As the dust over COVID-19 begins to settle down, fashion retailers, who buckled out of business or downsized considerably some like Warehouse, UK, Oasis, Cath Kidston, Laura Ashley, John Lewis, and others declared themselves bankrupt and many others like Debenhams, Arcadia Group, JCPenney, Nordstrom, J Crew, are itching to get back to business.

Reopening malls, stores a sign of positivity

US mall owner and operator, Simon Property Group, announced its decision to open malls across nearly a dozen states with safety measures in place. Non-essential stores including those selling garments in Italy and Germany too have been allowed to reopen with strict social distancing norms. Indeed, the news of reopening stores is bringing positivity to the market

Wall Street predicts that by mid-May, a large number of stores would open for business. Besides, fashion apparels and textiles, a new category to be added to the portfolio of these retailers includes medical textiles. Many retailers like Impulse India are exploring in export opportunities in mask and other PPE items.

COVID-19 outbreak gave consumers ample time to scroll through social media channels which further increased their engagement with apparel and fashion brands. A recent report, titled ‘Effects of the COVID-19 Outbreak on Fashion, Apparel, and Accessory Ecommerce’ reveals a noticeable reduction in the number of orders and total sales across all countries from around March 7.

Enquiries and orders roll in

However, there has been some improvement in the figures since then as online fashion retailers are adapting to the crisis. The report also highlights that consumers continue to browse for fashion products, offering opportunities for retailers. This indicates a positive sign for factory owners who have confirmed that some orders are trickling in. As Sameer Thapar, Managing Director, Montrose says orders are coming in mostly from the departmental stores like Walmart, Costco and similar establishments, as they are the ones that are still open with customers walking into them for groceries, and then in turn, are also buying some apparels too.

Buyers are asking for deliveries of basic apparels, reveals Gurminder Matharu, Country Head, Colveta India which is getting actual orders for Bangladesh while also getting enquires for India. Most stores are stocking merchandise for Fall season. As Rakesh Saigal, CEO, Orange Sourcing, informs, the product that is still selling well is loungewear tracks, which is mostly because people are indoors.

As many stores across the Northern Europe have now opened, people are gaining confidence that A/W orders and production can be proceeded but with more conviction, hence many factories that opened are working on A/W collections, says Sanjay Thakur, Division Manager – Global Sourcing, Superdry.

Meanwhile, buying offices have been getting good orders for products in the home segment. This could be attributed to the stay indoors’ phenomena, where people are investing in home products. The categories for which retailers are getting orders are mostly handicrafts, furniture and home textiles, says Sanjeev Jain, Managing Director, TQM Global Buying.

The in-home segment in all major centers – Moradabad, Saharanpur, Jodhpur and Panipat – has confirmed receiving good orders, and once the lockdown is lifted, the quantities of its shipments are expected to rise. However, a big challenge that awaits these retailers is bringing back those laborers who have gone back to their villages during the lockdown.

The Better Cotton Initiative (BCI), UK-based Committee for International Cooperation Between Cotton Associations (CICCA) and International Cotton Association (ICA), US-based International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC) and Switzerland-based International Textile Manufacturers Federation (ITMF) have called for collaborative action from the cotton and textile sectors during the COVID-19 crisis.

The organizations urged all those engaged in the cotton and textile value chains to commit to take action that contribute to the recovery of the sectors starting 2021; communicate, collaborate and be responsive to the needs of their counterparties; continue to respect the trade rules that govern the sectors; recognize and publicize positive behaviors; and identify and call out negative, counter-productive commercial behaviors.

They also urged for mutual agreements that keep in mind their shared commitment to the long-term health of the international cotton and textile trade, and to the principles of fair and equitable trading practices on which it is built.

A report of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) says Bangladesh’s raw cotton production in 2020-21 marketing year (August 2019 to July 2020) is forecast to slightly increase over current marketing year to 146,000 bales and imports are forecast to rebound to 7 million bales.

