The days of long-awaited major fashion seasons of spring/summer and fall/winter have now gone replaced by fast fashion clothing with shorter lead times, frequent product turnover and cheap and cheerful reasonable pricing. While fast-paced fashion may be accessible and affordable to all, the manufacturing process uses low-quality materials and unskilled labor leading to global waste generation, pollution, labor exploitation, and social malpractices.

But the fashion industry honchos are turning a blind eye to this as profit stakes are high when sacrificing quality over quantity and that is what matters in the short run to them. Many global brands such as H&M, Forever 21, and Zara are now adding to the mass production of fast fashion by launching 52 micro–seasons over a year translating to one trend per week and breaking away from the traditional seasonal approach.

Laborers exploited in unorganized apparel segment

The fashion industry has always been labour-intensive depending on manual laborers much more than machines, with retailers under pressure to create a new line in time before their competitors do. Most retailers outsource the jobs to sub-contractors who then send it to South Asian countries such as India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan where cheap labour is easily exploitable. Child labour is rampant and women are treated even worse than men when working in factories in unhygienic conditions with low wages.

Extreme poverty, social norms condoning them, lack of decent work opportunities, labour migration, and incessant natural calamities all bring down the labor laws that are set up by the Human Rights Commission. There is an urgent need for innovative alternatives and rules to curb the toxic effects on both the laborers and the environment primarily in the unorganized sector who typically work on daily wages and without any legal document, which leads to further malpractices.

Fewer women in urban workforce compared to rural

In many countries like India, female labour participation rates have been low recorded at only 18 per cent in 2020 which is the lowest in South Asia and much below the 45 per cent global average. Women’s employment involvement is low despite rising GDP, increased education, rising family incomes and reduced fertility with just two children per family in urban areas. Industry analysts say that the gender participation gap is becoming worse over the years with 26.4 per cent for rural women versus 20.4 per cent for urban women in the workforce with stark differences across different Indian states.

This invisible women workforce in India is influenced by many factors on both the demand and supply side such as marital status, the number of children they have, lack of required education and skill sets and gender-caste intersectionality. However, women are far larger in number than men in the unorganized sector in jobs that are low-skilled and low-paid. In the urban corporate sector, they are outnumbered by men but this disparity is rapidly changing as women are increasing in number everywhere. Oxfam’s 2020 India Inequality Report called ‘On Women’s Backs’ points out generally women and young girls in India perform 3.26 billion hours of unpaid care work each day, which amounts to an annual economic contribution of $19 lakh crore.

The need of the hour is to properly execute some new and comprehensive labor legislation laws in countries like India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan, which have become the hub of such malpractices. There has to be a circular economy where every retailer of fast fashion needs to be held responsible for regularising supply chains in their respective manufacturing countries. NGOs and stakeholders should closely collaborate with the government, so these laws are actually implemented and supply chains are regularised more effectively. Re-use, re-style, and re-wear should be the new fashion mantra and not just showcase new product lines at every retailer’s whim and fancy if a circular and sustainable fast fashion segment without its toxic excesses is to be maintained in the near future.

Pakistan's textile group exports have witnessed a significant decline of 14.2% during the first 10 months of the current fiscal year 2022-23 (FY23) as compared to the same period last year, according to the data released by All Pakistan Textile Manufacturers Association (APTMA).

The exports stood at $13.71 billion, compared to $15.97 billion last year. Additionally, the data showed that the country's textile exports witnessed a YoY decline of 28.7% in April 2023 and remained at $1.24 billion compared to $1.74 billion during the same month in the previous year.

Pakistan's textile industry is the backbone of its economy and one of the largest employers in the country. The industry has been struggling due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, which has led to a decrease in demand for textiles globally. The industry has also been facing a shortage of raw materials and high energy costs, which have further contributed to its decline.

The decline in Pakistan's exports is a cause for concern as it could have a negative impact on the country's economy. The government needs to take steps to support the textile industry and increase exports to mitigate the impact of the pandemic on the economy.

Puma has secured a deal to become the official supplier of Formula 1 races, granting the brand the right to produce F1 branded apparel, footwear, and accessories.

This agreement also includes equipping Formula 1 staff at track and creating fanwear for the sport's various audiences.

Puma has a long history of creating high-performance racing gear for F1 drivers, teamwear, fanwear, and lifestyle collections for the sport's most successful teams.

This partnership will allow PUMA to expand its reach and appeal to a broader fan base, particularly as Formula 1's popularity continues to rise, with its fanbase becoming younger and more diverse.

