"The 15th edition of Interfiliere Shanghai will be launched from September 26-27, 2019 at the Shanghai Exhibition Center in Shanghai. This autumn edition will bring together various professionals from the lingerie, swimwear and sportswear supply chain who will explore a wide range of offerings by Asian and overseas suppliers, from must-have essentials of the season to new innovations and sustainable solutions as well as the possibility of flexible MOQ."

The 15th edition of Interfiliere Shanghai will be launched from September 26-27, 2019 at the Shanghai Exhibition Center in Shanghai. This autumn edition will bring together various professionals from the lingerie, swimwear and sportswear supply chain who will explore a wide range of offerings by Asian and overseas suppliers, from must-have essentials of the season to new innovations and sustainable solutions as well as the possibility of flexible MOQ.

Trend Forum & Prototype Fashion Show

Concepts Paris in collaboration with its suppliers will unveil the Spring/Summer 2021 collection that will showcase latest products from across the globe through prototype fashion shows.

The Green Village

In response to the environmental and ethical issues in the industry, Eurovet presents the Green Village that will publicise the importance of being “Green”, and showcase both existing sustainable solutions and those proposed by the exhibitors.

Asia Young Label Awards

Following its successful debut in Shanghai in 2018, the Young Label Awards encourages upcoming young designers from Asia Pacific, to explore their dreams fearlessly. Brands from the swim, lingerie and activewear categories compete to win a free booth at Unique by Mode City.

The Essence

Over the past years, China has evolved significantly from being the world’s factory to becoming the fastest developing consumer market in the world. The country is witnessing a new class of consumers, who are being encouraged by their growing incomes, new media and technologies. Chinese brands are embracing their own culture besides opening up to a wider and international stage. The Essence curated by Eurovet offers an opportunity to these Chinese brands to speak their own languages and unique stories.

"With many high-end brands retailing in the city, Hong Kong, for nearly two decades, was known as the Shopping Mecca of the world. The city offered the best, the latest and the greatest of European and American fashion. Be it clothing, accessories or electronics, it stocked everything from the world’s most reputed brands like Prada, Chanel Kate, Spade, Gap, H&M, Christian Dior, Giorgio Armani, Gucci and Zara. "

With many high-end brands retailing in the city, Hong Kong, for nearly two decades, was known as the Shopping Mecca of the world. The city offered the best, the latest and the greatest of European and American fashion. Be it clothing, accessories or electronics, it stocked everything from the world’s most reputed brands like Prada, Chanel Kate, Spade, Gap, H&M, Christian Dior, Giorgio Armani, Gucci and Zara. Now, however, trends are changing. European and North American brands are scaling back their expansion plans and exercising more fiscal trends. Taking advantage of this, many Asian brands are filling the market with their products.

The early movers

Two of the earliest entrants into the market include Muji and Uniqlo, the Japanese home ware and casual fashion brand whose presence spans right from the modern Shibuya towers to the 18th century heritage buildings in Barcelona. Of these, Muji is opening a new store in Pacific Place while discount retailer Don Quijot plans to open an outlet in Hong Kong. This outlet will be a part of the brand’s regional expansion plan that also includes Singapore, Thailand, Taiwan, Korea and the US. Korean cosmetics brands such as Innisfree, Etude House and 3CE are also opening new shops in several international locations along with Gentle Monster and Line Friends

Joining the brigade

Chinese casual apparel brand Meters/bonwe, tech brand DJI and restaurant chains Haidilao recently opened outlets in Kuala Lumpur and Hong Kong. Taiwanese restaurant Din Tai Fung forayed into Japan, the UK, the US, Thailand, Australia and other markets. Singaporean shoe brand Charles & Keith also opened an outlet in Jakarta, Shanghai and Taipei. The brand already operates more than 300 stores in Indonesia, the Philippines, the UAE, India, South Africa. Michelin-rated diner Putien has launched in Jakarta, Shanghai and Taipei.

Shifting demands and ease of operation facilitates movement

The reasons for this sudden influx of Asian brands into the worldwide markets are many. Prominent amongst them is shifting demands of consumers who constantly seek novelty in their products. Also, it is easier for these brands to open their stores in Asian countries where they already have either a physical or an online presence. As Asian products are known for their cheaper rates than their western equivalents which fits the shifting consumer demands perfectly.

