High end fashion label Mulberry has announced that Chris Roberts will replace Chairman Godfrey Davis who will soon step down from the group.

Roberts will assume the post at the end of September to lead abusiness whose revenues rose 23 per cent year on year to reach £152.4 million.

He was appointed to the board of Mulberry in June this year as non-executive director and is currently managing director of Como Holdings, the luxury hotel group owned by Malaysian husband and wife team and billionaire industry titans OngBengSeng and ChristinaOng, who also own Chalice a 56.2 per cent shareholder in Mulberry.

Mulberry said Davis would remain associated with the firm as life president in a non-board role to continue to allow the group to “benefit from his extensive experience”.

The Mulberry board said it intends to appoint an additional independent non-executive director and name a senior independent director in the near future.

After a five-year hiatus, the dyeing unit of C&A Textiles, a listed company, resumed experimental production even though production in the garment unit of the company remains suspended.

As per an Apparel Resources report, the dyeing unit will resume full production after the trial run and will produce around 25 tonnes of cloth daily.

The trial production of C&A Textiles was inaugurated by Professor ShibliRubayat-Ul-Islam, Chairman (Senior Secretary), Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC).

Listed on the capital market in 2015, C&A Textiles had raised Taka 45 crore from investors through initial public offerings, but had to halt production in 2017 due to loan fraud, less than a year after it was listed in the capital market.

The company had earlier cleared its longstanding dues thanks to Alif Group, which came forward to save the textile mill by investing Taka 50 crore as a share money deposit, after acquisition of C&A Textiles.

Accounting for 16 per cent of global exports, cotton remains an important export for Sub-Saharan Africa. Cotton production in the region has grown in recent years due to increased area under cultivation and improved yield, indicates the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO). FAO’s market developments and mid-term projections for world cotton markets for 2022 to 2031 shows, area under cotton cultivation has increased due to a rise in cotton prices. Yet, cotton consumption across spinning mills in the Sub-Saharan Africa region remains limited as most produce is exported.

Export growth to boost market share

In the coming decade, exports from the region are projected to grow at around 1.7 per cent per annum with the region’s market share increasing by more than 1 per cent point to nearly 18 per cent compared to the base period. Textile and apparel exports from other countries like Ethiopia are also rising as processing capacities across the region are being enhanced. Driven by favorable economic conditions, expansion is boosting FDIs in the sector. This could also result in more mills of cotton in the long run and impact net export status.

In 2022, rising consumption and prices will continue to boost cotton prices in international markets. However, global demand may remain under pressure owing to the rising popularity of synthetic fibers, notably polyester.

Rising energy prices to impact cotton demand

FAO states, economic growth and urbanization will continue to impact per capita demand for cotton textiles in developing and emerging economies. Factors other than economic conditions in the developing world may impact global cotton consumption, production, and trade projections. Rising energy prices and the Russia-Ukraine war may impact demand in short term. The industry’s growth may also be affected by emergence of new COVID-19 variants and subsequent movement restrictions.

Adopt sustainable supply chains

FAO adds, raising of interest rates to contain inflation is likely to alter the cost of borrowing, hence investment plans in the sector. Growth in the sector could also be affected by providing of raw material to producers through textile recycling. To boost cotton demand, the industry needs to adopt sustainability standards in supply chains. They need to introduce measures to deal with effects of climate change including droughts and other adverse weather conditions.

The Supervisory Board at adidas AG is ready to appoint a new CEO in 2023, as current CEO Kasper Rorsted relinquishes his position to a new successor during the year.

Strengthened brand’s market position

In partnership with the Supervisory Board and Management Board, Rorsted will play a vital role in ensuring a smooth transition of this process. During his tenure at adidas AG from 2016, Rorsted repositioned adidas AG as one of the most trustworthy brands in the sportswear and accelerated its digital transformation. He helped the company grow online sales by almost five times, notes Thomas Rabe, Chairman.

During Rorsted’s tenure Adidas doubled sales in the world’s largest market, North America. It also gained formidable advantage in sustainability besides increasing diversity, equity and inclusion throughout the company. The share of women engaged in top leadership positions also increased sharply.

Making a successful restart

Having successfully divested TaylorMade, CCM Hockey and Reebok, adidas AG is now focusing on its core brand adidas. Marked by several economic obstacles in the last three years due to the pandemic and geopolitical tensions, the brand is set to initiate CEO transition to help the company make a successful restart.

An iconic sportswear brand, adidas has achieved great heights in its space. The brand’s business remained significantly disrupted in the past few years due to some external factors. Kasper Rorsted states, “adidas is an iconic sports brand. As a company, we have achieved great progress in strategic areas of our business. I am proud of our achievements as a team. The past years have been marked by several external factors that disrupted our business significantly. It required huge efforts to master these challenges. This is why enabling a restart in 2023 is the right thing to do - both for the company and me personally.”

At the moment adidas business is growing almost 85 per cent and it aims to accelerate this growth across all markets and continue to operate without major disruptions in future.