PVH Corp has switched to a more sustainable digital design process. PVH has doubled its sustainability efforts. Its fourth collaboration with Formula One World Champion Lewis Hamilton uses sustainable materials and sourcing practices including the use of organic cotton and recycled materials, low-impact denim washes and more. These sustainability practices are a part of PVH’s Forward Fashion Initiative, which aims to change the way clothes are created and reused. Its goals include reaching zero negative impacts, increasing positive impacts and improving more than one million lives across its value chain.

PVH Corp is the parent company of Tommy Hilfiger, Calvin Klein, Van Heusen, Speedo and Izod. PVH’s business is strongly anchored in the US, where in 2018 it generated 46 per cent of its sales, but the group is reorganising itself in the US market. Tommy Hilfiger has been working to sales in China, engineering double-digit growth in the country in 2018. Asia accounts for 12 per cent of the group’s sales. The group has cut the share of its production that comes from China to the US market. Three or four years ago, about 35 per cent of its production for the US was coming out of China. For next year, it is looking at something that’s closer to 10 per cent.

The lingerie and swimwear industry has reinvented the rules of glamour by speaking generously and delightfully to all women. It began with getting away from stereotypes based on extreme thinness, gradually making space for plus size models on runways, and then, with varying amounts of curves, in advertising campaigns.

For women who have had their lives shaken up by surgery, Megami offers post-operative lingerie. Products are now available in several sizes covering a range that more accurately reflects all body types. Images for catalogues and other ad campaign visuals are featuring models with non-retouched bodies, proudly displaying stretch marks, varying degrees of curviness, and even boldly embraced body hair. Danish designers Moons and Junes intend to show how beautiful realism can be by spotlighting all kinds of physiques. With their hashtag #bitsandboobs, this brand encourages women to post their bustlines on their official website. At American brand Girlfriend Collective, this active wear line is made in sizes ranging from XXS to 6XL, allowing all women to be eco- friendly; this brand only uses fibers made from recycled plastic bottles. French brand Madame porte la culotte is intended first and foremost to make women happy with a combination of comfort and beauty.

The premium denim brand J Brand known as the creator of the skinny jean will offer inclusive denim now. The brand plans to extend its women’s sizing from size 32 up to size 38 for a capsule collection of its most iconic jean fits. To develop the capsule, J Brand took into consideration the pain points of female denim consumers and cut the jeans from entirely new patterns that were perfected over hours of fittings on real women’s bodies.

Additionally, the jeans are made from cotton blended with fibers like lyocell and elastane, which allow movement while enhancing curves.

SRTEPC has prepared a 20-point strategy for the development of MMF fiber textile segment. The points include: bringing in fiber neutrality, lowering interest rates, making raw materials to be made available at international price, considering textile job work as manufacturing in the goods and services tax regime, considering textile merchant exporters as manufacturer exporter, branding and WTO-compatible schemes.

SRTEPC says, exports of Indian man-made fiber (MMF) textiles are expected to grow 10 per cent to reach $7 billion by the end of fiscal 2020-21. Exports in value-added segments like fabrics witnessed nearly 8 per cent growth during April-October period in 2019-20 as compared to the same period in the previous fiscal.

Indorama Ventures has bought the chemical intermediates businesses of Huntsman Corporation including PO/MTBE, and its surfactants businesses. The transaction is valued at around $2 billion, which comprises a cash purchase price of $1.93 billion along with the transfer of up to $76 million in net underfunded pension as well as other post-employment benefit liabilities. Notably, the cash purchase price includes estimated adjustments to the working capital purchase price.

The transaction significantly lowers Huntsman’s capital-intensive upstream asset base, strengthens its already strong balance sheet, and enables it to further invest and expand its downstream businesses. It also expands the company’s opportunity and flexibility for select strategic and accretive acquisitions, and ongoing opportunistic repurchases of its shares.

The divestiture will also enable Huntsman to generate more stable and consistent margins as well as strong free cash flow.

Himatsingka plans to launch new lifestyle bedding and bath brand Himeya at Heimtextil. The brand will bring back the beauty of the outdoors into its customers’ lives and homes. This is a part of the company’s broader efforts to spearhead a spectrum of initiatives designed to enhance market share across Europe and Asia Pacific for Himatsingka’s home textile portfolio.

Himatsingka’s theme at Heimtextil this week is “The Architecture of Comfort” as the event sets the tone for the company’s redesigned booth at the show. The company tapped Swedish interior designer and stylist Lotta Agaton to creatively present this visual expression. The company also plans to launch new Rescue Towel program made of repurposed yarn waste and its tagged cotton story at the exhibition.

Himatsingka is the only company equipped with the DNA to track and trace cotton from farm to home. The company has positioned itself as a leader in the track-and-trace space using the unique, patented DNA system by Applied DNA Science.

