Improving production facilities and compliance standards will boost Bangladesh’s apparel exports to $100 billion in the next 10 years, observed international clothing retailers and brands at the recent Sustainable Apparel Forum 2022 in Dhaka. Bangladesh will continue to remain the most preferred apparel sourcing destination for brands, opined buyers at the forum. Ziaur Rahman, Head-Bangladesh, Pakistan and Ethiopia, H&M explained, the maturity achieved by industry leaders in the last 40 years will enable them to invest as per buyers’ requirements.

More investments in circular fashion and product diversification

Bangladesh currently has many green factories and also complies with workplace safety and other required standards, making it eligible to achieve $100 garment exports in the next 10 years, Rahman affirmed. Emphasizing on the importance of Bangladesh market he said, H&M sources garments from around 300 Bangladesh factories. This year, it plans to source around 11 per cent of Bangladesh’s total export value. However, to boost exports, Bangladesh needs to increase investments in innovation, circular fashion, product diversification and human development.

Agreeing with him, Shafiur Rahman, Regional Operations Manager, G-Star RAW said, his company plans to increase garment sourcing from Bangladesh by 30 per cent to $90 million in the next three years. Earlier sourcing about 75 per cent knitwear items, the company recently diversified to denim, woven and outerwear products, he added.

Italian garment machinery manufacturer and supplier Tonello has been supplying garment machinery in Bangladesh for last 28 years. Alice Tonello, Director- R&D, emphasized, the garment sector in Bangladesh will continue to grow. Her company has so far supplied 1,500 textile, garment and washing machines to Bangladeshi garment factories.

Yilmaz Demir, Regional Sales Manager – Asia, Bossa, also affirmed, Bangladesh is doing well as factories have improved production facilities. His company has been selling about one million yards of denim fabrics worth £5 million in Bangladesh for the last 16 years, he added. However, raw material prices have increased post pandemic. Also, the changes introduced in Generalized System of Preferences may create problems for Bangladesh in future.

Exporters concerned about low profit margins

Appreciating Bangladesh for becoming more compliant, Rashid Iqbal, Executive Director, Naveena Export a Pakistani-based denim fabrics manufacturer said, his company exports 5 lakh meter of denim fabrics worth $1.7 million to Bangladesh a month and it is an important market for them.

Amidst shifting work orders from China, Vietnam, Myanmar and Sri Lanka, a growing cause of concern is the low profit margins of garment exporters, opined Dolly Thay, Managing Director, Cloths ‘R’ Us, a buying house. Garment workers in Bangladesh are also affected by the way apparel sourcing takes place. Hence, the country needs new initiatives to reduce the industry’s impact on environment.

Organized by JFW (Japan Fashion Week Organization), The Premium Textile Japan (PTJ) Spring/Summer 2023 will be held at the Tokyo International Forum /Exhibition Hall E on May 25-26, subject to full compliance with safety rules and measures to prevent COVID-19 infection.

The event will focus on the ongoing JFW Sustainability Project and the JFW Textile Online Salon project. Mipox, a globally renowned top Japanese-affiliated polishing maker will showcase its dispersion technique for polymer/semiconductor materials, including resins, alongside coating techniques in the production process are utilised efficiently to develop reflective materials. The products to be displayed by the company include Ref Lite8000 series; a 20-colour set of reflective clothing kept always in stock and encompassing a wide-ranging spectrum. It will also showcase Ref Lite Softlite Plus - a reflector designed for the fashion industry, which eliminates stiffness, bends easily for piping and can be easily sewn.

Rainbow World from Noshiro City, Akita Prefecture, will also join PTJ for the first time with its own one-stop production facility, handling printing, washing, finishing and sewing for the handkerchiefs, stoles and other items on offer. It will showcase double-sided inkjet prints (integrated duplex) using reactive dye for cotton and silk. Another must-see poducts includes a uniquely developed natural plant-dyed fabric, using the regional resource of Akita cedar from Noshiro City, with dye extracted from its leaves as a raw material processed by hand screen printing in house.

Moelan Studio, a GOTS-certified specialist will exhibit a soft-touch twill that combines the ultra-breathable Lenzingecovero and sustainable true cotton material alongside a fluid and near-translucent typewriter fabric blending.

Located in the Niigata region, Asaki will present check fabrics using an unevenly dyed organic cotton, unique to the Niigata region and blending twisted yarns for a cool and fresh feel. Other highlights include crepe fabrics using blended yarns; cotton for warp and recycled polyester for weft, which retain their crease effect in a vertical direction, alongside newly developed fabrics using blended yarns; cotton for warp, cotton/linen for weft and washer-processed. All of which offering the same familiar cool and fresh feel; further interwoven with sashiko-like stitches for unique surface changes on the fabric.