Eco-friendly fashion is the new buzzword as high street fashion brands like Zara, H&M are launching sustainable collections with aspirational names like C&A's ‘Wear the Change’, Zara's ‘join life’ or H&M's ‘Conscious’. Capitalizing on the consumers’ growing interest in ecologically produced items, these brands are creating their own sustainability labels and criteria. However, they rarely divulge about their production processes, says Katrin Wenz, an agricultural expert.

According to Viola Wohlgemuth, Textiles Expert, Greenpeace, independent environmental certifications like the Global Organic Textile Standard label (GOTS) and the IVN Best certifications, can illuminate on the eco-credentials of the products launched by such brands.

Adhering to ecological and social production standards

Though most of these brands use organic cotton, this alone is not enough to make fashion sustainable, says Heike Hess, Head, IVN-Berlin. According to him, cotton production is a complex process as after being grown in fields, the fibers need to be separated from seeds, spun, dyed, printed and sewn to create finished items of clothing. Also, cotton producers need to adhere to ecological and social standards at each of these production stages. They have to not only minimize the use of harmful chemicals but also manage water usage and waste, limit carbon dioxide emissions and ensure human rights, fair wages, protections for workers, etc.

Since launching ‘Detox My Fashion’ campaign by Greenpeace in 2011, around 80 global fashion companies have committed to eliminate hazardous chemicals by the end of this year. To achieve this, the cotton cultivation method needs to change. According to Sabine, Ferenchild, Sudiwind Institute for Economics and Ecumenism, in order to be truly sustainable, cotton needs to be grown in regions with heavy rainfall and in combination with food crops.

New label prevents responsibility offloading by fashion companies

Ferenschild is highly skeptical of fashion brands who devise their own criteria for going green and labeling their products. Majority of products these brands sell are produced conventionally.

As a solution to this, Germany has launched a new green certification method with its government-backed ‘Green Button’ label. A company can use this label only if all its products comply with high environmental and labor standards. Though these standards are not as strict as those demanded by organic certifiers, the 'Green Button' label can prevent companies from offloading responsibility to subcontractors in the production chain, say experts.

Lack of clarity over sustainability percentage

Even though organic cotton is 50 per cent more expensive than conventional cotton due to the use of premium fibers boosts, global fashion brands like H&M are able to keep their prices down, as they produce in huge volumes, says Ferenschild.

However, it is not clear what percentage of organic cotton is used in the items produced by these brands. Though H&M claims to use 16 per cent organic cotton in all its clothes produced from 2017-18, according to the Bremen Cotton Exchange, just 0.7 per cent of the global cotton harvest during the season was organic.

Moving from production to service model

Experts say, the real culprit in all this is the consumptions habits of consumers. Even if fashion brands want to produce truly sustainable fashion, current consumption patterns make it impossible. To change this, the fashion industry needs to shift away from the production to service model, says Wohlgemuth. While achieving this, they need to encourage their consumers to buy fewer and long-lasting clothes, repair damaged clothes, donate clothes no longer in use and buy secondhand clothes instead of new ones.

As per Apparel Resources analysis, the value of T-shirts imported by the US declined by 65.50 per cent in May ’20, due to unprecedented situation created by COVID-19. The country imported $613.96 million worth of T-shirts in May, while its import value in the same month of 2019 stood at $1.78 billion.

On monthly basis, the imports of T-shirts by the US declined by 29.26 per cent in May ’20 over April ’20. China exported the most number of T-shirts to the US in May worth $94.95 million. While Bangladesh exported only $23.16 million worth of T-shirts with export value declining by over 63 per cent on Y-o-Y basis from US $ 63.47 million in May ’19.

India’s T-shirt shipments to the US fell 85.80 per cent to generate $14.40 million revenue. Exports continued to plunge in February, March and April as well. Vietnam too experienced a yearly fall of 47.86 per cent in May ’20 with its shipment valued at $154.80 million. However, the country remains top T-shirt exporter to the US with over 25 per cent share in its total T-shirt import values.

The Transformers Foundation hosted it’s first-ever summit as a non-profit organization after splitting from the Kingpins denim trade shows. Titled ‘Catalysts’, the digital event focused on actively addressing and facilitating change in key areas of the denim supply chain to increase sustainability. It reprised the theme of the summit of the same name staged as part of Kingpins in Amsterdam in October 2019.

Catalyst also introduced the audience of denim industry professionals to makers of new ways of 'growing' fibers, clever traceability systems, new pigments, visionary brands, and more. The event was live-streamed via Zoom and featured a series of panels and presentations. Speakers included: Jenny Fredricsdotter, Re:newcell; Luciano Bueno, Galy; Shannon Mercer, Fibertrace; John Condilis, Nobody Denim; Sedef Uncu Aki, Orta; Jane Palmer, Nature Coatings; Darren Glenister, Material Exchange; Jorgen Sevild, Inqova; Jordan Nodarse, Boyish; Anna Foster, ELV Denim; and Tony Tonnaer, Kings of Indigo.

