As per Nigel Hale, CEO, WoolWorks, wool grease is currently in high demand as it is used in cosmetics, skincare, and pharmaceuticals.

WoolWorks New Zealand is the only company in the country that produces and exports wool grease. Its prices have risen significantly due to the demand generated demand for COVID-19 vaccines.

As per Textile Value Chain, New Zealand wool grease is one of the best in the world because it is so high in cholesterol. Mills in Asia have been working overtime to produce more but that product is mostly being used domestically.

Ninety-nine percent of the wool grease is exported to mills all around the world including Japan, Mexico, The US, UK, India and Belgium.

Online second-hand apparel retailer ThredUp Inc posted a bigger-than-expected quarterly loss in Q1 and warned of clothing budgets remaining constrained even as the US economy reopens. The company’s total operating expenses jumped 18.5 per cent to $54.4 million in the first quarter and the company does not expect to generate positive cash flow in the near term as it re-invests in its expansion.

ThredUp’s net loss widened to $16.2 million in the three months ended March, from $13.2 million a year earlier. On a pro-forma basis, the company lost 17 cents per share, bigger than the 16 cents loss analysts expected, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.

ThredUp also forecast second-quarter revenue of $53 million to $55 million, above estimates of $48.8 million. The company expects things to normalize in the third quarter.

Italian textile machinery manufacturer Savio plans to display its winding solutions for processing cotton/spandex, modal and lyocell yarns at the ITMA ASIA +CITME 2020 exhibition that will be held in Shanghai from June 12-16, 2021. Savio offers numerous machinery solutions to support the quality of the final yarn product: winding, winding for continuous shrinkage, bulking and heat setting; TFO twisting; Open-End rotor spinning.

Another product to be exhibited Savio includes the Savio 4.0 digital solutions for data exchange in manufacturing technologies. The solutions offer new possibilities that translate into the different levels of Savio Industrial IoT, with the possibility of progressive sophistication. Different option levels, each corresponding to a different dose of Industry 4.0 are applied to Savio textile winding machinery, from simple connectivity and machinery data downloading, to remote machine setup, to operator real-time interactivity.

Savio will also display its integrated automation drive- Multi-Link, that connects multiple ring spinning frames (RSF) to one Savio winder, becoming a tailor-made circuit to link up to four RSFs to one winding machine. This solution optimizes space, reduces energy-consumption and production costs. This automatic bobbin transport shortens servicing paths for the operators and allows an ergonomic material flow. The costs for production, space and energy are reduced, while keeping the quality consistent even with long and multi-connected machines.

Savio has also launched a new and innovative Augmented Reality tool to fast trouble shoot, improve processes and increase machine utilization time.I t is offering remote assistance powered by TeamViewer Pilot, an application that allows interaction in augmented reality. Thanks to this application, Savio experts from their Italian headquarters can support field technicians at the customer site, in real time, through video sessions for faster troubleshooting.

Luxury maker LVMH is teaming up with Richemont’s Cartier and Prada SpA to offer a blockchain solution that will ensure authenticity of its products—and prevent counterfeit purchases— for online customers with an encrypted certificate of guarantee.

As per a Forbes report, revenues of LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton’s Fashion & Leather Goods division surpassed $8 billion in its most recent quarter. The brand’s market value nearly doubled from $194 billion last year to $380 billion in 2021, and its assets exceed $130 billion. Helmed by French billionaire Bernand Arnault, the third richest person in the world, LVMH climbed nine spots to become the 64th largest public company.

According to research led by Wells Fargo analyst Ike Boruchow, online sales soared 30 per cent during COVID-19. While cybershopping is likely to decrease from 2020 levels e-commerce will continue to rise over the next several years. Consumer patterns are also pointing to a post-pandemic shopping surge in stores. A recent Wells Fargo survey found that 37 per cent of respondents plan to buy new outfits for going out as more restaurants and indoor venues return to normalcy thanks to the vaccine rollout.

Luxury fashion brands Karl Lagerfeld, Bally and Hugo Boss are setting up standalone digital stores in the UAE and Middle East markets. As per Gulf News, the Swiss shoe and accessories brand Bally has partnered with Jashanmal Group to expand in the Middle East market. Currently, Bally.ae services all of the countries of the Gulf area, plus Lebanon, Jordan and Pakistan.

Similarly, Karl Lagerfeld has partnered with the Chalhoub Group to operate stores on a franchise basis. The microsite Karl-Me.com will drive the brand’s digital approach and offer a tailor-made experience for visitors in the Middle East.

Fashion sales in the UAE, whether through a store or online, make up 50 per cent of all non-grocery retail sales. In Saudi Arabia, it would be in the 40 per cent range. The online fashion retail market is driven by omni-channel retailers, as per RedSeer Consulting. Fashion verticals are increasingly capturing a larger portion of the market with a wide variety of products at a competitive pricing.

South Korean fiber manufacturer Hyosung TNC Co plans to recycle abandoned fishing nets to produce a new nylon fiber called MIPAN Regen Ocean. As per Korea Biz Wire, the project will be executed in partnership with a municipal government.

Hyosung has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Busan metropolitan government and a social venture Netspa for the project. The city government will establish a system for separate disposal of abandoned fishing nets, while Netspa will be in charge of washing and processing the collected fishing nets.