Factors such as proximity and logistics are also boosting demand for Asian products with three of the world’s busiest ports — Hong Kong, Singapore and Shanghai — on the doorstep making regional expansion a logical choice for these brands. Though there are likely to be many challenges in the way of this expansion, Asia definitely seems to be next destination for many European brands as of now.

Dutch fashion brand G-Star has joined forces with the Swiss chemical company Archroma for the creation of a sustainable new fall collection dubbed ‘Dyed By Nature'. The series spans separates such as jackets, sweatshirts, jeans and T-shirts for men and women, all dyed with natural ingredients such as upcycled saw palmetto leaf leftovers and beetroot waste that the brand promises are "traceable from earth to product." The result is a range of pieces in soft, earthy hues such as tea rose, navy blue and olive green. The collection has been fabricated using materials such as organic and recycled cotton, and Tencel.

The collection is the fruit of an ongoing collaboration between G-Star Raw and EarthColors by Archroma, kickstarted in 2017. It is the latest in several attempts by the brand to focus on environmentally friendly fashion, following on from a 'G-Star RAW for the Oceans' collection made back in 2014 using recycled plastic, and its ongoing ‘Renewed' denim concept -- first launched in 2012 -- that sees jeans given more than one chance at life

Cotton accounts for 51 per cent of the total raw material cost in the Indian textile industry. This puts domestic industry margins under pressure. The cost of raw material inflation can’t be passed on due to subdued consumer demand. Meanwhile, yarn production has been fluctuating over the last six months, although the production average has been maintained. Exports have risen to more than 30 per cent during March 2019. Prices of cotton yarn are co-related to raw cotton prices and thus have seen an upward movement in line with raw cotton prices. Synthetic fabric has seen a gradual revival in demand due to decreased cost of production, which is a function of crude oil prices. Partially-oriented yarn and texturized yarn prices declined by eight per cent and seven per cent month on month.

India’s readymade garment exports have decreased. Removal of tax incentives for exports has made India’s textile goods less competitive vis-à-vis Vietnam and Bangladesh. Decreasing exports and weak consumer sentiments have impacted the industry’s capacity utilisation. But overall apparel production improved by 34 per cent for April 2019 and exports improved by 18 per cent for May 2019. Capital expenditure in textiles has been majorly to replace machines with new technologies and shift to premium/ niche products in the existing line-up.

India’s cotton crop has fallen by around 15 per cent this year mainly because cotton yields have drastically dropped. There were no rains last year in the month of August and September. Most farmers now want to take two or three crops and don’t want to keep cotton plants after December. States like Gujarat, Maharashtra, Telangana and Karnataka are facing a huge deficit of rains.

Many textile mills in North India and South India are planning to cut production due to a lack of demand as well as demand-supply imbalances which is severely going to impact margins. Spinning mills which are small do not have facilities to import cotton. That is severely going to affect the margins of the textile industry. The industry has been severely impacted by the US-China tariff war. China is a major importer and exporter of textile products. Logistics costs are about ten per cent of the total cost but they have to be incurred. But a lot of import is still going on.

Cotton prices around the world have come under pressure. In India, prices have dropped to Rs 44,000 a candy compared to Rs 47,000 just ten days ago. Globally, cotton prices are currently ruling at Rs 42,000 a candy.

Vietnam’s revenues from apparel exports to Japan during January to June grew 8.61 per cent from the same time last year. As a large trade partner of Vietnam, Japan is expanding imports for a wide range of products from Vietnam and the garment and textile industry holds huge potential. Vietnam sells shirts, suits, sportswear, children’s clothing and towels to Japan. Vietnam’s textile and garment industry is gearing toward sustainable development through balanced exports to all markets, and that includes Japan that has sound political relations with Vietnam. Many businesses have won contracts to ship products to the market by the end of this year. Besides, Japan was the first market for Vietnamese garments and textiles when the country had not joined the World Trade Organisation.

