Indonesia’s garment exports for the 10 month period until October 2019 decreased 3.6 per cent. The three biggest destinations for Indonesian garment exports are the United States, Japan and Germany. Until October 2019, the Indonesian garment market share in the US market fell from 4.6 per cent in ten months of 2018 to 4.4 per cent in ten months of 2019.

Growth in the textile industry and textile products in the third quarter of 2019 increased to 15.08 per cent. This achievement is much higher than the achievement in the same period in 2018, which is 10.08 per cent. The increase in textile industry growth in the third quarter was due to increased domestic demand. But the decline in Indonesian garment exports causes minimal production growth so that company revenues are reduced.

The textile industry is one of the five manufacturing sectors that are being prioritized for development as a pioneer sector within the framework of Industry 4.0. By 2030, Indonesia’s textile industry is expected to be one of the five largest textile producers in the world. The industrial structure has been integrated from upstream to downstream. Encouragement is being given to exports of textile products.

The number of items banned from entering Hong Kong by mainland China customs – once limited to gear associated with protesters – has been expanding. The list of banned items has expanded to include everything from white tops and colorful hoodies to normal eyeglasses. Single pieces of black fabric and tops featuring metal buckles or buttons have been stopped in recent months.

Hong Kong apparel and eyewear shops have already crippled by more than seven months of social unrest. During months of political turmoil, the red line set by mainland Chinese customs has varied according to the social situation. Goods are consistently subject to a higher level of scrutiny in the wake of mass protests or incidents related to the anti-government movement. Windbreakers are seen as belonging to hooded clothing, which are regarded as outfits protesters wear to prevent them from being identified.

In addition to the apparel industry, a few eyewear companies have also been affected. Safety goggles were also stopped from entering Hong Kong. Courier companies were asked to halt delivery of a list of products that included towels, drones, speakers, horticulture scissors, flashlights and binoculars. In general items which might harm China’s politics, economics, culture and morality were prohibited.

Authentic Brands Group is looking to buy Forever 21. US-based Authentic Brands was founded in 2010. Fashion retailer Forever 21, founded in 1984, became a multibillion dollar operation in over 40 countries before it filed for bankruptcy in September 2019. The brand plans to close most physical stores in Asia and Europe while continuing to ship to international customers through its US website. The fashion chain had become successful due to its coolness factor and its ability to identify the needs of its customers. But these same customers started to move to online and other retailers.

The brand specialised in the fast fashion principle as it made outfits for young teenage girls, who wanted to dress like their favorite celebrities. Forever 21 helped them by providing these fast and at affordable rates. Customers would form huge lines for new store openings.

The company also became an attractive tenant for most malls, usually becoming the anchor tenant with its huge sized stores, which drew huge footfalls. The company became a trendsetter, selling rapidly changing styles in young women’s dresses, tops, jeans, other apparel and accessories as part of its fast fashion strategy. The store catered to teenagers and young adults, along with some slightly older customers who refused to grow over 21.

Bangladesh is the second largest apparel exporter grabbing 6.4 percent of the global market and creating jobs for 4.4 million of its people, especially women. The journey to success began after the Independence war of 1971, which left battle scars on the economy. Like on the domestic front, the country started a modest journey in overseas trade: it logged $348 million by exporting 25 products to 68 countries in fiscal 1972-73, according to the commerce ministry.

Of the products, only three -- jute, leather and tea -- were prominent, with jute alone fetching 90 per cent of the total export earnings. But the situation took a turn for the better in late 1970s when a band of educated youths began to try their luck in readymade garment shipment. They even had set up factories on the premises of their home or in shared buildings to rope in buyers and subsequently started to find their feet in the global apparel business.

Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) gave a presentation at a discussion on ‘RMG Industry: Green Growth’. Representatives from the International Labour Organisation, International Finance cooperation, buyers, economists and government officials attended the discussion. It was highlighted that global brands and buyers are gradually offering lower prices for readymade garment products to Bangladeshi factories although the number of green factories has increased considerably in the country in the last few years.

BGMEA president Rubana Huq said although buyers were not giving additional prices for products, the entrepreneurs were investing additional money to make their units green to create sustainable businesses. She also said government policy and incentive, buyers’ demand, consumer behaviour and availability of technology are the key factors that can enable the industry to become green.

Speakers emphasised on the development of a national standard for green industry and adoption of a comprehensive policy to support the industry. They also said that adoption of green technology was a must for sustainable economic growth and Bangladesh needs home-grown solutions to face the challenges faced in building a green industry.

Speakers said that it was easy for large-scale factories to arrange green funds but medium- and small-scale factories were not getting access to finance. They suggested that the government and its development partners should introduce guarantee schemes for the SMEs so that they could go green.

Fulgar is the innovative, organic-origin DIN CERTCO certified yarn, has launched eco-friendly Q-NOVA Pure Black yarn developed in line with ‘advanced eco design criteria’. This new specialty yarn joins the highly successful Q-NOVA yarn and together,

Fulgar says, they have inspired the creation of a new family of yarns. Launched by Fulgar in 2013, Q-NOVA by Fulgar, 100% Made in Italy is a polyamide yarn made using regenerated raw materials through a mechanical, non-chemical process that renders the entire production cycle more sustainable, making it possible to achieve reductions in CO2 emissions and water consumption. This virtuous yarn is further enhanced in the version given stretch performance by combining it with the Lycra EcoMade recycled elastomer, which has also been awarded Global Recycled Standard certification for fabrics and garments that are ‘friends of the environment’.

