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Patagonia has got its full line of board shorts and bikinis Fair Trade certified. The move is part of Patagonia's broader drive to support workers, elevate communities and do work in an equitable way.
Fair Trade is a non-profit organisation which offers benefits to workers. Fair Trade Certified factories observe strict environmental norms. Patagonia’s swim and surf collection products are field tested by some of the best surfers in the world and incorporate recycled nylon or recycled polyester fabrics. Women's swimsuits and bikinis are printed using a laser process that minimises fabric scrap and waste. For every product made at a Fair Trade certified factory, Patagonia pays a premium that workers can use to elevate their living standards. The money goes directly to the people whose hands made that specific product. Premiums from Patagonia purchases have been used to fund child-care programs and vouchers for medicine and household goods.
In addition to the benefits paid directly to workers, Fair Trade certified factories are required to adhere to Fair Trade’s strict standards for safe working conditions and environmental responsibility.
The Tirupur knitwear industry will employ skilled workers from Orissa rather than untrained ones. And for this, training will be provided by the Orissa Skill Development Authority. The organization already imparts various knitwear industry-specific lessons through institutes spread across Orissa.
Experts from Tirupur will visit Orissa to oversee training programs and suggest changes that need to be incorporated to suit knitwear production. The initiative will thus provide an impetus to the apparel cluster in Tirupur, which does not have to train a rookie worker to cater to specific needs in production process and at the same time trained workforce in Orissa will get quality employment.
The initiative comes in the wake of an increase in flow of laborers from Orissa to Tirupur in recent times. However, these workers were not fully suited for specific needs that were expected by apparel manufacturers in Tirupur. As a result many workers from Orissa ended up doing unskilled work eventually move to other clusters.
Orissa Skill Development Authority has been instrumental in providing skilled employees from Orissa for upcountry clusters involved in automobile engineering, textile, construction and a few other industrial activities.
German athletic wear Adidas has taken technology to a completely new level to create a unique experience for its customers. The company recently launched a pop-up shop in Berlin, called Knit For You. Once the customers steps into the store, they get an opportunity to design their own sweaters made of Merino wool and can get a finished product that costs them $200, within an hour or two. To pick the design, customers will can visit the dark room and stand in the middle of an illuminated box. Different patterns will be projected on the chest. The patterns can be moved around on the sweater using hand gestures, which are picked up by sensors.
Customers are able to try out several options and look at them later on a monitor. It's also possible to test out different colours by putting swatches on the high-tech gadget. The sweaters are knitted on machines right in the store.
Though the brand has launched this as an experiment the inherent strategy is apparently clear. In the sneaker industry today, one clothing design usually takes 12-18 months to reach the store shelves. Adidas is trying to cut short this time frame for quite some time now. It has already engaged robotic intelligence into its operations heavily and dabbled in 3D painting. The Knit For You store in Berlin is open for a couple of months now and is delivering 10 sweaters on an extremely busy day. Adidas is currently keeping a close watch on this store’s performance and will soon decide about the next location for a similar kind of a store. If this experiment works, Adidas will be way ahead of its competitors.
Haryana is looking to be a global hub of textiles and a preferred investment destination. This will include fiscal and financial incentives for new units and growth and modernisation of existing units. The state is setting up augmenting infrastructure, setting up textile parks and facilities for skill training.
The aim is to generate 50,000 new jobs by and attracting investment in textile sector to the tune of Rs 5,000 crores. Haryana is a leading cotton producer in the country and provides employment to about a million people and readymade garments worth $2billion are exported from the state annually.
Textile enterprises acquiring technology will be provided financial assistance of up to 50 per cent of the cost for adopting technology from recognised national institutes, subject to the maximum of up to Rs 25 lakh. The policy proposes a capital subsidy of 10 per cent for eligible new projects of all textile enterprises across the state. It aims at positioning Haryana as a preferred destination for global textile majors, besides boosting textile exports by a compound annual growth rate of 20 per cent. Panchayat land will also be made available on lease for industrial development. The policy also provides for electricity duty exemption.
Textile exporters in Pakistan are deprived of liquidity. A major portion of their working capital is yet to be refunded. Incentives under the textile policy are yet to be disbursed. Trade deficit continues to widen and is at a record high of $20.2 billion in the eight months of ongoing fiscal year, which is $5.2 billion higher than the deficit recorded in comparative period previous year.
Financing such a huge gap in the midst of falling exports and stagnant foreign investment has become a challenge for exporters. This will increase their reliance on expensive foreign borrowings. One problem textile and garment exporters have is with gas prices. They say gas rates are almost 100 per cent higher than those paid by other industries.
Pakistan’s textile exports are not growing while the country is aiming to boost exports to touch $2 to $3 billion by June 2018. The textile industry contributes about 60 per cent to Pakistan’s total exports.
Cotton has been competing with primarily with synthetic fibers and in the past several years, cotton has been become much more expensive than other fibers. In Q1 of 2011, cotton accounted for more than 60 per cent of the market in women’s apparel. Today, it accounts for just about 40 per cent of the.
But there has been a turn in the market. Cotton prices are becoming competitive with synthetic fibers. And retailers, brands, manufacturers are looking at cotton with renewed interest. Cotton Incorporated is helping cotton regain its market share.
