The China-Italy Fashion Supply Chain Conference, held on December 17, 2019 in Keqiao, combined Keqiao’s rich fabric resources and China Textile City’s strong industrial resources with Italy’s rich design and brand resources.

The event started from a design perspective, taking Keqiao’s rich fabric resources and China Textile City’s strong industrial resources as the starting point, combining Italy’s rich design and brand resources, giving full play to the advantages of both parties, and striving to create a positive situation of advantage transformation and mutual benefit, deepening the transformation and upgrading of Keqiao fabric industry, optimising the development mode of the format, practicing intelligent manufacturing innovation, further promoting the integration of a textile city into the international trend, and upgrading Keqiao’s ‘textile industry’ into a ‘fashion industry’, build ‘Oriental Venice’ into ‘Oriental Milan’.

Chic will be held in China, March 11 to 13, 2020. This is Asia’s largest trade fair for fashion and lifestyle. Individual fashion segments will be set up for the first time as independent areas. Defined with new titles, they focus precisely on the core values of the Chinese consumer market and are tailored to the respective requirements and market peculiarities of the individual fashion segments. The organizers are pursuing strategic marketing measures to connect exhibitors and visitors. The latest fashion trends of the season will be staged on the catwalk. A platform for industry discussions will be used intensively by exhibitors and visitors alike. Essential market information for the trade and industry will be offered here. This is an established concept that is to be expanded for the upcoming event with international media partners. Among the international pavilions at Chic, Italy traditionally has the largest European participation with about 30 brands in the fashion, bags, shoes and accessories sectors. France will present women’s wear, men’s wear and accessories at its pavilion. Other exhibitors will be from Germany, Korea, Poland, Switzerland, Singapore, Turkey, Vietnam, India, Spain etc.

The Chinese market is developing at a rapid pace, and today China has a mature fashion market with top players, developed structures, and trend-setting consumers.

Momad will be held in Spain, February 6 to 8, 2020. Momad is one of the largest fashion industry events in Spain. This is an international fashion exhibition, which takes place twice a year, and is aimed at buyers and shop owners from around the world and showcases the latest trends and fashion styles of the coming season. It offers business opportunities for participating companies and visitors get a bigger overview of the fashion sector and the trends that will mark the new season. Manufacturers, wholesalers, and importers present fashion for children, young people, women, and men. The offer ranges from clothing for leisure, professional, evening wear and swimwear to fashion for the festive occasion. Also, a wide range of footwear is shown. There is also a separate area of fashion accessories, including mainly bags, belts, jewelry and headgear.

Sustainable fashion has continued to gain ground and the sustainable sector grows with each edition. There is also a complete line-up of events including conferences, workshops, fashion shows, exhibitions and debates centering on fashion and footwear. The Momad forum features presentations and roundtables on new fashion trends and strategies and topics such as brand management, e-commerce, visual retail, cyber security and marketing and communication for multibrand stores.

Ricoh has unveiled its Digital Micro Factory (DMF) concept. The micro factory is expected to solve various social problems and provide new customer value to more and more people in garment and related markets. Ricoh hopes to expand sales of DMF workflow cloud solutions and textile printers. DMF is aimed at producing significant social benefits using the advantages of industrial inkjet technology, such as diversity, customization, differentiation, multi-type small lot production and leading the industry trend.

Ricoh will continue to develop technologies and experience in commercial printing, but incorporating sustainable development and opening greater possibilities in industrial printing, with comprehensive and new, innovative technologies.

Ricoh will strive to create an open global business environment, so as to push forward social problems such as water pollution, electricity consumption and excess inventory, maintaining a comfortable and safe living environment, a common issue for all human beings. Ricoh aims at expanding its China business into a core market. Ricoh has been providing print head services to garment manufacturers for many, many years. Ricoh brings an environmental protection system and business model that conforms to trends of domestic production and domestic consumption. It is a manufacturer of print heads, the manufacturer of ink, and the manufacturer of complete systems.

