Furniture retailer Ikea has teamed up with apparel brand H&M to launch an outlet on the high street to promote designers and small-scale manufacturers in London. To be known as Atelier 100, the first joint retail venture between the two companies will open in London this May. The store will offer all kinds of products from beauty and fashion to jewellery, art and even music. The look and feel of the store will reflect the interests and ideas developed by those involved.

Marcus Engman, Chief Creative Officer, Ingka Group, says the Hammersmith outlet will be a year-long pilot project. It will encourage the development of further venues in other cities around the world in future.

Atelier100 has already collaborated with designers around London by cataloguing over 200 manufacturers of fashion and furnishings. The project now aims to expand with posters in London neighborhoods as well as a digital campaign.

The Indian government has launched certain initiatives to boost textile exports on pan-India basis and make textile sector globally competitive. As per a SME Times report, the government has approved the PM Mega Integrated Textiles Region and Apparel Parks (PM MITRA) scheme for setting up of seven PM MITRA Parks in Greenfield/Brownfield sites with an outlay of Rs. 4,445 crore for a period of seven years upto 2027-28. The Scheme would help create a modern, integrated large scale, world class industrial infrastructure including plug and play facilities. These parks will enable the textile industry to become globally competitive, attract large investment and boost employment generation.

The government has also continued the scheme of Rebate of State and central Taxes and Levies (RoSCTL) effective from March 2019 till 31st March 2024 for exports of apparel / garments and made-ups in order to make the textile sector competitive in international market. Besides, the government has approved the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme for Textiles, with an approved outlay of Rs 10,683 crore, to promote production of Man-Made Fiber (MMF) Apparel, MMF Fabrics and Products of Technical Textiles in the country to enable Textile sector to achieve size and scale and to become competitive.

To boost exports in Man Made Fibre(MMF) sector, Government has removed anti-dumping duty on PTA (Purified Terephthalic Acid), Viscose Staple Fibre and Acrylics. Nearly 58.4 per cent of cloth produced in the country, is sourced from the powerloom sector. Similarly, over 60 per cent of the fabrics exported from the country are also from powerloom sector, as per a SME Times report.

The powerloom sector is also a major provider of fabrics to the readymade garments and home textile sectors.

With pandemics effect subsiding, Pitti Immagine plans to organize upcoming edition of the menswear trade show Pitti Uomo alone, without any trade partners. As per a Women’s Wear Daily report, scheduled from June 14-17, the event will showcase spring 2023 men’s collections. It will discontinue the recent tradition of combining the show with the Pitti Bimbo and Pitti FIlati fairs dedicated to childrenswear and yarn-makers, respectively.

Pitti Uomo will be based on four different themes, including Fantastic Classic, devoted to sartorial brands; Futuro Maschile, spotlighting fashion-forward menswear; Dynamic Attitude, dedicated to outerwear and sportswear with an urban spin, and Superstyling, showcasing contemporary takes on men’s wardrobes. In sync with last January’s edition, the Sustainable Style section will gather eco-friendly labels and designers.

Last summer, for the first time, Pitti Immagine combined all three fashion-related shows under its umbrella. For the two editions since July 2021, the three trade fairs were held concurrently, forcing Pitti Filati to temporarily relocate to the Stazione Leopolda venue, a necessary move that didn’t entirely please exhibitors.

The next edition of Pitti Bimbo is slated to run June 22 to 24, while Pitti Filati will be held from June 29 to July 1.

Furniture retailer Ikea has teamed up with apparel brand H&M to launch an outlet on the high street to promote designers and small-scale manufacturers in London. To be known as Atelier 100, the first joint retail venture between the two companies will open in London this May. The store will offer all kinds of products from beauty and fashion to jewellery, art and even music. The look and feel of the store will reflect the interests and ideas developed by those involved.

Marcus Engman, Chief Creative Officer, Ingka Group, says the Hammersmith outlet will be a year-long pilot project. It will encourage the development of further venues in other cities around the world in future.

Atelier100 has already collaborated with designers around London by cataloguing over 200 manufacturers of fashion and furnishings. The project now aims to expand with posters in London neighborhoods as well as a digital campaign.

British clothing retailer Marks & Spencer (M&S) has teamed up with kid’s clothing platform Dotte to foray in kidswear resale market. As per an Apparel Resources report, through this association, consumers selling outgrown M&S apparel will win a £5 voucher for their next £25 online shopping. Besides, shoppers will be able to buy clothes at half their original retail price.

