FW
After the baffling Syrian crisis that has lasted for six years, garment is going to hit the Syrian markets soon. A new garment sector alliance has been formed in Jordan to make the war torn nation improve the standard of living of its citizens.
The Jordan Garment Alliance is a joint partnership with the World Bank Group, International Labour Organisation, Better Work Jordan, the Jordan Investment Commission, the Jordan Industrial Estates Company, the Jordan Garments, Accessories, and Textiles Exporters' Association (JGATE) and the Jordan Chamber of Industry and Trade.
The civil war has resulted in an exodus of refugees from Syria to neighboring countries like Jordan and Turkey. This initiative can increase the jobs both in Jordan and Syria. A number of Syrians reside in Jordan as refugees. Hence this partnership could create around 200, 00 job opportunities.
In apparel industry accounts for some 20 per cent of the country's exports, this step will help boost the economy of Syria. Jordan has been suffering due to the influx of refugees, hence the country’s economic growth has slowed down
Gerber Technology, a world leader in integrated software and automated solutions for the apparel and industrial markets, has announced they will be delivering integrated Digital Solutions, including AccuMark, AccuMark 3D, AccuPlan and YuniquePLM, at PI Apparel in Hong Kong. They are also supporting their long-time customer, Helly Hansen, as they their upgrade from webPDM™ to YuniquePLM In The Cloud.
The fashion and apparel industry spends billions of dollars on sampling. The shipping of these samples back and forth around the world is not carbon positive. Gerber's team will be demonstrating how AccuMark 2D and 3D software simulates virtual garment samples are realistic and there is no need for designers to spend time and money cutting and sewing real items. Gerber discloses by combining AccuMark with the their YuniquePLM In The Cloud platform permits fashion entities to collaborate and save around 30 to 50 per cent on sample costs.
Loyal AccuMark and YuniquePLM customer, Helly Hansen will present key business challenges of upgrading from webPDM to YuniquePLM In The Cloud. For over 10 years, Helly Hansen has used webPDM as the central database for all product information and AccuMark for its technical design and pattern making. Key reasons for upgrading to YuniquePLM In The Cloud were to resolve communication and inefficiencies across their value chain.
"C&A Foundation, with Fashion for Good, made an industry-wide call for collaboration to transform the apparel industry at a gathering of innovators, sustainability and fashion thought leaders today in Amsterdam. Created with an initial grant from founding partner C&A, Fashion for Good is a global initiative that brings the industry players together to reimagine how fashion is designed, made, used and reused."
C&A Foundation, with Fashion for Good, made an industry-wide call for collaboration to transform the apparel industry at a gathering of innovators, sustainability and fashion thought leaders today in Amsterdam. Created with an initial grant from founding partner C&A, Fashion for Good is a global initiative that brings the industry players together to reimagine how fashion is designed, made, used and reused.
As per Leslie Johnston, Executive Director of C&A Foundation the C&A Foundation will transform the fashion industry, and to do this we need to completely change mindsets. That is why Fashion for Good was incepted. It aims to inform a new way of thinking and at the same time nurture and embed innovations that can bring crucial change. Johnston says this kind of transformation can only be done with others, so today C&A is calling for brands, manufacturers, funders and innovators to work together to realise a shared vision.
Aim & intent
Fashion for Good enables the industry to embrace innovation and change its business models, promoting the five essential goods of a new, transformed fashion industry – good materials, good economy, good energy, good water, and good lives. It finds and funds early-stage ideas, and scales proven technologies and business models to be adopted by the industry. Its Apparel Acceleration Fund catalyses access to finance and its open-source ‘Good Fashion Guide’ shares knowledge to help the apparel industry transform. In addition, as a convener, Fashion for Good will use its first hub in Amsterdam to enable conversation and collaboration by bringing co-locators together, as well as by inviting visitors to The Launchpad Exhibition on good fashion.
Fashion for Good is supported by partners Plug and Play, McDonough Innovation, the Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute, IDH – the Sustainable Trade Initiative, the Sustainable Apparel Coalition, the Ellen MacArthur Foundation and Impact Hub Amsterdam. The first brands to partner with Fashion for Good are C&A and Kering.
Fashion for Good’s six programmes
This initiative is part of C&A’a wider efforts to drive the transition to circular economy within the fashion industry. They are nurturing and scaling solutions that will accelerate this new system by enabling best practice today and supporting innovation of tomorrow. The foundation is partnering organisations that will challenge the industry to rethink its material choices, chemical choices, manufacturing choices, and retail and use choices. Fashion for Good's six programmes are:
Early-stage innovation Accelerator: Fashion for Good works with Plug and Play, a leading Silicon Valley accelerator, to give promising start-up innovators the funding and expertise they need to grow.
