Compared to 2019, sales revenue for women’s plus-size apparel in the US grew by three times faster by 18 per cent in 2021, compared to 2019, which is over three-times faster than consumer spending on the remaining women’s market, according to The NPD Group.

After casual apparel, basics make up the largest share of apparel units sold in plus-size apparel, at 27 per cent, compared to 19 per cent for the rest of the market, based on the new Inclusive Apparel Market Trends report from NPD. Inclusivity has also been in focus in basics for brands and retail most recently with Lizzo’s announcement of her new shapewear line, Yitty. On the other hand, jeans, tops, and swimwear are the top categories where consumers want more options in their size.

Kristen Classi-Zummo, Apparel Industry Analyst, NPD Group, says, the intimate apparel market has been a pioneer in inclusive sizing, proving that the consumer will spend on categories where she feels well-represented.

Uniqlo plans to open a majority of its upcoming stores in India in a smaller format in the range of 10,000-15,000 sqft - compared to most of its current store sizes in the range of 20,000-35,000 sq ft.

Uniqlo has slashed the store size in Vegas Mall in Dwarka by almost half to about 10,500 sqft and reduced it from earlier version spanning two floors to just one floor.

The company has no plans to reduce the sizes of any other existing store in the NCR where the company has all of its six India outlets. It aims to provide Uniqlo and its LifeWear offerings to customers and we explore appropriate opportunities to expand Uniqlo's footprint further.

Uniqlo is adopting a hub-and-spoke strategy of one large flagship store in a city with others being smaller stores. It plans to open most of its upcoming stores in the range of 10,000-15,000 sqft barring some flagship stores.

The brand aims is to continue working closely with partners, including developers, to create longstanding and successful endeavours that benefit the communities we operate in.

Industrial Fabrics Association International (IFAI) has been renamed as the Advanced Textiles Association (ATA) with effective from June 1.

As per a Textile World report, the new name, Advanced Textiles Association, reflects the evolving textile industry and is designed to position the association to meet the needs of its members and the industry as a whole. IFAI’s Board of Directors, staff and industry partners have been researching the IFAI brand for over a year, with the goal of ensuring the association is well-positioned for the future.

That market research and discussion with members found the need for a new brand. After more than 40 years as IFAI, the updated name not only speaks to those core markets, but also reflects the fact that members are working in markets that may not be readily identified as industrial fabrics.

Global leader in branded lifestyle apparel, footwear and accessories, VF Corporation has been recognized by 3BL Media in its 100 Best Corporate Citizens ranking for the company’s work across people and planet, including employees, climate change, the environment and human rights, among other categories.

In 2019, VF set greenhouse gas reduction targets, approved by the Science-Based Targets initiative, to guide progress on its commitment to the planet. Core to this work are investments in renewable energy, responsibly sourced materials, and many environmental and socially responsible initiatives across its global supply chain. By 2030, VF aims to improve the lives of 2 million workers and their communities through its Worker and Community Development Program The company details its continued progress toward the betterment of people in its 2020 Human Rights Report and 2021 Inclusion, Diversity, Equity & Annual Profile.

Underpinning VF’s sustainability and responsibility work is its industry-leading traceability program giving external stakeholders visibility into its complex global supply chain. This work also helps consumers learn more about the products they purchase and helps VF and its brands align business decisions with its purpose. In December 2021, VF achieved its goal of publishing traceability maps for 100 of its brands’ most iconic products.. By 2027, VF is working to trace five of the company’s key materials through 100 per cent of its supply chain.

One key MSME to have made a significant contribution to the India’s GDP growth amidst the pandemic is textile and apparel MSMEs. Textile and apparel MSMEs contribute around 5 per cent to India’s GDP every year and account for almost 7 per cent of total industrial output annually. So far, the sector has created 45 million direct and over 60 million indirect jobs.

Being the world’s 5th largest T&A exporter, India has 4 per cent share of global $840 billion T&A market. From April to October 2021, India exported textile products worth $22.89 billion. Growing at 11 per cent CAGR, textile exports are expected to cross $100 billion in the next five years, says an IBEF report. By increasing textile exports, the country can grow its foreign reserves and create better employment opportunities. In fact, over 75 lakh new jobs can be created by developing textile MSMEs.

Government schemes to boost sector growth

In Union Budget 2022-23, the government had announced several schemes and programs to support and strengthen the industry. One such scheme was the MITRA scheme that involves setting up of seven mega textile parks across India. The scheme is likely to boost employment opportunities across India besides adding to its MSME growth. Another scheme worth $1.4 billion is the production-linked incentives (PLI) that will explore the potential of textile and apparel manufacturing units.

Several labor-friendly schemes were also announced for the sector. These include, the EPF scheme where the government will contribute 12 per cent of the Employees Provident Fund for new workers earning less than Rs 15,000 a month, for initial three years. This reform will ensure the workers get more wages in hand. Programs like the Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (TUFS) to step up investments and subsidies in new digital textile technologies were also introduced.

Entrepreneurial and employment opportunities

Meanwhile the Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) has teamed up with the Ministry of MSME to boost growth of rural textile MSMEs. Both entities jointly launched a scheme to create self-employment and entrepreneurial opportunities and rural development. In 2020-21, they trained over 10,000 people in 2020-2021 through various KVIC training centres.

Women account for 70 per cent of the workforce in Indian textile and apparel sector with over 27 million women workers. Growing employment opportunities will enable more women to participate and contribute to the sector’s growth. Vast raw material supply, abundant human resources and faster adoption of technologies can help enliven the future of textile industry in India. It can become one of the most lucrative sectors for employment generation by sustaining domestic and export growth.

