The Sustainable Apparel and Textiles Conference, to be held from April 09-10, 2019 in Amsterdam will address the most pressing issues relevant to the apparel industry. It will equip delegates with the best-practice and know-how relating to the biggest opportunities – and challenges - in transforming apparel supply chains.

With a focus on how consumer expectations are shaping sustainability in fashion, the conference will look at how brands can implement circularity in their supply chains, transform factories and ensure safe and equal treatment of workers. It will focus on circularity, transparent supply chains, fighting climate change in the sector, consumer trends and future of retail, disruptive innovation and technology, the Higgs Index, traceability, working conditions, living wage and women empowerment.

Florence fashion label Salvatore Ferragamo will unveil its S/S 2020 menswear collection at Pitti Uomo. The event will be held from June 11-14, 2019 in Florence. With this menswear-focused show, the Italian fashion house has changed the format of these events. Until now, it has shown its womenswear and menswear together in a single show organised in Milan. The company will capitalise on this new format under the creative direction of Paul Andrew to deliver its new definition of masculine luxury.

Clare Waight Keller, its artistic director, will present her exclusively male line on June 12, 2019

India may replace the Merchandise Export Incentive Scheme (MEIS) with the Rebate of State and Central Taxes and Levies (RoSCTL) scheme. The Merchandise Export Incentive Scheme has to be withdrawn as it is not World Trade Organisation-compliant.

Instead the Rebate of State and Central Taxes and Levies scheme may be extended to all textile products. This scheme offers rebates on all taxes at the central and state levels to exporters of apparel and made-ups. Exporters are reimbursed all un-remitted input taxes paid at the state and central levels. Also this scheme is acceptable globally and also provides a competitive edge to Indian exporters.

Under MEIS, the bulk of garments and textile exporters, incentives are given to exporters equivalent to about four per cent of their export value in the form of duty credit scrips that can be used to pay customs duties and are freely transferable. As it is a direct export subsidy, and the textile sector’s phase-out period for such subsidies ended in 2018, it would have to be withdrawn soon. India has moved above the threshold of per capita gross national income of 1000 dollars, which makes it ineligible to offer export sops to any sector.

India’s exports officially crossed the threshold limit of 3.25 per cent of world exports in 2010 and the eight-year phase-out period is over.

Bangladesh’s textile industry is known for its poor pollution control. Factories spew pollutants into local environs, disregarding their obligation for proper waste management. Considering the present level of release of untreated water into water bodies, it is estimated that every year from 2021 water bodies would receive 20,300 crore liters of untreated water. Such toxic industrial wastewater would threaten fisheries, biodiversity, and groundwater. Currently, textile industries use, on an average, 120 liters of water to dye and wash a kilogram of fabrics, and effluents are discharged into nearby rivers or wetlands without proper treatment.

Bangladesh has around 450 spinning mills, 1,200 weaving factories, and around 5,000 export-oriented dyeing and finishing factories. There are several thousand small dyeing and finishing factories catering to the needs of local markets as well. Only 1,376 textile factories have installed effluent treatment plants in their factories though Bangladesh has made effluent treatment plants mandatory for all plants in the textile industry and the leather industry.

Factories pumping out water for washing and dyeing fabrics have caused groundwater levels to drop in several apparel-industrial belts. Rivers and water bodies close to textile industrial zones are the major receivers of unprocessed effluents. Waste is dumped into rivers without being treated.

Pakistan’s fashion industry is hoping to catch the attention of western buyers. The country’s fashion designing and clothing industry has become an important dimension for the national economy because of its export potential.

Year after year, Pakistan’s fashion designers continue to show abroad, all over the world, in solo shows, collaborations and even fashion weeks. Some brands have made their way to the realms of international fashion. Pakistani products are appreciated for their value addition, like detailed handwork stitched into dresses and pants.

But it takes time to establish trust. The international market wants to see a collection season to season and there’s a six-month lead time to the buying. Sometimes it can be longer, especially in the beginning when building trust with new relationships. Buyers want to see young brands being consistent before they actually buy because they have to build their faith in the idea that the brand is a sound business and has not gone bankrupt after the first season. Pakistani products need to be repackaged and made relevant for the 21st century. Elements like a strong PR company that can steer designers in the right direction and a website with the correct pricing can maximize the impact of a brand showing internationally.

Lenzing will introduce the Sustainability Storybox, a compendium of contemporary best practices for casualwear wardrobes at Kingpins Amsterdam April 10-11, 2019. This includes key elements of the recently-launched Planet REhab capsule collection, produced so that every step of the supply chain is designed to reduce the environmental impact.

