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"Digital textile printing market in Pakistan has shown good promise as it offers better and high definition textile print design possibilities, lower water, effluent, emissions and energy use with economical production of ‘short run-medium run’ prints to the market. Shorter delivery brings in increased savings to retailers and brands as digital printing hubs are based on proximity sourcing and just-in-time printing and sourcing strategies"
Digital textile printing market in Pakistan has shown good promise as it offers better and high definition textile print design possibilities, lower water, effluent, emissions and energy use with economical production of ‘short run-medium run’ prints to the market. Shorter delivery brings in increased savings to retailers and brands as digital printing hubs are based on proximity sourcing and just-in-time printing and sourcing strategies.
Textiles maintains a strong growth story
Pakistan’s textile sector plays a pivotal role in the country’s economy. At present, independent processing units are working in and around Faisalabad, Gujranwala and Karachi with complete finishing facilities. These integrated units have complete finishing facilities which include bleaching, mercerising, dyeing, calendaring and printing. These units from the power loom sector procure cloth and after processing are marketed under their own brand names in the domestic market.
Weaving and made-ups have three different subsectors viz. integrated, independent weaving units and power loom sector. Cloth is being produced in both mill and non-mill sectors. Pakistan’s fabric range from coarse to super varieties. There are a large number of vertically integrated units, where production is controlled from fiber to the end product, and marketed abroad directly.
The production of cloth (mill sector) increased from 1,020 million square meters in 2010-11 to 1,037 million square meters in 2014-15, thus showing an average increase of 0.54 per cent per annum. Out of total production of cloth during 2014-15 in mill sector, 50 per cent produced in grey form, 34 per cent dyed and printed, and 16 per cent blended and bleached.
In order to help the value-added sectors of textile industry the government has taken a number of measures. One of these is to correct the imbalance caused by dependence of the entire country’s economy on a single commodity that is raw cotton. Serious efforts have been made by the industry to increase substantially, the domestic production of polyester fiber, whose supplies can be technically pre-determined and controlled by man as against raw cotton, being always on the mercy of nature. Consequently, there is a growing trend for blended fabrics, especially polyester/cotton in garments and other made-ups, like bed sheets.
Increase in import of finishing machines
Fashion has always been a fast-paced industry, but today top brands are incorporating new colours and styles onto their shop floors at unprecedented speeds. Household and other textile applications are also beginning to experience similar pressure to provide more designs at a faster pace. The success of garment printing illustrates the growth of an industry that equipment manufacturers have clearly noticed.
Meanwhile, a number of printing companies have released DTG printers, Epson’s Sure Colour F2000 series among them. Garment printing uses GT-3 Series Garment Printer with CMYK and 4 White Print Heads made by Brother. Due to withdrawal of custom duties and taxes and introduction of concessional financing and LTFF on the import of finishing textile machinery increased during the year 2014-15. Import of textile dyeing, drying, bleaching and finishing machines increased from 782 numbers valued Rs 1.34 billion in 2012-13 to 2,220 numbers valued Rs 3.35 billion in 2014-15, thus showing an average increase of 50 per cent in terms of value.
Innovations resulting from technological advancements represent the best strategy for success in the increasingly competitive textile industry. The fabric production market has limited scope, which can be enhancing by value added finishing to textiles. The maintenance and improvement of current properties and the creation of new material properties are the most important reasons for the value added textiles.
Challenges ahead
Pakistan textile industry is facing challenges due to social and environmental compliance issues from US and European buyers at present. The impact of environmental regulations on Pakistan’s textile sector can be classified according to many parameters. However, the major area of concern for the textile-processing sector is wastewater and effluent treatment.
The country’s textile industry is burdened by high cost of inputs and many taxes. Electricity rates have been raised by 13.6 per cent that makes the textile products completely uncompetitive in the international markets. Frequent power outages and fluctuations cause havoc with the production.
