Some of the world's leading luxury brands plan to temporarily close stores and pause business operations in Russia.

These include Birkin bag maker Hermes and Cartier owner Richemont were the first firms to announce such moves, followed by LVMH, Kering and Chanel. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has made doing business in Russia complicated as United States, Britain and European Union have imposed sanctions on the country.

French luxury giant Chanel has decided to temporarily pause its business in Russia while LVMH, which owns such brands as Christian Dior, Givenchy, Kenzo, TAG Heuer and Bulgari among others, will close its 124 boutiques in Russia but will continue to pay the salaries for its 3,500 employees in the countryrs.

French multinational Kering, whose brands include brands as Gucci, Saint Laurent, BottegaVeneta and Boucheron among others, has two shops and 180 employees, which the company will continue to support.

While affluent Russians are keen consumers of luxury goods, analysts say the proportion of luxury sales generated from Russian nationals is small compared to the industry's main growth engines, China and the United States.

Richemont, which also owns Dunhill, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Montblanc, Piaget, and Van Cleef&Arpels among other brands, suspended commercial activities in Russia on March 3 after stopping Ukraine operations on February 24, the day Russia launched its invasion.

Russia accounts for around $9 billion in annual luxury sales, which is around 6 per cent of Chinese spending and 14 per cent of US spending on luxury goods, as per Investment bank Jefferies

Swiss watchmaker Swatch Group, which owns high end watches and jewellery labels including Harry Winston, has deferred exports from Russia due to the challenging situation"

L'Oreal, LVMH and Kering have all pledged financial support to help Ukrainian refugees and Richemont is initiating a significant donation to Medecins Sans Frontieres.

Spanish fashion retailer Inditex has closed 502 shops in Russia besides stopping online sales.

Russia accounts for around 8.5 per cent of the group's global EBIT (earnings before interest and tax) and all the Inditex stores operate on a rental basis, The company palns to introduce a special support for its over 9,000 employees. It has already closed 79 stores in Ukraine.

Spain's second-largest fashion retailer Mango has also temporarily closed 120 Russian shops, and Tendam, the third-largest clothing group, has also taken a similar decision.

A week rouble and increased logistical challenges are making it difficult for retailers to conduct business in Russia , says Adam Cochrane, Analyst, Deutsche Bank Research. The country was an important element of Inditex’s sales growth in 2021, he adds

Fast Retailing Co., Asia’s largest retailer and parent of Uniqlo, will continue to operate in Russia even as international pressure to isolate the country for its invasion of Ukraine sees waves of companies pull out.

Tadashi Yanai, Chief Executive Officer, questions the trend that pressures companies to make political choices, The company also faces a French proble alongside a number of fashion brands.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has drawn international condemnation, sparked trade restrictions and financial penalties, and spurred an exodus of global companies. Fast Retailing’s bigger rival Inditex SA is temporarily closing 502 stores in Russia and suspending online sales. Apple Inc. and Nike Inc. have also closed stores, while carmakers including BMW AG and General Motors Co. have suspended vehicle deliveries.

The Japanese government has followed the line of the U.S. and much of Europe in imposing a raft of sanctions, including freezing the assets of a number of Russian officials and oligarchs, as well as those of financial institutions including Russia’s central bank.

Swedish home furnishings retailer IKEA has appointed Susanne Pulverer as its new and first woman CEO and CSO for its India business.

Pulverertakes over from outgoing India CEO Peter Betzel. She has been employed with IKEA since 1997 and has worked across different roles. Her first role was that of an nvironmental manager, after which she moved to product development. Pulverermoved to India in 2007 to head the purchasing function for IKEA South Asia when she developed a strong connection and passion for India and its people.

In 2017, when Pulverer was appointed as the Managing Director at IKEA Communications in India during which she led the organisation through a major transformation to drive better business and people results. In her last role in India, she led market development for Delhi, where she also drove the sustainability agenda and local community initiatives.

Bangladesh’s woven garment exports are likely to face strict rules-of-origin (RoO) requirements in its major destinations, including the European Union, after Bangladesh's LDC graduation. Exporters may need to comply with double-transformation requirement irrespective of their access to GSP or GSP-plus schemes.

Bangladesh is largely dependent on imported fabrics for woven garment manufacturing as local spinners can meet 35-40 per cent of demand of woven exporters.

Absence of infrastructure, mainly shortage of gas, required policy supports and financial matters, is discouraging entrepreneurs from making fresh investment in woven fabrics manufacturing, say experts

The share of woven garments to the country's total exports declined by at 37.40 per cent in the last fiscal while it further dipped to 35.38 per cent during the first half of the current fiscal year, 2021-22, Bangladesh Bank quarterly review shows.

