FW
After three days of steady business between March 15-17, 2017, new discoveries and networking amongst global industry, the world’s largest apparel fabrics and accessories trade fair for Spring/Summer closed its doors with record number of exhibitors. Nearly, 3,341 exhibitors from 26 countries and regions made the most of Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabric’s global platform, a 5.9 per cent increase compared to 2016 (3,155 from 27 countries).
After three days of steady business between March 15-17, 2017, new discoveries and networking amongst global industry, the world’s largest apparel fabrics and accessories trade fair for Spring/Summer closed its doors with record number of exhibitors. Nearly, 3,341 exhibitors from 26 countries and regions made the most of Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabric’s global platform, a 5.9 per cent increase compared to 2016 (3,155 from 27 countries). The buyer number remained steady, with around 71,000 visitors from 103 countries and regions attending (2016: 71,163 from 100 countries and regions). This included buyers from concurrent Yarn Expo, CHIC and PH Value fairs who also attended Intertextile Shanghai.
As Wendy Wen, Senior General Manager, Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd said, “This fair is one of the most important events for worldwide textile market, and the strong business results for exhibitors and buyers this edition once again validates this. The amount of new business that was generated here this week, as expressed by many exhibitors, was the most pleasing aspect for us. This is due in part, , to our efforts over the last few editions to improve the quality of buyers sourcing at the fair, as well as a strong focus on our product zones which target the growth areas of the market. We have also continued our work with the venue to ensure service standards continue to improve, which has provided a more conducive environment all-round for business to take place.”
Happy Exhibitors
Amongst the many exhibitors reporting strong results were two world-renowned brands returning to the fair. With long participation at Intertextile Shanghai, they managed to meet new, quality buyers in this edition. “Although we are always exhibiting here, we still see new people at the fair and can always find potential customers,” Eberhard Ganns, MD, Union Knopf (HK) Ltd, Germany, explained. “Many companies in China are growing in size as well as quality, so they are interested in our products. Around 70 per cent of people at our booth have been new and interested customers, so Intertextile Shanghai is the show to be and is an absolute must! We are telling everyone if you want to be serious in this business then you have to be here.” Ganns also said they didn’t just receive interest from Chinese buyers, who anyway have significantly increased in recent years, around 20 per cent of visitors were from overseas including Asia, Europe and the US.
Korea’s Hyundai Chemical has been participating in the Spring-Autumn editions of the fair for four years, with Youn Seok Jang, Overseas Sales Team Manager, explaining the reason for returning is Intertextile Shanghai’s ability to attract the right buyers. “We obtained over 50 business contacts from both new and existing clients over two days. A large number of contacts were domestic Chinese buyers, while buyers from the Americas and Europe also showed genuine interest in our latest products. The fair keeps getting better year after year, and we are able to connect with enough new buyers every edition to make it worthwhile for us to come back repeatedly.”
Unbeatable sourcing platform for global industry
Returning American buyer Steven Fuller, Director Men’s Woven’s, Tommy Bahama, was at the fair to source unique and innovative fabrics. “I have been to many previous editions and this is one of the most comprehensive sourcing platforms for our company to gain contacts. There is no place in the region that has these many suppliers to choose from. I met companies who develop their own fabrics, and have also had the chance to speak with the product developers, which is helpful in explaining the nature of their product. This also makes Intertextile a central meeting hub for key industry players. This edition we connected with over 20 suppliers, while having already placed orders with four of them, including from China, Korea and Taiwan. Overall, I am pleased with the fair and like every year, it is able to fulfil our sourcing needs. We will definitely be back again this October.”
Autumn edition next October
Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics-Spring Edition 2017 was co-organised by Messe Frankfurt (HK); the Sub-Council of Textile Industry, CCPIT; and the China Textile Information Centre. The next edition, Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics – Autumn Edition 2017, will take place from October 11-13.
Trevira GmbH, European manufacturer of high-value branded polyester fibres and filament yarns for hygiene and technical applications, will exhibit its innovative fibres for the wide range of technologies and applications in the non-wovens sector at Index17, the leading expo for non-wovens, to be held from April 4 to 7, 2017 in Geneva, Switzerland.
A new offering in biopolymer fibres, Ingeo, a siliconised PLA hollow fibre for use in fillings will also be shown at the expo.
In response to customer demand in terms of product functions and material properties, the comprehensive product range for airlaid applications is being continuously enhanced.
This also applies to special fibres for the carding sector and shortcut types for the paper industry where the focus in on improving dispersion.
With regard to the increased need for fibres with additional functionalities and to the use of fresh combinations of raw materials, capacities in bico-fibres are being expanded.
For both the polyester and the PLA programme, Trevira has also developed modified fibres for the hygiene sector (e.g. for wet wipes) where these stand out due to their particularly soft handle. It will show these new fibres at the expo.
Emphasis is also being laid on finishes for fibres that must meet food industry standards, likewise on antimony-free polyester fibres, the aim here being to enhance product safety.