According to APTMA, billions of rupees of the textile industry are stuck up with the government for a long period due to the overdue refunds of sales tax, income tax, and duty-drawback. Despite repeated representations at all levels, overdue refunds have not been released. This has raised the cost of production for the Pakistani manufacturers in relation to its other world competitors and forced the industry to borrow to continue and survive.
Pakistan government announced Textile Policy (2014-19) in February 2015 envisaging doubling of textile exports from $13 billion to $26 billion in the next five years. Besides opening up EXIM bank, reconstitution of export development fund board, setting up of land port authority and Federal Textile Board.
This year (January-March), Bangladesh exported 51 million square meters of RMG to the US market and earned $145 crores. This is more than last year. The growth in January was 11.31 per cent but it came down to 8.46 per cent by the end of February, according to the data released by Office of Textiles and Apparel.
Bangladesh is on 3rd biggest RMG exporter to the US market. China and Vietnam are the top two. This year (January- March), China exported RMG to the US market and earned $609 crore. This is 5.94 per cent less than the previous year. During the same period, Vietnam earned $257 crores through RMG exports to the US market. However, Vietnam’s exports have increased to 5.73 per cent since the last year.
The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) forecasts substantially higher production of cotton with a moderate increase in consumption. Global production is estimated at 104. 35 million bales (1 bale = 480 pounds) in 2016-17 compared to 99.54 in 2014-15, up 4.8 per cent. The likely increase in production is largely attributed to the US, India, and Pakistan. There aren’t any major increases in acreage, but extreme weather conditions and pest attack of last year that negatively impacted crop yields are not anticipated in 2016-17. In 2016-17, the USDA expects US cotton production at 14.8 million bales, India at 28 million bales and Pakistan at nine million bales, which are 15 per cent, 4 per cent, and 29 per cent higher than 2015-16 figures, respectively.
However, Brazil and China are likely to have lower production. China’s cotton production has been pruned for a third consecutive year to 23.8 million bales in 2015-16 and 22.5 million bales in 2016-17. The slide comes in the midst of lower price realisations (cotton prices lost 30 per cent in 2014), reduced support prices and increased preference for food grain crops.
The USDA estimates global cotton consumption at 110.78 million bales in 2016-17 compared to 109.02 million bales in 2015-16. China’s cotton consumption (use of cotton by mills) had gone down in recent years on account of factors like higher domestic prices, falling man-made fiber prices and overall industrial slowdown; and no major upturn is expected. However, cotton consumption in China is expected to grow slightly in 2016-17 on lower domestic prices.
H&M, the Swedish retail giant began a revolutionary practice in February 2013: it started collecting old garment items from its stores worldwide to reuse them to save water and ensure environmental sustainability. The company has collected 28,000 tonnes of old garment items for reuse and recycling, t date which is as much fabric as in at least 100 million T-shirts, according to company data. In the short term, we have a clear vision to avoid waste and minimise the waste that goes to landfill. In the long term, we want to find a solution for reusing and recycling all textile fibers for new use, said Anna Eriksson, spokesperson for H&M.
H&M launched the first products made of recycled textile fibers from items collected under the Garment Collecting Initiative in February 2014. The garments, made from recycled cotton, included five classic denim pieces for men and women. It serves as an example of how H&M is closing the loop on textiles and the aim is to use more recycled material in future, Eriksson said.
The products are classified depending on the quality — re-wear, re-use, recycle and energy. The sorting process is set up to the criteria of the waste hierarchy, which states that all products fit for wear are sorted out to keep them in their original form for as long as possible. In 2015, some 1.3 million pieces were made with ‘close the loop’ material, which was an increase of over 300 percent from 2014. Regarding the prices of the garment items produced from the reused and recycled clothes, Eriksson said they want to move towards a 100 per cent circular business model.
Techtextil North America that took place from May 3 to 5, 2016 was a great succes. The show was a gathering of technical textiles, nonwovens, textile machinery, composites, sewn products and equipment. Heat and fire resistant basalt fabrics, recycled fibers, 3D body scanning and automated laser treated denim were some of the highlights.
