Addressing a consultative dialogue on textile sector’s competitiveness amid COVID-19,’ Clelia Rontoyanni, Program Lead Public Sector Specialist, World Bank said, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has the potential to support exporters in these difficult times. Experts from public and private sectors, who participated in the dialogue, remarked that facilitation and appropriate taxation measures could play an instrumental role in enhancing the competitiveness of textile businesses and boosting exports.

According to Rontoyanni, tax authorities need to realize that two-thirds of imports are inputs for the manufacturing sector and therefore tariffs on inputs should be lowered. The World Bank official added that the tax system should be predictable and responsive to needs of the private sector.

Sharing his observations, Mohammad Raza Baqir, Former Member, FBR, said the textile sector was transitioning towards production of value-added goods. COVID-19 had adversely impacted the sector, hence, measures should be taken to facilitate it and overcome the unprecedented challenge, he said.

Another former member Raana Ahmed suggested that in view of COVID-19, the FBR could consider relaxing the burden of direct taxes on the textile sector. Dr Vaqar Ahmed, Joint Executive Director, Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) argued that the data regarding request for tax refunds should be made public and online as it would allow everyone to get a clear picture of the exporters’ refunds and in case there were delays.

Members of TMAS, the Swedish Textile Machinery Association have adopted a range of new strategies to assist manufacturers of textiles and apparel to adjust to a new normal, as Europe and other regions emerge cautiously from lockdown.

Amongst them are TMAS members of the ACG Group, who quickly established a dedicated new nonwovens fabric converting and single-use garment making-up plant to supply to the Swedish health authorities. From a standing start in March, this is now producing 1.8 million square meters of converted fabric and turning it into 692,000 finished medical garments each month.

Svegea, which has spent the past few months developing its new CR-210 fabric relaxation machine for knitted fabrics, has also successfully set up and installed a number of machines remotely, which the company has never attempted before.

Pär Hedman, Sales and Marketing Manager for IRO AB says, video conferences have taken a big leap forward, especially in development projects, and this method of communication is here to stay, but it will never completely replace personal meetings,”

Many garment factories now equipped with Eton Systems UPS work stations – designed to save considerable costs through automation.

Many large brands, like Victoria’s Secret and the Gap, have kept their high-profile locations closed in Manhattan, while reopening in other states. For four months, the Victoria’s Secret flagship store at Herald Square in Manhattan has been closed and not paying its $937,000 monthly rent. JC Penney and Neiman Marcus, the anchor tenants at two of the largest malls in Manhattan, recently filed for bankruptcy and announced that they would shutter those locations.

Popular chains, like Shake Shack and Chipotle reported their stores in New York were performing worse than others elsewhere, investment analysts said. A few dozen subway locations have closed in New York City in recent months. Le Pain Quotidien has permanently closed several of its 27 stores in the city and plans to leave others closed until more people return to the streets, said Andrew Stern, co-chief executive of the chain’s parent, Aurify Brands.

A Gap store near Rockefeller Center has stayed closed and has not paid its $264,000 monthly rent. Two TGI Friday’s in prime locations, one near Rockefeller Center and another in Times Square, have remained closed while its restaurants elsewhere in the country have reopened.

New York’s stringent lockdown and methodical reopening may have brought the virus to heel, but it is also wreaking havoc on businesses with so few people going to work, virtually no visitors and many residents “a little loath to go out” and worried for their health. Landlords have started filing lawsuits against commercial tenants for not paying rent, accusing some national brands of trying to take advantage of the crisis.

Retail at Hudson Yards was off to a strong start before this crisis hit, and analyst firmly believe that fashion and retail will always remain core to the vibrancy of New York.

To be held on September 23-24, 2020, the Global Apparel Digital Transformation Summit (GADTS) 2020 will focus on digital sourcing and digital supply chain innovation during COVID-19. Organized by ECV International, it will also discuss digital manufacturing transformation and advanced technologies innovation, impact of digitalization on the apparel industry amid COVID-19 and strengthening the implementation of digital strategy post-COVID.

Major international apparel brands, apparel manufacturers, excellent digital platform providers and technology innovators will share their insights and practices at this event and talk about the opportunities and challenges that brought by the digital wave.