At Index 2017, Trevira will participate in a joint presentation with sister companies from the Indorama Ventures parent group.
Following the actions on International Women's Day in Hong Kong, two Indonesian unions protested at the Japanese Embassy in Jakarta on March 23. Their protest was to demand justice for workers at the closed factory PT Jaba Garmindo in Indonesia which supplied Japanese retailer Uniqlo.
The Indonesian factory closed down without providing workers with US$10.8 million in legally required compensation. The company ended in bankruptcy in April 2015 without providing final wages and severance benefits to 4,000 workers at multiple locations.
The actions are supported by Clean Clothes Campaign, War on Want, People and Planet, SACOM, Globalization Monitor and Yokohama Action Research. Last week protests took place in Japan, targeting Uniqlo stores.
As this report leaked out, the buyers have, to date, refused to pay up the workers in full. Failure to provide legally required severance pay is a very common form of wage theft in the garment industry.
Often owners just abandon factories leaving the country without making any arrangement for workers’ severance or payment to other creditors.
In the last five years, an increasing number of international apparel brands have taken responsibility for ensuring that these workers are paid, often by directly providing funds to workers. In the last decade, student and consumer pressure has successfully pushed international apparel brands to take responsibility for funds denied workers when their factories close.
In a landmark case in 2013, after significant pressure from the CCC network, United Students Against Sweatshops, U.S. universities and SumOfUs, adidas directly compensated workers for legally required severance owed by a supplier factory in Indonesia.
Since then, in response to demands by workers and international advocacy organisations, Disney, Fruit of the Loom, Hanesbrands, Adidas, Nike, H&M, and Walmart have either directly compensated workers denied severance or advised their supply chain partners to do so in Honduras, El Salvador, Indonesia, and Cambodia.
Cotton growers of Georgia can expect to make at least 5 to 6 cents more per pound than they received this time last year, according to Don Shurley, University of Georgia Cooperative Extension cotton economist.
The escalation of the price is due to many factors, but the main cause is the increase in exports. Most of the cotton now is exported of which about three-fourths is shipped overseas, said Shurley. The country’s exports are doing really well. The quality that is liked by the U.S. especially here in the Southeast has been just excellent in recent years, she added.
Shurley has been with UGA Extension for more than 26 years and believes that this year hr cotton produce is the best quality of cotton Georgia has produced in that time. Much of the improved quality is attributed to newer varieties and technology associated with those varieties.
However, some of the last year’s yield potential was lost due to the late-season drought. The lack of rain prevented some of the yield at the top of the plants from fully developing. But because of the extended drought, growers were able to get into the fields and harvest the crop in a timely manner.
Thanks that the country didn’t have any rain or wind that reduces the quality. Hence the harvest conditions were really very good,” Shurley observed.
Additionally, cotton acreage was up last year when Georgia planted 1.18 million acres compared to 1.17 million acres in 2015, according to the UGA Farm Gate Value Report.
This year, however, the acreage in Georgia may decrease due to estimated high peanut prices, Shurley predicted.
As for the cotton seed, Shurley is still trying to calculate the data and average them together. However, he hasn’t seen an increase in the price of seed or technology fees in recent years. The differences in prices from year-to-year result from the different varieties of cotton seed combined with newer technology, Shurley maintained.
Prices may be higher next year, but it would be because a new variety or new technology has been introduced to the market and not because of an overall price increase determined by dealers and seed manufacturers.
Despite talk about robots stealing jobs, some folks in the fashion industry aren’t perturbed at all. In fact, four women have embraced the idea. They believe new technologies like 3D printing could accelerate and transform production in the apparel industry.
Last week, a Fashion Group International of Los Angeles (FGILA) panel came together to discuss how this could happen. The discussion centred around Fashion Technology Innovation, Challenges and New Frontiers.
There was much talk of how advances in 3D printing and robotics could change the labour market. The answers to these queries were ideas such as sew bots and 3D printers replacing traditional sewing factories.
Pat Trautman, president of Global Garment Engineering said that in the US, people don’t have anybody those who want to sew. That’s why they needed sew bots to have a competitive advantage over foreign production.
“We need people to monitor the machines,” observed Irina Palmer, a technical designer for the Kendall + Kylie clothing brand.
Also in the panel were architects Julia Körner and Jenny Wu who discussed how they already use 3D printers to create their unique fashion pieces. Julia Körner is the founder of JK Design GmbH which specialises in digital design for 3D printing. She’s been trying to move 3D printing from catwalk to the streets. In 2015, she launched sporophyte which is a ready-to-wear, 3D printed collection.
She has also won awards for her use of 3D printing such as the Rising Star Award at the Global 3D Printing Awards by the 3D Print Show London 2014.
35-year-established Italian technology developer for the denim and apparel market, Tonello recently inaugurated a new area within their company in Sarcedo in the very heart of Veneto known as Italy’s blue jean region.
“Our Tonello Atelier is the place where garments at a gestational stage can see the light,” commented Alice Tonello, R&D manager of the company.