The event serves the US sewn products industry, ‘Made in America’ manufacturers and the technical textile industry. It is a global business platform that continues to attract potential new customers from North America, Latin America and around the world. With 20 symposium sessions being held throughout the three show days, and four extra bonus sessions taking place, the symposium was buzzing with visitors and speakers discussing new and innovative topics in the industry. Welding, smart future textiles, sustainability, automation, 3D, re-shoring, sewing technologies and more were a part of the nearly 90 presentations.
Country pavilions included Italy, Belgium, China, Germany, China, Taiwan, Business France and SEAMS Made in USA. A great deal of networking took place. There were protective apparel manufacturers and composite manufacturers. Interest in automation technologies was high. Techtextil North America is the only trade show in the Americas dedicated to technical textiles and nonwovens. It allows textile companies to hear from their providers and suppliers based in America, which in turn gives them the opportunity to constantly work alongside their demands.
www.techtextilna.com/
In the first 10 months of the current fiscal year, Pakistan’s textile exports plunged by 7.72 per cent. Low product diversity and inability to explore new export avenues are a key concern facing the country’s textile industry. The country’s exporters are losing competitiveness in international markets as the industry, accounting for nine per cent of GDP and more than 60 per cent of exports is facing a liquidity crunch.
In April, textile exports increased 3.07 per cent over March, but they decreased 3.48 per cent over the same month a year ago. Exports of raw cotton, cotton yarn, cotton cloth, knitwear and bed wear fell 47 per cent, 32 per cent, 9.89 per cent, 1.91 per cent and 4.34 per cent respectively in July to April 2015-’16. Exports of readymade garments and towels rose 4.87 per cent and 0.37 per cent respectively in the period under review.
Total exports declined 12.99 per cent in the first 10 months of the current fiscal year while imports of raw cotton, synthetic fiber, worn clothing and others surged 27 per cent. Many buyers avoid Pakistan because of the security situation and hence entrepreneurs have to travel to Dubai to meet them, which complicates sourcing.
Spinexpo is a professional trade exhibition dedicated to promoting innovation in yarns, fibers and knitwear. The Shanghai-based exhibition has been an ongoing catalyst for the textile and fashion industry and continues to be a driving force in moving both suppliers and buyers forward, urging them to bring newness in design and innovative technical applications to the market.
Buyers have come to recognize Spinexpo as a place of paramount importance, the vanguard of cutting-edge ideas, creativity and inspiration. Among the well known exhibitors at is Xinao. It is one of the world’s leading merino suppliers, known for its dedicated commitment toward environmental issues. Xinao offers three lines of products: yarns for knitwear, yarns for circular knitting and yarns for weaving. In addition, the company partners with Hong Kong and China based knitwear manufacturers.
Another exhibitor Fenix Group which was launched in 1972 as a supplier of Japanese yarns to Hong Kong based companies. It caters to high-end markets with men’s, women's and children’s fashion sweaters. The team creates over 500 designs per season. Fenix is working with over 80 accounts globally. The lead time for a prototype is 14 to 20 days, sampling 20 to 30 days and production 40 to 60 days. Fenix handles an array of techniques for sweater production including printing, washing, embroidery, needle punching and mixed media, from hand knit qualities up to 18 gauges.
Traditional Naga shawls entail a pattern of story-telling and form the literature of any given age, gender, clan, village or tribe. Haphazard plagiarism has led to the loss of this cultural heritage and the narratives that extrapolate culture. Women making these shawls are known to be from poor backgrounds, working hard on their only market skill—the loin loom—passed on through generations; they get a minimal part of the profit.
The trend of gifting intricately etched Naga weaves and crafts has degraded the value and worth of both the culture and the labor involved. The shawls are often used as carpets and bedcovers. Each shawl is carefully designed and woven with bent backs over the loom for hours on end, with careful stitching together of the woven pieces at the end.
Naga textiles have a remarkable heritage enmeshed in a system of hand spin, dyeing, warping, weaving, bead work and designs. Loin loom weaving was once fundamental to the artistic labor of Naga women but due to Christianity and modernisation the younger generation is not aware of its textile heritage.