From August 2020 to July 2021, both yarn and fabric production levels are both projected to increase to 730,000 MT and 4.1 billion meters, which represents a 1.39 and 2.5 percent, increase over the figures of corresponding period of 2019-20. USDA says, the forecasted increase is based on an expected marginal increase in yarn and fabric demand in the New Year as the local RMG sector recovers from the negative economic impact of Covid-19.

In 2019-20 marketing year, yarn and fabric production forecasts have been revised down to 720,000 MT and 4.0 billion meters, which represent an 11 and 17 percent, decrease from 2018-19 figures, respectively. This decrease in production is the result of Covid-19 mitigation efforts and depressed demand as the global economy slows.

The USDA report says, in 2020-21 marketing year, the consumption of raw cotton is expected to rebound to 7.2 million bales, assuming that demand for garments will start to return to pre-Covid-19 levels. Raw cotton consumption levels in current marketing year are estimated lower at 6.9 million bales due to reduced RMG consumption in the world market as an impact of COVID-19.

Similarly, in coming marketing year, yarn and fabric consumption is expected to increase by approximately 5.5 percent to 0.95 million MT (MMT) and 3.33 percent to 6.2 billion meters based on an increase in demand as retail stores and shopping outlets reopen.

Analyst UBS predicts Burberry – and other major luxury names to see a very slow recovery due to the global decline in tourism caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

The investment bank sees the unwillingness of many key consumers to travel as the biggest single risk to earnings in the luxury goods sector” and reiterated its belief that investors should sell their Burberry shares.

It thinks the company won't be achieving the mid-term growth targets that it has set itself beyond 2021, with the entire luxury sector at risk of seeing its growth aims curtailed.

The Swiss bank cited studies that show around 80 per cent of consumers being unwilling to travel in the next three or four months. That could have a huge impact as around 40 per cent of spending in the luxury sector is accounted for by tourist shoppers.

UBS originally expected some weaker consumer sentiment after the outbreak but are now thinking that the tourist issue is an additional negative factor that needs to be taken into account.

UBS thinks the overall luxury sector will see its earnings estimates lower by an average of 5 per cent, but with the risk of greater declines. And it sees Burberry as being at the greatest risk.

Though retail spending in the United States took the steepest nosedive in March, industry biggies on the 18th annual Forbes Global 2000 list—which uses market value, sales, profits and assets to determine the world’s largest public companies—seem poised to survive.

Atop this of the world’s largest apparel companies is LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, with brands like Louis Vuitton, Christian Dior and Givenchy. Run by French billionaire Bernard Arnault, LVMH has a $194 billion market value and assets exceeding $108 billion, making it the 73rd largest public company in the world.

Sportswear giant Nike finished in a distant second among apparel companies, climbing 35 spots to become the 244th largest public company in the world. Fellow footwear maker Adidas also made strides, cracking the top 400 with more than $25 billion in sales.

Canada-based Lululemon, which came in 1209th overall, maintained last year’s momentum, clocking nearly $4 billion in sales, up from $3.2 billion last year. Thanks to the athleisure brand’s e-commerce surge and strong balance sheet, some analysts predict that the company may actually end up in better shape than it was prior to the pandemic.

Still, for others on this list, the bad news may outweigh the good. Ranked 1490th, Nordstrom, for example, recently announced the permanent closure of 16 stores, striking fear that the department store may go the way of Neiman Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman and Barneys.

Textile industry and micro, small and medium-scale enterprises (MSMEs) in Coimbatore and Tiruppur districts have welcomed the announcements by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. Coimbatore District Small Industries’ Association president R Ramamurthy appreciated the announcements for meeting most of the demands of the associations in Coimbatore, especially related to definition for MSMEs.

President of Coimbatore and Tirupur District Tiny and Micro Enterprises’ Association C Sivakumar welcomed the announcements and said micro units can start operations and depending on need seek further support from the government. The government should look at waiver of loans for micro units, he said.

J James, President of Tamil Nadu Association of Cottage and Tiny Enterprises, added micro sector, which is peculiar to Coimbatore region, needs more focus. There should also be clarity on how the announcements will be implemented.

In the textile sector, CITI chairman T Rajkumar said the move to redefine MSMEs will benefit the sector. The Rs 30,000-crore special liquidity scheme will supplement the measures announced by the RBI Governor to augment liquidity.

