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Bangladesh has begun preferential trade talks with Indonesia to increase export of apparel, leather and other items to the South Asian country. There is huge potential of Bangladesh’s apparel items, leather and leather goods, and medicine in Indonesian market. The country plans to sign a preferential trade agreement (PTA) with Indonesia.
Compared to other export destinations, Bangladesh’s prized export product apparel, that occupies 83 per cent of its export basket, performs poorly in Indonesia. However, the rise seen so far during July-December is very encouraging.
According to Export Promotion Bureau, during fiscal 2017-18, Bangladesh exported goods worth $4.25 million to Indonesia. Apparel exports accounted for nearly half of the total export receipt fetching $1.8 million. During the first half of the fiscal, total exports to Indonesia has crossed $28.7 million. Half of the total exports to Indonesia –$14.2 million – was from the apparel sector with $8 million in knitwear and $6.2 million in woven. Among other major export items to Indonesia are vegetable textile fibres, paper yarn and woven fabrics of paper yarn, home textiles and jute-related products.
Puma's sales increased by 20.1 per cent currency adjusted to € 1,226.4 million, compared to € 1,040.2 million in the previous year. Sales growth was particularly strong in the Asia/Pacific region followed by the Americas, both increasing at double-digit rates. Both apparel and footwear showed strong growth in the fourth quarter of 2018, improving 28.6 per cent and 17.4 per cent respectively. For footwear, it was the 18th consecutive quarter of sales growth.
The gross profit margin in Q4 remained stable at a high 47.1 per cent, despite negative currency impacts in the quarter. Operating expenses (OPEX) increased by 17.1 per cent to € 544.9 million in the fourth quarter, caused by higher sales-related, variable costs and a step-up in retail investments, including e-commerce. Football sponsorships, marketing initiatives for new footwear franchises and the launch of the basketball category led to higher marketing costs. The operating result (EBIT) improved by 26.1 per cent from € 29.8 million to € 37.6 million in the fourth quarter 2018. The improvement in profitability was due to the strong sales growth combined with an OPEX increase at a slightly lower rate than sales.
Net earnings in the fourth quarter 2018 improved significantly from € 2.2 million last year to € 15.7 million and earnings per share increased correspondingly from € 0.14 last year to € 1.05.
Link will be an integral part of MarediModa, Cannes, November 5 to 7, 2019. Link is a competition that runs during MarediModa. It is a search for creatives from all over Europe. It involves over 100 European schools of creativity, in order to intercept the most talented students of style and design and put them in direct contact with fashion brands.
Nine finalists (three for each of the categories of beachwear, underwear and athleisure) will exhibit their mini collections, an exceptional visibility and a fashion show after the vote of the public and the technical jury. Thanks to Link many young people have been given the possibility to design their own collection or work in style departments of leading international fashion brands. Starting from last year, Link has opened up to the world of athleisure in addition to the beachwear and underwear categories, resulting in an extraordinary crossover of these three segments.
MarediModa, which takes place every year in Cannes since 2002, is an important event for the premiere presentation of the collections of fabrics and accessories for the sea, underwear and athleisure sectors. It boasts an international presence of exhibitors and visitors that continues to grow year after year.
London Fashion Week, to be held from February 15-19, 2019 will showcase over 100 businesses leading in creativity and innovation with visitors from 49 countries. This season the British Fashion Council is focusing on sustainable practices and their Positive Fashion initiative through a partnership with BBC Earth and designer Amy Powney of Mother of Pearl. The collaboration will explore the impact fashion industry has on the planet while highlighting the positive tangible opportunity for sustainable fashion choices by businesses and mindful consumer behavior.
On February 19, the Queen Elizabeth II Award for British Design will be presented to Bethany Williams by the Duchess of Cornwall. The award recognises creativity in design while embedding sustainability and community practices within the business.
This is the second London Fashion Week with catwalks and designer showrooms that are fur free. The BFC survey around use of fur continues to reflect what is seen as a cultural change with more designer businesses and international brands choosing not to show fur as part of their collections and increasingly more moving to being completely fur free businesses.
The Indonesian textile and textile products industry is targeted to enter the ranks of the world's top five by 2030, where the industry is being prioritised for implementing the fourth industrial revolution. This sector continues to rise, especially through its export achievements. The government has given full support to domestic producers especially in the sarong industry.
The Ministry of Industry will develop the potential of sarongs as a new lifestyle for the people of Indonesia. In March 2019 a sarong festival will be held. The Minister of Industry believes the domestic textile industry is capable of being competitive globally because it has high competitiveness. This is encouraged because the industrial structure has been integrated from upstream to downstream and its products are also known to have good quality in the international market.
