After 23 years of operating in Russia, Fashion Company, Mango has decided to definitively abandon direct sales in the country and hand over its store to franchisees to deal with uncertainties arising out of current geopolitical situation.

As reported by 'El País'in order to provide aguarantee coverage to its 800 employees in Russia, Mango will cease to operate directly in the country, and has reached an agreement with several of its franchise partners to divest its business to them.

Last March, as a result of the war in Ukraine, Mango decided to temporarily suspend its operations in Russia, leaving the 55 stores it owns in the country -another 65 are franchises- and the online sales platform without activity.

According to the company, it has from the beginning of its operations prioritized the safety of its teams in Ukraine and Russia and its distribution network. The company has made a 20 million provision to cover the impact of the situation in Russia, the first two points-of-sale will be sold next week, with a further 22 expected to be added between this month and the following month.

Sexy women's underwear is making a comeback with Dior launching a babydolldresss over a black thong at a show in Paris this winter.

Similarly, lingerie brand Chantelle has joined the trend, launching a new Chantelle X line that prioritizes sexiness.

Experts say this trend emphasizes women wearing lingerie for themselves rather than trying to impress others.

Victoria's Secret -- which was seen as symbolising a narrow beauty ideal in the past -- has abandoned its slogan "The Perfect Body" and its army of "Angels" in favour of more full-figured models and strong personalities such as footballer Megan Rapinoe.

The company, previously known for its monochrome close-ups on bums and breasts, is now running ads that show faces, sometimes staring straight into the lens.

Aline Tran, Founder, Les Rituelles says, said there needs to be less anxiety around seduction, and it should instead be seen as something empowering.

After three times postponement, China International Sewing Equipment Exhibition (CISMA) will now be held from July 29 to August 01, 2022 at Ningbo Int’l Conference and Exhibition Center, Ningbo.

The show was originally scheduled to be held from September 26-29, 2021 in Shanghai which got postponed till January 2022 and the venue was also shifted to Ningbo in view of resurgence of COVID-19 cases.

Since pandemic woes weren’t over even in January ’22, the show was further postponed till April ’22. Amongst the exhibits, sewing machines account for 51 per cent of the total space in CISMA; sewing and comprehensive equipment account for 25 per cent space; and embroidery machines as well as functional parts account for 12 per cent space each.

Largest producer of recycled knitting yarns in India, Usha Yarns will introduce Circularity Partnership Program to international brands, buyers and manufacturers at Premier Vision Show to be held in Paris from July 5 to 8, 2022. Launched to tap the production waste of brands and garment manufacturers, the Circularity Partnership Program aims to increase Usha Yarn’s direct collaborations with brands to ensure traceability and zero landfills.

The program urges manufacturers to collaborate with Usha Yarns in to handle their waste in a responsible manner. It assures them of complete recycling of waste, helping them earn their partner brands complete trust.

Usha Yarns’ recycling facilities are dependent on garment waste for acquiring feedstock. The company has been engaged in recycling cotton garment waste to regenerate the best colored years since over a decade now.

After a 41 per cent rise in India’s textiles and apparel exports to $44.4 billion in 2021-22, the rise in cotton and yarn prices is leading to a 10 per cent drop in export demand during the current financial year, as per Wazir Textile Index. The index shows, last year, sales of all top leading textile companies including Welspun, Vardhman, Arvind, Trident, KPR Mills, Indo Count, RSWM, Filatex, Nahar Spg, and Indorama, increased. Welspun’s sales grew 13 per cent while Vardhman’s sales surged 60 per cent. Arvind reported 65 per cent growth in sales while Trident saw sales rising 54 per cent rise in sales in 2021-22, compared to the pandemic-hit 2020-21.

Majority of export demand came from the US, which made up 27 per cent of India's textiles and apparel exports, followed by 18 per cent the European Union, 12 per cent by Bangladesh and 6 per cent by UAE. However, these companies witnessed a decline in demand during the first two months of current financial year

The rise in raw materials prices slowed textile and apparel demand across the country, says Narendra Goenka, Chairman, Apparel Export Promotion Council (AEPC). AEPC also blamed the Ukraine crisis for the dip in export demand from the US and Europe as it resulted in a rise in energy prices. New garment companies from countries like the Czech Republic, Egypt, Greece, Jordan, Mexico, Spain, Turkey, Panama, and South Africa are negotiating with the Indian companies, though these orders are minimal compared to last year, say industry players.

Running parallel to the UK’s leading fashion retail event Pure London from July 17to19, 2022 at Olympia London, this edition of Pure Origin will focus on sustainability and have new dedicated pavilions from 20 countries including the UK, Pakistan, Bangladesh, North Macedonia, Turkey, Peru, UAE, Italy, Madagascar, Jordan, China, Hong Kong, Uzbekistan, Japan, India, and Malaysia, making it the UK’s largest global fashion sourcing show.

