The Fabric Days scheduled from March 2 to 4, 2021 will not be taking place, it said the Munich Fabric Start the organizers on its Fabric Days website. Due to the ongoing pandemic related measures, the original date of fabrics trade show had already been shifted from January 26 to 28, 2021, to March 2 to 4. But the challenging circumstances and planning uncertainty have now forced Munich Fabric Start to pull the plug and cancel Fabric Days altogether.

“Unfortunately, the number of infections in Germany and Europe have not changed fundamentally in the last few weeks, which is why the federal government has provisionally extended the current lockdown to January 31, 2021 and tightened it even further. There are only seven weeks left until the start of Fabric Days–in this short period of time a necessary turnaround is unfortunately still not in sight. We must therefore currently assume that there will be no political basis for approving and holding trade fairs in Germany by then,” says Sebastian Klinder, Managing Director, Munich Fabric Start. “I regret the cancelation very much, especially in view of the numerous registrations and the great support in the industry.”

Philippines’ garment and hard goods exports are expected to grow 15 per cent to about $1.4 billion this year with buyers reinstating cancelled orders. The country is looking at 2021 as a recovery year for garments and hardgoods/furniture and housewares. As per Robert Young, President, Foreign Buyers Association of the Philippines (FOBAP) $280 million worth new orders were received by domestic factories.

He said, the 2021 outlook for troubled mid to high fashion items was dim, therefore a price recosting/re-levelling is a must. Only the basics and essentials, such as undergarments, fast fashion are now staying alive. He went on to add, there have been confirmed export orders for soft goods mostly garments worth $200 million for the first quarter. The buyers are Wacoal, Adidas, Ralph Lauren, Ann Taylor, JCPenny, among others. Last year, Philippine exported garments worth $900 million. Bulk or almost 70 per cent orders were from the US, and the rest came from European Union, Canada, Australia, among others.

The Indian kids wear market valued $16.62 billion in 2020 and is forecasted to grow at CAGR of 5.89 per cent through 2026 to reach $22.53 billion by 2026, says ReportsAndMarkets.com study. Growing Rising disposable income and changing lifestyles, is propelling kids wear demand. Growth will be drive by increasing number of nuclear families and rising number of dual income households is in coming years.

The market is categorized on gender, category, season, sector, distribution channel and competition. Based on distribution channel, the market is categorized into multi brand retail outlets, online, exclusive stores, supermarkets and hypermarkets and others. Multi brand retail outlets account for the 1/3rd share in FY2020 and the trend is likely to continue until 2026.

With Covid-19 emergency, the difficulties faced by the industry, with numerous cancelled shows, Berlin is hosting a new project, 202030-The Berlin Fashion Summit. This is a digital collective content format meant to create and encourage future fashion systems.

The event envisages international and local experts and innovators from fashion, science, business, education, politics, art and tech and consists of two parts: The Pop Up Think Tank (January 7-14) and the Summit (January 21-24). The latter will happen within the upcoming (digital version of) Berlin Fashion Week happening on January 18-24, 2021.

The initiative is designed to become an interdisciplinary platform, which enables avant-garde creative and critical grassroots protagonists to meet industry stakeholders to work together. As per Max Gilgenmann, of studio MM04, a Berlin-based creative strategy consultancy and co-organizer of the project together with Sqetch, an innovation agency and IT company, and the Beneficial Design Institute, a design research and development institute for sustainable and circular products with a focus on fashion and textiles, “We see the challenge in finding solutions for the needs of diverse fashion industries, consumer cultures, innovation-driven sustainability and the tech movement. Thus, knowledge exchange, translation and collaboration between stakeholders is key.”

The pandemic has adversely affected global apparel supply chains with countries like Bangladesh, India, Vietnam, and others facing the brunt. Their exports have tumbled, factories have closed down, workers have lost jobs and revenues pushed down.

Tough time for RMG sector across value chain

In fact, Bangladesh the second largest apparel exporter in the world after China has been severely affected by the pandemic. As per BGMEA, exporters got 30 per cent less orders for the December to March season compared to pre-pandemic levels. However, while orders started returning in the last few months, the sector faced fresh bumps with second wave of lockdowns in Europe. As per a Textile Today report, “Primarily, the supply of raw materials to local garment factories was disrupted when China, —Bangladesh’s main source for raw materials —paused all shipments between March and April due to the coronavirus outbreak.”

Indeed, some PPE orders did trickle in and a few factories continued operations through the lockdown if they got orders from global buyers. However, overall the sector suffered as most buyers kept away with low demand and store closures. What’s more the prices being offered were much lower and payments delayed or deferred, shipments of finished orders too were hampered. The sector saw major job losses as mills closed with low production.