Late-stage innovation Programme: Fashion for Good finds innovations that have proof of concept and helps them scale by offering bespoke support and access to expertise, customers and capital.
Apparel Acceleration Fund: The Sustainable Trade Initiative (IDH) is scoping a fund that catalyzes access to finance where this is required to shift at scale to more sustainable production methods.
Good Fashion Guide: This open-source guide proves that good fashion is feasible today and shows brands how to embrace it. The online guide provides practical tips, a self-diagnostic tool and a step-by-step guide to production, based on lessons learned while creating the world's first Cradle-to-Cradle Certified™ GOLD T-shirt.
The Launchpad Exhibition: Fashion for Good has opened two floors to the public in its historic building in the heart of Amsterdam. The Experience Centre's first exhibition opens 30 March 2017 and inspires guests to think differently about how clothes are made.
Circular Apparel Community: Fashion for Good is using its historic building to bring key organisations and partners together, including Sustainable Apparel Coalition, ZDHC and Made-By. This coalition will embrace collaboration to create change and it will be the first time such a vibrant eco-system of entrepreneurs and innovators has come together in the name of circular fashion.
Fibers and Yarns show is on in Mumbai from April 6 to 8, 2017. The show is about fiber, yarn and fabric collections. Leading fiber and yarn producers are revealing their range to downstream fabric garment and home textile value chain.
The aim of the exposition is to bring different types of fiber and yarn manufacturers on one platform where weavers, knitters and garment brand managers get an opportunity to have a look at the latest and specialty yarn collections for conversion into innovative fabrics and garments.
Leading specialty fiber and yarn manufacturers from India and abroad are displaying silver yarn soyabean milk and bamboo fibers, nylon micro fibers, modal and tencel fibers, fire retardant viscose hi-tech polyester fibers and filaments for functional fabrics and pure silk linen and jute yarns. The largest collection of fancy yarns for woven and knit wear are on display from prominent Indian and foreign exhibitors.
The event has been scheduled at a time when the industry is planning its production program for the season ahead. The expo gives them an opportunity not only to see the yarns but also have fabric samples of the displayed yarns and fibers. Sourcing of the yarns thus becomes easy for visitors and they can transmit their requirements directly to the manufacturer.
Sri Lanka needs to diversify its exports. In 2016 half of Sri Lanka’s total revenues were from the textile and garment sector and this ratio has remained the same for several years as Sri Lanka's export basket has not changed much since the 1990s.
If Sri Lanka is to substantially increase export revenues, diversifying to new sectors is the key to success. Similarly diversification of markets is also a priority for Sri Lanka.
While the UK is currently an important market for Sri Lanka, with Brexit becoming a reality, Sri Lanka will benefit if it also focuses attention on accessing non-traditional markets among the EU countries. This will not only cushion the potential negative impact of Brexit on Sri Lanka but will also help contribute towards the country’s target of doubling its export revenues.
The EU aims to support Sri Lanka’s economic growth by launching a series of initiatives which includes: support to design and implement a coherent trade strategy for export competitiveness, support for trade policy development and regulatory reforms, enhancement of Sri Lanka's WTO trade negotiations capacity, support Sri Lanka's regional integration process and help Sri Lanka maximize the use of the EU GSP Plus scheme when it is granted.
Bangladesh's apparel manufacturers are increasingly adapting modern technologies to enhance productivity, deliver products on time and meet demand for finer quality products from international retailers and brands. A few local fabrics makers have gone one step further by using robotic apparel technology and machinery.
Envoy Textiles (ETL) is one such denim fabrics manufacturer using robotic machinery to raise output and improve the quality of their products. As Kutubuddin Ahmed, Chairman of the Envoy Group points out, the use of robotic technology ensures higher productivity and good quality of yarn. Although the initial investment in sophisticated technologies is high, at the end of the day it is feasible for us, thanks to increased productivity and improved quality.
The world's first platinum rated Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certified denim factory, ETL installed the robotic machinery in its spinning section in October last year to enhance sophistication in yarn production. The company, set up in 2008 in Bhaluka, produces four million yards of denim fabric a month and employs 2,400 people. Besides using many other latest technologies and machinery for spinning and weaving, ETL has employed 14 robotic autoconers in spinning and rotor at its Bhaluka factory to produce 55 tonnes of denim yarn per day, disclosed Ahmed.
Meanwhile, in next one year, the company plans to set up a denim garment manufacturing plant on ETL's premises or near the denim spinning and fabrics manufacturing plant -- to produce clothing items using its own fabrics. Around Taka 50 crores would be invested to set up the proposed factory. Currently, ETL supplies yarn and fabrics to local and international buyers. The company exports yarn and fabrics to over 10 countries.