“They can be analyzed, studied, optimized, changed and tested. Here insiders will be able to have a complete view of all treatments and thousands of special effects they can explore and, thanks to Tonello machines, easily achieve.
This new Creative Area is the natural outcome of our philosophy: a concrete service for our customers that goes beyond the simple fact of being manufacturers of machines,” he added.
The new company’s section is dedicated to research and experimentation and is a direct offshoot of its R&D Center that has been appreciated for its ability to develop various innovative and sustainable, energy-saving and healthy garment innovation including, for instance, Ecofree, Nostone and Core.
Their new creative area was developed in collaboration with denim expert Piero Turk and aims to become a school, a training place and a craft shop where masters of denim can meet and pass on their experience and knowledge.
Vietnam will host a textile and garment expo, April 5 to 8, 2017.
Saigon Tex 2017 will showcase high-end machinery and equipment and feedstock for the textile and garment industry.
The expo is expected to attract nearly 1,200 exhibitors from 23 countries and territories. It will also feature several seminars, including those on increasing value for Vietnamese textile and garment products, challenges and investment opportunities in the textile and footwear sector, trade barriers from the free trade agreement between the EU and Vietnam, as well as today’s global apparel and fashion market.
Saigon Tex will offer garment companies a gilt-edged chance to foster relations with foreign enterprises and seek investment opportunities while enhancing technology transfer to increase local content in garment products and improving product quality to meet the needs of local and international buyers.
This will enhance the value of Vietnamese garment and textile products, contributing to the development of the industry amid the country’s international integration.
For 2017, Vietnam’s textile and garment sector aims for a growth rate of seven or eight per cent. Garment and textile exports in the first half of this year showed a year on year increase of 4.72 per cent and accounted for 41 per cent of the sector’s target for 2016.
Qatar has been invited to invest in synthetic fiber production in Bangladesh. The reason is that Qatar is a known producer of petrochemicals. Petrochemicals are raw materials of synthetic or artificial fiber and Bangladesh is the second-largest apparel manufacturer in the world after China.
Bangladesh is looking to export construction and building materials like cement and ceramics to Qatar. There is a growing demand for building and construction materials in Qatar. Qatar is hosting the 2022 FIFA World Cup and about 20 factories in Bangladesh are producing jerseys.
Bangladesh has requested Qatar for a display center at Doha airport where apparel products can be showcased round the year. Qatar has significant oil and gas reserves. Energy production per head dwarfs the other Gulf countries. Top exports of Qatar are petroleum gas, crude petroleum, refined petroleum, ethylene polymers and nitrogenous fertilizers. Top imports are cars, planes, helicopters, and jewelry.
Top export destinations of Qatar are Japan, South Korea, India, China. Top import origins are China, France, United Kingdom, the US and United Arab Emirates.
After registering a positive growth of 2.75 per cent in fiscal year 2014, Pakistan’s textile and garment exports registered a negative growth of 4.88 per cent in 2015 and 12.11 per cent in 2016. The major reasons for the decline were low commodity prices, slowdown of the Chinese economy and the euro zone debt crisis.
In order to restore competitiveness and boost exports of the country, a package has been prepared. Salient features of the package are zero rating of machinery imports, withdrawal of duty and sales tax on cotton imports, withdrawal of duty on imports of manmade fibers, release of pending liabilities of textile policies, release of pending sales tax refunds, drawback of taxes.
Projects like technology upgradation, product development, branding and certification have been taken up. The sales tax zero-rating regime for five export oriented sectors covers textiles, leather, carpets, surgical and sports goods.
To reduce the cost of doing business, the electricity tariff has been cut by Rs 3 for industrial units. Fuel adjustment has been passed on to the consumer to further reduce the cost of production. Pakistan will conclude bilateral agreements with major players in Asean and will then engage with Myanmar. FTA negotiations with Turkey and Thailand are at an advanced stage.
The St. Petersburg State University of Industrial Technology and Design organised the Admiralty Needle contest for young fashion designers in Saint Petersburg. The jury was international including fashion-focused figures from Russia, Japan, China, Germany, Denmark, Hungary, Italy and France. CPM – Collection Première Moscow was also on site and presented two great young talents with a prize in the designer contest.
Over 300 applications were received from young designers from Russia, Japan, China, Hungary and Poland to participate in the contest. Designer Liang Yo from Japan won the contest’s main prize with his collection Open The Heart. In addition to the award ceremony it was also possible to gain an overview of coming trends and future-oriented fashion as well as draw inspiration from other cultures.
For the coming year organisers of the Admiralty Needle promise a new and interesting competition format. Further, CPM – Collection Première Moscow will once again be represented in the jury to focus their special attention on great young designers from the fashion world.
The next CPM – Collection Première Moscow will be held at Moscow’s Expocentre exhibition centre from August 30 to September 2, 2017. National and international manufacturers will present their collections here for the 2017/18 autumn/winter season.