The European Recycling Industries’ Confederation has called for an ambitious strategy on textiles. This will include: extended producer responsibility legislation and incentives to boost end markets. The confederation says the strategy is needed because of increased tonnages from kerbside textile collections and has called on the European Commission to introduce a strategy to render textiles circular throughout the value chain.

The development of fast fashion has deeply changed textile consumption patterns across the world, which has impacted the clothing recycling sector. While EU law obligating authorities to separately collect textiles by 2025 will increase the supply of used textiles, it means there is a need to complement the separate this with equally ambitious measures aiming at pulling the demand for re-use and for material.

Resources charity Wrap has released an update on its Sustainable Clothing Action Plan, launched in 2013 aiming at reducing carbon, waste and water reductions. Retailers such as Marks & Spencer and Next have both signed up for SCAP. Under the commitments, signatories have pledged to reduce carbon, water and waste to landfill by 15 per cent alongside a 3.5 per cent reduction in the amount of waste arising per ton of clothing by 2020. While water and carbon targets have been achieved, there has only been a four per cent reduction in waste going to landfill since 2012.

The global garment steamer market is growing at five per cent. Garment steamers have been witnessing a significant demand among professional and residential users across the globe. They are also known as clothes steamers, and these appliances use high-temperature steam to remove wrinkles. They have profound applications among residential and professional contractors. Increasing product diversification, coupled with the increasing demand for product reliability, is expected to contribute to the long-term value for professional users. Changing lifestyles and the increasing availability of consumer appliances via online channels are expected to favorably affect the clothes steamer market growth.

Upright clothes steamer equipment is ideal for heavier garments as it is bulkier than hand-held streamers. These appliances have a large capacity and can steam clothes for a long duration. They are exceptionally stable and provide powerful and quick removal of wrinkles and creases. The presence of a large water tank at the base of the device enables steam to stay for a long duration. The availability of the built-in hanger makes upright steamers convenient for both residential and commercial consumers.

Over the past few years, the dynamics of the clothing manufacturing industry has changed. Clothing vendors are increasing their investments in enhancing the productivity and resilience of their products.

The market for personal luxury goods in China grew 26 per cent in 2019. Sale of luxury goods in China accounts for around nine per cent of all global luxury spending. Chinese consumers remain some of the most active buyers of luxury items in the world. In 2019 some luxury brands in China kept a close eye on the value of the yuan and shifting travel and shopping patterns or working to adjust their China pricing. Others turned their attention more closely to their efforts within mainland China after years of trying to attract Chinese tourist-shoppers overseas.

Luxury market in China were buoyed this year by brands efforts to adjust pricing more in line with European or Japanese markets, which convinced Chinese shoppers who would otherwise jet off to France or the US for their luxury hauls to shop closer home. The question now for luxury brands is whether to invest more in mainland China next year or maintain current efforts (perhaps investing more in e-commerce or refurbishing any existing brick-and-mortar locations).

China’s economy is expected to encounter greater downward pressure and face a more complex situation in the year ahead despite signs that the country’s Gen Z is ready to spend more on luxury street wear collaborations.

"West Bengal Hosiery Association recently celebrated this glorious journey of the Indian knitting industry with an event in Kolkata. This event was attended by various dignitaries like Smriti Irani, Minister of Textiles and Women & Child Development, Government of India; Rakesh Biyani, President, CMAI; Dr A.Sakthivel, Vice Chairman, AEPC; Ashok Kumar Todi, President, WBHA; Sandeep Seksaria, Hony Secretary, WBHA and Kunj Behari Agarwala, President, FOHMA"

Starting as an innerwear industry 125 years ago, the Indian knitwear industry has gradually evolved with multiple segments like swimwear, kidswear, thermalwear, home textiles, under its kitty.  Bolstered by a strong domestic consumption, the industry is now poised for a promising future ahead.   

West Bengal Hosiery Association recently celebrated this glorious journey of the Indian knitting industry with an event in Kolkata. This event was attended by various dignitaries like Smriti Irani, Minister of Textiles and Women & Child Development, Government of India; Rakesh Biyani, President, CMAI; Dr A.Sakthivel, Vice Chairman, AEPC; Ashok Kumar Todi, President, WBHA; Sandeep Seksaria, Hony Secretary, WBHA and Kunj Behari Agarwala, President, FOHMA.

