Tradeshows giant Hyve plans to launch three virtual forums next month, Fashion Together (comprising Pure, Pure Origin, Moda and Scoop), Autumn Fair @ Home and Glee Gathering.

These forums will provide exhibitors and attendees with the opportunity to showcase and discover new products, engage with suppliers via The Virtual Showroom, and hear market-leading content from retailers and trend forecasters on what 2021 may hold for the industry and how they can kick-start their own sales now.

The event teams behind Autumn Fair, Glee, Pure, Pure Origin, Moda and Scoop said these virtual forums are a key part in their new Refuelling Retail initiative. This brand-new initiative calls for all market players to refuel the retail industry after a challenging first eight months of 2020.

Importantly, the three new forums will be non-commercial events “allowing existing customers to participate at no additional cost, aiming to connect the industry this autumn as all national and international retail trade exhibitions had to be cancelled due to COVID-19.

Vietnam-based South Korean fashion firms are likely to benefit from the European Union-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), according to a report by the Korea International Trade Association (KITA), which recently said apparel producers in Vietnam can enjoy the benefit of that FTA for goods made with South Korean materials.

Clothes produced with Chinese materials, on the other hand, cannot enjoy the benefits of the EVFTA, as China does not have a pact with the EU, according to South Korean media reports. South Korea implemented its own FTA with the EU in 2015.

Vietnam's imports of South Korean materials to produce clothes reached $1.7 billion in 2019, accounting for 11.5 per cent of the total. Those of Chinese goods reached $6.7 billion, or 58.9 per cent. KITA said exports of South Korean materials to the Southeast Asian nation may also increase on the back of the EVFTA.

Vietnam was the third-largest export destination for Asia's No. 4 economy in 2019, with China and the United States standing as the top two.

South Korea's combined exports to Vietnam in 2019 reached $48 billion, down by 0.9 per cent from a year earlier. Over the cited period, the country's exports dipped 10.4 per cent amid the growing protectionism around the globe and falling prices of memory chips.

SaigonTex/SaigonFabric 2020 has been postponed and the trade fair will now be combined with its 2021 edition. The decision has been taken in view of the Vietnamese government continuing with the 14-day quarantine policy for foreigners entering the country.

Joint organizers Vietnam National Textile & Garment Group (Vinatex), Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), and VCCI Exhibition Service Co have recommended foreign companies to exhibit in HanoiTex/HanoiFabric, which is scheduled for December 17-19, 2020.

The Vietnam Saigon Fabric & Garment Accessories Expo is held concurrently with the Vietnam Textile & Garment Industry Expo—the biggest and the most influential event in the textile and garment industry of Vietnam. These two expos are aimed to provide a one-stop market for all buyers in Vietnam and the neighboring countries.

The next concurrent event will be held from April 7-10, 2021 at SECC, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

Khawar Noorani, Chairman- Standing Committee on Imports, Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) requested Prime Minister Imran Khan to withdraw the regulatory duty on polyester spun yarn in order to protect the textile industry from disaster.

Noorani added that the textile sector relied on imported polyester spun yarn to continue production activities because local manufacturers were unable to meet the demand of industries.

Currently, according to him, the local industry meets about 30-35 per cent of total yarn demand of Pakistan while the remaining 65-70 per cent is covered through imports.

Despite this, local yarn manufacturers have created a monopoly and they continue to take full advantage of the lack of government supervision by setting arbitrary prices for yarn, he said. He regretted that by imposing regulatory duty on yarn import, the government had jeopardized the entire textile sector while local yarn manufacturers continued to benefit.

Noorani requested the prime minister to withdraw the regulatory duty on spun yarn in order to save the textile industry from complete devastation.

The annual Santa Fe Indian Market fashion show, will go virtual this year on August 16, 2020.

The event will showcase the work of seven designers, including Santa Fe Navajo designer Orlando Dugi’s debut of a capsule collection and behind-the-scenes film. Each designer will be spotlighted with a teaser on the market’s web site the week of August 10, culminating in the August 16 event A question-and-answer session will follow with the designer, who uses traditional hand-dyeing, weaving and beading techniques on eveningwear, but not in the “Santa Fe zigzags and blue skies” way one might expect.

The other designers showcased also reflect the breadth of indigenous fashion, Bear Robe said, mentioning Skawannati, a Mohawk digital artist who will be bringing her stylish avatar to real life in the show; Korina Emmerich (Coast Salish Territory, Puyallup) whose New York-based Emme brand focuses on social justice and uses upcycled textiles; Sage Paul, a member of English River First Nation and the founder of Indigenous Fashion Week Toronto, whose tactile clothing has reflected such personal moments as her struggles with miscarriage; Dene beadwork artist Catherine Blackburn; Ojibwe accessories designer Delina White and Taos Pueblo avant-garde designer and former “Project Runway” contestant Patricia Michaels.

The United States Fashion Industry Association (USFIA) has released the seventh annual Fashion Industry Benchmarking Study that details respondents’ outlook on business, their sourcing practices, utilization of Free Trade Agreements and preference programs, and views on trade policy.