Bangladesh will give garment, terry towel and specialised textile exporters a one per cent special incentive. The aim is to help exporters remain competitive in the global market. Currently, Bangladesh garment exporters receive a four per cent cash incentive for shipment to non-traditional markets. The country considers all destinations as non-traditional markets except the EU, the US and Canada.

Bangladesh’s garment exports have been declining for the last five months because of currency appreciation, rising cost of production, lower consumer spending on garments and the free trade agreement between Vietnam and the EU. In the first half of the fiscal, Bangladesh’s apparel shipments fell 6.21 per cent. The US-China trade war resulted in a slump in consumption of readymade garment products. Consumption fall also forced the country’s exporters to lower prices. The readymade garment sector contributes 83.52 per cent to the country’s overall export earnings. Due to Bangladesh’s high dependency on garment exports, any instability in this sector in future could result in huge unemployment and a trade deficit. So the country needs to diversify its export basket. Bangladesh has to develop factory to port communication in order to reduce lead times and has to have a one stop service in trade procedure and documentation in product transaction.

Aviraté has partnered EFL in order to provide customers a seamless brand experience. EFL is a global supply chain service provider. Its apparel finished goods specific infrastructure is capable of keeping garments fresh from the point of manufacture till purchase. By regulating humidity and temperature it prevents mold formation which is vital and often overlooked especially in countries like Sri Lanka with a relatively high humidity of about 85 per cent. Avirate, based in Sri Lanka, is a luxury women’s fashion retailer with five retail stores across Sri Lanka and hopes to continue on this trajectory with expansion into Europe, North America and the Middle East.

Having made considerable changes to its supply chain and business conditions, Avirate decided to focus on specialized warehouse operations, distribution and inventory management of its products. Aviraté found the perfect fit with EFL to change the way its business process solutions are managed and delivered effectively. The modern infrastructure that EFL offers suits this operating model in addition to superior industry compliance in terms of social, operational and business certifications. Avirate sees EFL as having the best infrastructure in the region and the experience and resourcefulness to be able to respond to Avirate’s changing business needs.

"Padma Shri Dr. A Sakthivel has taken over as the new chairman of the Apparel Export Promotion Council from January 6, 2020. He was elected to the Board of Directors of Apparel Export Promotion Council in the year 1982 and has served the council for almost four decades. He is also the first person in the history of AEPC, to be sworn-in for the fourth time as Chairman of the AEPC. His diligence has played a vital role in the growth of the Council and gradually led to the improvement of exports at the national level."

Padma Shri Dr. A Sakthivel has taken over as the new chairman of the Apparel Export Promotion Council from January 6, 2020. He was elected to the Board of Directors of Apparel Export Promotion Council in the year 1982 and has served the council for almost four decades. He is also the first person in the history of AEPC, to be sworn-in for the fourth time as Chairman of the AEPC. His diligence has played a vital role in the growth of the Council and gradually led to the improvement of exports at the national level.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr. A Sakthivel expressed concern over the stagnating exports and current industry scenario. He assured the members that he will work with full commitment and dedication to bring forth positive growth in apparel exports. He promised that he will put efforts to find new and potential markets for India's garment exports. He further assured that he will convince the senior officials of the Central Government to get the required incentives and benefits thereby reviving growth of the sector and overall exports.

Dr. A Sakthivel along with some exporters had established Tirupur Exporters Association in 1990 widely known as TEA. Dr. A Sakthivel was the first President of TEA and with his dynamism, he held the post continuously for a period of 27 years.

During his tenure as President of TEA, he toiled hard to develop the industry as well as Tirupur. The export turnover of Tirupur industry increased to a whopping Rs 27000 crores in 2016-17 from Rs 270 Crores in 1990.

Government of India recognised his unparalleled service to export sector specifically to apparel sector and knitting industry, creation of infrastructures such as industrial parks, ICDs and his contribution to society with regard to education, drinking water, sanitation, and drainage, etc., by honoring him with one of the country's most prestigious and esteemed Civilian Award Dr. A Sakthivel was also instrumental in so many visionary projects in Tirupur including the formation of Tirupur Export Knitwear Industrial Complex (TEKIC), Inland Container Depot (ICD), Netaji Apparel Park (NAP), International Exhibition Centre (IKF), etc. Similarly his social visionary projects include School for Children (TEA Public School), drinking water for Tirupur people and Industry through NTADCL, Fashion Knitwear Institute partnered with NIFT (NIFT-TEA Institute) etc.,

Incorporated in 1978, AEPC is the official body of apparel exporters in India that provides invaluable assistance to Indian exporters as well as importers/ international buyers who choose India as their preferred sourcing destination for garments. In recent years AEPC has worked tirelessly in integrating the entire industry - starting at the grass the root level of training the workforce and supplying a steady stream of manpower to the industry; identifying the best countries to source machinery and other infrastructure.