Puma 's subsidiary stichd will exclusively operate the fan retail stores during race weekends, selling Formula 1 licensed products as well as replica teamwear, fanwear, and special edition collections from all ten teams on the Formula 1 grid and F1 legends.

The first PUMA x Formula 1 products will be available worldwide from February 2024.

A report titled ‘Citizen Insights: Estimating the Longevity of Home Textiles in the UK’ published by WRAP reveals that almost a quarter of home textiles, including towels, curtains, and linen, end up in the residual bin instead of being recycled or reused.

It suggests that promoting proper care of home textiles can extend product lifespan and reduce environmental impacts.

It also highlights the potential for circular business models, encouraging consumers to reuse, repair, upcycle, resell, or rent textiles, and for retailers to design durable, recyclable products.

The report’s recommendations include designing products with circularity in mind, establishing circular business models, and implementing take-back schemes. The study aims to provide insights into the lifespan of textiles and to inform circular business guidelines.

Social media when used wisely can give a casual and conversational extension to a retail company’s selling promotional campaigns and result in sales. Apparel companies are now using various kinds of social media to create a compelling customer journey according to age group and socioeconomic levels to better form the tactics and strategies that are needed to sell their products. Apparel retailers cannot just afford to stick to a single social platform as putting all their eggs in one basket might not work and as they need to know what sells best where, where, and how.

Facebook, Instagram, Tik Tok lead the bandwagon

Analysts feel orders placed through social media in the US will probably reach $130 billion by 2026 and in Asian countries, it will be even higher. It started with Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta – earlier known as only Facebook—when he announced major inroads into e-commerce in March 2019, with the launch of Checkout, a feature that would allow consumers to buy products directly on its apps. Retail companies on social media quickly realized they can engage directly with people at just about any point of the customer lifecycle to sell any suitable apparel and accessory product to anyone in the world.

As Meta pushed further into e-commerce with an added new Shops feature, which allows businesses to list products directly on platforms like Facebook and Instagram. This became a substantial money-making opportunity and a win-win situation for both small and large brands, when the pandemic struck and shopping became mainly online.

However, in post-pandemic times too, although retail sales online through social media have reduced, apparel brands are quickly learning the ropes of including social commerce intelligently without diverting sales from their own sites. Brands across the world have understood the power and reach of influencer marketing and analysts feel Indian retail Rs 900 crore market would grow 25 percent annually to become a Rs 2,000 crore industry by 2025. Globally retailers are reaching out to both macro and micro-influencers to create a buzz around products and eventually drive sales by creating customized promo codes and discounts.

Social influencers and selling platforms do well in Asia

Platforms like TikTok, Pinterest, and Poshmark are doing extremely well with the younger generations and are sprucing up their commercial features this year. Instagram in particular is a boon for apparel retailers today in terms of social selling through impulse buying and peer pressure. Asian markets with a large population of aspirational young people have seen great success in fusing social media and e-commerce although in the West, sales are slower these days. Women’s health brand Perelel, ladies’ handbag seller Modern Picnic and men’s apparel brand Rhone have all debuted on Instagram and other live-selling platforms to run ads featuring products available in the shop or to unveil new collections of apparel and accessories.

Asian markets have seen success in fusing social media and e-commerce. US-based data analytics firm Coresight Research highlights sales through social platforms surpassed $400 billion in China but reached just $53 billion in the US in 2022. Live shopping, where brands sell goods through live streams, accounted for $190 billion in online sales in China last year whereas it was only $20 billion in the US. Analysts say if brands in the US could use live shopping, which is all about brand representatives explaining products and answering audience questions, it will increase popularity and create a brand connection with returning and new consumers.

The modern social media user is a millennial one, comfortable with the way online shopping works. Brands need to understand they are already functioning in a space where the consumer is spending time and it’s just about how to intelligently convert that into a few taps that will convert into sales and keep their cash registers ringing.

In the apparel and textile sector of the US, the Institute of Supply Management's latest report on manufacturing business reveals a sixth consecutive month of contraction in April, following a period of 28 months of expansion.

However, there were some bright spots as five manufacturing industries, including printing and related support activities, apparel, leather and allied products, experienced growth during the month.

The purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for April in the apparel and textile sector was at a reading of 47.1%, slightly up from 46.3% in March. The production index value for April stood at 48.9%, indicating a decrease in output compared to previous months. The pricing index increased by 4 percentage points to 53.2%, reflecting rising input costs in the sector.