M&S has invested in Dotte via its joint venture with start-up firm Founders Factory, with the intent of working towards a circular economy. Alice Duggan, Head, M&S Kidswear, says, through the Dotte resale collective, M&S looks forward to learn from an agile start-up and support the circular economy.

Founded in 1884, M&S is value for money retailer focused on own label businesses, including food, clothing and home in the UK and internationally. It operates a family of businesses, selling high-quality, great-value own-brand products in the UK and internationally, from 1,509 stores and over 100 websites globally. Together its 70,000 colleagues across stores, support centres, warehouses and supply chain serve nearly 30 million customers each year.

The Cambodian government plans to implement the Cambodia GFT Sector Development Strategy 2022-23, to make Garment, Footwear and Travel Goods (GFT) sector environmentally sustainable, high value-added, focused on high-end and unique products and supportive of economic diversification before 2027.

As per a Khmer Time report, the government’s decision will serve as roadmap for relevant stakeholders and as a response to the expectation of relevant parties, especially the private sector and development partners. The strategy will set common vision, objectives, goals, and strategic measures to further strengthen and manage the development of this sector to align with Cambodia’s development context and to better respond to changes in global and regional economic architecture, said Hun Sen, Prime Minister, Cambodia.

Hun Sen outlined five strategic measures for the further development of the sector. These include further strengthening human resources to increase productivity and create career paths for Cambodian workers or employees. The government also plans to attract investment in supporting industry, and promote market diversification for exp1orts of garments, footwear, and travel goods. Heng Sour, Spokesperson, Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training says, the strategy will help solve structural issues and enable Cambodia to seize opportunities to develop this sector as well as enhance national competitiveness and speed up economic diversification.

Groz-Beckert has expanded its retail footprint in India by opening first-ever showroom in Ichalkaranji, Maharashtra The weaving showroom is equipped with a new fully automatic WarpMasterPlus drawing-in machine. It also houses KnotMaster series knotting machines and accessories from the weaving preparation portfolio.

The showroom has completely redeveloped latest generation of WarpMasterPlus machine. It uses latest technologies to launch a machine equipped for future requirements with regard to increased automation in view of Industry 4.0. With this machine, Groz-Beckert continues to rely on the globally proven drawing-in concept, where drawing-in takes place via a single bobbin.

Further advantages of the WarpMasterPlus include optimal flexibility combined with maximum performance and minimal setup requirements, as well as problem-free drawing-in of critical warp yarns.

In addition, the number of cycles has been increased and sophisticated functions such as pre-setting drop-wire magazines and CNC axes for adjusting the heald length have been added.

The WarpMasterPlus combines all properties offered by the established WarpMaster concept to date including the minimal training requirements for operating and maintenance personnel and the extremely easy operation thanks to sensors and video support. Video support in particular is a feature that has been appreciated by customers for years.

Calvin Klein has launched a collection in collaboration with the UK brand Palace. Based on skateboarding culture, the collection features Palace’s designs that give a fresh look to a range of Calvin Klein items, from underwear to jeans, t-shirts, fleeces and lingerie.

Featuring Calvin Klein’s classic palette of black, grey, white and beige, the collection sports a specially designed logo blending the Calvin Klein lettering with Palace’s signature triangle logo, the Tri-Ferg. It will be available from April 8 at Palace stores in London, New York, Los Angeles and Tokyo, and on both labels’ e-shops. Its style is a tribute to the Ck look of the 1990s. The denim items feature a deliberately pale, washed-out look, with contemporary details adding a new twist.

The highlight of the collection is the reformulated version of the unisex fragrance from Ck One. The launch campaign was filmed by photographer Alasdair McLellan with Max Pearmain as art director. It features an international cast that includes cultural icons like Willem Dafoe, Dame Joan Collins and the Pet Shop Boys, the Palace Skate family with Lola Leon, Adwao Aboah, Precious Lee and rapper Unknown T.

Even amidst the pandemic-induced global slowdown, the aggregate value of luxury apparel brands grew 21 per cent this year, reveals a Brand Finance report. The value of sportswear brands grew 10 per cent while fast fashion brands saw a dip in value of 7 per cent.