Some topics to be discussed at this summit include: Current situation and the Prospect of Digital Transformation in Apparel Industry under the Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic; Trends and Prospects: The Development of Global Fashion Industry and Customer Insights in the Digital Age; The Power of Digital in Transforming and Revolutionizing the Apparel Sourcing and Supply Chain; In the Digital Age, Best Practice and Exploration of Digital Supply Chain of an Apparel Brand; Create an End-to-end Holistic Supply Chain, and Complete the Digital Transformation of Apparel Supply Chain; From Manufacturing-Driven to Data-Driven, How to Achieve Real Digital Production in Apparel Industry?; Fashion Supply Chain in the Future, How to Make Full Use of Digital Power to Improve the Performance of Apparel Supply Chain during COVID-19; A Digital Factory: How Technology is Transforming Apparel Manufacturing; etc.

Coats, the world’s leading industrial thread company, has partnered HeiQ, a Swiss technology company, to incorporate its Viroblock technology into its engineered yarns. The Coats Innovation Hub – America in North Carolina, US, is adapting HeiQ Viroblock technology to create a new range of threads and engineered yarns suitable for application across a wide range of end-use products. Non-toxic and hypoallergenic, HeiQ Viroblock merges microsilver technology to attract virus particles which then combine with vesicle technology to break down the viral membrane within seconds. The microsilver technology uses recycled silver to enhance its sustainable offering, while the vesicle technology is bio-based.

The agreement also gives Coats exclusive global access to the technology for use in sewing threads. HeiQ Viroblock is among the first textile technologies in the world to be proven effective in laboratory testing against SARS-CoV-2, the virus from the coronavirus family that causes COVID-19.

The CR Reporting Awards (CRRA) by Corporate Register honored Guess with the award for ‘Innovation in Reporting’ for its FY18-19 Sustainability Report: Evolution! Change for Good. Guess also earned first runner up for CRRA’s ‘Credibility through Assurance’ honor. Guess was chosen for its dedication to clear and engaging messaging within the report. With bold graphics and brand imagery included throughout, the report communicates complicated subject matter—which spans three years—in an organized manner.

The report has been written in accordance with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) standards and has been rigorously reviewed by accounting firm KPMG for external assurance. Further, the brand offers the report in a number of different languages, including Spanish, Chinese, French, Italian and Korean, and created an abridged version.

For this year’s awards, Corporate Register received more than 150 entries from 80 organizations to consider for recognition. Over 65,000 industry members vote for winners, who are selected across 11 categories based on the quality of reporting content, communication and credibility. H&M also received accolades for its 2018 Sustainability Report, receiving first place for ‘Relevance & Materiality’ and ‘Creativity in Communications.’

Authentic Brands Group and Sparc Group will acquire US apparel retailer Brooks Brothers as the two companies have increased their bid offer from $305 million to $325 million. Sparc, a venture backed by brand manager Authentic Brands Group and mall operator Simon Property Group will continue operating at least 125 Brooks Brothers retail locations as part of the deal.

The 200-year old apparel retailer, Brooks Brothers filed for bankruptcy last month, joining a slew of decades-old American retailers that have succumbed to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The retailer had already been struggling as corporate America, including Wall Street, relaxed its dress code for employees, allowing them to choose casual dressing over bespoke suits. The retailer had set a deadline last week to receive offers better than Authentic Brands and Simon Property’s, but none came in.

During the lockdown amid COVID-19, 58 per cent of consumers in the Asia Pacific region increased their online shopping frequency, according to an Adobe survey. The research showed three quarters of consumers cited an intention to change their future shopping habits -- with Indian and Singaporean consumers reporting the strongest intention.

With respect to categories, consumers reported an increase in purchase frequency for groceries and media while clothing and home improvements faced the steepest decline. Among all countries surveyed, Indian consumers were the most likely to support small businesses, said the report.

Two-thirds of consumers agree that brands are communicating just the right amount, while nearly one in five believe that brands are not communicating enough. Over half of the consumers suggested they find utility in brand-related Covid-19 updates.

Indian and Chinese consumers were most likely to find these updates useful. The results showed that despite COVID-19 induced lockdown restrictions now being lifted in many parts of the world, the extended time spent confined to the home has had a significant impact on consumers' shopping habits and their interactions with brands.

Interestingly, while almost all consumers surveyed are willing to wait out the continued restrictions, only 61 per cent agree with the continued lockdown measures, signaling an eagerness to resume life per normal.

Conducted by Advanis, a research firm, for Adobe, the study surveyed around 4,000 consumers in selected Asia Pacific countries -- Australia, China, India and Singapore -- in June.

