The Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey (TOBB) and the American Companies Association (AmCham Turkey) have launched an initiative to support local entrepreneurs entering the US market. With the support of United Parcel Service (UPS), they will offer mentoring services to selected companies via the new e-commerce mentoring programme.

Strategic planning, consultancy and business development support will be given to these companies so that they can mature their e-export processes to the US market. Companies will come together with experienced teams in the field of e-export.

Companies will have one-on-one meetings with mentors and will be connected to the ‘Turkey Trade Center’ established by TOBB in Chicago to accelerate their US market share.

TankutTurnaoğlu, Chairman, American Companies Association, which represents more than 110 American companies with investments of more than US$50billion in Turkey, stated that they aim to bring together small and medium-sized enterprises targeting the American market with their members.

BurakKilic, General Manager, UPS Turkey also emphasised the importance of the project while expressing that the global e-export volume is expected to reach $2.4 trillion 2025.

Iluna Group is participating in the Milan Fashion Week being held from February 24-27, 2022.

The docu-event with a multisensory narrative ‘Unveiling the fashion backstage’, gives voice to the interpreters of the wardrobe industry, whose role is often taken for granted but is more than fundamental. The White Show is being held in collaboration with GiusyBettoni, CEO, C.L.A.S.S., and Marco Poli, CEO, The Style Lift. Iluna has been chosen to represent the world of lace, as a company committed to writing a new chapter in its history.

Iluna Group was born in 1970 from an idea of its founder Luigi Annovazzi. It was the beginning of a success story that made the company a point of reference in the international manufacturing industry. With a worldwide branched production, commercial and distribution network, today Iluna is among the first 3 world players in the lace sector.

Over the years, Iluna has been able to respond to the challenges posed by the market in terms of technology and sustainability, transforming them into opportunities for growth and becoming a virtuous example to be followed by the entire supply chain. As a spokesperson for aesthetic and responsible innovation in the lace industry, Iluna offers smart solutions to the contemporary consumer in different areas of the wardrobe: from athleisure to fashion and underwear, from sarongs to bodysuits, from evening dresses and bridal gowns to the world of denim and high fashion.

Among the main proposals signed Iluna Group that will enchant visitors during WSM: recycled and customizable tulle and flock, relief designs with 3D effect in chenille and multicolor lurex and lace ennobled with natural dyes or prints with a very low waste of water.

As per a new analysis by Bloomberg, Chinese consumers are no longer patronizing Nike and Adidas like they used to, a trend that is purportedly driven by nationalistic rejection of forced labor accusations against the country.

In the last few years, China has faced accusations of human rights abuses in the region, with critics claiming that the nation’s “re-education” centers are actually prisons in practice.

In January 2021, former President Donald Trump banned all cotton imports from Xinjiang, as well as products made from the material, and declared that China was committing a “genocide.”

Based on the in-depth analysis by Bloomberg, the cotton controversy, as of last March, appears to have escalated based on both resurfaced and new statements made by several Western brands, which all denounced the alleged forced labor in Xinjiang to varying extents. Those brands include H&M, Nike, Adidas, Converse, Burberry, Zara, Hugo Boss and Gap, etc.

The new analysis shows that the fallout — at least for Nike and Adidas — was instant, as both brands lost the largest shares in China’s sneaker market to local competitors.

A new cationic dyed polyester yarn by cooling yarn innovator brrr° can be single dyed or double dyed to achieve a true heathered and/or solid look for increased flexibility in designing fabrics made with brrr yarns.

brrr°’s new CD polyester yarn can be piece dyed or yarn dyed in any color to get a genuine cationic dyed heathered appearance or a solid color look in the finished product.

The new brrr° CD yarn is spun in Taiwan and can be used in knit or woven fabrics, and is ideal for base layers, sleepwear, activewear and other lifestyle apparel. As with all brrr° products, the new brrr° CD polyester yarn has been independently lab tested by globally recognized third parties to prove that it outperforms other cooling brands in the market.

brrr° offers brrr° polyester and brrr° nylon yarns, as well as a library of fabrics with an array of natural rich blends and synthetic rich compositions such as cotton, wool, nylon and other materials used to achieve specific attributes in textiles.

For the very first time Bemberg™ by Asahi Kasei will participate in the White Sustainable Milano, the first fashion trade show entirely dedicated to the research and focus on new materials and technologies able to lead to a real ecological transition, developed in collaboration with GiusyBettoni, CEO and founder CLASS, and Marco Poli, Founder of The Style Lift. Its aim is to meet the downstream part of the supply chain, the one attending fashion weeks, in order to share with them how intriguing, fascinating and valuable the world of responsible, innovative textiles can be.

This year, Bemberg™ celebrates nine decades of commitment to deliver true timeless beauty, style and touch thanks to its responsible innovation heritage and soul. It willre launch a new gender aesthetics that speaks about contemporary values of transparency, inclusivity and sustainability. The new claim “Crafted Elegance” perfectly embodies Bemberg’s values of preciousness, uniqueness, quality and refined aesthetic blended with innovation and responsible values.

Focusing on the theme ‘Alliances for a New Era,’ Global Fashion Summit: Copenhagen Edition 2022 will endeavor to form previously inconceivable alliances within the fashion industry and examine atypical cross-industry alliances to accelerate the transition to a net positive reality.

The Global Fashion Summit: Copenhagen Edition 2022 will be held on June 7 and 8, at the Royal Opera House, Copenhagen, Denmark. The summit will be presented by Global Fashion Agenda, the non-profit organisation that fosters industry collaboration in fashion to drive impact, under the patronage of HRH The Crown Princess of Denmark.

