Sri Lanka’s textile and apparel sector may face serious consequences if policy makers fail to introduce new reforms to accelerate its growth, warns the Joint Apparel Association Forum (JAAF). Sri Lanka’s textile and garment exports increased 10.8 per cent in the first quarter of 2021 to $1.5 billion, reveals a Central Bank report. However, export earnings declined 0.6 per cent to $464 million from $ 467 million compared to the same period a year ago.
Data from Export Development Board pegs Sri Lanka apparels and textiles exports’ growth at 22.12 per cent Y-o-Y to $445.79 million in April. The sector is currently under serious threat owing to the gross economic mismanagement. Demand for apparels in the country is low, leading to a 20 per cent fall in export orders, says a Daily FT report. To stabilize growth, Sri Lanka needs to support garment manufacturers, both big and small. It needs to introduce sustainable, decisive solutions for their development urgently.
Yohan Lawrence, Secretary General, JAAF says, Sri Lanka needs to reinstate buyers’ confidence by being resilient to upcoming global economic crisis. The Sri Lankan industry is known for reliability, quality and sophisticated technical capabilities. It complements these qualities with a visionary approach to innovation, sustainability and circularity in fashion, he adds.
Stabilize energy supply and reform political culture
To ensure operational continuity, Sri Lanka’s apparel sector needs to stabilize energy supply by adopting renewable energy technologies, especially solar energy. This will help Sri Lanka ease some of the worst disruptions in production, explains Lawrence.
JAAF has also sought the abolition of the 20th Amendment to the Constitution to drive reformation of Sri Lanka’s political atmosphere. Its faulty political culture is considered to be at the root of its economic woes. To stabilize its economic growth, Sri Lanka needs to prioritize the welfare of its common citizens, Lawrence states. Refuting claims of shortages in raw material supplies and launch of new products, Lawrence says, the factories have an uninterrupted access to raw materials, ensuring smooth operations at the ports.
Ensure uninterrupted fuel supply
The permission to buy fuel directly from the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CEYPETCO) and Lanka IOC in dollars since April will help exporters avoid undue disruptions from power cuts and curfews, opines Lawrence. With bulk deliveries of diesel to apparel manufacturers resuming, exporters will be receiving uninterrupted fuel from specific fuel stations. This will help the industry continue day-to-day operations amidst ongoing fuel shortages, adds Lawrence.
Contributing 6 per cent to the country’s GDP, the Sri Lankan apparel sector accounts for 40 per cent of exports. The sector provides direct employment to 350,000 workers and indirect jobs to additional 700,000 workers. It aims to transform Sri Lanka into a global apparel hub and increase annual export earnings to $ 8 billion by 2025.
India’s RMG exports grew by 22.08 per cent Y-o-Y to $2,935.73 million during April-May ‘22-23 from $2,404.67 million in April-May 2021. RMG exports 3.81 per cent to the country’s total merchandise export during the two months.
India’s RMG exports grew by 22,94 per cent to 1,360.95 million in May 2022 against, export of $1107 million in May 2021 RMG contributed 3.65 per cent in total merchandise export of May 2022, the ministry of commerce and industry said in a release.
India’s total merchandise export in May 2022 amounted to $37.29 billion, an increase of 15.46 per cent over $32.30 billion in May 2021. The export in April-May 2022-23 was $77.08 billion with an increase of 22.26 per cent over $63.05 billion in April-May 2021-22.
India’s merchandise import in May 2022 was $60.62 billion, an increase of 56.14 per cent over $38.83 billion in May 2021. The imports in April-May 2022-23 were $120.81 billion with an increase of 42.35 per cent over $84.87 billion in April-May 2021-22. The trade deficit in May 2022 was $23.33 billion, while it was $43.73 billion during April-May 2022-23.
With the former Soviet republics altering ties with Russia, it has become imperative for Central Asian states to find alternative markets for their products to shield their economies from Russia’s impending economic collapse. Only a more economically prosperous Uzbekistan can help protect Central Asia from the threat of Russian and Chinese invasion.