Initially exhibited at Munich Fabric Start, Planet REhab is made possible by partnerships with global textile and apparel companies committed to reducing their impact on the environment. Juan Carlos Gordillo designed and developed the collection around Tencel™ and Tencel™ X Refibra™ branded lyocell fabrics from Tejidos Royo. The fabrics were dyed using Recycrom® technology from Officina+39, and the resultant garments were finished by Tonello using modern earth-friendly finishing techniques. The collection will be on display at Kingpins Amsterdam, April 10 -11, 2019.

The Copenhagen Fashion Summit 2019 will once again host the Innovation Forum, a sustainable solutions platform designed to help small and large fashion businesses speed up or embark on their sustainability journey. The curated trade and exhibition area, which features some of the world’s most promising sustainable solutions, also includes a pitch stage and pre-scheduled business meetings. The 2019 edition will introduce the Design Studio, presented by Avery Dennison, an area inspired by creative directors for creative directors, and Future Lab, which will showcase some of the most progressive start-ups.

Each of the solutions presented at Innovation Forum will address one or more of the priorities in the CEO Agenda 2019, which defines the top sustainability priorities for industry executives to take action on. The stands across Innovation Forum will be labelled with icons representing the CEO Agenda’s core and transformational priorities to aid in identifying how each solution can be strategically applied to your business to turn words into action.

Participating fashion brands will meet with more than 40 solution providers covering the entire value chain – from innovative materials to responsible packaging solutions and from new disruptive ideas to tried and tested, large-scale solutions. The matchmaking programme powered by the Ramboll Foundation will help companies take the first important steps towards implementing sustainability. Each business meeting will be set up based on careful screening using data provided by participating fashion brands and solution providers.

Fashion retailer Guess has developed a new capsule collection for men and women, with sustainable materials and manufacturing processes. The main highlight of the 12-piece Guess Eco line is the water-saving denim. Apart from this, it also has a range of jeans, trucker jackets, 100 per cent organic cotton logo and graphic T-shirts and a 100 per cent organic cotton bodysuit for women. For men, the collection includes slim tapered denim jeans in a medium and light wash with a selection of 100 per cent organic cotton logo and button-down shirts.

The denim in the Guess Eco collection is produced with advanced technology that uses on an average about 30 per cent less water per garment and reduces chemical use throughout the production. The collection is made by Italy based fabric manufacturer Candiani, one of the world’s greenest denim mills, and the fabric is created by using a pre-reduced indigo dye that cuts chemical use and lowers overall environmental impact throughout the manufacturing process. Reusable stones used to distress the denim reduce the waste created during production while pocket lining made with 30 per cent recycled content cuts down the waste as well as diverts plastic bottles from landfill.

The government has formed a €50 million fund to give out low-cost loans for garment factory remediation with the view to enhancing workplace safety in the country's main export-earning sector. Each garment factory will get loans of up to €1 million from the fund at 7 percent interest rate. In exceptional cases, the amount of loan will be increased to €3 million for massive upgrades.

The fund can also be used to reduce pollution, ensure efficient use of energy and create a decent place to work, as per the notice sent out to all lenders and non-bank financial institutions yesterday.

The central bank will play the role of implementing agency for the fund, formed with soft loans from the Agence Française de Développement, which is a public financial institution that implements the policy defined by the French government. Apart from the loan fund, an additional €14.29 million will be provided as grants to the successful garment factories and banks that disburse the loans properly.

The proposed EU-Vietnam free trade agreement is seen by France as a gateway for EU and Vietnam to access each other’s markets more easily and promote economic and commercial exchange, benefiting both the EU and Vietnam. France is the 16th biggest foreign investor in Vietnam, but accounts for less than one per cent of the Vietnamese market. France and Vietnam have friendship links and strategic cooperation across various fields like economy, health care and education. The Vietnamese community in France numbers around 3,00,000.

France is Vietnam's fifth largest trade partner in Europe and is the third largest European investor in the Southeast Asian country. Almost two thirds of French investments are made in the services sector, one fifth in industry (water, gas and electricity), seven per cent in agriculture and five per cent in retailing. Almost 300 French businesses are set up in Vietnam in the form of companies, representative offices and joint ventures.

Among Vietnam’s exports to France are cell phones and accessories, footwear, textiles and garments, rubber products, plastic products, confectionery, pepper, precious stones and metals.

French group Scavi is investing heavily in Vietnam. Scavi is one of the world’s top enterprises in lingerie, swimwear, and sportswear. North America and Japan are the group’s key export markets, accounting for some 40 per cent of its total revenue.