World’s leading supplier of wood-based specialty fibers, Lenzing has completed its key lyocell expansion project in Thailand. The new plant, with a nameplate capacity of 100,000 tons per year, started production on schedule and will help to even better meet the increasing customer demand for TENCEL™ branded lyocell fibers.

The construction of the plantstarted in the second half of 2019 and proceeded largely according to plan, despite the challenges arising from the COVID-19 pandemic. The recruiting and onboarding of new employees has been successful. Investments (CAPEX) amounted to approx. EUR 400 mn.

Lenzing will continue to expand its production capacity for lyocell fibers in line with its sCore TEN strategy, which aims to generate 75 percent of its fiber revenue from eco-responsible specialty fibers such as TENCEL™, LENZING™ ECOVERO™ and VEOCEL™ fibers by 2024. The Thailand site offers space for several production lines. The investment in the first phase already includes general infrastructure that would benefit future expansion. However, Lenzing will continue to look for opportunities to expand lyocell production in other parts of the world too.

H&M Group has decided to temporarily defer all sales in Russia. The group has temporarily closed all stores in Ukraine to ensure the safety of customers and colleagues.

The group is continuously monitoring and evaluating the situation. Representatives of the company are in dialogue with all relevant stakeholders.

H&M Group also regularly donates clothes and other necessities to Save the Children and to UNHCR.

Founded in Sweden in 1947, H&M’s offers fashion and quality at the best price in a sustainable way. In addition to H&M, the group includes the brands COS, Monki, Weekday, & Other Stories, H&M HOME and ARKET as well as Afound. The H&M group has 54 online markets and approximately 4,800 stores in 75 markets including franchise markets. In 2021, net sales amounted to around SEK 199 billion.

Automatex, a member of TMAS, the Swedish textile machinery association, has recently supplied a number of its latest Industry 4.0-enabled automatic fitted sheet systems to customers in Europe.

The Automatexmodel FDC-77735-B90D-EC system enables the full production and folding of six fully-fitted sheets per minute – approaching 3,000 an average shift – overseen by a single operator and eliminating many of the repetitive cut and sew operations of the past. Elastics insertion – usually a highly complex labour-intensive task – can be on all four sides of the sheet, two, or simply within the corners, depending on customer specifications.

Fabric is fed directly from the roll, with precise edge guiding and tension control, into a length-wise hemming and elastics insertion section with adjustable tension devices, before being measured and cross cut in an accumulator. It is then transferred to the cross hemming section, again with elastics insertion.

A side drop forming unit pre-forms the sheet before it is transported by a multi-axis clamp conveyor system to the corner sewing section, consisting of left and right overlock sewing heads. Here, the corners are robotically sewn at 90 degrees and labels are also attached when specified. Further customized systems for folding are also supplied as required

Euratex has urged EU to control the rise in oil and gas prices as the sanctions against Russia may compel companies to stop production if energy and gas prices continue to rise

The energy crisis that started at the end of last year has been worsening in the last week. Prices of energy, gas and oil has been skyrocketing. According to Reuters, Benchmark European gas prices at the Dutch TTF hub rose by 330% last year, while benchmark German and French power contracts have more than doubled.

The textile and clothing industry is facing an unprecedented situation. Many companies are considering shutting down production because of energy costs.

Euratex urged EU in the Ukrainian-Russian conflict, but asks the European Union and Members States to compensate the situation by supporting their industries. Companies need access to energy at reasonable prices, may those be subsidies, removing environmental levies or VAT from bills and price caps. The transfer to renewable and cleaner sources of energy needs to speed up, so to guarantee less dependency.

Baldwin has parnered with Blutec for innovative spray systems and corona/plasma treaters for wovens, knits and nonwovens in Mexico.

Blutec is a leading agency in the textile sector, representing many of the most reputable textile machinery manufacturers worldwide. Present in the Mexican market for more than 25 years, Blutec is committed to collaborating with companies on the forefront of textile manufacturing technology, including Brückner, Mahlo, EFI Reggiani, Ferraro and, now, Baldwin.