The US economy has been in recession for the past six months, following a 30-month period of growth. The apparel and textile sector remains an important part of the manufacturing industry, and its performance can be a useful indicator of the broader economic trends in the country.

Bangladesh's RMG exports have continued to grow in the first ten months of fiscal year FY23, increasing by 9.09 per cent to $38.577 billion. This marks a significant achievement for the country's RMG sector, which continues to be a key driver of Bangladesh's economy.

According to provisional data released by the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB), woven RMG exports showed a faster pace of growth than knitwear, with an increase of 9.24 per cent to $17.609 billion compared to exports of $16.119 billion in July-April 2022. Knitwear exports, on the other hand, increased by 8.97 per cent to $20.967 billion in the same period, up from $19.242 billion in the previous fiscal year.

Despite a decrease in home textile exports by 29.34 per cent to $940.8 million during the period under review, woven and knitted apparel, clothing accessories, and home textile exports together accounted for 86.51 per cent of Bangladesh's total exports of $45.677 billion during July-March FY23.

It is worth noting that Bangladesh achieved an all-time high in the value of its RMG exports in 2021-22, reaching $42.613 billion, representing a 35.47 per cent increase compared to the previous fiscal year's exports of $31.456 billion. This is a significant accomplishment, especially considering the global economic slowdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The growth in Bangladesh's garment exports is a testament to the resilience and adaptability of the country's RMG sector, which has continued to thrive despite the challenges posed by the pandemic.

The European Union's (EU) apparel imports have suffered a decline in the first two months of 2023, dropping by $322 million or 2.03% compared to the same period last year.

However, China remains the EU's top supplier of apparel, providing 26.27% of the bloc's total apparel imports. Despite this, clothing imports from China fell by 13.11% year-on-year to $4.08 billion. On the other hand, apparel imports from Bangladesh, the EU's second-largest supplier, increased by 5.47% year-on-year, or $183 million.

The average price of imported garment items in the EU increased, with different countries witnessing varying price hikes. The average price increased by 8.97% to $24.88 per kg. The unit price of garment items produced in Bangladesh increased by 8.75% year-on-year in the January-February period. China saw the lowest price hike for its clothes in the EU with a 3.97% increase, while Indonesia witnessed the highest with 22.97%. Meanwhile, the price of apparel from Turkey saw growth of 13.95%, Vietnam 13.01%, Cambodia 12.05%, India 9.16%, and Morocco 7.78%.

This trend in the EU's apparel imports highlights the constantly evolving global market and the importance of adapting to changing economic conditions.

Cotton Incorporated, a research and marketing company funded by US cotton producers and importers, has launched a new advertising campaign, "Memories are Made in Cotton," to celebrate the 50th anniversary of its Seal of Cotton trademark.

The campaign, aimed at millennials and Generation Z, aims to promote the use of cotton in apparel and remind consumers to look for the cotton seal when shopping.

Brands can leverage the recognizability and popularity of the Seal of Cotton to create marketing efforts that benefit both the brand and consumers. According to Cotton Incorporated’s 2023 Seal of Cotton Survey, 82% of consumers say they can rely on the product or brand associated with the seal, and 81% say a brand using the logo helps them make informed buying decisions. The survey also found that nearly 8 in 10 consumers have an awareness of the Seal of Cotton, far more than other fibers.

The Seal of Cotton offers brands a point of distinction and has shown a double-digit return on investment when used on cotton products.

ASEAN countries are looking to strengthen their ties with Russia to gain access to its markets and source cheap energy and commodities.

The recent ASEAN-Russia Senior Officials’ Meeting focused on improving ties between Russia and the ASEAN member countries, including Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, The Philippines, Myanmar, and Bangladesh.

ASEAN’s total GDP reached $3.3 trillion in 2021, making up 3.5% of global GDP, and its energy needs are growing by an estimated 3.5% per annum. Developing closer cooperation with ASEAN is mentioned in Russia's new foreign policy concept.

Trade between ASEAN and Russia reached around $20bn in 2021, with ASEAN exports to Russia dominating trade. ASEAN is an important area to balance Russia’s power and economy, given the economic crisis it faces due to the war in Ukraine and sanctions.

Regarding the imports of textiles and garments, ASEAN countries have been increasing their exports to Russia in recent years. In 2020, ASEAN's exports of textiles and garments to Russia amounted to approximately $1.1 billion, an increase of 15.5% from the previous year. Thailand is the largest exporter of textiles and garments to Russia among the ASEAN countries, followed by Vietnam and Indonesia.