Meet the Manufacturer, the only major sourcing event specifically for British manufacturers of clothing, textiles, leather goods and homeware, is back with a new season and this time Elite Labels is the headline sponsor.
Kate Hills, CEO and Founder, Make it British, has explained in a press statement that as Elite Labels supplies to everyone starting from the smallest of start-ups to the largest and most prestigious names in retailing, it makes them the perfect headline sponsor. On the other hand, Elite Label, which was the exhibitor for the last two times, are keen to get more involved in the event this year. They have chosen to become the sponsor this year, as this is the right time to get associated with the event as British bands have now become fully aware of the value of manufacturing in the UK, Shafique Hussein, Director, Elite Labels, has asserted in a recent interaction.
The event, which is scheduled on 24 and 25 May at the Old Truman Brewery, London, is expecting more than 5000 visitors this year. This year’s programme includes free drop-in workshops and seminars plus over 150 exhibitors showcasing some of the top knitters, weavers, tanneries, leather goods makers, CMT units and homeware factories in Britain today. New for this year is a Make it British brands hall, dedicated to a carefully curated selection of British-made brands. Altogether, over 150 exhibitors will be showcasing the best of British clothing manufacturers, textile mills, leather-goods makers, homeware designers and suppliers to the UK apparel and textile industry.
Cambodia’s economy is expected to grow by 7.1 per cent this year. Growth would be driven by garment and footwear exports, construction and real estate, tourism and a moderate recovery in agricultural production.
Growth in industry is projected at a slightly higher than 10.8 per cent this year, supported by higher growth in major industrial countries and some diversification into products with higher value added such as garments, footwear, light manufacturing and electronics.
The service sector is forecast to expand by 6.7 per cent, driven by buoyant domestic demand and tourism, while agriculture is expected to grow by 1.8 per cent, assuming favorable weather. While the short-term economic growth outlook for the Cambodian economy remains strong, labor costs and skills shortages are increasing.
There is a need to lower the cost of doing business and improve productivity growth and competitiveness. Domestic risks stem from vulnerabilities in the financial sector, partly traceable to its rapid expansion, in particular the proliferation of microfinance institutions.
On the external front risks are: weaker growth in the euro area, a sharper-than-expected global tightening of credit, and a surge in the dollar, which could constrain exports and stiffen competition from other low-cost producers.
Australia's cotton crop is set to reach near-record levels next season as significantly good returns prod farmers to continue increasing sowings, a US officials disclosed. The US Department of Agriculture's bureau in Canberra forecast 2017-18 cotton production at 5.0 m bales, up from 4.6m bales in the previous season due to attractive cotton prices, cheap water and strong overseas demand. These factors encouraged Australian cotton growers to increase plantings for the 2017-18 season and the share of dry land cotton has increased significantly," the bureau reported.
Cotton production is now forecast at the second highest level on record, representing a huge increase from the crop of just 2.30 m bales recorded during the 2014-15 crop year. The recent boom in production is due to increased area, as farmers increase plantings following good returns, with harvested area also producing near record levels. Cotton exports from Australia are forecast at 4.8m bales in 2017-18, up 600,000 bales year-on-year, following greater production and strong international demand.
China is still expected to remain the key destination for Australian exports but the bureau noted high levels of stocks have reduced demand in recent years. However, new demand is emerging from the Indian textile industry. Nearly 25 per cent of exports during 2016-17 went to India, as against just 2 to 3 per cent in during the previous years.
Dubai’s apparel and footwear market accounts for the largest share of the Emirate’s retail sector. Apparel leads the category with a 73 per cent market share, followed by footwear (18 per cent) and sportswear (nine per cent). This trend is expected to continue through 2021, leading the category to achieve a projected compound annual growth rate of 3.4 per cent in the medium term.
Demand within this segment was supported last year by value offerings from retailers, particularly during shopping festivals and sales events. Easing of UAE visa regulations to some countries is expected to drive tourism, which will likely have a positive impact on Dubai's retail market as the emirate prepares to attract up to 20 million tourists annually by 2020.
This trend will result in a change in the demographic and characteristics of visitors. So retailers in the Emirate will need to adjust and expand their offerings to cater to diverse consumer groups.
Dubai’s global air connectivity and its growing stature as a hub for trade between the East and West, has clearly given an added impetus to the retail sector. Dubai continues to remain the clear destination of choice for the majority of the brands looking to enter the region for the first time, frequently using the emirate as a stepping stone to wider regional expansion programs.