The recent decision to lift global boycott on cotton imports from the country will help Uzbekistan reconfigure its textiles markets. Uzbekistan’s primary trade partner and its largest cotton importer, Russia is on the brink of economic collapse with rising inflation and sanctions shrinking its trade with Uzbekistan. To normalize trade relations with Uzbekistan, Russia needs to repeal the Jackson-Vanik Amendment adopted in 1974, to facilitate Jewish emigration from the Soviet Union by restricting trade.
Ban gone, brand operations begin
Upholding Uzbekitan’s efforts to eradicate child and forced labor, the Cotton Campaign called for lifting of international boycott on Uzbek cotton in March 2022. This led to 331 international brands and retailers resuming operations in the country. Major brands such as Adidas, Tesco, IKEA, Marks & Spencer, H&M, Zara, and Gap have started sourcing Uzbek cotton, leading to a reformation of the Uzbek cotton industry.
Uzbekistan produces around 4.5 per cent of the world’s cotton. It exports 10 percent of global cotton requirement and adds approximately $1.3 billion to the Uzbek economy each year.
Uzbekistan has implemented reforms to end forced labor, says Bennett Freeman, Co-founder, The Cotton Campaign. President Shavkat Mirziyoyev issued a decree in 2012 to ban child labor in cotton harvesting. He abolished the state regulation of cotton production and mandatory sales plan two years ago to end all child labor practices and reform the cotton sector.
ILO says, Uzbekistan did not transform its cotton sector due to external pressure. Its primary motive behind the move was to create jobs and transform Uzbekistan into a producer and a manufacturer of textiles and garments. Higher salaries have led to a dramatic increase in the number of people being employed in the cotton industry. The sector has also benefitted from return of the migrant workers from neighboring countries. The pandemic and war in Ukraine, has accelerated the process.
One of the most important structural changes in the cotton industry has come from creating regional clusters to buy the harvest directly from farmers and process the raw material into textiles Clusters are also modernizing and attracting FDI. Decentralization also created conditions for bargaining between cotton pickers and buyers which resulted in higher wages.
Uzbekistan will continue cooperation with the ILO to create more higher-paying jobs through its second Decent Work Country Program for 2021-2025. The program sets out to improve the legal framework governing labor relations, expand employment opportunities for youth, women, and vulnerable groups, and strengthen social dialogue and the institutional capacities of social partners.
Washington can support Uzbekistan as a preferred cotton supplier, stabilizing the supply chain of American textile apparel companies. A prosperous Uzbekistan plugged into the global economy would further improve the country’s human rights while enhancing regional security and shielding Central Asia from unwelcome Russian and Chinese inroads.
To be truly sustainable, the fashion industry needs to reduce its GHG emissions by 1.1 billion metric tons of CO2 by 2030. However, the industry suffers from gross overproduction with brands producing for 50 micro-seasons in a year and launching thousands of products every week, says a McKinsey & Co report. Consumers often feel an adrenaline rush while buying new clothes. Taking advantage of this, fast fashion brands quickly churn out new collections of low-quality, low durability garments, selling them at low prices and reinvest the profits achieved through this for future collections.
Resale allows full use of products
The most obvious solution to this problem is resale. As per a Woman’s Wear Daily report, resale allows brands to develop businesses without releasing harmful carbon emissions. Moreover, it enables them to also limit the number of new products manufactured and sold at full price. With resale, brands can explore the full potential of products they have designed, made and sold previously. Resale also enables brands to replace lower quality newer Items with products that have been already traded in and authenticated.
Removal of stigma associated with secondhand shopping also encourages consumers to engage in purchase of used products. Additionally, the resurgence of COVID-19 in many countries and growing importance of sustainability makes this a perfect time for brands to build recommerce offerings. A report by Coresight Research estimates, growing faster than traditional retail, fashion resale will grow at twice the rate of overall US fashion market in 2022.
Allows discovery of new brands
Though many retailers believe, resale might affect primary sale their fears have are largely unfounded. Facts show, 65 per cent resale customers on branded resale storefronts are first-timers. Hence, retailers need to incorporate resale into their retail strategies to improve engagement with new and existing consumers.
