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Inditex’s president Pablo Isla feels a sustainable growth strategy is key to the future of the group, which is “totally” focused around a circular economy centered on people, social aspects, the environment and the product’s quality.
Speaking at a recent shareholders meeting Isla analysed the company’s evolution and data from the 2016 period and cited “sustainable growth” as “something absolutely essential. He also referred to growth that is solid and integrated as key to the future of Inditex, which he defined as a company “centered on people, based on creative talent and with an integrated model of physical and online stores.”
The board approved the 2016 results, which allowed for dividends of €0.68 per share, representing a 13.3 per cent increase from the previous year and an 89 per cent growth over the past five years, which suggests an attractive and certain remuneration policy for shareholders. Isla also indicated the group’s goal to implement its short and long-term strategy across the world, as a phenomenon such as Brexit won’t affect the shares and investment plans in the UK.
He stressed on the “solid growth model” for the group, which has seen comparable growth rates of 69 to 37 per cent in the past five years, with positive outcomes across all regions. With regards to “sustainable growth strategy” based on a circular economy, Isla cited transparency in supply chain management, adequate working conditions, occupational health and safety, dignified salaries, collective negotiations for factories, female empowerment and protection for migrants as key principals.
In 2016, the group raised 1.4 billion euros in funding and will exceed 7 billion in the next five years. A large portion of that has been spent on technological advances such as the RFID system. It’s estimated that in 2018 the technology will reach the remainder of the group’s brands.
Technical textile exports from the EU grew 2.4 per cent during 2016, says Euratex. It accounted for 38 per cent of total textile exports by the EU last year. The major importer was the US, which purchased 20 per cent of total technical textile exports by the EU. Menswear exports from the EU were 23 per cent of total apparel exports by the EU. Switzerland, the major menswear importer from the EU, saw a drop in value of imports by 3.9 per cent.
Meanwhile, the EU witnessed double-digit growth in value-wise menswear exports to South Korea, Australia, Serbia, Mexico, Israel and Ukraine. Trousers, shirts and coats were the top exported products in the menswear category with a share of 32 per cent, 19 per cent and 17 per cent respectively.
Menswear imports also jumped during the year. The share of menswear imports in value terms was 28 per cent, whereas volume-wise it contributed 25 per cent to total apparel imports by the EU. Menswear imports soared 0.5 per cent in value and 4.4 per cent in volume terms. During 2016, imports of womenswear too improved significantly. The segment improved by 0.8 per cent, contributing 36 per cent to total apparel imports by the EU. China, Bangladesh and Turkey were the top exporters of womenswear to the EU.
Designers are looking to forests for clothing ideas. They are moving away from old-fashioned materials like cotton, silk or leather. Forests have a lot to offer. Yarns from cypress, beech and eucalyptus trees, not to mention cork, are softer and more breathable than cotton or silk. Fabrics similar to animal skins can instead come from hardwoods and conifers.
Fashion students in Italy have been creating a collection of clothing and accessories made entirely from wood and wood-based products. Large and globally recognized fashion brands are working to change their supply chain to avoid endangering forests. The world's largest apparel makers are removing endangered and ancient forests from their dissolvable pulp supply chain for their viscose and rayon fabrics. They are giving themselves three years to find alternative sources, including straw and recycled fabrics.
Around 30 per cent of the rayon and viscose going into clothing comes from dissolvable pulp sourced from endangered and ancient forests. Manmade cellulosic fabrics like rayon, viscose and lyocell are created from trees cut down exclusively to feed dissolving pulp mills.
Forest-based fabrics represent five per cent of the global apparel industry and that number is poised to grow. Demand for dissolving pulp is projected to double in the next 20 years and is increasing at a nine per cent rate annually.
Bangladesh has started amending its labor laws under pressure from the International Labor Organisation and the European Union. The amendment may be done by the end of August. Some basic changes will be made. The worker percentage needed to form a trade union in a factory may be brought down.
