Currently buying £1 billion worth of clothes from Bangladesh each year, M&S intends to step up its purchases to make the country its top sourcing location for apparel products. The brand wishes to acquire more garments from Bangladesh due to supplier obligations and product diversification. It no longer aims to source basic sourcing, reports Textile Focus.

M&S has increased sourcing from Bangladesh by 30 per cent year on year in the last three years. It imports a variety of garments from the country. Besides, it also provides manufacturers technological, design and finance assistance to help them stay in business. It collaborates with 12 green factories in the country.

Bangladesh’s clothing industry has undergone significant transformation in the last few years. The country is no longer a provider of basic clothing. It has become more aggressive in protecting the production environment. Factory owners in the country have begun to repair structural issues with the support of Accord, Alliance, and the government, and are making their factories an example of safety.

The reluctance of textile business to set up fabric manufacturing units in the country is leading to a gap between demand and supply of yarn-dyed fabrics known as checked and striped shirting clothes in Bangladesh. According to the Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA), demand for checked and striped shirting clothes is the highest among other woven garments in the world, businesses said.

Mohammad Ali Khokon, President, BTMA says, production of woven fabrics lags behind in the country due to the absence of adequate facilities due to lack of investment and uninterrupted gas and power supply. He urged the government to invite foreign investments for the backward linkage of woven-subsector as a plant for checked and striped shirting fabrics requires Tk 300-400 crore which is many fold higher than the cost for a knit fabric manufacturing unit.

Local textile mills meet four billion meters of woven fabrics out of 10 billion meters for annual exports. The local mills meet 50-60 per cent of demand for plain woven fabrics, 50 per cent for denim fabrics and nearly 10 per cent of (yarn dyed) checked and striped fabrics, he said.

Production units for woven fabrics are not increasing in the country due to high project costs, adds Md Shahidullah Azim, Vice President, BGMEA. He requested the government to extend low-cost finance for strengthening the backward linkage to tap the potential of global export market.

According to the Export Promotion Bureau data, Bangladesh’s export earnings from woven garments in the first half (July—December) of FY22 increased by 24.50 per cent to $8.74 billion while earnings from knitwear increased by 30.91 per cent to $11.16 billion. Despite having potential, Bangladesh RMG sector would lose work orders of woven garments as the sub-sector depends on imported fabrics, Khokon adds

Rising yarn and fabric prices are causing loss of orders for garment exporters, says Vimal Shah, President, Garment Exporters Association of Rajasthan. He adds, it has become impossible to absorb the increase of 40-50 per cent in fabric prices and remain competitive. Domestic exporters are finding it tough to convert queries into orders as they cannot match the price countries like Bangladesh offer, Shah adds. They cannot offer the rates offered by other countries for their orders. This is impacting their profit margins, he further states.

Cotton prices have escalated owing to supply constraints with hoarding by traders and speculation in the commodities markets further adding to woes. Garment manufacturers catering to the domestic market as well, have been impacted due to COVID lockdowns as organized retailers, who sourced from them, did not pay for 6-12 months.

Adidas Originals and Prada are debuting into the metaverse with a new project called the Adidas for Prada Re-Nylon collection. As per a Spin Off report, the new Adidas for Prada collection will be executed in collaboration with NFT and feature user-generated and creator-owned art. The project will bring together participants across fashion, design and crypto to co-create a large-scale digital artwork inspired by the physical Prada Re-Nylon collection, a collection made with Econyl, a fiber made with recyled nylon.

The Metaverse-NFT project will be open with anonmymized photographs from audiences of Adidas and Prada. The project will mint 3,000 community-sourced artworks as NFTs and compile them as tiles in a single mass-patchwork NFT designed by creative coder and digital artist, Zach Lieberman. The new project will involve participants in the Adidas for Prada Re-Source NFT project for free, and contributors will maintain full ownership rights over their individual NFT tiles.

Adidas Originals and Prada will leverage NFTs and Web3 technology to reward participation in a new kind of collective rooted in ownership, authenticity and community.

In a letter to the Pakistan government, APTMA has expressed displeasure over the approval of questionable cotton seed varieties with low yield potential of 2.1 maunds per acre despite the fact that there are varieties available in the private sector having the ability to produce 18 maunds per acre.

