Spurred by strong demand for luxury accessories, first quarter sales of Birkin bag maker Hermes grew 27 per cent to € 2.8 billion. All divisions of the brand clocked double-digit growth, notes Luca Solca, Analyst, Bernstein. The leather goods and saddlery division reported a 15.8 per cent rise in sales while sales at ready-to-wear and accessories grew by 44 per cent and at Watches division rose by 62 per cent.

Hermes’ sales in China grew till the beginning of March when it had to close a few stores due to the restrictions to curb COVID spread, says Eric du Holgouet, Vice President-Finance. The group continues to support its 60 employees in Russia by paying their salaries and providing training sessions and psychological support.

Last month, Hermes closed three stores in Moscow and deferred plan to open a new one in St Petersburg on hold. It has also halted all exports to the country, including perfumes and beauty products. The brand is stopping sale of products to oligarchs on sanctions lists.

In its Q4 FY2022, Alok Industries’ net loss surged 29.633 per cent to Rs -26.76 crore as against Rs -0.09 crore in the Q3 FY22 ended December 31, 2021. As per an Equity bulls income declined 5.18 per cent to Rs. 2,031.44 crore during the period ended March 31, 2022 compared to Rs 2,142.47 crore during the period ended December 31, 2021.

Alok Industries’ net loss increased by 94.65 per cent to Rs.-26.76 crores for the period ended March 31, 2022 as against net loss of Rs.-500.11 crore for the period ended March 31, 2021. On the other hand, net income increased 37.39 per cent to Rs 2,031.44 crore during the period ended March 31, 2022 as compared to Rs.1,478.63 crore during the period ended March 31, 2021.

Designer Paul Smith has launched a mentorship program via an capsule collection with London-based menswear brand Ahluwalia, founded by PriyaAhluwalia.

Supported by the Paul Smith Foundation, the program offers an authentic approach to creative partnerships with emerging and untapped talent, in a mentorship programs that nurture next generation designers.

Building on a long-standing friendship between Priya and Paul, the Ahluwalia&Paul Smith collection is an 11-piece limited-edition collection where two distinct creative minds meet.

The collection is a fashionable encounter of Smith’s bold check fabrics mixed with Ahluwalia’s seaming and paneling techniques. Collage creations that echoed the bright hues of imagery India and Nigeria, culled from Priya’s personal photo archive. While Paul’s love of sport is represented by references to vintage cycling paraphernalia. All mashed up with art from Studio One Records, images by graphic designer Ikko Tanaka and works by multidisciplinary artist Ernesto Cánovas.

Channeling sustainability, the collection utilizes surplus fabrics found in the Paul Smith archive, and new sustainable alternatives – 100 per cent organic cotton and yarns, biodegradable Lenzing Ecovero viscose and surplus jersey.

Textiles emerged as the highest imported commodity by Nigeria despite the prevailing forex restriction for import goods by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), shows latest statistics from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

In 2019 the CBNimposed forex restriction on its importation, including woven fabrics and clothes to encourage local production and create jobs. However, the restrictions do not seem to be yielding positive results as the latest NBS reveals, textile materials accounted for the country’s highest imports in 2021.

The value of Nigeria’s textile imports grew by 17.32 per cent in 2020 to N19.89trillion, as per the NBS. The all-commodity group import index on average increased by 0.47 per cent. The highest increase was recorded by textile and textile articles, followed by boilers, machinery and appliances, parts thereof and wood and articles of wood, wood charcoal and articles, it adds.

The apex statistics body also showed that trade is reversing in the country as exemplified by all products’ terms of trade (TOT) index which also showed a 0.25 per cent drop.

The manufacturing site of the Lycra Company in Maydown, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom, has completed its third-party verified Higg Facility Social & Labor Module (Higg FSLM).

As per a Knitting Industry report, the Maydown site scored an 83 on the assessment. The assessment included over 300 questions, providing a comprehensive review of a company’s social and labor policies and practices. The independent verifier reviewed original source material and interviewed 20 employees, individually, or part of a group, as part of the verification process.

Located in County Londonderry, the Maydown plant first opened in 1957. The manufacturing site produces Lycra fibre for apparel and Lycra HyFitfibre for personal care products and employs about 350 people. In addition, 13 unique Lycra fibre types made at Maydown are Gold Level Material Health certified by the Cradle-to-Cradle Products Innovation Institute.

Higg FSLM is part of a suite of tools developed by the Sustainable Apparel Coalition, a global, non-profit alliance of over 270 stakeholders in the fashion industry.

Eighteen GOTS Approved Certification Bodies certified 19 per cent more facilities in 2021 than the previous year. In all 12,338 facilities in 79 countries were certified.

The countries that reported the largest increase in GOTS certified facilities in 2021 included Turkey (+61 per cent to 1.799), Italy (+53 per cent to 894), Germany (+19 per cent to 817), Portugal (+35 per cent to 608), France (+22 per cent to 122), Denmark (+14 per cent to 115), Switzerland (+15 per cent to 61), Belgium (+55 per cent to 59), Sweden (+34 per cent to 51) and Vietnam (+264 per cent to 51).

As per the annual GOTS Survey, of the 1.114 respondents , 63 per cent indicated a permanent shift in their sustainability strategy with a focus on the environment and health of their workers and staff.

