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The United Arab Emirates is among the target markets for the next two years for Texbrasil. Texbrasil is a program created by the textile and fashion industry of Brazil. Texbrasil’s initiatives involve training and development, information, deal-making, image-building and customization.
The project helps companies from the whole textile chain to become more competitive in the global market and promotes actions to boost exports. From June 2017 to June 2019, the priority markets selected for the program’s companies are Argentina, Chile, Colombia, United States, Mexico, Peru and Portugal. The markets selected as secondary are Germany, UAE, France, Japan, Paraguay and United Kingdom.
Priority countries are those where there is a need for a more strategic action by the program, such as market opening and the defense by the sector against tariff or technical barriers. Secondary markets are those that work as a gateway to a bigger market.
Texbrasil has decided to keep the UAE as a gateway to the Gulf countries and Lebanon. These markets will be monitored and invited to buyer and image projects by Texbrasil. Buyer projects are those in which importers travel to Brazil for business matchmaking with Brazilian companies. Image projects invite foreign journalists to get to know up close the textile and apparel local production.
Korea’s Hyosung is celebrating silver anniversary of its brand Creora. Hyosung is one of Korea’s leading multinational conglomerates, with annual worldwide sales of more than $8.7 billion. Hyosung has a global network of more than 73 subsidiaries and international branch offices around the globe.
Hyosung first developed its own process for manufacturing spandex in 1992. It has grown to be probably the largest spandex producer in the world with plants in Korea, China, Vietnam, Turkey and Brazil. Creora is the company’s leading spandex/elastane supplier.
Spandex has continued to grow in diapers, sportswear, outer wear, and woven ready-to-wear/denim. It also has potential in more traditional areas, such as intimates and swimwear, as there continues to be growth in these categories from emerging countries like India and China.
Hyosung is celebrating its 25th anniversary at Interfilière in Paris. The company will highlight Creora fresh odor neutralising spandex for intimate and sports cross over. It will also promote its new Creora lasting fusible spandex technology for hosiery applications. Interfilière, the leading international show for intimates, swimwear and performance sourcing and fabrics, is taking place from July 8 to 10, 2017.
Hyosung has developed a global brand positioning platform, new logo, tag line, and new advertising campaigns, defined and developed new products, and implemented marketing plans to create demand.
World cotton prices may tumble next season to the lowest in nine years. China's share of world inventories is expected to decline to 44 per cent, which would be the first time since 2011-12 that it held less than half of global stocks. Cotton stocks held outside China, meanwhile, are expected to rise by 17 per cent. This would be one of the highest volumes on record and indicates that prices should fall.
Large stocks, in cutting the need for buyers to pay up to secure supplies, are seen as a negative signal for prices.
China has been reducing its stocks through measures including the reform of a guaranteed pricing scheme for farmers – which in being set at a level well above world values had led to an inventory build-up, which is now being reversed by a program of auctions from stake stockpiles.
By contrast, supply prospects elsewhere have been boosted by the knock-on effect of this season’s elevated prices in encouraging farmers to plant the fiber.
In India, for instance, sowings are expected up eight per cent. An early and adequate monsoon, a higher minimum support price, and the prospect of better returns from cotton compared to competing crops have encouraged farmers in India to expand area.
In Pakistan, too, sowings were seen rising by eight per cent. Higher seedings were seen helping US output this year soar by 12 per cent.
Panorama was held in Germany, July 4 to 6, 2017. The trade show that debuted in 2013 facilitated collaborating, networking and trading. It is an European marketplace for leading fashion brands. As the name suggests, it is an overview of the most important trends of the coming season.
The expanded lifestyle offer was particularly well received by visitors. There were nearly 50,000 visitors from 96 countries. About 700 exhibitors presented their spring/summer 2018 collections. The trade show was spread over an area of 45,000 sq mts.
Panorama presented a contemporary and relevant selection of women’s and men’s collections, shoes, accessories and lifestyle articles by market leading brands as well as additional areas for plus size fashion and lingerie, underwear and lounge wear .
