India has been implementing various skill development schemes and programs for the textile sector.

Under the Integrated Skill Development Scheme, a total of 11.14 lakh persons have been trained in various diverse segments of textiles covering textiles and apparel, jute, spinning, weaving, technical textiles, sericulture, handloom and handicrafts, of which 8.43 lakh persons have been employed.

Samarth is an initiative which has the broad objective of skilling youth for gainful and sustainable employment in the textile sector. It aims at training ten lakh people, out of which nine lakhs will be from the organised sector and one lakh will be from the traditional sector. The scheme covers the entire value chain of textiles (except spinning and weaving in the organised sector). The focus will lie on apparel and garmenting, knitting, metal handicrafts, textiles and handlooms, handicrafts and carpets, among others. District-wise tailoring opportunities for women will be identified as part of the outreach for skilling across states. A few courses and modules have been developed under Samarth in the area of garment manufacturing. Women form 75 per cent of the work force in the textile sector. Another objective is to promote skilling and skill upgradation in the traditional sectors of handlooms, handicrafts, sericulture, and jute. It also seeks to enable provision of sustainable livelihood either by wage or self-employment to all sections across the country.

Darshana Jardosh, Union State Minister of Textiles says, India’s export performance is being negatively impacted by high tariffs faced by domestic exporters in the European Union and the UK as compared to zero duty access given by these countries to nations like Bangladesh and Cambodia.

As per a Free Press Journal report, in 2020, India's textiles exports amounted to$29.61 billion, while thoses of Bangladesh, Vietnam and Cambodia aggregated to$37.95 billion, $37.10 billion and $ 7.77 billion, respectively. Textiles exports to China increased to $1.56 billion in 2020-21 as against $ 1.13 billion in 2019-20.

COVID-19 affected all stakeholders in the value chain from farmers to traders/exporters. However, the situation improved with time and production and exports looked up, she added. Due to the nationwide lockdowns imposed by the state governments, production in all National Textile Corporation (NTC) Limited mill units including Minerva mill units were put on hold from March 25, 2020.

Employees were paid salary regularly during this period as per their status by NTC out of its cash reserve. After lifting up of the lockdown and as per availability of raw material, NTC restored operation of 14 mill units from January 2021 onwards, she added.

However, the second COVID-19 pandemic wave once again led to closure of all NTC mills in April 2021. Though some of these operations were restored in July 2021 as per raw material availability, she added.

Out of India’s total cotton exports, 40 per cent is exported to China. Similarly China has a 28 per cent share in India’s yarn exports. In cotton and cotton yarn, Vietnam is the third largest importer for India.

India’s cotton exports may witness a temporary slowdown as the spread of coronavirus is likely to curtail demand for the fiber. Exports of around 2,50,000 cotton bales from India to China, for which deals were signed in January, have been put on hold as concerns over the spread of coronavirus have intensified.

These deals will be settled mutually if the situation is not brought under control soon. In January, Indian exporters signed deals to export 7, 00,000 to 8,00,000 bales of cotton, of which 4,00,000 or 500,000 bales or 60 per cent were meant for China, and the rest for Bangladesh and Vietnam. After the uncertainty in China, cotton exporters in India are anxious to sign up for new consignments with China.

Strong orders from other countries and lower domestic prices have made sales economically viable. Indian cotton is offered at prices lower than crop from west Africa and the US. So finding new buyers won’t be difficult. India’s overall exports might touch five million bales mainly due to strong orders from other importing destinations like Bangladesh, Vietnam and Indonesia.

A news article by Sweden’s local publication, Phnom Penh Post informs, multinational clothing retail company H&M plans to open its first store in Cambodia next year.

The store will be part of H&M’s business expansion in the region, at a time when world economies are starting to emerge from COVID-19 crisis mode with accelerating coronavirus vaccine rollouts.

Ken Loo, Secretary General, Garment Manufacturers Association in Cambodia says, H&M has been a long-term supporter of Cambodia’s export-oriented garment industry and would continue to be so for many more years to come, as long as the country can maintain and improve its competitiveness.