Growing interest from industry, the public, and the media drove website visits by an percent. Media exposure grew by 64 percent and GOTS social media followers across several platforms jumped by 57percent. Rahul Bhajekar, Managing Director, GOTS says, GOTS began revision of its version 7.0 involving all stakeholders including associations, organizations, companies, and individuals to further advance the progressive, innovative, stringent yet practical standard of GOTS.

Sanjay Garg, President, NITMA has lauded the government’s move to withdraw customs duty on cotton imports till September 30, 2022. The exemption will not only benefit India’s textile chain - yarn, fabric, garments, and made-ups but also help lower the prices for end-user and providing boost to textile exports, he said.

MukeshTyagi, Sr Vice President, NITMA also welcomed the move saying, Cotton is important to enhance India’s competitiveness in global textile trade and the government should introduce a comprehensive Cotton Fibre Policy.

Tyagi also advocated for a permanent removal of the import duty with the arrival of shipments only from April to September, each year. This will help the Textile Ministry increase the industry size to $100 billion s by 2030, he said.

Iranian brands plan to replace western clothing brands that have exited from the Russian market due to sanctions and the war in Ukraine, says the Russian Council of Shopping Centers (RCSC).

Oleg Voytskhovsky, Head-RCSC, TASS-Russia's state-owned news agency says, Iranian brands may replace Western clothing brands in Russia within three years as they first need to resolve certain organizational issues.

Iranian brands plan to open atleast 30 outlets in Russia including clothing and footwear chains. They are seeking additional investments for this expansion, he adds.

Russia also needs to resolve logistics issues to promote these brands, as per a TRT World report. Russian department stores are ready to present a range of Iranian goods. However, the manufacturers of these goods will have to invest in the launch of local branches with their own management offices and in advertising, addsVoytskhovsky.

The third Sustainable Apparel Forum held in Dhaka, beginning from May 10. To be organized by Bangladesh Apparel Exchange, the forum will enable Bangladesh to develop as a responsible sourcing destination by accelerating sustainability within the industry through education and awareness to reduce the knowledge gap.

The forum will be inaugurated jointly by Towfiq-e-ElahiChowdhury, Prime minister’s adviser on power, energy and mineral resourcesalongwithMdAtiqul Islam, Mayor, Dhaka North City Corporation,. It will be attended by Faruque Hassan, President, BGMEA; His Excellency Anne Gerard van Leeuwen, Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Bangladesh, Md. MohiuddinRubel, Managing Director, Bangladesh Apparel Exchange (BAE), Additional Managing Director, Denim Expert, and also Director, BGMEA, Stephanie Thiers-Ratcliffe, Director, European Brands and Retailers, Cotton Council Internationa.

Prominent speakers from various parts of the world will share their views on sustainability and the importance of meeting customer’s expectations at the event which will also host various specialized plenary session and green growth exhibition.

A one stop show for apparel manufacturers, the CMAI Fabrics, Accessories and Beyond (FAB) show was aimed at providing total supply chain solutions under one roof. Organized from April 11 to 13, 2022 at the Jio World Trade Centre, Mumbai, the show spread over 10,000 sq. mt. featured 250 manufacturers and suppliers of fabrics and accessories, machinery, washing units, packaging units, embroiderers, printers, real estate and apparel park developers, and software developers. They showcased products and services for the garment industry. Over 12000 garment manufacturers, exporters, retailers with private labels, and traders visited the show over three days. The show also saw international visitors from eight countries.

In a unique display of collaboration, the show was supported by two of the biggest associations in the fabric supply chain –Fabexa from Ahmedabad, and SGCCI from Surat. A subsidiary of the Maskati Cloth Market Mahajan, FABEXA participated with nearly 50 members while the South Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SGCI) saw the participation of over 45 members from Surat.

Talking about the show, Rahul Mehta, Chief Mentor, CMAI said, “The idea for the show began with a casual discussion within CMAI committee about the problems garment manufacturers face in trying to locate the right kind of sourcing on various fronts mainly fabrics, accessories, washing units ,machinery and packaging etc. We thought it would be a good idea to get everything under one roof.”

Need for more suppliers highlighted

A highlight of the show was the Think Out of the Box Section which included four seminars on topics ranging from: Consumer Trends, Technological Developments, and Global Fashion Landscape. Speakers from the across the world including Bangladesh Turkey and the Netherlands participated in the show inaugurated by Darshana Jardosh, Minister of State for Textiles. Jardosh urged the entire textile value chain to work in collaboration with each other to expand across globe. The industry also needs to increase the number of the suppliers in the value chain, Jardosh added.

India’s cotton prices are almost equal to the world market, Jardosh said. As per the government’s vision, farmers are earning good income from cotton yield. They plan to increase production next year as returns from the crop increase.

Domestic and international presence recorded

Garment sourcing has become as important as garment marketing and manufacturing, affirmed Navin Sainani, Chairman Fair Committee for The FAB Show. The show offered one-stop sourcing solutions to all garment manufacturers in India, he added.

The show featured 55 manufacturers of cotton garments from Ahmedabad, 45 manufacturers of MMF fabrics from Surat, a few knitting mills like Arvind, top accessories manufacturers and traders from Mumbai. It was attended by over 12,000 visitors within a span of three days. International buyers from eight countries, one international participant and international speakers also attended the show. Mehta said, “The show is an unqualified success. We are hoping to at least double, this will probably twice a year. The venue will depend upon the dates available.” From next edition it will be a bi-annual event with the number of the visitors expected to double from this year.