The advantages include simplification of the dyeing process and the total absence of additional black dye with a resulting reduction in water use, energy consumption and waste, as well as total safety for the final consumer.”

Its ability to make the company’s production processes more sustainable means that Q-NOVA Pure Black has also gained numerous green certifications, including Global Recycled Standard. Fulgar says it uses PEF analytical methodology to measure its environmental impact.

Carvico gets into the future, in collaboration with Vizual, launches a new augmented reality costumer experience at ISPO 2020.

The Carvico world informs from its core, the logo the exclusive technology is now available to everyone from any device, Android and IOS, simply by framing the Carvico logo on any surface, be it a tag, a shopper or the website or social media.

Augmented reality thus becomes an effective tool to allow customers to access new digital content. On the occasion of the outdoor fair, the company tells the story of its sport-related soul: all it takes is a click to discover all that Carvico fabrics can do to support the best sports performance.

Euromonitor research, shares that the sportswear market in India has grown from INR 24,000 crore in 2014 to INR 37,000 crore in 2016 at more than 50 percent over the past two years.

Men's wear comprises the biggest share of the Indian sportswear market followed by the women's and kids' segments.

Improved comfort and performance has also led to the growth in sales of sports apparel.

The report points out that the Asia Pacific region is expected to be fastest growing region, with a CAGR of 6.9 percent over the forecast period. Sales came from emerging markets, such as India and Thailand, as well as the US, the world’s largest sportswear market.

According to reports from various internet sources, the Indian sportswear market grew 22 percent from 2015 to 2016, outpacing the segment’s global increase of 7 percent. A same study has shown a 23.7 percent CAGR for the 2011-16 periods with a forecast of 11.3 percent for the 2016-2021 periods.

Women’s wear is the fastest growing segment in the sportswear industry in India, now both for the industry and for the brands.

Earlier, it was highly underpenetrated, but now it’s a booming segment. While the men’s segment in sportswear is growing fast as numbers of sale, it is the women’s segment that is registering a higher growth percentage.

Swiss Textile Machinery members can reduce the adverse effect on environmental footprint of the finishing industry

Since the antiquity humans have been exploiting color to enhance both the personal appearance and the world we live in. Dyed and printed textiles are a prime example, with a huge global coloration industry developing over the centuries. However, the massive consumption of water and energy required by many finishing processes, as well as the toxicity of some chemicals, has increasingly caused grave concern to environmentalists and the wider public. Conversely, responding to these worries has been the catalyst for innovation among eco-responsible companies in the Swiss Textile Machinery Association.

Green-tech denim dyeing

Washing processes, solvents and dyes in manufacturing account for one-fifth of industrial water pollution, according to the `State of Fashion 2020´ report by consulting firm McKinsey. This is the kind of evidence which sparks urgent calls to action addressed to politicians as well as textile brands. But the Swiss finishing machinery companies need no such wake-up call: for years, many of them have been actively developing and launching innovations with environmental friendliness as a prime requisite. An example is research into dyeing process which work without hazardous chemicals. At ITMA 2019, green technology denim dyeing became a reality with Smart-Indigo™, a Swiss innovation by Sedo Engineering, introduced at the show.

The underlying breakthrough was the ability to industrialize the electrochemical process for reducing indigo, using only electricity. 

Ecological profitability no contradiction

The finishing industry today demands machinery which meets ecological requirements at the same time as enabling mills to operate profitably. That was the motivation behind the development of ESC (Energy-Saving Chamber) under the Santex brand of Santex Rimar Group. By re-using exhaust air from the Santashrink dryer, ESC increases production capacity by 15 to 17% from the same amount of heating energy. Maximum performance at low energy use, for low residual shrinkage, soft hand feel and surface luster is the goal of Santex machines. The specialized open-width fabric surface treatment systems always offer energy-saving options for sustainable production and low CO 2 values along with the promise of a return on investment in 1.5 years.

Two approaches to water savings 

At Jakob Muller, top-quality technical parameters go hand-in-hand with the necessity for environmentally-friendly production in its innovative efforts. For example, its new washing module fulfils product and environmental needs, thanks to improved washing-off results with less energy and water consumption. It is important to the company that any dyeing processes use recycled water wherever possible. Open-width finishing equipment specialist Benninger tackles another important environmental issue in one of its latest developments by measuring pollution levels in the washing process. A sensor automatically gauges the level of pollutant, so that only the required amount of water is fed into the wash chamber, ensuring minimum use of both water and energy, and high reproducibility of the washing result. 

Testing for sustainability

Producing laboratory and testing instruments, as well as customized production machinery, Mathis has a strong basis of expertise in the dyeing and coating sectors. The company understands the importance of quality assurance related to both performance and durability in applications such as sport and leisure.