The study surveyed executives from 25 leading fashion brands, retailers, importers, and wholesalers, including some of the largest brands and retailers in the country. It was conducted in conjunction with Dr. Sheng Lu, Associate Professor, Department of Fashion & Apparel Studies, University of Delaware.

Sourcing executives showed the lowest level of confidence in the five-year outlook since the inception of this report. The number of respondents who were either optimistic or somewhat optimistic about their outlook for the next five years dropped from 64 to 57 per cent. One-third of the respondents reported being ‘somewhat pessimistic’ or ‘pessimistic.’ Hundred per cent respondents reported ‘supply chain disruption’ as the most significant impact of COVID-19 on their business operations. Many respondents saw garment factories that make their products struggling with a labor and raw materials shortage or facing a substantial cost increase in shipping and logistics, and barriers to conducting regular factory audits because of COVID-19.

Despite COVID-19 related disruptions, sourcing executives may continue to diversify to Asian countries. Reshoring for Made-in-USA production may also increase in the next two years, the study says.

The Apparel Impact Institute (Aii), which scales up textile mill improvements by using the National Resources Defense Council’s Clean by Design methodology, is expanding its program to include not just foundational low-key projects, but also intermediate- and advanced-level initiatives that can reduce environmental impacts worldwide.

This year, Aii is augmenting its signature program for energy and water efficiency for textile mills with a pilot project that incorporates best practices for chemistry and wastewater management. For this program, AII is taking a multi-stakeholder approach, receiving both financial and strategic support from institutions like HSBC, IDH, the Schmidt Family Foundation and Stitching Doen and brands and retailers such as Burberry, Gap, Target, Levi Strauss, New Balance, Puma and PVH Corp.

Since 2017, Aii’s programs have helped hundreds of facilities in mainland China, Taiwan, India and Vietnam, verify savings and identify opportunities for further improvement. In addition, Its Clean by Design methodology has demonstrated an excellent environmental and financial return on investment with expecting to recoup their investments in 14 months.

Fashion conglomerate Shandong Ruyi has refuted claims of selling to textile maker Lycra and is instead looking to publicly float the business. Debt-laden Shandong Ruyi Technology Group (Ruyi) bought control of The Lycra Company (Lycra) from the US conglomerate Koch Industries for $2.6 billion in 2019, borrowing about $1 billion for the deal. Lycra's weakening financial performance has prompted some of its creditors to hire restructuring firm Alvarez and Marsal (A&M) as an adviser, fearing Lycra may default.

Ruyi believed Lycra would be better valued via an IPO, rather than a trade sale. Last year Ruyi had suggested it could list the company on China's new tech-focused STAR market. Ruyi holds 53.4 per cent of Lycra, with Koch Industries holding 22.2 per cent and Itochu Group subsidiary CFC holding 15.5 percent. Minority shareholders own the remaining 8.9 per cent.

The Madhya Pradesh government will set up a textile tourism circuit in Chanderi, Maheshwar, Srangpur and Bagh districts. These places are famous for fabrics and prints and also help to get tourist for their palaces, temples and archaeological sites. The government also plans to set up textile parks in these places where tourists can buy directly from weavers. It would reduce the price of products to around 40 per cent as there is no middle men involved in the process. The buyers would also be offered options to customize their dress material designs.

From carpet weaving to using different kinds of embroidery styles, textile printing, weaving of the silk and many other traditions, Madhya Pradesh has carved a special identity for itself. Weavers, printers and designers in the state keep themselves updated with the ongoing trends for catching up the pace. The initiatives are being undertaken by the MP Handicraft and Handloom Development Corporation. Chanderi and Maheshwar are fast emerging as tourist destination in the country.

Bangladesh earned $3.24 billion from apparel shipment in July though the amount is 1.98 per cent lower than a year ago, shows data from the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB). Of the total garment shipment, knitwear exports grew by 4.30 per cent year-on-year to $1.75 billion while woven exports fell 8.43 per cent to $1.49 billion. Earnings from apparel shipment in April, May and June stood at $0.37 billion, $1.23 billion and $2.28 billion respectively.

Personal protective equipment (PPE), masks and other hospital textiles made it to the list of new export items for Bangladesh as a good number of buyers are placing work orders for these items amid the pandemic. If more retail stores reopen in Europe and the US, garment exports from Bangladesh will grow further as the pandemic has failed to dampen the demand for basic apparel items, exporters said.

Sweater factories have now put their best foot forward to meet the deadline for the shipments of August, September and October, said Mostafa Sobhan Rubel, Managing Director of Dragon Sweaters. If the current state of business continues, Abdullah Al Mahmud Mahin, Managing Director, Mahin Group expects his company's earnings this year to be 20 per cent less than last year's, but if a coronavirus vaccine arrives by mid-September, they may witness about a 15 per cent jump in profit.

Bangladesh will start to see stronger export figures from the first quarter of 2021 as more clothes are being bought online, with a massive 76 per cent rise in online sales in the US, said AK Azad, Managing Director, Ha-Meem Group. His factories are running at more than 60 per cent capacity at present.

Work orders are slowly coming back with the knitwear sector is doing better than woven products, said Azimul Islam, Managing Director, Alif Group