The store opening signifies strong economic growth with increased domestic consumption by local Cambodians. It would also help improve the state of fashion in the country, particularly for the young generation, he adds.

H&M already has a large presence in the region with 11 stores in Vietnam and 43 in Thailand. The company has been manufacturing its products in Cambodia since the 1990s.

For the first quarter GHCL’s revenue grew on a sequential basis. Revenue for the quarter stood at Rs 854 crore. Ebitda stood at Rs 189 crore and net profit was Rs 101 crore. The home textiles business stood at Rs 327 crore.

GHCL is an Indian group with a footprint in chemicals, textiles and consumer products. It has commenced the new fiscal year on an encouraging note with substantial gains across all its business segments. The group experienced a temporary disruption due to the second wave but is now operating at peak utilisation levels in both spinning and home textiles based on a strong demand scenario and has achieved record profits during the quarter. The aim is to further amplify its leadership position across key product categories to bolster the performance momentum and create enhanced value for stakeholders.

GHCL had launched Cirkularity, a new brand of bedding.The brand platform is inspired by Rekoop, the first bedding solution to use Applied DNA’s Certain T platform and Reliance’s RecronGreenGold fiber for source verification and traceability of recycled polyester across the supply chain.GHCL operates its home textiles facility in Gujarat. Recently, GHCL received consent from secured creditors for the demerger of textiles.

COVID-19 has changed office dress codes forever as tailored suits are a rarity these days. In fact, even before the pandemic, the general trend was towards dressing down. The pandemic further accelerated this trend with Refinery’s business dropping by almost 80 per cent during the period, says As Stanton Ho, Co-founder of menswear establishment Refinery.

Low returns compel store closure

In a report in the South China Morning Post, Sian Powell writes, the decline of tailored suits has compelled Ho and his partners to close their bespoke tailoring store in Hong Kong and shift focus to online business and flagship store in Tsim Sha Tsui. The company generates almost 95 per cent of its business from local market that is currently hit by Hong Kong’s strict border restrictions and its pandemic related rules.

Like Refinery, 200-year-old US company Brooks Brothers was also forced to close last year due to the pandemic. It plans to re-launch with renewed focus on casual and leisurewear including knits this year. Parent company of Men’s Wearhouse and JoS brands, Tailored Brands had to shut 1,400 stores and file for bankruptcy. The company laid-off 1,800 workers.

Similarly Aoyama Trading, Japan’s corporate apparel manufacturer, had to close 130 stores and restructure 400 of them. It also had to layoff hundreds of employees like its contemporaries Konaka and Haruyama Holdings. The government’s drive to promote casual office wear has depressed the demand for tailored suits in Japan.

New office wear trends emerge

Chinos, jeans, shorts and T-shirts have emerged as the new office wear with casualwear increasingly being accepted as official dress code by consumers. Accelerated by the pandemic, this global shift to casual wear has been under way since the last few years. World War I made men’s fashion more practical with knee-length waist coats giving way to short jackets. Standard tailored business suits dominated people’s minds for decades before COVID-19-led disruptions ushered in a new era of relaxed dressing.

Yet, Roshan Melwani, Managing Director, Sam’s Tailor opines, the power and identity provided by a suit cannot be dismissed so easily. Operational since 1956, the establishment has several celebrity clients including the former US president Bill Clinton, politician Sarah Palin, film star Russell Crowe, singer Rod Stewart and former tennis star Boris Becker.

The store has launched a DIY online fitting service for clients unable to attend personal fitting sessions. The service works well for customers as it enables them to return their garments incase of inappropriate fittings. Sam’s Tailor gets six to eight clients enquiries every day. The store is confident of business returning to normal in future.

Easing restrictions to make suits more casual

Dean Cook, Head-Menswear, Browns, also believes, demand for well-made tailored suits and separates will continue to grow even if the demand for formal shirts and ties declines. The brand recently launched a made-to-measure tailoring service in partnership with Ermenegildo Zegna to create more separates. Cooks also predicts a future rise in demand for travel suits and casual suits that can be worn easily. He witnessed this trend particularly at the menswear trade show Pitti. The general trend witnessed during the show was for less structured tailoring, he adds.

