-free access to over 5,000 Bangladeshi products. From its exports to India, Bangladesh earned $204.13 million during the same period of FY 2017-18.