MD ShahidullahAzim, Vice President, BGMEAadds, the decline in exports can be attributed to a decline in demand during the pandemic as most people stayed at home.

The annual sales of US lingerie giant Victoria’s Secret grew by 25 per cent in 2021. As per a Fashion Network report, the company recorded net sales of $6.785 billion during the year compared to $5.413 billion in 2020.

The company’s net income grew to $646.4 million compared to a net loss of $72.3 million in the previous year

In the fourth quarter, Victoria's Secret sales totalled $2.175 billion, an increase of 4 per cent over the corresponding quarter last year. Quarterly net income, however, fell to $246.1 million, or diluted earnings per share of $2.70, compared to net income of $282.4 million, or earnings per share of $3.20. Despite the earnings dip, the company said it was "pleased" with the fourth quarter result, "in a challenging retail environment."

Coinciding with the earnings update, Victoria's Secret announced the approval a new share repurchase program, providing for the repurchase of up to $250 million of the company’s common stock. The $250 million authorization is expected to be utilized to repurchase shares in the open market, subject to market conditions and other factors, the company added.

The Society of Dyers and Colorists (SDC) has urged the textile coloration industry to reduce environmental impact in 2022 and beyond. SDC has published a free white paper, ‘Destination low carbon: Global technology and innovation reducing the environmental footprint of textile coloration’.

The white paper aims to inspire the wider sector.to minimize use of water, energy, and petrochemicals, SDC said in a press release.The study includes a total of six case studies from the UK, Switzerland, Sweden, and Germany explain methods developed and established over recent years as well as brand-new innovation including the use of local agricultural waste to create clean dyes, and micro-organisms to synthesise colours of nature – negating the need for petrochemicals.

The SDC is increasingly taking a global lead on the encouragement and promotion of environmental good practice – as well as providing the educational background that makes it possible – in line with members’ interests and concerns in this area.

The SDC is calling on its network and the wider dyeing and coloration industry to use the white paper to help devise and deliver carbon lowering improvements across operations.

UK Fashion & Textile Association (UKFT) will organize a webinar on ‘Reshoring fashion production to the UK’ on April 6. The webinar will discuss topics such as reshoring, CMT vs fully factored production, UK manufacturing capabilities and services, internal organisation, cost implications, lead times and import and export. It will also discuss the implications with this, the considerations for business models and where lie the benefits and drawbacks.

Elliot Barlow, Manufacturing Consultant, UKFT will head the webinar. Barlow has worked in a variety of different production environments and his expertise has been forged from hands-on experience managing high-end clothing factories in London, his own consultancy business producing for multiple brands and designers in the UK and more recently in senior management roles in-house and as a consultant for the UKFT. Barlow has been involved in producing clothing at all levels of quality, volume and design-philosophy and understands the necessary steps required to work effectively with manufacturers.

One of the foremost producers in PV dyed yarn, cotton and OE yarn and also ready to stitch fabric, Sangam India plans to increase the use of recycled fibre, leading to lesser consumption of plastic waste by using it as a raw material. The company also intends to focus on organic cotton to diminish greenhouse gas emissions during the harsh manufacturing processes.

The BSE and NSE listed company is focusing on initiatives like using organic/recycled raw materials, reducing consumption of water, energy and chemicals that pose a huge challenge for the sector at every stage of the value chain.

SIL has already installed twoSolar power plants of 5 MW that on average helps to bring down their carbon footprint by at least 20 per cent annum. The company also successfully runs 3 ETPs (Effluent treatment plant) and 4 STPs (Sewage treatment plant) to reduce industrial water contamination and reclaim the water for favorable purposes.

Pakistan’s textile industry has set a target a increase textile exports to $20 billion in the next few years. Its textile exports rose by 37 per cent to $1.69 billion in February 2022, as against $1.23 billion in February 2021, reveals All Pakistan Textile Mills Association.

The exports of textile commodities surged by 24.73 percent during the first seven months of the current fiscal year (2021-22) as compared to the corresponding period of last year, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) reported.

Sohail Pasha, Chairman, Pakistan Textile Exporters Association (PTEA) says, Pakistan’s textile exports experienced rapid recovery following the elimination of Covid-related restrictions.

Outbound shipments surged faster than those of regional competitors including Bangladesh and India. Textile exports surged by 26 per cent year-on-year to $9.38 billion in the first half of fiscal year 2021-22, he adds.