Current law, which was hurriedly amended in July 2013 three months after the Rana Plaza building collapse, requires collection of signatures of 30 per cent of the workers in a factory to form a trade union. The suggested amendment says, if a factory has 500 workers, 30 per cent must sign up for a trade union; if the number of workers is 5000, about 10 to 15 per cent of them need to give their signatures. But not more than three unions in a factory will be allowed although the international community demands a higher number.
The country is also working to amend the labor law of the export processing zones. The EU has already warned Bangladesh of suspension of the GSP under the EU's Everything But Arms scheme if labor rights are not improved further. Bangladesh has committed to amending labor laws by the end of August.
Maredamare will be held in Italy from July 22 to 24, 2017. This is a beach wear trade fair where around 200 Italian and foreign brands will present beach wear and accessories collections for summer 2018. Fashion shows, theme-based workshops and meetings, exclusive presentations and events are lined up.
The main theme is a tribute to graphics and geometric patterns that make surfaces alive. The source is minimalistic and unconventional, sometimes audacious. Micro and macro motifs are wisely balanced as to make spaces more lively and vital; a sophisticated kind of luxury is reached through the wise development of the most unusual geometries.
Sport Couture is a sophisticated interpretation borrowed from the technical universe. It is realised through minimal graphics, color blocks or small and nearly unnoticeable all-overs that leave room to the performance of the fabric. Cuts are simple. Bikinis and one-piece bathing suits are inspired by water and beachwear sports.
Hippie Boho is nomad, rebellious and adventurous. It represents a journey to faraway sun-burnt lands, a voyage to the discovery of signs and patterns borrowed from remote universes. Gypsy prints and abstract patterns blend with stripes and floral motifs.
Powerful Rainforest represents a nature explosion in its full power. Flora and fauna prints with saturated and majestic tones characterise this trend.
The 2017-18 International Woolmark prize gets under way. Industry partners, retailers and designers will align themselves and their brands to help promote outstanding and emerging talent from across the world.
This year’s the Indian subcontinent and Middle East regional final will take place on July 24 in Dubai. A panel of judges will decide which designers will go through to the global final for the men’s wear and women’s wear categories to be held early 2018. The judging panel includes AlisonTay, Editor, Grazia Middle East; Che Kurrien, Editor, GQ India; and Nonita Kalra, Editor, Harper's Bazaar India.
The six regional awards will be held in Seoul, Sydney, London, Milan, Dubai and New York. One men’s wear and one women’s wear finalist will be selected from each region.
This year has a total of 64 designers taking part in the international Woolmark prize, spreading across key global and emerging markets. Woolmark has an extensive network of relationships spanning the international textile and fashion industries and highlights Australian wool’s position as the ultimate natural fiber and premier ingredient in luxury apparel.
Woolmark is a subsidiary of Australian Wool Innovation, a not-for-profit enterprise that conducts research, development and marketing along the worldwide supply chain for Australian wool on behalf of about 50,000 woolgrowers that help fund the company.
US-brand Fruit of the Loom has recently joined The Sustainability Consortium (TSC). TSC is a global, non-profit organization working to transform the consumer goods industry so that mainstream consumer goods bought each day are more sustainable.
Joining TSC will allow Fruit of the Loom to evolve and expand its current processes to remain a sustainable organization and leader in the apparel category. As a part of The Sustainability Consortium, Fruit of the Loom will have access to one of the world’s largest research databases, which translates sustainability science and data into business tools that can be used throughout a product’s supply chain and lifecycle. Other members of TSC include manufacturers, suppliers, services providers, NGOs, civil society organizations, governmental agencies and academics.
The Sustainability Consortium, formed in 2009, has more than 100 members and there are over 2,000 users of TSC tools worldwide; it convenes more than 200 global organizations annually over an average of 75 networking opportunities. Fruit of the Loom, is into family apparel, intimates, and athletic apparel and equipment. With a heritage of more than 150 years, its diverse portfolio of more than 20 iconic brands includes Fruit of the Loom, Russell Athletic, Spalding, JERZEES and Vanity Fair.
Germany based Terrot has introduced the new UCC572TR, a computer controlled circular knitting machine. Developed for knitting electronic-jacquard transfer relief for fashion textiles with three-way technology, this allows various pattern styles on both sides of the fabric, making the UCC572TR extremely flexible with regard to different fashion applications and bonds. Terrot, is a manufacturer of electronically and mechanically controlled circular knitting machines.