However, Japan is a market that holds strict standards for imported products. In addition exporters should be well prepared before entering the market due to its complicated distribution system and high costs of trade promotion. Japanese partners place orders for a small quantity of clothing with original designs and require shipments in a very short time. So firms must have sufficient materials to fulfill the contracts. They must improve their fashion design capacity and competitive edge.

Revenues of UK luxury fashion brands and retailers are up 1.9 per cent year on year. Especially, brands founded since 1990, such as Lulu Guinness and Stella McCartney, are the luxury sector’s main driver of growth. Turnover at these luxury businesses has grown at an average rate of seven per cent over the past 12 months compared with 0.7 per cent at fashion brands established prior to World War II.

One reason is that younger businesses put sustainability and e-commerce at the heart of their strategies, which has attracted affluent millennial consumers. These faster-growing businesses are changing the perception that British luxury brands are a little old-fashioned and conservative. On the other hand heritage brands are aiming at being seen as truly elite and developing their online retail offering to appeal to younger consumers.

For most British consumers, the luxury offering is closely tied to tradition and heritage. While they have very broad brand recognition, consumers do not see them as being part of the truly elite group of luxury businesses. Being able to move those brands upmarket and grow sales of higher-margin products is the key target for British heritage brands over the next five to 10years.

An incubation center in Tirupur is promoting production of banana-silk clothing. India happens to be the largest banana producer in the world. Banana fiber was primarily used for making ropes, mats, and some other composite materials. With increasing environmental awareness, and the growing importance of eco-friendly fabrics, the banana fiber is finding application in other fields such as garments and home furnishings. Banana cultivation in a 1000 acre plantation is capable of generating revenue of Rs 16 crores if the fiber is extracted on a large scale and utilized for clothing. Rugs made from banana silk yarn fibers are popular the world over. Banana fiber is also used to make cushion covers, neckties, bags, table cloths, curtains etc. In Japan, it has long been used for making traditional dresses like the kimono. It’s lightweight and comfortable to wear, and is preferred by people in Japan as summer wear.

In fact, Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) is promoting the use of banana fiber for making handmade paper bags, statues, pen stands and garments. Once the fabrics match the three categories of fineness, softness and durability, fine, soft and durable yarn will be extracted from banana leaves and stitched into clothes.

Stella McCartney signed a partnership with LVMH. LVMH is the world’s largest luxury goods group. It was the first large company in France to create a sustainability department, more than 25 years ago. Stella McCartney is one of Britain’s leading designers, who’s also the flag-waver for all-things cruelty-free and sustainable. The aim is to accelerate the development of Stella McCartney brand globally. McCartney will retain controlling stake, will stay at the creative helm of her brand and will also continue to be its public face. She will also have a wider role within LVMH in relation to its development as a sustainability-focused group. McCartney’s pioneering approach to building her label around ethical and environmental issues has been a decisive factor in the deal. The link-up emphasises LVMH’s commitment to sustainability. In turn McCartney can gain from the experience, financing, expertise and networks of a giant luxury group.

Stella McCartney split from Kering last year. Kering had backed her label from its early days. She was approached by various parties expressing their wish to partner and invest in the house but she settled on LVMH because of the passion and commitment LVMH expressed towards the Stella McCartney brand and its acceptance of Stella McCartney as the global leader in sustainable luxury fashion.

Micro, small and medium units in India are being provided an encouraging atmosphere. Their tax burden is being eased. The rate of corporate tax has been reduced to 25 per cent for companies with a turnover of up to Rs 250 crores. The threshold limit for applicability of presumptive taxation of business income has been increased from Rs 1 crore to Rs 2 crores. The threshold for maintaining books of accounts on part of individuals and the Hindu undivided family has been increased to an income of Rs 2.5 lakhs from Rs 1.2 lakhs earlier. Similarly the threshold has been increased to a total turnover of Rs 25 lakhs from Rs 10 lakhs earlier. The rebate provided under the Income-tax Act, 1961, has been increased and now any individuals or Hindu undivided family having a total taxable income up to Rs 5 lakhs do not need to pay any income-tax.

Considering the seasonal nature of the business of an assessee engaged in manufacturing of apparel, the requirement of 240 days of employment has been relaxed to 150 days. GST on job works for the entire textile segment, yarn, fabrics, garments or made-ups, has been revised from 18 per cent to five per cent.