Government plans new schemes for the industry

At the event, Irani highlighted the schemes that the government aims to introduce for the industry. “Besides setting up a knitwear cluster, we plan to upgrade and equip our MSMEs with modern machines. We also plan to introduce a credit scheme to offer timely financial assistance to our women entrepreneurs,” she said. “We have decided to form a group of the textile industry association to enhance our productivity,” she added. 

The ministry recently also announced a skilling program for around 10 lakh people in the industry. “For years, we focused on entry level skilling. We need to improve our skill levels to compete on a global level. For this, we recently signed MOUs with 18 state governments and industry partners,” Irani revealed. 

Encouraging entrepreneurs with new initiatives

Outlining the role of WBHA in the industry, Todi said, “The association encourages entrepreneurs across the country. We have developed a hosiery park for MSMEs and large groups and also upgraded our machineries. Besides, we have trained our employees to compete with the best and make it a true make in India success. We offer good quality and eco-friendly products.” 

The session ended with the felicitation of key players for their contribution to the knitwear industry over the last 125 years. Rupa & Company, JG Hosiery, Dollar Industries, Lux Industries, Mira Knitting Works, TT Ltd and Parrot Hosiery Factory were recognised as the path breakers of the industry.

Inculcating new thoughts into the industry

Seksaria delineated the growth of the knitted industry. “As the demand for knitted apparels is growing, the industry is escalating at a rapid speed,” he said. “Not just brands even designers are incorporating knits into their clothing. To tap this demand, we plan to inculcate new thoughts and unique designs in our array of knitwear products,” he added.

The Indian knitwear cluster is the largest cluster in Asia. “We currently serve the domestic market. However, if we organise our operations, we can expand to the market also,” noted Sanjay Jain, Chairman, CITI. 

Turkish denim manufacturer Isko has earned the STeP certification from Oeko-Tex. This is a modular certification system for production facilities in the textile and leather industries. STeP grades a company across six categories—chemicals management, environmental performance, environmental management, social responsibility, quality management, and health protection and safety at work—and looks for long-term implementation of sustainable processes.

Isko is the first denim producer in the world to be recognised with the Nordic Swan and EU Ecolabel certifications. The company has a production capacity of 300 million meters of fabric a year with 2000 high-tech automated looms. Isko has a global presence with offices in 35 countries, and is part of Sanko Tekstil, the textiles division of the Sanko Group. Responsibility and innovations go hand in hand at Isko. Isko’s latest series of performance fabrics is made with certified recycled materials. These textile concepts are all woven, even if many have the look and hand feel of knitted fabrics, ensuring superior durability and great recovery. They provide a broad range of performance properties, such as moisture management, UV and wind protection, heat retention, water and stain repellency. Nylon is used for the first time, presenting super light woven and cozy outdoor fabrics, reversible and packable styles.

Australian wool growers are continuing to face the hardships of drought, causing brokers’ receivals to be way down. Buyers, exporters and traders are faced with earlier stock and trade losses, while machinery owners, garment makers and retailers face slow demand, sales and inventory devaluation.

However, the past seven days has been the best week of positive news that the season has produced. The USA and China came to some sort of understanding over their trade imbalance dispute. The UK election result has forged the path for pushing Brexit through, with that problem more relevant given the premium market that Europe is for apparel wool products. Another contributing factor to the market gains was the lack of the advertised quantity once again failing to materialise at auction. A little over 34,000 bales, or 12 per cent lower volume, eventually saw their way to the selling rostrum. Brokers passed in just 7.7 per cent of bales offered, as price levels gained rapidly. Purchasing was again dominated by the big players of each segment. Significant though was the step up by Chinese top makers on all Merino types and descriptions.

Significant quantities of wool have been held back by growers and decision making as to how and when that is dispersed will need close monitoring by their wool selling brokers.