Resale provides consumers the excitement and freshness they look for while shopping. They don’t necessarily look for goods with completely new materials but materials that are new to them. Resale also enables consumers to discover new brands and products whose existence was previously unknown to them, as reveals a Boston Consulting Group survey.
In future, as shopping for pre-owned items increases, more brands will adopt recommerce model to boost their sustainability credentials and bottom lines. By growing their inventories of pre-owned goods and controlling secondhand sales, brands will be able to please consumers while increasomg profits without overproduction.
New investments and branding by global retailers and brands have helped Bangladesh emerge as a powerful manufacturer of denim for the United States and European market
As per a Textile Today report, Bangladesh will remain as the preferred sourcing destination of denim goods as the country has improved the production capacity and invested a huge amount of money in backward linkage industry.
According to the Commerce Department’s Office of Textiles and Apparel (Otexa) data, Bangladesh’s denim exports grew by 42.25 per cent Y-o-Y to $798.42 million in 2021.
In 2020, Bangladesh exported denim products of $561.29 million to the US market.
In 2021, Mexico, the second largest exporter of denim to the US, earned $655 million and Vietnam earned $402.49 million.
Bangladesh holds a 21.70 per cent share of denim products in the US, while Mexico and Vietnam hold 17.79 percent and 10.93 percent.
According to Eurostat data, Bangladesh’s denim products exports to the EU rose by 15.18 percent to $1.18 billion in 2021, which was $1 billion in the previous year.
Bangladesh’s share in EU denim market stood at 26.82 percent, while Turkey, the second largest exporter of denim earned $1.13 billion, holds 25.83 percent followed by Pakistan’s share was 17.43 percent and it exported denim products worth $768 million.
Inditex and Infinited Fiber Company have entered into a new partnership to advance new and innovative technologies for textile-to-textile circular loop. As per a Textile Focus report, the partnership focuses on Inditex´s three-year commitment to buy 30 per cent of Infinited Fiber Company’s annual future production volume of Infinna™, a textile fiber that can be created from 100% textile waste –a deal valued at more than €100 million.
This purchase commitment helps Infinited Fiber to expand up its recycling technology through its first large-capacity factory, which it expects to begin operations in 2024, when Inditex is due to start to buying Infinna™.
This collaboration is part of Inditex’s Sustainability Innovation Hub, an open-innovation platform that works alongside start-ups, academic institutions and tech centers to promote and scale innovative initiatives for new materials, technologies and processes that reduce the environmental footprint of fashion products and help in the advance towards more sustainable and circular solutions. Infinited Fiber has developed an innovative solution to turn cellulose-rich materials, such as worn-out, cotton-rich clothes, into a new trademarked fiber called Infinna™ that looks and feels like cotton and can be recycled again in the same process together with other textile waste. With this new fiber, Inditex will be able to continue to minimize the use of virgin materials and advance the move towards a more circular model of clothing production.
Fashion brand Esprit has launched a new collection with Korean fashion brand fleamadonna and eCommerce sites for customers in South Korea and Hong Kong.
Esprit said its newly created eCommerce websites will offer integrated shopping experiences with products comprising the brand’s main labels and collaborative capsule ranges throughout the year. To go with the launch of the websites and kick off a long-term partnership consisting of three unique capsule ranges, the brand has collaborated with fleamadonna to launch the series "ESPRIT X REST & RECREATION" which reinvents Esprit's archived designs. According to the brand, the series brings together Esprit's retro-chic sensibility with designer Kim Ji-eun’s modern fashion aesthetic, giving birth to a selection of designs for new generation fashionistas.
The new products also aim to connect with Millennials growing up in the 80s and 90s including gen Z, as well as generations beyond. The brand added that it will adopt a diversified approach to sourcing locally and seek out more sustainable ways to deliver products to consumers.