APTMA leaders want the approval of seed varieties of research and development institutions in private sector to meet the export targets mentioning that textile industry imported in financial year 2020-21 cotton of 5.04 million bales valued at $1.479 billion and in the first six months of current financial year, 2.22 million bales of cotton worth $821.206 million.

The industry leaders seek approval of cotton production in the country by Punjab and Sindh Seed Councils as their seed varieties can produce more cotton up to 18 maunds per acre. In the letter, APTMA urged Fakhar Imam, Federal Minister for National Food Security and Research Fakhar Imam, to ensure that Punjab and Sindh Seed Councils approve these high-yielding varieties based on fiber relaxation only in staple length in order to meet the domestic raw cotton requirements of the textile sector to meet export targets.

Denim Darzi has launched a new upcycled, sustainable and fashionable range of collection. As per a Fashion Network report, the range includes outfits for men, women and kids. Started around the pandemic in 2020 by entrepreneur Rupali Mukherjee, the brand was born out of sheer love for denims and with an aim to repurpose old denim wear and industry-waste denim meaningfully.

Denim Darzi’s wide collection includes Indian, western and Indo-western styles in various silhouettes from a sari to a dhoti. The brand upcycles post-consumer discarded denims and textile industry-waste denim. It infuses the collected denim with fabric waste from shops and the textile industry to design our collections. Its outfits are a concoction of waste denim and other fabrics like satin, cotton, linen, jamdani, adds Mukherjee.

The brand has tied up with a tailoring unit. It does hand sketches and sends them. The idea was to work sustainably and not have a big production unit. The brand operates only through online platforms.

American retail giant Walmart plans to invite select Indian sellers to join its Walmart Marketplace community that serves over 120 million shoppers a month. As per a Fashion Network report, this will give Indian exporters a platform in the US market.

Indian businesses retailing on the Walmart Marketplace can access WalmartFulfilment Services This enables them to use the business’ warehousing and delivery infrastructure in the US. Indian exporters will be able to leverage Walmart’s global supply chain infrastructure and receive support to help them reach mills of customers in the us, says Michelle Mi, Vice Presidet-Emerging Markets and Business Development, Walmart.

Walmart Marketplace already features a number of Indian businesses including jewellery business Touchstone Gems & Jewelry, textiles business Welspun, and leather goods business Delphi Leather India, among others.

The initiative will help ‘Make in India’ brands expand their global networks, learn export best practices and diversify their product categories in concert with Walmart as they take on the world,” adds Rajneesh Kumar, Chief Corporate Officer, Flipkart.

Cambodia’s garments, textiles and footwear exports have surged by 10 per cent annually over the last decade. Garments industry bounced back last year after a year of decline in 2020 due to the COVID-19. Members of Garment Manufacturers Association Cambodia (GMAC) hope to mark 2021 as a year of strong growth for the sector.

At the 15th Annual General Meeting of the association held recently, GMAC members reflected on the industry’s prospects in 2022. As per Khmer Times, the meeting was chaired by Oknha Van Sou Leng, Outgoing President of the association. Okhha Kong Song, Former Deputy Chairman, was elected new President.

Garments exports reach $10 billion in 2021

Cambodia’s garment exports formed 63 per cent of its total export value in 2021. In all, Cambodia exported garments worth $10 billion in 2021. It also provided employment to around one million people during the year.

Cambodia mainly exported knitted and non-knitted clothes. This was followed by footwear and travel products such as suitcases. Garment exports increased 6 per cent in the first 10 months of last year to $6.538 billion. Footwear exports increased 20 per cent to $1.113 billion while exports of travel products surged 40 per cent to $1.179 billion.

Trade recovery drives export growth in 2021

Several factors drove Cambodia’s garment sector performance in 2021 including a recovery in world trade and surge in COVID-19 cases in Bangladesh and Myanmar, which drove customers to Cambodia, says Ken Loo, Secretary-General, GMAC. Loo believes, Cambodia can continue its strong performance by exploring the new Law on Investment and shifting to higher quality products. The new law will help it attract more investors to the industry.