The event provides a platform where the buyers, dealers, trade visitors and media representatives can come from all over the world and meet at one place and share their various views with each other in the lifestyle and fashion industry. It has a select portfolio of top international fashion brands with business relevance. This time there was a new brand mix and a strong focus on visitor services.
There were overwhelmingly positive reviews from exhibitors and buyers and the media.
Advanced Functional Fabrics of America has nearly 100 members from a diverse group of manufacturers, startups and institutes of higher learning.
It is leading a 317 million dollar private-public effort to drive innovation in textile and fiber manufacturing. The institute has already produced a major benefit in helping bridge the information gap between universities and manufacturers. New networking opportunities have been created that have the potential to drive innovation.
AFFOA’s new fabric discovery center will provide a base for prototyping ranging from fiber design to new textile products. Other centers will open later this year in Georgia, North Carolina and Pennsylvania.
The fabric discovery centers will serve as regional incubators and accelerators for start-up companies in advanced fabrics, provide rapid prototyping facilities and house training facilities for educational outreach and workforce development.
It’s hoped that a decade from now AFFOA will have secured an important place in the history of textiles and apparel by rapidly deploying and funding existing research and turning it into innovation and jobs. It’s all about taking the technology that’s already in labs.
The apparel industry is new to the innovation game.
Brands are taking ideas from the defense industry and other industries. Everything in a home, including the car, is connected. If people are living in a smart world they expect their clothes to be connected too. And that is where brands step in.
Japan’s Toray Industries will acquire a stake in Hong Kong’s Pacific Textiles. This will enable Toray to pursue its global strategic expansion and synergy effects through supply chain integration and collaboration.
By leveraging Toray’s strengths in raw materials and Pacific Textiles’ value-added knitting services, both groups are positioned to innovate and improve products to their end clients as well as penetrating into new geographies and adjacent segments.
Engaged in the manufacturing and trading of textile products since 1997, Pacific Textiles is a leading manufacturer of customised knitted fabrics with a focus on complex, value-added fabrics. It has a high profit yield thanks to its enhanced operational efficiency and effective cost control measures.
Its principal manufacturing facility located in China is well-equipped with advanced production facilities, including a scalable water treatment facility and cogeneration power plant. In addition, it also has a manufacturing plant in Vietnam.
Pacific Textiles and Toray have been developing new fabrics together, and Pacific has been indirectly supplying fabrics to Toray. Through this strategic investment, Toray expects to strengthen its business relationship with Pacific Textiles and further align the interests of the two groups.
Toray has signed a share purchase agreement today to acquire 28.03 per cent stake in Pacific Textiles from Far East Asia. Closing is expected to occur mid-July 2017.
The 41st Texworld Paris will introduce a new segment on denim - Texworld Denim. The four day programme beginning from September 18, 2017 attracts ever-increasing numbers of international manufacturers specialising in fabrics, trimmings and accessories. Over 910 exhibitors from various parts of the world will present at the textile exhibition.
On the occasion of the 41st Texworld Paris show, Messe Frankfurt France is introducing a new segment that goes by the name of Texworld Denim. The denim sector has always provided a tremendous impetus for generating business. Denim has gained even more importance as a staple of our wardrobes. It has become an emotional driver with its language and lifestyle. It is a world of its own that we now wish to showcase separately to accord it due recognition for its traditions and attitudes. The spirit of openness to change and new development is one of the vital aspects of the winning formula provided by Texworld Paris, as indicated by the record number of exhibitors who have registered so far. Michael Scherpe, president, Messe Frankfurt France says that Texworld Paris has become an unmissable event for the fashion sector.
Texworld Denim will assemble 80 textile and clothing exhibitors who are experts in denim. Over 100 exhibitors will attend the show for the first time. This new segment will have a new trends forum - created by the artistic directors of the show; Louis Gerin and Gregory Lamaud.
Accompanied by national groups and associations for the textile industries, South Korea, Thailand, Pakistan and India will again offer pavilions with more than 20 exhibitors. A series of lectures about the latest developments in the sector, news from exhibitors, catwalk shows and the Trends Forum will be held at Texworld Paris 18.