Italy recorded 22.6 per cent growth in fashion sales in 2021 compared to 2020. However, pressure on bottom line increased due to a surge in raw material and energy costs, The Russia-Ukraine war also dampened consumer confidence and stability, as per an outlook by Cirillo Marcolin, President, Confindustria Moda. Their figures show, the sector’s sales grew by €16.7 billion to €91.7 billion last year.
A similar trend was highlighted by Sistema Moda Italia, the consortium of Italian fashion and textile companies, which posted a sales rise of 18.4 per cent to €52.9 billion in 2021.
According to Confindustria Moda, exports of Italian fashion goods grew 23.5 per cent last year to €67.5 billion with France, Germany, China and the US, among the best-performing importers. Gianfranco Di Natale, General Manager emphasizes, the US showed impressive growth compared to mostly flat growth over the past two decades. At the same time, exports to the UK decreased 10.2 per cent last year, signaling the impact of inflation on consumer consumption there.
A survey among its associated companies allowed the group to forecast like-for-like sales will improve 19.3 per cent in the quarter. The same survey highlighted an expected slowdown in revenue growth for the second quarter, when the impact of the Ukrainian conflict is being felt more broadly and sales should increase 12.9 percent on a comparable basis.v According to Confindustria Moda, exports to Russia and Ukraine declined by 3.1 per cent from 2019 to € 1.72 billion in 2021. They represented 2.5 percent of total exports in 2021. The analyst estimates, 3 per cent of Italian fashion companies generate more than 50 per cent of revenues in Russia and 11 per cent between 10 and 50 percent.
The survey revealed, 49 per cent fashion enterprises expect second-quarter sales to remain flat versus the previous quarter, while 43 per cent forecast deterioration in their performance. Marcolin says, it is important to build supportive culture among the country’s entrepreneurs to power through the geopolitical instability and pilot the digitization, internationalization and sustainability of the sector.
Despite growing demand for their textiles, Vietnamese textile firms fear, tight material supply might affect export plans. Vietnam is expected to export textiles worth $43.5 billion in 2022. The sector’s exports are expected to grow with top importers reopening economies. Vietnam’s textile exports are also expected to rise on account of various free trade agreements coming into effect, says Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (VITAS).
However, Chinese Zero-COVID policy and the Russian-Ukraine war may disrupt supply chains, warns Than Duc Viet, Director, Garment 10 Corp. This may hamper the company’s ability to fulfill new orders, he adds. Than Duc Vet, Director, Garment 10 says, his company plans to diversify suppliers in the next five to ten years to be less dependent on China but it has to accept the situation and seek support from its partners in the short term.
Tran Nhu Tung, Chairman , Thanh Cong Textile Garment Investment Trading JSC., reveals, this company plans to substitute Korean and Thai materials or rely on domestic materials to deal with the shortages. According to the General Department of Customs, Vietnam’s textile exports grew 23 per cent to $8.8 billion in Q1 FY 2022, representing the highest quarterly growth in 10 years.
Vietnamese textile companies are urging the government to approve the Development Strategy for Textile and Footwear by 2030 to make the industry self-sufficient in material production and compliant with rules of origin as stated in free trade agreements, informs VITAS.
The Coreva Design Store in Milan will retail 50 exclusive oversized women’s denim shirts a result of the first research project between fibre producer Lenzing and denim manufacturer Candiani. As per an Innovation in Textiles report, made from Coreva, Candiani’s biodegradable stretch denim made from Tencel Limited Edition yarns, these shirts contain 20 per cent hemp fibre.
The limited-edition fabric can be used to make personalized jeans. Recognized for its sustainability, hemp fabric is equally known for its roughness. Lenzing makes the fiber softer by applying closed-loop manufacturing process in combination with wood pulp, it has been transformed into a soft fibre for the first time.
Caroline Ledl, Head – Textile Management, Lenzing Group says, invented in 2021, the Tencel Limited Edition initiative explores the use of alternative raw materials such as hemp or orange pulp in textile production. The initiative pushes traditional boundaries of fibre production by leveraging natural resources and value by working with like-minded companies such as Candiani Denim.
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