On similar lines, AEPC chairman A Sakthivel said the measures will give more money in the hands of people and factories and spur economic growth. Disallowing global tenders will give opportunities to local industries.

Tiruppur Exporters’ Association president Raja M Shanmugham welcomed continuance of Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan package and payment of 12 per cent of employer and 12 per cent employee contributions into EPF accounts of eligible establishments for another three months to salary months of June, July and August 2020 also.

Oxfam Australia is calling on clothing brands in the country to pay their workers' salaries during the pandemic. Oxfam labour rights spokeswoman Sarah Rogan told these brands that the wage component of production cost is very small and as these workers were employed by factories, brands had to be accountable for their wages. She further said more than 2,000 people used an online platform set up by the organization, to ask brands how they intended to deal with the Covid-19 crisis but none of the brands had responded to consumer requests.

Clothing brands in Australia have been delaying payments, cancelling orders or asking for big discounts on millions of dollars' worth of orders from Bangladesh, with potentially catastrophic consequences for the women who make the clothes.

Major Australian retail company, Mosaic Brands, is delaying payment, holding or cancelling orders worth $15 million, says the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA). Another brand, Cotton On has also backed down on its decision to cancel orders worth millions of dollars. Cotton On had earlier told suppliers it would cancel products worth $18 million, but that decision was reversed later.

Bangladesh Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen sought a two-year duty-free access for its readymade garment products to the US market as the pandemic put the major export-earning sector in trouble amid cancellations of global orders.

Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) claimed that over $3 billion worth orders have been cancelled over the last couple of months. Bangladesh, the top garment exporter in the world after China, is heavily dependent on European and American orders.

Momen reminded that other countries in the region should also share the burden saying it is not the sole responsibility of Bangladesh to give them shelter. He also urged other countries to take back over 1.1 million Rohingyas sharing responsibilities who have given shelter by Bangladesh.

The Foreign Minister also sought US investment in the ICT sector saying some 28 IT parks are being built in Bangladesh. Momen said the US can import medical products, including medicines, from Bangladesh in a larger quantity, and mentioned that Bangladesh is now producing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and masks.

US Deputy National Security Adviser Matthew Pottinger assured Bangladesh of continuing US support to deal with the challenges of Covid-19. Trump's Adviser also appreciated Bangladesh for accepting Rohingyas who floated at deep sea for weeks.

Sales at Italian luxury brand Tod’s dropped almost 30 per cent in the first quarter of the year as the pandemic forced many of its stores to shut down. Chairman and Chief Executive Diego Della Valle said the brand’s sales were very strong in all regions at the beginning of the year but the group remained very prudent for the rest of the year, controlling costs and limiting inventories.

The brand’s first quarter sales fell by 29.4 per cent to €152.8 million ($165.60 million) at current exchange rates year-on-year, compared with an analyst estimate of around €162 million. Though Tod’s revenue fell slightly in 2019, marking a fourth straight annual decline, it picked up in the last quarter of the year, in a sign that the strategy to re-launch the group’s brands was starting to bear fruit.

The coronavirus emergency has, however, complicated efforts by the management to push sales.

Iconix Brand Group, a US-based premier brand management company, has posted 22 per cent dip in its revenue to $28.0 million in the Q1 of FY20 ended on March 31, 2020 compared to sales of $35.9 million in same period prior year. Operating loss of the group during Q1 FY20 was $4.9 million compared to operating income of $18.4 million.

While the group focused on continued stabilization of its business and its operational cost structure in the beginning of 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic has had a meaningful near-term impact on its business and licensees. Revenue from the brand’s women segment declined 23 per cent due to a fall in licensing revenue from its Mudd brand. Revenue from men’s segment fell 38 per cent to $6.8 million compared to $10.9 million due to decrease in licensing revenue from Buffalo and Umbro brands.

Home segment sales declined 9 per cent due to a decrease in licensing revenue from Royal Velvet brand. It’s international segment revenue declined by 12 per cent due to decreases in Latin America and Europe.