Saigon Tex was held from April 9 to 12, 2015. This is Vietnam’s expo focused on garments and textile machinery, accessories and materials. It attracted 655 exhibitors from 21 countries including Germany, France, Belgium, Italy, Japan, South Korea, China, Macau, Singapore, Switzerland, Thailand, the US and the UK.

Saigon Tex 2015 served 15 per cent more exhibitors than the 2014 event. Among the displayed machinery and equipment were automated machines for shirt, jeans and trouser making, high-tech pressing machines, multi-needle sewing machines, computerised lockstitch machines and embossed printers, automated checkers, and testing equipment.

There were new concepts in fabrics and materials such as vegetable fibers, spun yarn, filament, pet-chips plastic beads, artificial silk, jute, hemp, acrylic yarn, rubber thread, print, yarn-dyed fabrics, adhesive paper, reflective tape, sanding band, hair band, and pearl buttons.

The number of Asian exhibitors increased 16.8 per cent compared with 2014. Attendance from Thailand, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan climbed 40 per cent. The return of a separate India pavilion was also a highlight.

The participation of fabric and garment accessories jumped 23.6 per cent over 2014. The presence of textile machinery exhibitors also grew by 13.4 per cent over last year.

There were workshops on preparatory steps for the Trans Pacific Partnership and on better understanding the rules of origin of textiles in major export markets. A four-day fashion show had the catwalk decorated with laser-printed denim.