International Apparel Federation (IAF) in collaboration with the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) and the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) will organize the 37th IAF World Fashion Convention in November in Dhaka to promote the readymade garment (RMG) industry of Bangladesh locally and globally by showcasing captivating stories of the garment sector through ‘Made in Bangladesh’ branding.

On 14 May, an event to unveil the rogram for the 37th World Fashion Convention and a press conference was held at a hotel in Dhaka. Faruque Hassan, President, BGMEA, and MatthijsCrietee, Secretary-General, IAF and FazleShameemEhsan, Vice President, BKMEA jointly unveiled the logo of the 37th World Fashion Convention for the first time in public.

Hassan says, the IAF convention will be a 3-daylong event where in the first day, a board meeting containing all the IAF Board of Director will be held. A daylong conference to be participated by local and international speakers will also be a part of this convention.

The seve-day convention from November 12 to November 18 will hold fashion shows, denim expos, and discussions on sustainability. The expo will also brand Bangladesh’s image to international buyers which will aid negotiate fair prices.

The speakers including brands, retailers, suppliers, industry leaders, and academics will highlight the current and future business trends, challenges, and probable solutions, with the goal to make industry-wide efforts to create an improved fashion industry for all.

Favorable exchange rate of US dollars against Bangladeshi currency has boosted Bangladesh’s apparel export earnings.

According Bangladesh Bank (BB) data, the interbank exchange rate increased to Tk 86.7 per dollar from Tk85 in January.

To be competitive in the global export markets, exporters had been demanding the devaluation of the Taka as competitors were enjoying extra benefits due to the depreciation of their currencies.

ShahidullahAzim, Vice President, Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) says, competitors are becoming stronger as their currencies depreciated more than that of Bangladesh. As a result, exporters are losing work orders to some extent as they can offer fewer prices taking the benefits of devaluation of their currencies, said the business leader.

Exporters are not getting the full-fledged benefits of devaluation of Bangladesh currency against the USD as the bankers are charging higher for imports of raw materials, sector people claimed.

Exporters are also suffering as the import costs of raw materials increasedas banks increased interest rates.

AB MirzaAzizul Islam, Economist and Former Advisor to Government, adds, the current exchange rate is favorable for exporters but it needs to be managed carefully so that the competitiveness of the exporters remains and they can beat others in the global market.

For the betterment of exporters, the sector people demanded Bangladesh Bank’s intervention to stop charging extra rates than the central bank rate.

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand recently introduced her Fashioning Accountability and Building Real Institutional Change (FABRIC) Act in the US Senate. The FABRIC Act aims to protect nearly 100,000 domestic garment workers and help revitalize the sector by improving working conditions and reforming the piece-rate pay scale applicable now.

The act proposes to address these issues through five central pillars: restructuring pay rates and providing minimum wage as a floor with productivity incentives on top; establishing new liability measures that compel major retailers to become allies in combating workplace violations; introducing record-keeping and transparency measures; incentivizing reshoring; and creating a domestic garment manufacturing grant program aimed at revitalizing the industry.

Senators Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren and Cory Booker are original cosponsors of the act.

American garment workers face the second-highest rate of wage theft of any group of workers in the country, according to the press release. At its peak in April of 1973, the US apparel industry employed 1.4 million people. This number has steadily declined since. As of April 2022, only 93,800 Americans were employed in apparel manufacturing.

Today, apparel imports from China to the United States are over 10 times higher than 30 years ago, and between 1995 and 2020, China gained an estimated 1.25 million jobs in apparel and apparel-adjacent manufacturing while the United States lost roughly 700,000 jobs.

The US garment industry now loses out on approximately $30 billion annually that is instead imported from China.

Bangladesh government plans to enhance exports to China by removing barriers and providing the requisite support. Recently Bangladeshi exporters of leather and leather goods suggested quality enhancement of leather and leather goods to boost exports.

The Ministry of Commerce had sought advice from the Bangladesh Embassy in Beijing on strategies to increase exports of leather and leather products to China.

Mohammad Mansur Uddin,Commercial Counselor told the Ministry of Commerce that in the last 10 years, Bangladesh has exported an average of $50 million worth of leather and $16.70 million worth of shoes to China.

To export leather to China and other global markets, Bangladesh needs to set up slaughter machines in urban and rural areas and make separate leather using these machines.

In this regard, Uddin further said that the quality demand of Chinese importers is much higher than their proposed price, so many Bangladeshi exporters show less interest in exporting leather and leather products to China.

Although the demand for world class brand products is increasing in China but there is no outlet of Bangladeshi brand.

So, the commercial consultant suggested setting up outlets of Bangladeshi brands in China and hiring agents for marketing, promotion and advertising to increase the export of leather goods and footwear.

He also advised Bangladeshi companies to increase their participation in exhibitions in Shanghai and Guangzhou.

The COSATU-affiliated Southern African and Clothing Textile Workers’ Union (SACTWU) has settled its 2022-23 wage negotiations with the General Goods and Handbags (GGH) leather section. The new collective agreement was concluded under the leadership of the National Bargaining Council of the Leather Industry of South Africa, with employers represented by the Association of South African Manufacturers of Luggage, Handbags & General Goods.

As per this agreement, members will receive a 7.25 per cent wage increase with effect from July 1, 2022. The new agreement will be valid for 12-months from July 1, 2022 the end of June 2023. The parties will enter into fresh wage negotiations early next year, for a new collective agreement to take effect from 1 July 2023.

Metakeys: COSATU, SACTWU, GGH, National Bargaining Council of the Leather Industry of South Africa, Association of South African Manufacturers of Luggage,