As most European luxury destinations having reopened, luxury brands in the Netherlands are relying on domestic and international travelers to drive demand. Major cities such as Amsterdam are being re-connected through direct flights too. Opening of mono-brand stores by Chanel and Hermes in Amsterdam coupled with a spurt in luxury hotels in the city and its growing luxury retail have made the Netherlands one of the most attractive destinations for Chinese and Middle East travelers.

Some of these high net worth travelers to The Netherlands are from the banking, agriculture and industry sectors. They prefer to shop locally for major international luxury branded products. Italy and Spain are just some of the preferred tourism destinations for the wealthy Dutch. Even though they may wear expensive branded apparels or accessories, they are driven by an effortless approach rather than a show-off factor. Hence, the country offers them a mix of luxury brands such as Louis Vuitton or Hermes.

The Textile Machinery Association of Sweden (TMAS) is deeply committed to sustainability, which it not only sees as its biggest challenge but also the largest opportunity. A forum of Swedish textile machinery manufacturers, TMAS has a wide range of member manufacturers who contribute towards the A to Z of textile manufacturing.

Mapping corporate carbon footprint

TMAC has partnered ClimatePartner to study and reduce corporate carbon footprint with the desired goal being net zero. More than 50 per cent of TMAS members have started working on the project, calculating each individual member’s three scopes towards reducing emissions.

Therese Premler-Andersson, Secretary General, TMAS explains, “Integrating climate action into strategies is becoming increasingly important in Europe and we have decided to take a pro-active role. There is growing pressure from customers to be more transparent in this area and forthcoming legislation will soon make it necessary for all to take climate actions. TMAS members, however, recognize the benefit of taking action now, not least in terms of taking responsibility and demonstrating credibility.”

Andersson goes on to add that, “Each company is very different in terms of size, structure and operations, but they share common goals in the design and production of textile machinery that is flexible and highly automated, and wherever possible enables savings in energy, water and chemicals consumption.” The textile industry has become highly globalised over many decades and will benefit greatly from the close examination of practices and supply chains. The pandemic led to many new ideas about how to do things differently, out of necessity. It saw the introduction of new and innovative digital tools and remote services that are here to stay, and will have important roles to play going forward.

TMAS members are all about a holistic way of doing business. They understand and are prepared to integrate every department into the sustainable system to make it work to the optimum. This in turn becomes a transparent, intelligent and efficient system for their conscious customers who are buying machinery that help them manage their sustainability goals as well, through efficient management of wastage, quality output and enhanced productivity.

Leading by example

The world is observing the growth of interest in local manufacturing of textiles in Sweden, maintaining the highest protocols of sustainability and developing robust sustainable production chains. Sweden is now moving all parts of production within, decreasing carbon footprint and imports, leading to a more controlled and higher quality output. “TMAS members help automate and streamline textile production, reduce waste and emissions and contribute to increased quality and flexibility,” says Therese Premler-Andersson. These requirements are crucial to respond to a market undergoing the transition towards circularity and sustainable business models. The initiative for the fair comes at the right time when local production is something more people are considering and it will be exciting to present Swedish solutions in Sweden.

TMAS’ collaboration with Climate Partner has been of great success as the latter offers carbon neutrality labels that are 100 per cent authentic, transparent and widely-accepted as industry benchmark.

PVH has joined a growing list of US-based fashion groups taking drastic actions as they face the ongoing financial challenges posed by the Coronavirus crisis. The NYC-based owner of Tommy Hilfiger and Calvin Klein is closing its heritage brands retail business as part of wider efforts to streamline its operations in North America in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The fashion group’s heritage brands include Van Heusen, Geoffrey Beene, Izod, Arrow, Warner’s, True & Co and Olga. The division’s retail business is made up of 162 outlet stores, with Van Heusen constituting the primary owned brick-and-mortar retail channel. Streamlining plans in North America also involve the reduction of office workforce in the region by 450 positions. These reductions will be spread across PVH’s three brand businesses and corporate functions, and are expected to result in annual cost savings of around $80 million.

As it carries out these strategic initiatives, PVH expects to incur pre-tax charges of approximately $80 million over the next 12 months, $10 million of which should be noncash. These charges will largely be related to severance, lease terminations and inventory markdowns, as well as noncash asset impairments.

The next edition of London Fashion Week, to be held by British Fashion Council from September 17-22, 2020, will combine digital activations with physical events. The biannual showcase will feature both women’s wear and menswear and build on the BFC’s digital-only June showcase. Designers, partners and brands will come together to share their stories in various forms through collections launches, films, podcasts, conversations, articles galleries. They will embrace the cultural commentary and creativity for which London Fashion Week and British fashion are known.

The relaunched Londonfashionweek.co.uk digital platform will host ‘exclusive multimedia content’ from leading designer brands. This content will be made available to both consumer and trade audience, further expanding the event’s direct-to-consumer focus.