Usual knitting structures, either one or more colors, are possible. The high-grade knitting structures as double face, jacquard and relief represent the real strength of the machine. Through special transfer technology demanding hole and structure patterns can be realized quickly and without any major effort.
Using the three-way technology, the UCC572TR is extremely efficient and reliable. The model has 72 feeds over a 30-inch diameter. Similar machines hold only 48 systems at the same diameter. The machine reaches a speed factor of SF 540 and delivers a substantial production performance. Pattern changeovers can be made in seconds via USB or LAN port.
With its enormous pattern possibilities, the electronically controlled knitting machine offers users the greatest possible flexibility to respond quickly to changes in fashion market conditions and adapt quickly to the changing customer requirements.
Researchers from University of Cambridge, UK, including one of Indian origin, have designed a super strong, stretchy artificial spider silk, composed almost entirely of water. The fibres, which resemble miniature bungee cords as they can absorb large amounts of energy, are sustainable, non-toxic and can be made at room temperature, and it may be used to make eco-friendly textiles and sensors.
The fibres are spun from a soupy material called a hydrogel, which is 98 per cent water. The remaining 2 per cent of the hydrogel is made of silica and cellulose, both naturally available materials, held together in a network by barrel-shaped molecular "handcuffs" known as cucurbiturils. The chemical interactions between different components enable long fibres to be pulled from the gel.
The fibres are pulled from the hydrogel, forming long, extremely thin threads a few millionths of a metre in diameter. After roughly 30 seconds, the water evaporates, leaving a fibre which is both strong and stretchy. Darshil Shah, from Cambridge says although their fibres are not as strong as the strongest spider silks, they can support stresses in the range of 100 to 150 megapascals, which is similar to other synthetic and natural silks.
The fibres are capable of self-assembly at room temperature, and are held together by supramolecular host- guest chemistry, which relies on forces other than covalent bonds, where atoms share electrons. They think that this method of making fibres could be a sustainable alternative to current manufacturing methods, added Shah.
The strength of the fibres exceeds that of other synthetic fibres, such as cellulose-based viscose and artificial silks, as well as natural fibres such as human or animal hair. In addition to its strength, the fibres also show very high damping capacity, meaning that they can absorb large amounts of energy, similar to a bungee cord. There are few synthetic fibres which have this capacity but high damping is one of the special characteristics of spider silk.
At Texworld this week, USA, global leader in odor elimination and smart fabric technology solutions Noble Biomaterials, will present a variety of high-performance textiles made with XT2 ® anti-odor technology.
The company will offer natural textile alternative to polyester often used in technical knits and activewear brands. Lenzings' sustainable fibers offer moisture transfer and comfort, and when blended with the anti-odor benefits of Noble's silver-based technology, provide an optimum textile for active-lifestyle applications that can be washed less frequently and maintain freshness.
Joel Furey, Founder and CCO, Noble Biomaterials says, “Noble has a deep commitment to sustainability and a rich history in fiber and textile development. The company’s goal is to consistently innovate new textiles and technologies that improve people's lives every day.”
The company engages in numerous sustainability initiatives, including recovery and recycling of silver, addressing sourcing, production, and product end of-life. In addition to its commitment to the bluesign® system, Noble's products are OekoTex certified. Its XT2 technologies use the properties of silver to provide long-lasting odor protection. Unlike topical finishes or treatments, the silver is inherent and permanent to the yarn and will not wash out or wear off lasting the life of the product.
Noble will participate in a panel discussion with Lenzing Fibers, Samil Spinning and Buhler Quality Yarns at Texworld. Moreover, to present its latest textiles and technologies Noble will also be joining the Outdoor Retailer Summer Market, July 26-29 in Salt Lake City.
Noble Biomaterials, is a global leader in bacterial management solutions for soft surface applications. The company is known for producing unconventional material technologies designed for mission critical applications in the performance apparel, healthcare, industrial, and developing wearable technology markets.