Hyosung TNC will also expand investment in a depolymerization facility to remove the impurities in fishing nets and churn out more than 150 tons of MIPAN Regen Ocean per month. The initiative aims to reduce the marine pollution and improve awareness about the protection of the marine environment.

Same store sales of Burberry surged 32 per cent in Q4 of fiscal 2021. As per Womens Wear Daily, the bounce helped lift Burberry’s full-year performance, with the company posting 11 per cent decline in revenue to £2.34 billion with same store sales down 9 per cent for the 12-month period that was scarred by store closures worldwide, reduced tourism and uncertainty across all of Burberrys major markets. The brand’s operating profit in the 12 months ending March 27 more than doubled to £ 521 million with profit for the period more than tripling to £376 million due to tight cost and inventory management and increased full-price sales.

Burberry has reinstated its dividend to 2019 levels, paying 42.5 pence, compared with 11.3 pence last year. Ira recovery accelerated through the year despite an average 16 percent of stores being closed in the three month period. The company’s full-price sales grew 63 per cent in the fourth quarter – nearly double the rate of same store sales growth in the same period. Burberry said expects its 2022 revenues to grow by a high single digit percentage underpinned by the continued outperformance of full-price sales.

The brand will continue to strengthen brand equity by exiting markdowns in mainline stores in fiscal 2022. It also aims to become carbon neutral by the year and continue championing diversity and inclusion, impacting one million people in the communities in which it operates.

Halted since the outbreak of the pandemic, French trade shows are once again gearing up to launch their physical editions. Parisian Trade Show Tranoi plans to launch new women’s collections from September 30 to October 3 2021 at the Palais de Tokyo and Palais de la Bourse venues in Paris. The organizer has partnered FHCM to boost the Paris Fashion Week with a new event, scheduled four times a year at the Palais de Tokyo. The event will showcase a selection of emerging labels hand-picked by Tranoï and FHCM. The first session will be held in parallel with Tranoï, on June 25-27.

Première Vision will also organize a reunion event in Paris from June 30-July 01. The show will be at the Grand Palais Ephemere. The Who’s Next show will launch Who’s Next Limited. The new event will be staged at a showroom in Saint-Germain-des-Prés district on June 25-28, and showcase the exhibitors’ pre-collections during Paris Fashion Week. Who’s Next will also make its come-back at Paris’s Porte de Versailles exhibition centre on September 3-6 2021, alongside Impact, its sustainable fashion counterpart, and Traffic, which focuses on innovative solutions for retailers and brands.

Childrenswear show Playtime Paris will also stage physical sessions at the Parc Floral venue in Paris from July 03-05. One of the first trade events to announce officially its next dates was Maison & Objet, the show dedicated to interior design, fashion and the art of living, scheduled from September 9 to September 13 at the Paris Nord Villepinte exhibition centre. As of now, 1,500 exhibitors have confirmed their presence at the show and that 93 per cent of regular visitors intend to attend the show’s next edition, according to a survey carried out by Maison & Objet from April 30 to May 3.

Mayer & Cie’s Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) strategy has helped the company create a digital backbone to offer better customer experiences and lean, innovative and modern processes. First adopted in 2017, the strategy maps the company’s end-to-end digital process – from the first steps in machine development via product information of each and every kind, configuration options and production information to the service case. The strategy has helped the company move development and production significantly closer to each other. It also enables customers find the right parts more easily in the web shop.

Mayer & Cie. (MCT) is a leading international manufacturer of circular knitting machines. The company offers the entire range of machines required for making modern textiles. Fabrics for home textiles, sportswear, nightwear and swimwear, seat covers, underwear and technical uses are made on MCT knitting machines. Furthermore, Mayer & Cie. regularly develops new approaches underlining its leadership in technology.

Founded in 1905, Mayer & Cie. generated sales worth €72 million in 2020 with about 400 employees worldwide, according to preliminary figures. In addition to its headquarters in Albstadt, Germany, where around 300 people work, and subsidiaries in China and the Czech Republic, sales partners for circular knitting and braiding machines in around 80 countries represent Mayer & Cie.

BGMEA has initiated two projects with GIZ [Gesellschaft Für Internationale Zusammenarbeit - German Corporation for International Cooperation] named Stile and Fabric.

As per Spin Off International, while project Stile aims to create a conducive policy environment with capacity development of the manufacturers, the Fabric plans to adopt a regional approach to standardize sustainability standard in the Asian apparel manufacturing countries. The association is collaborating with United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) to look into digitalization of the payment system along with sustainability and productivity activities integrated through a smart management system.

The Bangladesh RMG industry has been badly hit by second COVID wave. The industry has lost $6 billion in export in fiscal year 2019-20 compared to the previous fiscal year, and during July-March of fiscal year 2020-21 the export earnings declined by 49 per cent to $23.49 billion from $25.95 billion reported during the same period of fiscal year 2018-19. The industry lost around 4 per cent unit value during September 2020-March 2021, while the cost of operation has increased due to disruption in scale economy and empty capacity. Factories are also suffering from increased cost due to maintaining health protocols, says Faruque Hassan, President, BGMEA.