Women’s apparel accounts for about 60 per cent of the clothing market while men’s makes up around 30 per cent. Cotton didn’t lose quite as much market share in men’s apparel and there has actually been a little increase in this space in the last four or five quarters.
The cotton industry is trying to sell into a consumer market that is much more demanding than it was a few years ago. This time the fight is complicated by new trends in products such as active wear and terms like sustainability. As a result, performance has become a major theme in the apparel market. One of the areas Cotton Incorporated has been working on is how cotton can compete with synthetics in the performance market.
As a part of the initiative, Cotton Incorporated has developed a number of new technologies such as Storm Cotton, a waterproofing technology; TransDry, a moisture transfer technology; Wicking Windows, another moisture transfer feature; and Tough Cotton, which is an abrasion resistance technology.
Canton Fair will be held in China from May 1 to 5, 2017. Top Chinese textile and garment suppliers, all key players in the global space showcase latest and best functional and environmentally-friendly products. More than 5,000 suppliers will exhibit men’s and women’s clothing, kids' wear, underwear, furs, leather, downs, fashion accessories and fittings, home textiles, textile raw materials and fabrics, sports and casual wear, carpets and tapestries.
The exhibition is in response to increasing demand for premium textile products. Textile and garment suppliers are shifting from OEM to ODM suppliers to focus more on stylish design and technological enhancement. The Canton Fair has upgraded from a trade show to become an integrated platform for information exchange in the industry. It helps partners achieve business objectives in every aspect. Attendees gain a comprehensive and diverse vision of the current global textile and garment trade. They can visit upstream and downstream manufacturers to establish or help maintain long-term cooperation. They can also find newly-introduced stylish designs from France, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and more, as well as attend forums and summits to explore the latest fashion trends.
The ultimate chance for buyers and suppliers is not only to provide and find premium quality products but also visit factories and get acquainted with the latest fashion designs.
Cambodia’s garment exports rose 14.7 per cent in the first quarter of 2016, from the same period in the previous year. Considering factories have been shutting down and few new ones are opening, this comes as a surprise. Indeed, overall production capacity has reduced but the total value of the country’s exports has been still going up.
Therefore, in the first quarter of 2016, Cambodia recorded 122 factory closures compared to just 12 new garment and footwear factory openings. Cambodia lacks a commercial upstream textile sector and the industry needs to import almost all its raw materials. Roughly 60 per cent of fabric imports are from China, followed by South Korea and Taiwan, which are around 15 per cent each.
But Cambodia is looking into diversifying its raw material import markets. When it comes to exports, Europe accounts for around 45 per cent of while the US makes up 25 per cent, followed by Canada, Japan and China. The country has favorable trade access to major developed markets like Europe, China, Japan and Canada.
Additionally, Cambodia is taking part in negotiations over forging a possible free trade agreement between the 10 members of Asean and Australia, China, India, Japan, South Korea and New Zealand.
Intertek Hong Kong has launched a High-Performance Textile Testing Center at its Garment Centre premises. The innovative facility is one of the best-equipped testing centres in the region, providing a wide-ranging range of advanced technology performance testing for global brands, retailers and manufacturers.
Intertek is a leading Total Quality Assurance provider to industries worldwide. Through their network of more than 1,000 laboratories and offices and over 42,000 people in more than 100 countries, the Group is re-defining the industry with our Total Quality Assurance proposition. It’s developing a complete range of testing methods, including for comfort and protection and easy care. With global sportswear retail market is expected to reach $185 billion by 2020, combined with increased trend for athleisure, has led to the need for leading brands and manufacturers to deliver high performance functionality and increased performance testing to meet global standards.
With a focus on delivering innovation and superior customer service, the Intertek Hong Kong test centre offers over 200 high-performance tests and unique testing technology including compression-sock testing and non-destructive down-fiber penetration resistance testing accredited by the Hong Kong Laboratory Accreditation Scheme (HOKLAS).
And as Christina Law, Chief Executive, North East Asia, Intertek points out customers are keen on integrating high-performance features into their products, but are often faced with many challenges, including sourcing, technical and compliance issues. “Intertek Hong Kong has always been a innovator in origination and in launching this new state-of-the-art facility, it supports the foremost position to offer total peace of mind to the customers through our Total Quality Assurance solutions, and signifies a new chapter in every accomplishments."
Quang Viet Enterprise, a Taiwan-based garment manufacturer, has increased their shipment forecast for the year 2017 from 10 million units to 10.5 million units. The figure is nearly 15 per cent higher than last year’s 9.1 million units.
The company manufactures down jackets, PrimaLoft and ThermoBall jackets. Adidas was its biggest customer in 2016, accounting for 32 per cent of overall sales. Quang Viet has also received new orders from other renowned brands such as Nautica, Aigle and Converse.
Sales aggregate in the first two months of this year decreased five per cent from a year earlier as customers are yet to finish inventory digestion. However, the company expects sales to pick up in the second quarter — a high season for down jacket manufacturers.
Quang Viet also has factories in Vietnam and China. It operates 305 production lines, which can produce 9,50,000 garments each month. To fulfill consumer demands, 15 new production lines will start operations. Quang Viet is one of the world’s leading suppliers of garments for the outdoor sports industry. It began operations in 1995. One of its strengths is its willingness to seek out efficient methods in executing new ideas and technology on seam sealed, thermo ball, padded, bonded, soft shell and down jackets.