The theme will be represented on the main stage of the Summit during plenary sessions consisting of high-level keynote speeches and panels. These will bring together speakers for transparent conversations about their mutual challenges and collaborate to discuss the actions needed to tackle the urgent issues.

After beating first-half profit estimates, the Woolworths Group forecasts improved financial performance in the second half. The supermarket brand has benefited from people stocking up essentials during the various stages of lockdowns. In the first half of this fiscal year, Woolworths' profit after tax from continuing operations declined to A$795 million from A$850 million a year earlier. However, it was better than the estimated profit compiled by Visible Alpha of $746 million,

Surging COVID cases also drove up Woolworths’ costs during the first half as its frontline, warehouse and delivery staff was forced to isolate. This also limited its ability to restock shelves. . Overall, company incurred A$239 million in COVID-related costs during the first half. Most of this was spent on its stores' distribution centres as well as supply chain disruptions.

However, curbs due to the Omicron variant caused sales in the food segment to surge by upto 5 per cent in the first seven weeks of 2022.

The Barcelona Bridal Fashion Week will host over 20 shows featuring over 300 brands from April 20-23, 2022. The trade show will be from April 22-24 at Palaces 1 and 2 of the Montjuic exhibition centre. The event will be organized by Fira de Barcelona and the Departament d'Empresa i Treball de la Generalitat de Catalunya,

The event will present established Spanish brands such as Jesus Peiro, the Pronovias Group, Rosa Clará, Yolancris, Sophie et Voilà, Marco & Maria, Sonia Perfia, Carla Ruiz, Ramón Sanjurjo, Inuñez, Novia d'Art and Tot-hom. It will also for the first time host Lebanese brand Zuhair Murad’s designs alongwith those of American brands Demetrios, Justin Alexander, Enzoani, Randy Fenoli, Allure and Amsale. Italian brands Nicole Milano, Peter Langner, Andrea Sedici, Elisabetta Polignano, Poesie Sposa, Simone Marulli, Valentini, Amelia Casablanca, Bellantuono, and Maison Signore will also participate in the event. Its other international participating brands will include brands include Ukrainian Milla Nova, Madi Lane from Australia, Korean Vestal, Julie Vino from Israel, the French Cymbeline, Daalarna from Hungary and Romanian Otilia Brailoiu.

The show will focus on the evolution of bridal fashion and present a season full of novelties and creativity, says Estermaria Laruccia, Event Director. It aims to evolve with the changing norms and customs in the market and promote sustainability throughout the product value chain. It also aims to accept diversity as an invaluable source of wealth, she adds.

Besides the physical event, BBFW will also launch a digital platform until the end of July. The online space will be divided into two sections with one section dedicated to participating brands and experts and the other to general public. The event is the first to be organized since the Barcelona Bridal Fashion Week 2021, held in collaboration with the Save The Children foundation last October.

The fact that around 48 per cent of companies surveyed by the 12th ITMF Corona Survey find their business satisfactory despite Omicron-led disruptions is an indication of a strong business recovery across segments.

Textile value chain to remain optimistic

Companies across all regions and segments reported a favorable situation with business growing at around 3 percentage points. In the next six months, the global textile value chain is expected to remain optimistic with only 14 per cent companies anticipating a decline in business by July 2022.

Growth in downstream segment to match upstream growth

Business across all regions except East Asia and Africa is expected to remain positive. The downstream segments including weavers/knitters, finishers/printers and garment producer are expected to remain on par with upstream segments including fiber producers, spinners and textile machinery producer.

Order intake to remain unchanged

Order intake is not likely to change in the next six months. Since November 2021, order intake has declined from a high level of +40pp in November 2021 to +30pp in January 2022. Since May 2021, order backlog is hovering between 2.4 and 2.9 months with the capacity utilization rate also growing slowly. This indicates the magnitude of supply chain disruptions faced by the industry.

Contributing to industry evolution

The 12th ITMF Corona Survey was conducted by the Indian Textile Manufacturers Federation (ITMF) in the latter half of January 2022. The survey questioned around 270 companies around the world in all segments along the textile value chain. For the first time since May 2021, companies were asked to rate their current business situations, their expectations for the future, current order situation, pending orders and rate of capacity utilization.

An international forum for the world’s textile industries, ITMF is dedicated to keeping its members across the world informed about the latest industry development through surveys, studies and publications. It also contributes to the industry’s evolution by organizing annual conferences and publishing expert opinions on future industry trends and international developments.

YKK has launched a new collection of Natulon® recycled zippers made with Econyl® regenerated nylon. Econyl® nylon, manufactured by AquafilSpA and supplied in collaboration with ITOCHU Corporation, is made entirely from nylon waste collected all around the world, such as industrial plastic, fabric scraps, old carpets and fishing nets from the aquaculture sector. The material can be continuously recycled without loss of quality.

YKK will offer Econyl® regenerated nylon products in three categories to the European market. These include; Vislon® Natulon®, a recycled zipper made with Econyl®, a fully Econyl® plastic injected zipper; Excella® Natulon® a recycled zipper made with Econyl®, a top-of-the-range brushed metal zipper; Recycled sew-on button made with Econyl®, a simple button to sew on nylon garments.

YKK has been expanding its Natulon® recycled zippers series, which features zipper tapes made from PET bottles, old fibers, and other polyester residues. It recently introduced NATULON Plus™, in which the chain and the slider are also made entirely of recycled polyester. Additionally, the company’s new AcroPlating® technology significantly reduces the environmental impacts of metal plating.

The new collection of recycled zippers made with Econyl® regenerated nylon will be part of the YKK SS23 Collection.