That’s not all in a chain reaction, suppliers to the RMG sector faced a tough time as well. Textiles, dyeing, packaging, trims and accessories, apparel labels, and services such as washing, printing and embroidery faced loss of business. With many RMG units unable to make payments it put a lot of pressure on accessory and allied suppliers.

New year, new optimism

With all this uncertainty, Bangladesh RMG industry is now looking at 2021 with a lot of hope and optimism. They hope for a new beginning, and doing things in a better manner with the arrival of Covid-19 vaccine, they feel lives and businesses can look up again.

Moreover as per Textile Today “2021 is going to be a significant year for Bangladesh as it will celebrate its 50th year of independence and graduate from a least developed country (LDC). 2021 should be a year where promoting the country’s export competitiveness will be a top priority.”

The RMG industry is hoping 2021 will be more stable “if no major side effects of the vaccine and new COVID wave are exposed.” With changing consumer mindset, demand for sustainable and value-added products is expected to increase. As per BGMEA, over 33 companies are making PPE for exports. In future, PPE exports are expected to grow.

Experts also point out Bangladesh needs to now focus more on man made fiber products moving away from cotton as demand for these products are higher globally.

The growth curve of global ethical fashion market risen to touch $6,345.3 million in 2019, increasing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.7 per cent from 2015. Growing further, the market is expected to be worth $8,246.1 million in 2023 at a CAGR of 6.8 per cent, states a report ‘Ethical Fashion Market Global Opportunities and Strategies to 2030: COVID-19 Growth and Change’ by ResearchandMarkets.com.

Growing awareness boosts ethical fashion market

The market for ethical fashion has got a boost with growing awareness about sustainability. The study forecasts, the market is expected to be worth $8,246.1 million in 2023 and further grow to $9,808.5 million in 2025 at a CAGR of 9.1 per cent. And by 2030 it will be worth $15,173.7 billion at a CAGR of 9.1 per cent.

Ethical fashion includes sale of apparels by organizations, sole traders or partnerships primarily engaged in designing, production, retail, and purchasing of ethical fashion apparels. It involves designing and making clothes while caring for people and communities involved in the process, and minimizing the impact on environment. It focuses on both the social and environmental impact of fashion, seeking to improve the working conditions and the environment. In fact, COVID-19 has given a huge flip to the ethical fashion market with growing consumer awareness.

The report highlights, rising awareness, social media, growth of e-commerce and government initiatives are expected to drive the market ahead. However, lack of standardization, reduction in free trade and impact of COVID-19 are major factors that could hinder the growth of the ethical fashion market in the future.

Organic to be the largest segment

The ethical fashion market is segmented based on products: organic, man-made/regenerated, recycled and natural. Among these, man-made/regenerated was the largest market segment based on product type, accounting for 54.5 per cent of total market in 2019. However, going forward, organic is expected to be the fastest growing with a CAGR of 16.2 per cent.

The market is also segmented based on fair trade, animal cruelty free, eco-friendly and charitable brands. In 2019, animal cruelty free was the largest segment by type, accounting for 43.9 per cent. But moving ahead eco-friendly is expected to be the fastest growing at a CAGR of 11.6 per cent. Ethical fashion is also segmented as: men, women and kids. In 2019, women’s segment was the largest accounting for 54.3 per cent of total in 2019. However, in future men’s segment is expected to be the fastest growing with CAGR of 10.2 per cent.

Asia Pacific the largest market

Asia Pacific was the largest region accounting for 32.7 per cent of total in 2019; followed by the Western Europe, North America and others. However, the reports suggests in future the fastest-growing regions in ethical fashion market will be Eastern Europe and South America, with at CAGR of 11.9 per cent and 11.4 per cent respectively. They will be followed by Asia Pacific and Africa, with CAGRs of 11.3 per cent and 11 per cent respectively.

However, the market is highly fragmented, with many small players. The big players are: Reformation, Everlane, Tentree, Alternative Apparel, (Hanes Brands), Eileen Fisher, and H&M Conscious among others.

Productwise top opportunities will be in the organic segment, where sales are expected to touch $686.3 million by 2023. Eco-friendly segment will grow and touch $840.1 million in annual sales by 2023. The top opportunities by end-user will be for men’s category, which will see sales reaching $954.1 million by 2023. And China market will be the biggest in terms of size at $367.1 million.

The National Exhibition and Convention Centre (Shanghai) will host the Yarn Expo Spring Edition in March. The event will focus on antibacterial and hygiene products. Suppliers will display a collection of natural and blended yarns like cotton, wool, flax, man-made fibres and yarns, and specialty products including elastic, fancy, and blended yarns.