After 1999, Cambodia and the US signed a trade agreement to seal trade with international labor standards. This led to an increase in the number of officially registered factories to over 1,200 by the end of 2021. It also provided systematic employment to over one million and indirectly benefitting two million people.

Unified voice of investors

Formed 25 years ago GMAC acts as a unified voice of investors in Cambodia. It protects and promotes the legitimate rights and interests of all industry investors and provides them with a forum to discuss issues impacting potential investments in the sector. Along with the Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training, GMAC has been instrumental in successfully implementing strategic rectangular policies such as the National Employment Policy, national policy on technical and vocational education, national policy on industrial development and national social protection policy framework.

The association has also successfully implemented all the obligations laid out in the Labor Law, the Law on Trade Unions and the Law on Social Security for those who fall under the provisions of the Labor Law, the Minimum Wage Law, and other legal standards related to the field of employment.

Concerned about their physical appearance, women often engage in a variety of activities like trekking, training, yoga, etc. Regular exercising has become an essential part of their daily lives. However, this is also creating demand for exercise-appropriate outfits and footwear.

As per recent Future Market Insights Report, demand for women's footwear is growing at a rapid rate. Another industry report pegs demand growth at 4.7 per cent CAGR from 2022-27. Footwear manufacturers across the world are doing their best to tap this demand. They are opting for sporty, comfortable and casual footwear, encouraging brands to launch new ranges of smart shoes.

Nike launches LED-operated sneakers range

Nike has launched self-lacing HyperAdapt 1.0 sneakers with in-built LEDs that alert the wearer on the depreciation in battery power or tight fit. These shoes do not require daily charging and have pressure sensors in their soles that detect when the foot should be inserted and trigger an algorithm that allows for automatic lacing

Popularity of 3D-printed shoes surges

Many footwear brands are launching shoes manufactured using 3D printing techniques. For instance, US-based custom shoe company Feetz has built its own 3D printer utilizing a fused filament creation technology. This technology is gaining popularity amongst women due to its low-environmental impact. Brands tap e-commerce for growth

Footwear manufacturers are increasingly relying on online sales boost sales besides exploring various e-commerce channels for further growth, says a Senior Research Analyst. They are launching promotional strategies and advertisements to drive up sales. Major players present in the women’s footwear market are: Nike, Adidas, Puma, Skechers, Under Armor, Wolverine World Wide, Crocs, ASICS Corporation, Deichmann SE, The ALDO Group, among others.

Steady growth despite the pandemic

COVID-19 seems to have stalled footwear business to certain extent. The combined effect of store closures and declining demand due to consumers’ economic constrains has made a deep impact on the market. Though in mid-2020, business resurged due to the availability of online shopping and doorstep delivery options, and continues to grow at a steady rate.

Since the last 15 months, weavers, garment manufacturers, and textile mills in Tamil Nadu are finding it difficult to manage rising raw material costs.

The weavers and garment manufacturers are hit by high yarn prices and the textile mills. Garment units in Tiruppur downed shutters for two days – January 17 and 18 – demanding measures to control cotton and yarn prices. The Chief Minister also wrote to the Union government asking for the removal of the 10 per cent import duty on cotton, ban on cotton exports, and calibration of cotton yarn exports.

Raja M Shanmugham, President, Tiruppur Exporters’ Association, of the 2,000 exporters in the Tiruppur cluster, less than 10 per cent have textile mills. Shanmugham urged the government to reconsider the permission given for the export of cotton and said only excess yarn and fabric should be exported. Further, trading of cotton on commodity exchanges should be monitored, he said.

Ravi Sam, Chairman, Southern India Mills’ Association, the problem of price increase starts with the basic raw material – cotton. The association just wants the government to monitor cotton trading on the commodity exchanges and measures to ensure that prices are under control. Right now, large-scale traders, who are handling relatively less quantity of cotton, are increasing the prices.

There is an acute shortage of quality cotton and its prices are higher, too. With cotton production during the current season (October 2021 to September 2022) expected to be just about 350 lakh bales, and the domestic industry requirement estimated to be 340 lakh bales, there may be a crisis between July and October as the quality of cotton available now is poor.

The association reiterated its demand for immediate withdrawal of the import duty on cotton.