The formal suit is here to stay, says Melwani who holds border restrictions rather than changing tastes responsible for the current slump in tailoring. Its demand will resurge as pandemic restrictions ease and life returns to normal.

Vardhaman Textiles reported a 589.5 per cent jump in net profit during the second quarter ended June 2021 fromRs 64.29 crore to Rs 314.70 crore. The company’s net sales during the quarter rose by 135.72 per cent to Rs 1,926.97 from Rs. 817.47 crore in June 2020.

Its EBITDA increased by 1163,67 per cent to Rs. 523.79 crore in June 2021 from Rs. 41.45 crore in June 2020. Vardhman Group is a major integrated textile producer in India. The Group is today the largest textile conglomerate in India. Vardhman portfolio includes and marketing of yarns, fabrics, sewing threads, fibre and alloy steel. The group was setup in 1962 in Ludhiana.

US textile and apparel imports were up 22.6 per cent in May 2021 compared with the same period in 2019, reveals CCF Group stats. Both US apparel imports volume and value moved up sharply year-on-year and month-on-month but they were close to or lower than the level in 2019. Therefore, the import volume and value did not recover to the level in the same period of 2019.

In May, US textile and apparel import average unit price decreased compared with the previous month. From May 2020 to May 2021, the average unit price has been in shock, with a certain regularity. In May 2021, the average unit price continued to decline month-on-month. The unit price of US textile and apparel imported from China has dropped greatly since the second half of 2019. The sharp decline in average unit price may be due to dropping price of China's export commodities, on the one hand, and the change in the commodity structure of US textile and apparel imported from China, on the other hand.

From January to May, the proportion of US textile and apparel imported from China decreased by 1.6 percentage points and 6.4 percentage points compared with the same period in 2019, and the volume and value of apparel also dropped.

US apparel and footwear imports from China declined to 37.9 per cent in 2019. It was 50.7 per cent in 2010. Similarly, the EU’s imports from China declined to 36.1 per cent in 2019, from 47.6 per cent in 2010.

Bangladesh and Vietnam have benefited the most due to the shift in apparel and footwear exports from China. In 2019, both countries’ combined share of apparel and footwear exports to the US and the European Union (EU) equaled half of China's share. Vietnam is more focused on the US, while Bangladesh focuses more on the EU for a number of reasons. Vietnam produces more value added items, which are received at comparatively higher prices. In contrast, Bangladesh exports large quantities but gets low prices.

Bangladesh's apparel and footwear exports share to the US increased to 4.3 per cent in 2019, which was 3.5 per cent in 2010. The country's export share to the EU stood at 13.2 per cent in 2019, up from 6.6 per cent in 2010. Vietnam's export share to the US and the EU rose to 14.9 per cent and 6.7 per cent respectively in 2019. Vietnam's shares to these two traditional markets were 6.6 per cent and 4 per cent respectively in 2010.

China Sewing Machinery Association (CSMA) will be held from September 26 to 29, 2021. The theme is smart manufacturing, intelligence enabling and wisdom gathering. It aims at enhancing the sewing sector’s competitiveness so as to secure an upper hand in the global arena and make more contributions to China’s manufacturing strategy. The event will exhibit a wide range of intelligent achievements and technical solutions, which could assist downstream users in solving problems related to changing market demands and render a win-win situation across the whole industrial chain. The exhibition will offer image, design, information guidance and logistics support.

CSMA is the main window and the biggest stage of the world sewing machine industry. The humanized smart sewing factory is also being transformed from a mere idea into a substantial, sensible and usable reality, which is widely used in the downstream fields of clothing, home textiles and leather. The industry has made remarkable achievements in integrating multiple industrial platforms, while at the same integrating consulting, designing, manufacturing, warehousing and service in a single body and covering the related upstream and downstream industrial sectors.

CSMA has balanced the pandemic control requirements with exhibition preparations. Modifications have been made in response to pandemic prevention regulations.