Luxury menswear industry is showing vast gains that point to cultural shifts in the way men dress and experiment with style. Menswear is forecasted to grow at a faster rate than womenswear over the next three years, with net gains of 2.3 percent and 2.2 percent respectively, according to data from retail analytics company Edited. Additionally, the menswear market is estimated to be valued at $33 billion by 2020, an increase of 14 percent from 2015.
The expansion of the market can largely be attributed to social media’s role in building visibility around men’s style, says Tammy Smulders, global managing director of LuxHub. As an increasing number of men’s fashion influencers crop up in social feeds, fashion has become a growing interest for male consumers. At the same time, designers who previously only made women’s clothing have started trying their hand at men’s collections.
Alexa Tonner, co-founder of influencer network collectively, says that while fashion magazines tailored for men have long been hailed as arbiters of style, social platforms have allowed male shoppers to discover luxury apparel in new, innovative ways. Apps like Instagram present a more diverse array of perspectives than are accessible in major fashion publications, she added.
According to Jonathan Feinberg, chief men’s merchant at Givenchythe market is expanding, growth is mostly in the casual wear sector, a reflection of the toned-down ensembles of professionals,. To meet increasing demand, price points across most apparel items have risen significantly in the last five years, but particularly among products like bomber jackets and sneakers.
Tonner further says that the social media has also helped perpetuate a culture of urgency, which has helped pave the way for luxury casual wear. Whereas suits and evening wear require an often lengthy and expensive tailoring process, high-end casual apparel is easier to obtain quickly without jumping through hoops.
Looking to the future, Smulders says that the menswear industry in recent years will continue to grow. As demand increases, so will investment in advertising and influencer marketing, leading to even greater visibility.
Pakistan has adopted a comprehensive strategy to revive the textile sector.
Existing power looms will be upgraded to switch over to technical textiles in addition to producing the traditional cheap grey cloth. The old, obsolete and depreciated machinery will be replaced to increase the profitability of power loom owners. There will be comprehensive value addition in the shape of fashion garments. This is necessary to earn the optimum profit from the textile chain. It is the last stage of cotton that brings the maximum profit.
The organized weaving sector has sufficient resources and capacity to upgrade its production but the unorganized sector needs facilities and incentives for the replacement of old and depleted machinery.
Small weavers have to be convinced to replace the old machinery with high tech and sophisticated machinery.
Linkages will be established with technical textile centers in order to adopt new technologies. The process of upgradation will begin with an increase in profits of small, medium and micro units.
The future objective will be to produce and export garments and fashion garments instead of exporting raw cotton yarn or low priced finished and semi finished products.
The cotton chain will be diversified. Polyester will be mixed with cotton to produce a wide range of textile products which cater to the needs of different markets.
Luxury fashion and accessories brand Mulberry has added another joint venture (JV) in Asia with news that it has signed an agreement with existing license partner Onward Global Fashion to form a 50:50 JV company to operate its business in Japan.
UK-based Mulberry says that the new company will benefit from its digital and brand building capabilities coupled with Onward’s experience in distributing luxury brands across the Japanese market.
The new company will be called Mulberry Japan and will have its HQ in Tokyo. It will develop the Group's retail, digital, omni channel and wholesale business in the Japanese market and is expected to be “profit-neutral” for Mulberry during the initial two-year development phase.
Mulberry and Onward will be equal partners, each owning 50 per cent of the share capital of the new company. On this the Mulberry’s CEO Thierry Andretta stated that the luxury firm sees Japan as a “significant growth opportunity” and that in Onward it has “a partner which has extensive luxury goods experience and a robust infrastructure which will enable us to advance our international retail and omni channel strategy in this key market."
Mulberry Japan will manage all retail, digital fulfilment and wholesale distribution for the Japanese market. A general manager has been appointed to build a local team, based in the Tokyo head office with the firm expected to be up and running later this year. The Japan deal comes as Mulberry makes growth in Asia a priority. Earlier this year it set up Mulberry (Asia) Limited as a JV with Challice Limited to operate the group's business in Hong Kong, China and Taiwan. That launch also came along with “significant” marketing investment in North Asia. In addition to local marketing initiatives, Mulberry plans to invest around £3 million in additional support over the next two years.