Baldwin’s precision spray systems for finishing and remoistening use non-contact spray technology to provide optimal controlled coverage of the exact amount of liquids needed to achieve the specific characteristics of the fabric – saving customers time, money and valuable resources. Because only the required amounts of water and chemicals are applied, water consumption can be reduced by up to 50 per cent contributing to considerably improved productivity in the finishing process.

In addition, these solutions can process a wide range of low-viscosity water-based chemicals—such as softeners, antimicrobial agents, durable water repellents, flame retardants and more—for woven fabrics, knitted textiles and nonwovens.

The Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI) is organizing the Manmade Fibre Conclave 2022 on Wednesday, March 09, 2022 titled: “$450 billion Global MMF Textiles Trade: Growth Beacon for the Indian Textile Industry” on the virtual platform. Wazir Advisors is the Knowledge Partner of the Manmade Fibre Conclave 2022.

The Conclave will have two panel discussions featuring industry leaders – manufacturers, subject experts, technology suppliers and policy makers who will gather and deliberate on the emerging opportunities in the MMF Sector, challenges therein and way forward.

The event will not only offer the participants an opportunity to interact with a very select group of 800-1000 peers from global MMF based textile & clothing industry, but also provide them a platform to brainstorm, share and gain key insights into the present and future of this dynamic sector.

PiyushGoyal, Union Minister of Textiles, Commerce & Industry, Consumer Affairs and Food & Public Distribution will be the Chief Guest and virtually inaugurate the mega event.

DarshanaVikramJardoshJi, Hon’ble Minister of State for Textiles and Railways, will be the Guest of Honour and deliver the Keynote Address in the Inaugural Session.

Amazon plans to open more fashion and grocery stores by shutting down most of its brick-and-mortar storefronts, including Amazon Books, across the US and the UK,

The retail giant will shut over 60 bookstores, Amazon Pop Ups and "Amazon 4-star" shops. Amazon launched its first physical bookstore in Seattle in 2015, and later expanded brick-and-mortar stores across the US and abroad.

Later, Amazon's retail footprint expanded with the $13.7 billion expansion of Whole Foods in 2017, along with its own Amazon Fresh grocery stores.

In 2018, the company launched Amazon 4-star stores, which sold top-selling items on Amazon.com, as well as items rated four stars or above by online buyers. Amazon Pop Ups, the stores featured rotating brands and themes, aimed to give customers a "try-before-you-buy" experience.

The company recently announced the launch of Amazon Style, a retail store focused on fashion, said the report.

In Q4 2021, the company reported its physical retail business generated $4.68 billion, up from $4.02 billion in the year-ago quarter.

Gap has set up a new advisory council comprising a diverse group of change-makers championing inclusion. Dubbed ‘Power of the Collective Council’, the advisory board will help Gap provide access to the marginalized and vulnerable communities, drive awareness about them and advocate for their rights. The Council will focus on three strategic pillars: Community, Customer, and Employee, to leverage their specialized areas of expertise and amplify a core focus area of diversity and inclusion for Gap Inc.

One of the founding members of the council will be Aurora James, Founder, Fifteen Percent Pledge, and Founder and Creative Director, Brother Vellies, who will support the Community as the Council’s Economic Inclusion Advisor. The second member, Leonardo Lawson, an internationally renowned expert in luxury and fashion brand building, management consulting, and executive search will support the Customer pillar as the Creative Impact Advisor. He has a diverse background in fine arts, brand strategy, digital, and retail combined with expertise in building unique experience and partnerships.

The third member, Amber Cabral, an inclusion strategist, certified coach, speaker, and author of 'Allies and Advocates: Creating an Inclusive and Equitable Culture', will join the Council as the Employee Experience Advisor. She has been working with Gap Inc. since 2018, to advance internal inclusion efforts through employee workshops, executive coaching, and facilitated discussions.The new council will enable Gap Inc to further its equality and belonging commitments in the coming year.