Pushed by the COVID-19 pandemic, many European fashion labels such as France’s Naf Naf, UK’s Oasis and Italian luxury menswear maker Corneliani changed hands this summer. The deals cracked by these companies’ indicate the kind of transactions likely to happen later this year. European brands, forced to make these deals, were smaller compared to their American counterparts. Weighed down by expensive store networks, these domestic high street and mall brands were amongst the first to crumble amid lockdowns. On the other hand, luxury conglomerates and investments funds like Mayhoola or Eurazeo refrained from striking any deals during the pandemic.

Some UK brands that hit bankruptcy included the popular Oasis and Warehouse labels, both owned by Aurora Fashions. British e-tailer Boohoo too faced rough weather as no investor was willing to purchase the entire business. The retailer had to nab e-commerce businesses and intellectual property for £5.25 million ($6.9 million). It now plans to retain its brand identity through its e-commerce sites while rapidly switching over design, manufacturing and distribution to the group’s own systems, with a relaunch scheduled for as soon as mid-September.

Deals like these reveal that even though the market favors the biggest brands, smaller ones too have an opportunity to survive financial crisis by effectively managing losses. Big US brands facing bankruptcy can be rebooted through e-commerce in case their brick-and-mortar business fails to improve.

Focus on factories and crafstmanship

Fuelled by rising consumer interest in product origin and increased competition among brands to secure the best suppliers, the next round of mergers and acquisitions is likely to focus on factories and craftsmanship. However, governments fear these deals could lead to a loss in cultural values while brands are worried about losing access to suppliers.

Italian fashion trade groups are lobbying for extensive government support as suppliers are falling further behind financially amid reduced orders for the coming seasons, as brands adapt to lower demand. Bigger players in luxury sector of the country are expected to get involved in deals to protect suppliers and craftsmanship.

Large business groups and global firms to join M&A activity

Deal-making in Europe is expected to pick up again this autumn with large groups and global private equity firms expected to join in the activity. Corporate bankruptcies are also expected to surge leading to once-in-a-lifetime bargains. But rather than immediately reverting to the traditional model of buying competing businesses to expand their scale, companies will focus on assets that could help them address challenges.

Technology helps people stay connected with each other irrespective of their physical location. In fashion, technology facilitates communication between a brand and its consumers. It helps lifestyle brands connect with consumers through their well-developed websites and direct to consumer applications. Intelligent personal assistants such as Siri by Apple and Alexa by Amazon accelerate product delivery to provide consumers with a better shopping experience. However, lifestyle brands also need to use technology for the well-being of their consumers.

A platform to voice opinions

Social networking sites have provided consumers with a platform to voice their opinions, says Tania Caringi, Fashion Entrepreneur. Through these platforms, brands can learn about their consumer’s preferences easily and modify product offerings accordingly. Recent studies prove consumers are quite comfortable shopping online. They are willing to purchase over the internet. This trend can help luxury brands increase the value and impact of their online presence.

Most recently, luxury lifestyle brands such as Gucci have been seen on social media creating engaging content. The Gucci official page has tons of 2D animated clips and beautifully executed photography projects. All of these enhanced brand perception.

Offering solutions for safe survival

Brands can also share educational tips on how to use their products on their social media accounts. They can take up human personas and respond to their customers’ inquiries in the most humane way possible. Technology makes it easier for lifestyle brands to be human. As the products and services offered by these lifestyle brands are essential for human survival, technological solutions can make them safe and easily accessible.

To further guarantee the safety of customers, lifestyle brands can explore the Virtual Private Network (VPN) service. This is a series of virtual connections routed over the internet which encrypts data as it travels back and forth between client machine and the internet resources being used, such as web servers. The tool ensures the safety of online users however, it does not restrict daily or monthly traffic, nor does it keep any record of websites visited and files downloaded.

A technology that helps fashion consumers cross the foreign exchange barriers is the blockchain technology. This technology enables consumers to buy a fashion item from any part of the world through the use of digital money. .

Building a fairer sharing economy

Fashion brands need to be cautious with their online marketing initiatives. They must respect their consumers’ time and privacy. Smart advertising campaigns can help them get a better idea about focus areas. SaTT, the smart advertising transaction token, can help brands monetize and quantify the performance of social media posts through a more advanced method.

Brands can also explore fashion platforms based on the sharing economy. However, these platforms do not have a proper system to reward participants. Hence, TimeCoinProtocol, a Fintech Firm has built a decentralized platform, using the EOS blockchain, which helps companies build a fairer sharing economy