Pure Origin not just offers an opportunity to fabric manufacturers to explore the UK retail market; it also allows buyers, procurement and sustainability directors, fashion wholesalers, and designers to launch their collections during the show. Suzanne Ellingham, Head, Pure Origin says, the trade show brings diverse international manufacturers under one roof, providing an unprecedented choice of fabrics for the UK fashion community. Since its launch in 2018, the event has aimed to create a platform to inspire designers, brands and wholesalers to responsibly source and build relationships with new manufacturers from across the world.

To further its commitment on sustainability, US-based Cone Denim is incorporating regenerative cotton in its premium denim styles. Being executed in collaboration with international agriculture initiative Regenagri, the initiative aims to increase the brand’s access to sustainably sourced cotton grown using agricultural practices besides working on various programs to help its customers and brands achieve key sustainability actions.

The project is also being supported by Control Union, which helps develop services around the sustainability of supply chains that feed into many markets including textiles. The project aims at providing fabrics created with integrity. It aims to assure operations transparency to customers, says Steve Maggard, President, Cone Denim.

Together with its parent company Elevate Textiles, Cone Denim has pledged to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals and committed to source 80 per cent verifiably sustainable cotton by 2025.

After two years of pandemic-driven disruptions, the outlook for Indonesia’s textile and garment industry finally turned positive this year. However, the sector now faces a mix of factors. As per a Nekkei report, lenders’ reluctant to invest in the sector over lingering debt concerns is constraining growth besides increasing the cost of shipping and raw materials.

Boycott of China cotton over human rights issues presents new export opportunities for Asian countries like Indonesia. However, the proposed rules from the European Union forcing fast fashion companies to overhaul clothing designs, threatens growth. Following a contraction to 8.9 per cent in 2020 and 4.1 per cent last year, Indonesia’s textile and garment sector expanded 12.5 per cent Y-o-Y in the first quarter of this year, reveals Statistics Indonesia, as coronavirus lockdowns and shop closures weighed on sales and sent global logistics into disarray.

Besides operating with reduced capacity at factories and complying strict social distancing rules, Indonesian manufacturers have to contend with headwinds, including high shipping and raw material prices, limited access to funding and cheap Chinese imports undercutting local businesses.

Two of the country's largest listed manufacturers have had to ask their lenders to restructure their debt. These included PT Sri Rejeki Isman Tbk, or Sritex, which narrowly escaped bankruptcy in early January when most of its lenders agreed to a court-sanctioned debt restructuring process and producer of clothes for Ralph Lauren, Prada and Adidas, PT Pan Brothers, which needs to repay or refinance $309 million of debt, including a $171 million bond that matured in January, says Fitch Ratings.

In a letter to the finance minister, Bangladesh exporters have once again urged the government to maintain advance source tax on export proceeds at 0.50 per cent for the next five years instead of raising it to 1 per cent as proposed in the national budget for fiscal 2022-23. Signed by the representatives of BGMEA, BKMEA and Exporters Association of Bangladesh, the letter warned, any increase in tax rate, especially at a time when the cost of production has surged, might have a negative impact on exporters’ working capital, reducing their competitiveness in global market.

However, Ahsan H Mansur, Executive Director, Policy Research Institute opines, the increase in source tax is reasonable as exporters are earning more due to the recent depreciation the local currency, and besides, the government is offering incentives for exports, he adds. Latest Export Promotion Bureau stats show, Bangladesh earned over $47 billion from its garment exports in the first 11 months of fiscal 2021-22, with a year-on-year growth of 34 per cent. The figure is expected to cross the $50 billion mark by the end of the year.

The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) has urged the government to simplify current rules of Goods and Services Tax (GST) Act. The trade body plans to meet the finance ministers of all states to put its demand. It will also meet around 100 prominent trade leaders at a two-day convention in Nagpur from June 25-26, 2022, to devise a strategy for a national campaign on both GST and e-commerce which will begin on July 1.

Nearly 100 prominent trade leaders of all states will have a brainstorming session at Nagpur during the two days of the convention, CAIT said. Praveen Khandelwal, Secretary-General, CAIT also emphasized on the need for widening the tax base of GST by simplifying the GST Act, this will yield more revenue to both central and state governments.

A Joint GST committee in every district of the country comprising senior tax officials of GST and trade leaders of the respective district, should also be formed, stated Khandelwal.

The rationalization of the GST rate should be done after consulting stakeholders, he added. He emphasized on keeping textile and footwear under the tax slab of 5 per cent.