The Omicron strain proved to be another speed breaker for fashion retailers as it forced them to reset their fourth quarter sales expectations. The wave added to retailers’ woes by hitting profit margins especially globally. As per a Women’s Wear Daily report, Lululemon’s revenues are expected to decline in the fourth quarter from its earlier range of $2.12 billion to $2.16 billion while diluted per share earnings are expected to decline in the range of $3.24 to 3.31. The brand experienced several Omicron related consequences including increased capacity constraints, limited staff availability and reduced operating hours in certain locations, adds McDonald

Supply chain constraints hit Abercrombie’s salesv Abercrombie expects fourth quarter sales to surge in the range of 4 to 6 per cent compared to a year ago. However, compared to the corresponding period in 2019, the brand expects sales to decline 2 per cent. The company’s gross profit rate is expected to be on par with 2019 levels. Despite receiving a positive response to its winter and holiday collections, Abercrombie’s shipments dropped due to supply constraints, states Fran Horowitz, CEO. The brand experienced rapid surge in inventory levels due to extended port and transportation delays. This led to a loss of sales for the brand as it did not have the required inventory, adds Horowitz.

Torrid faces supply chain constraints despite better inventory levels

Torrid Holdings also expects sales to decline to $305 million from the previously forecasted $335 million. The company’s sales are softening amid growing concerns over rising Omicron cases. As per Harvey Kanter, President and CEO, Destination XL, the brand faced supply chain disruptions despite being continually monitored and ensured better inventory flow to meet sales targets. Torrid Holdings’ structural changes have helped brand Destination XL post strong holiday sales both online and in stores, adds Kanter.

Brands reorganize operations

Fashion companies made several big changes in their businesses during the pandemic period. Guess used the crises to transform its business model further, says Carlos Alberini, CEO. Launched last year, the company’s global range is being well-received across the world. Guess also streamlined its infrastructure by closing about 170 stores and renegotiating leases on 400 of its remaining 1,052 stores

Digital only companies make survival difficult

The emergence of more digital and smaller companies that are also very agile is making survival for fashion brands difficult Jay Sole, Stock Analyst, UBS, recently downgraded Kohl’s Corp to sell and Abercrombie & Fitch & Co and Canada Goose Holdings Inc. to neutral. Companies plan a series of events during calendar year 2022 to catalyze downward EPS revisions and keep sentiment negative, US’ stores sales are expected to decline by 2 per cent this year, as per UBS analysts. Over all, the apparel retail industry is likely to face tough times ahead.

Aiming to become a global apparel hub by 2030 vision, Sri Lanka proposes to increase annual export earnings to $8 billion by 2025. The country achieved its highest five-year apparel export levels in January this year as earnings surged to $487.6 million from $452 million in January 2019.

Cooperation key to achieving goals

Strong performance indicates the industry’s ability to achieve its set goals by 2025, says Yohan Lawrence, Secretary General, Joint Apparel Association Forum (JAAF), Sri Lanka’s apex industry body comprising supply chain partners, apparel manufacturers, buying offices and representatives of international brands in Sri Lanka. The apparel industry can become a major contributor not just to foreign exchange reserves but also employment sector through close cooperation with all industry stakeholders, Lawrence explains.

The industry has also adopted certain safety measures to curb COVID-19 spread amongst employees. Around 65 per cent employees have been fully vaccinated. Apparel exporters have also adopted additional safety measures to curb the spread of the Omicron variant

Digital technologies to mitigate supply chain issues

The Sri Lankan apparel sector strictly adheres to all safety and health protocols, affirms Saif Jafferjee, Managing Director (MD), Lanka Garments. This helps it reduce COVID-19 impact and ensure business continuity, he adds. Sri Lanka also mitigates supply chain issues by adopting various digital product development technologies. Larger apparel firms in the country are collaborating with smaller companies to help meet export targets, adds Jafferjee.

Strong demand for apparels in the domestic market has resulted in a healthy pipeline of orders for upcoming months. However, the international apparel market looks challenging due to growing geopolitical tensions in Europe, adds Jafferjee.