After the successful conclusion of Autumn edition, Yarn Expo remains a reliable and stable trading platform for the industry in times of change and uncertainty, with feedback from the previous edition outlining the valuable support the fair offers our exhibitors and buyers. The upcoming Spring edition will continue to cater to market demands, offering comprehensive sourcing for raw materials with online and hybrid solutions running in tandem with the physical fair. And as the market shows promising signs of recovery the organisers are glad that digital solutions ensure the fairs accessibility to all informed Wendy Wen, senior general manager of Messe Frankfurt said in a press release.

In addition to the physical fair, Yarn Expo will once again provide online solutions for those unable to travel. Exhibitors can benefit from the hybrid exhibition package which allows companies to display their yarns and fibres onsite at the dedicated showcase area, enabling buyers to examine the products close-up. These ‘hybrid exhibitors’ will also be able to obtain business cards with the help of onsite staff and utilise video equipment to help introduce their brand. Aall participants will have access to digital business matching platform where they can connect with both online and onsite business partners via the instant messaging and video calling functions, available before, during and after the fair.

Yarn Expo Spring will be held alongside four concurrent events: Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics – Spring Edition, Intertextile Shanghai Home Textiles – Spring Edition, PH Value, and the China International Fashion Fair (CHIC). Together, the shows encompass the entire textile supply chain, providing a one-stop sourcing platform for the industry with strengthened potential and value for all participants. Encouraged by the growing demand for antibacterial yarns and fibres boosted by the global pandemic the event hopes to offer wholesome solutions to buyers.

Fashion brand Mango is reconsidering retail expansion strategy in China. In 2019, the Spanish label teamed up with local group Hangzhou Jingzhe Clothing, to expand retail in China by opening 16 new stores. In the light of the current prospects for physical retail, and growing influence of the e-tail channels, Mango has decided to revise its expansion plans.

The brand intends to prioritise e-tail channels, as opposed to physical stores network. Mango already operates own e-tail site in China, and is also distributed through multibrand sites Tmall, owned by the Alibaba group. In its 2019 agreement, Mango and Hangzhou Jingzhe Clothing envisaged the possibility of expanding the label’s web presence in China, by introducing Mango on other local e-stores. The agreement’s goal was to increase physical and online presence in the Chinese market.

Mango’s decision to shift focus and prioritise e-tail was prompted by the departure of David Sancho, the label’s former CEO in China, who was in charge of the country’s store network. At the end of January 2020, when Mango was forced by the Covid-19 pandemic to close its Chinese stores, 26 of them were active in the country.

Closed will launch a capsule collection in February as a part of its ‘A Better Blue’ eco-denim line. The new selection from the German denim and fashion brand includes completely degradable Made in Italy stretch jeans and jackets and two jeans fits for women, Gill and X-Lent, plus the jacket Twist, and the X-Lent and Drop fits, and a classic denim jacket for men.

Developed by Italian denim mill Candiani, all garments are made from organic cotton and biodegradable stretch yarn Coreva. Candiani has been Closed’s partner for over 14 years. They along with the Italian denim laundry Everest, were a major contributor in the creation of previous drops from A Better Blue. Candiani is known for sustainable denim innovations and has developed the innovative, patented stretch yarn Coreva consisting of natural rubber, a sustainable alternative to conventional stretch yarns, which mostly consist of elastane or other petrochemical fibers that can take centuries to decompose and pollute the environment. Coreva, on the other hand, decomposes after about six months on the compost without leaving any residue and is therefore much more eco-friendly.

To make these garments fully degradable, Closed has substituted all other components of the jeans and jackets with natural alternatives. The garments were dyed and washed with environment friendly methods that save water, chemicals and electricity, all techniques that Closed has been using since 2018 for its own eco-denim line.

Guess is launching Guess Originals x Pleasures Drew Barrymore revamping the ’90’s. The capsule has 36 pieces including styles for men and women printed with iconic images from ’90s Guess campaigns featuring Barrymore. The collection is sold through urbanoutfitters.com since January 11 and from March through selected Guess stores and Guess.eu.

Pleasures, a street-wear brand from Los Angeles founded by Alex James and Vlad Elkin in 2015 is known for its punk, metal and grunge inspiration. It is known for having collaborated with other fashion brands from all over the world since its early days. This is their third release in collaboration with Guess and the largest one until now.

The Guess Originals x Pleasures capsule is built around images of the Guess campaign featuring Barrymore in 1994 showing unpublished images by Wayne Maser. The 1994 campaign was shot when Barrymore was turning from a girl star into an adult. Throughout the shooting her whole aspect and personality transformed from innocent and youthful into extremely edgy and grown-up.

The collection presents the brand’s iconic polka dot print and denim from its’90s archive. By revamping the jeans jacket and tracksuit mix, Guess wanted to overlap modern silhouettes with Barrymore’s vintage images.