Like London Fashion Week, Milan Fashion Week and Paris Fashion Week will also hold its physical events in September, while CFDA, the organizer of New York Fashion Week will review all upcoming important dates

EU’s Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Vietnam has come as a big blow to India as it removes 99 per cent of customs duties enabling Vietnamese services and public procurement markets to EU companies. India’s neighbors including Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Cambodia and Pakistan currently ship apparel to the European Union at zero duty while India’s trade agreement with the EU features a 9.6 percent tax rate. This adds to India’s already-stark disadvantage in other areas such as, logistics costs and further erodes its competitiveness vis-à-vis Vietnam, views Gautam Nair, Managing Director, Matrix Clothing.

Vietnam’s FTA with the EU will be another blow to the Indian garment exporters, says Raja M Shanmugham, President, Tirupur Exporters’ Association. According to him, India should adopt a long-term vision of promoting garment clusters, initiating structural reforms and tailoring policy interventions.

Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) has asked the Commerce Ministry to expedite negotiations on an agreement launched in 2007, but stalled since 2013 due to disagreements over key areas. India has also agreed to hold talks with the European Union. However, the EU has laid conditions to include government procurement, labor standards and sustainability in the FTA, which India finds difficult to accept.

A new report by analytics firm Fitch Solutions predicts, Asia will remain a dominant player in garment production over the coming decade as China will reduce its apparel manufacturing operations and move up the value chain. However, the report says India and Indonesia may lose out due to the lack of conducive business conditions.

According to the report, many other Asian countries may benefit from favorable labor market dynamics such as sufficiently predictable logistical connections to serve external trade, free trade agreements that ensure preferential access to major consumer markets, and geographic proximity to raw material producers in China and India. Vietnam will benefit the most by attracting more investments into the country. In addition, Bangladesh, Cambodia and Myanmar will see greater gains in the coming years as costs in Vietnam will also rise.

The report identifies India and Indonesia as potential recipients of manufacturing shifts and growth in terms of global apparel export share. However, the two countries' annual growth rates will look less impressive compared with the other four countries including Vietnam, Bangladesh, Cambodia and Myanmar. Lack of preferential trade access to the US and EU markets, as well as higher labor costs, will act as major obstacles for these two markets, the report observes. The report estimates high growth potential for textile manufacturing in neighboring countries such as Cambodia, Myanmar, Bangladesh and Vietnam, supported by large and growing active populations and low labor costs.

The American fashion retail industry was left in a shock as COVID-19 forced overseas factories to shutdown. Retailers were left with no option but to cancel orders and defer payments for completed goods as sales nosedived and stores were ordered close.

In an interview with the Lifestyle Monitor™, Cal McNeil, Program Manager, CFDA explained how the turbulence encouraged American fashion brands to nearshore production closer home. McNeil said, the lockdown impacted cash flows of overseas manufacturers, leading to immediate financial burden. This compelled brands to consider shifting production to local markets such as New York, Detroit, and Los Angeles.

Controlling production through nearshoring

Around 72 per cent respondents to the Cotton Incorporated 2020 Coronavirus Consumer Response Survey (Wave II) believe it is important for them to support local businesses. Six out of ten consumers say they aim to help reboot the economy by buying local products. This growing interest amongst retailers for nearshoring is multi-faceted as it gives them more control over their products and supply chains. Also, it is financially more viable as their production runs are smaller due to slashed orders from retailers, says McNeil.

Brendan Witcher, Vice President and Principal Analyst, Forrester says a lot of companies are shifting their investments from technologies to marketing to win back consumers. Nearly 47 per cent respondents to the Cotton Incorporated survey viewed clothing made in the US as being the main driver of their apparel purchase decisions. While 45 per cent noted mostly buying clothes marketed as Made in the USA.

Investments in technology upgradation

McNeil also said, US fashion manufacturers can currently cater to small-to-medium sized luxury-level designers. They can fulfill large orders for simple patterns and products. However, to increase capabilities and scale of production, they would make more investments in new technologies. The CFDA has launched a Fashion Manufacturing Initiative (FMI) that focuses on technology acquisition through its FMI Grant Fund. The fund has so far invested around $3.5 million in machinery and software to help introduce new services, continue to improve quality and help scale production with better efficiency to New York City’s fashion manufacturing sector.

Adapting to newer manufacturing models

McNeil advises fashion to shift its delivery calendars to closer or in-season models. This will help domestic manufacturing adapt newer manufacturing models such as on-demand or just-in-time manufacturing besides ensuring continued investment in advanced technology and training to increase efficiency. Blue Yonder, a software company believes as supply chain management technology will become more important in future, brands should ensure their fundamental supply chain strategies are in place, such as having an appropriate mix of strategic supplies for critical raw materials, enabling end-to-end visibility and ensuring a good process orchestration.”

The firm advises brands to use technologies that not only offer a complete view of their business but also enable them to leverage AI and machine learning to improve the efficiency of their supply chain. In 2020, the type of brands manufacturing in the US may change as large brands will have to downsize orders to suit local markets. By offering lower-priced production costs, these brands will continue to produce locally.