Luxury brands show more resilience

With consumers once again indulging in luxury purchases, the high-end fashion sector seems to have recovered after over two years of losing value. Luxury brands were more resilient towards pandemic-induced changes in the industry. In fact, brands like Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Armani managed to increase their brand value. Additionally, several new luxury apparel brands entered the list of top 50 apparel brands. These includes Boss whose brand value surged 54 per cent to $1.7 billion and Bottega Veneta, whose brand value increased 25 per cent to $1.7 billion.

A relatively new brand Boss rose out of the split of Hugo Boss into two separate brands: Hugo and Boss. The brand launched its new range of athletic wear during the pandemic with a ‘phygital’ campaign. Leveraging online social media platforms such as TikTok and e-commerce marketplaces, the campaign boosted not just Boss’ social media following but also sales volumes.

Nike tops apparel brand ranking

Nike emerged as the most valuable apparel brand in the ranking. It’s brand value increased 9 per cent to $33.2 billion. Nike was followed by Adidas whose brand value surged 2 per cent to $14.6 billion and Puma which noted a 13 per cent increase in brand value to $4.5 billion. The fastest growing brands in the ranking included smaller sportswear brands like Skechers and Li Ning. The brand value of Skechers increased 68 per cent to $3.2 billion while that of Li Ning surged 68 per cent to $2.0 billion.

Sportswear, athleisure brands see their value grow

In over 100 reports, leading brand valuation consultancy Brand Finance ranks over 5,000 brands across sectors every year. The consultancy includes the apparel industry’s top 50 most valuable and strongest brands in the annual Brand Finance Apparel 50 ranking. The ranking witnessed steady growth in the brand value of sportswear and athlesiure brands over the course of the pandemic. Richard Haigh, Managing Director, Brand Finance says, convenience factor encouraged luxury and sports brands to explore the online sales channels during these trying times.

Fast fashion brands register decline in value

An increase in demand for online shopping disrupted the business model of many fast fashion brands during the pandemic. Many brands could not sell their low-margin products online due to additional logistics and delivery costs. This led to a drop in their brand value during the period. Besides calculating brand value, the ranking also determines the brands’ strength by evaluating their marketing investment, stakeholder equity, and business performance.

Based on this metrics, Dior ranked as the strongest apparel brand with AAA brand rating and a corresponding Brand Strength Index (BSI) score of 88.4 out of 100. In 2022, the brand jumped from its 12th rank in 2021 to become 1st in the list. The luxury fashion brand launched several new collections during the year through socially distanced fashion shows and events to launch new collections. The brand also launched influencer marketing campaigns on YouTube, Tiktok, Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok and Chinese video sharing mobile application Bilibili.

The future success of textile fabric finishing industry depends on the coordination between the finisher, the machine supplier, chemistry suppliers and other technology providers, says Regina Bruckner, Chairperson, VDMA. VDMA member companies mainly act as partners on the technological aspects of finishing processes, adds Bruckner. These VDMA specialist finishing suppliers will showcase their advanced systems at ITMA 2023.

Automation can reduce water usage in dyeing

Over the past few decades, dyeing machines have helped garment industry reduce water consumption significantly through their design and control technology. From 105 liters in 1980, the industry has been able to save 28 liter of water per kg on medium shades during the finishing stages of pre-treatment, dyeing and after-treatment. To reduce water usage further and achieve sustainability goals, the entire finishing process needs to be automated. Productivity rates also need to stabilize and increase by reducing unproductive waiting times and increasing occupational safety.

Automation of storage, weighing and dispensing systems also prevent workers from coming into direct contact with chemicals and dyes. On the other hand, digital storage systems help manage stock levels and generate orders precisely when they are required.

Reducing waiting time through advanced systems

Specializing in finishing technologies, VDMA companies offer advanced high-performance dryers, along with heat recovery systems, minimal application units, energy saving motors etc. These companies assist customers reduce their line set-ups and waiting times via automatic batching systems. These companies ensure process optimization through advanced control systems for parameters such as exhaust humidity and heat setting, with batch sequence optimization according to temperatures.

They also provide customers with energy management systems, assistance systems and process simulation and expert systems to maximize production output and minimize energy consumption. Digitization can address labor shortage VDMA member companies also ensure application of minimum application technology by introducing new production methods. They can address skilled labor shortage and ensure reproducible quality results through digitization and Industry 4.0. Process simulation on a PC can help these companies optimize process parameters before commencement of production.