Several strategic steps have been prepared so that the textile industry can enter the digital era. For example, for the next 3-5 years, the Ministry of Industry will focus on boosting the ability in upstream sector to increase synthetic fiber production. Efforts are being made, among others, to collaborate or attract investment in fiber-producing companies. It will also encourage the use of digital technologies such as 3D printing, automation, and internet of things. This transformation is believed to optimize efficiency and productivity.
As per Lingerie Market: Global Industry Analysis, size, sales and forecast by 2024, the global lingerie market is experiencing moderate growth in the apparel segment as nowadays individuals are more inclined towards branded items, most of which are usually priced on the higher end. People from all backgrounds and income group want to avail a comfortable and lasting inner wear that can be fashionable as well as skin-friendly.
There are many local brands or companies that manufacture cheap quality products to cater to the wide population in the under developed or developing countries. Mergers and acquisitions are a strategic way of entering the market and understanding the current needs and preferences of the population. Through this, the large companies will benefit in capturing the market and at the same time, will enable the small companies to fight for a better position in the market.
The Indian textile sector will start trend forecasting soon.
This will help determine what will be in vogue in the near future, as India gears up to influence global fashion trends.
Schemes will be firmed up for the apparel and made-ups sectors which are WTO-compliant. This will be an added incentive for exporters and allow them to compete with the EU and other countries.
India is unable to compete in apparel exports with countries like Bangladesh and Vietnam, which enjoy zero duty access. More incentives are in the pipeline for the apparel sector under the Merchandise Exports from India Scheme.
An innovation and incubation center is also being set up which will incubate startups in the sector and handhold them to move forward. A repository of various indigenous crafts will be prepared. Joint ventures with other countries are being planned on technical textiles and specialty fibers. An India-specific apparel sizing is being undertaken.
The Remission of State Levies Scheme is being reexamined. A hike in rebates is likely. Embedded duties will be refunded fully.
India’s share in world trade in textile and clothing is estimated to be 4.95 per cent. With these exports, India is ranked second among suppliers in the world.
Hanes Brands has earned an A- score and taken a leadership position in the CDP 2018 Climate Change Report. Hanes has voluntarily reported its carbon emissions data since 2010 to CDP, which was formerly known as the Carbon Disclosure Project. The company scored in the top six per cent of nearly 7000 companies that participated in the most recent report and achieved the highest score in the apparel industry.
Receiving nearly across-the-board scores in the A range, Hanes’ performance was also higher than the company’s reporting sector average and regional average. Hanes Brands is a leading global marketer of everyday basic apparel under world-class brands. Unique in the apparel industry because it owns a significant majority of its manufacturing and supply chain operations, Hanes achieved its CDP score for its transparency and by managing emissions, implementing best practices and taking coordinated action on climate-change issues.
Hanes, with over 68,000 worldwide employees, embraces environmental stewardship and the conservation of natural resources. Among the company’s 2020 objectives are goals to reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions by 40 per cent from its 2007 benchmark.
Since 2007, the company has reduced energy intensity by nearly 21 per cent. It has partnered with universities to educate the next generation of business leaders about the importance of integrating environmental stewardship in business strategy.
The global zipper market is growing at a CAGR of 4.5 per cent. The zipper, formerly known as a clasp locker, is a commonly used device for binding the edges of an opening of a fabric or other flexible material, as on a garment or a bag and so on. Zippers are widely used in clothes, shoes, luggage/bags and so on. With increasing demand from downstream industry, zipper production has shown a continuous upward trend over the last few years.
YKK, Riri, Ideal Fastener Industrial, SBS are among key players in the zipper industry. YKK is the largest manufacturer of zippers in the world. Zippers can be made of metal, nylon or plastic, out of which nylon zippers account for 68.66 per cent of the market share.
China is the largest base of zippers globally, with a share of 56.05 per cent. However, when considering product quality, China still has an obvious gap with manufacturers from developed countries, such as Japan or Europe. Asia is the key consumer for this market. China is again the largest consumer in the world with a 37.25 per cent share in the consumption market. Southeast Asia is the next biggest consumer.
Kimberly Glas is president and CEO of the National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO). Glas brings over 20 years experience in policy development and advocacy. Her multi-faceted career includes spearheading manufacturing and trade policy efforts, serving as a key leader on behalf of the textile industry and leading a non-profit organization working to advance critical policies to grow quality, US jobs in the clean energy economy.
She has a strong combination of leadership skills, policy and advocacy knowhow, and industry knowledge and has extensive experience working on manufacturing, trade, competitiveness, and sustainability issues. She has worked closely with the United States Trade Representative, other key agencies, and Congress to advance a multitude of trade policy interests critical to the US industry.
NCTO is an American trade association that represents domestic textile manufacturers, including artificial and synthetic filament and fiber producers. The US textile industry is experiencing a dynamic period. A new policy environment has evolved that places a greater emphasis on domestic manufacturing.