Very few Naga women and young girls want to learn weaving. This is partly due to the culture of second hand easy-wash-and-wear clothing.
The single window clearance mechanism for importers which India has launched could significantly cut cost and time and help improve ease of doing business. To further simplify inbound shipments, all physical import licenses will be uploaded online with a digital signature. This will do away with the cumbersome compliance measures requiring importers to show physical copies of import licenses or rules of origin certificates to the authorities each time.
The next step will be to do away with the need to present physical copies of licenses each time one imports. The import facilitation move is expected to benefit a large volume of imports and, in turn, economic growth and manufacturing, which is largely import-dependent.
Currently a bill of entry requires an average of three documents. An importer has to go and present physical copies of documents for approval from the authorities. The proposed initiative will allow importers to upload scanned documents with digital signatures.
The single-window mechanism framework launched in April is seeing 17,000 bills of entries every day. Now an importer is not required to go through various other agencies while making a consignment declaration. They are automatically routed through.
"With the start of the economic crisis, many Russian retailers have started moving their production from Asian countries to Russia. With the Russian ruble still weak against major currencies, low costs are tempting some of the world’s leading clothes retailers to consider relocating their production facilities to Russia. The owner of the Zara, Pull & Bear, and Massimo Dutti brands among those in talks with the authorities."
With the start of the economic crisis, many Russian retailers have started moving their production from Asian countries to Russia. With the Russian ruble still weak against major currencies, low costs are tempting some of the world’s leading clothes retailers to consider relocating their production facilities to Russia. The owner of the Zara, Pull & Bear, and Massimo Dutti brands among those in talks with the authorities.
Last March, the world’s second wealthiest person, Amancio Ortega, 79, the owner of the Inditex clothing empire, received an unexpected offer from Russia. The country’s authorities invited the billionaire (Forbes estimates Ortega’s fortune at $67 billion in 2016) to move his factories to Russia, where – due to the weak ruble – production costs have become lower than in China.
Ortega is now considering relocating its production to Russia and is in talks with the Russian Industry and Trade Ministry. Other manufacturers, including H&M, IKEA and Decathlon, are ready to follow Ortega’s example.
Favourable conditions
Zara’s interest in Russian factories is driven by the favorable conditions that have emerged in Russia because of the economic crisis. Thanks to the devaluation of its national currency, Russia has ended up on the list of countries with the world’s cheapest labour.
As per the data from the information and analysis agency Infoline, the monthly cost of a textile factory worker in China is now $250-300, whereas in Russia it is just $200 (15,000 rubles). In these circumstances, the drive to develop the country’s textile industry is a clever move on the part of the Russian authorities, market experts agree.Incidentally, the average salary in Russia is lower than in China and Poland.
It is not surprising that Inditex has turned its attention to production capacities in Russia. Currently, Inditex makes its clothes at factories in Vietnam, Indonesia, China, Turkey and Europe. The group runs 485 stores in Russia and, despite the crisis, managed to open 30 new outlets in 2015, increasing its Russian network by 6 percent, according to the company’s annual report. This makes Russia the third biggest market for Inditex (after Spain and China, with 1,826 and 566 stores respectively).
Foreign players’ interest in the Russian textile industry is further spurred by tensions in Russia’s relations with Turkey after Turkey downed a Russian military aircraft on the border with Syria in November 2015.
Competitive advantage
Russian factories have been working only with local retailers and customers so far. So it remains to be seen how competitive Russian factories are compared with their rivals in China or Vietnam, which operate several shifts and turn out a hundred times as much output.
If clothes under the Zara or H&M brand are made in Russia, their quality will not be adversely affected, insists Lyudmila Ivanova, head of the Fashion Industry Committee under the Russian Textile Industry Union.
Major Russian clothes brands, including Gloria Jeans and Sela, have so far been making their clothes at Asian factories.
Said the vice-president of Russian clothes chain Sela, Eduard Ostrobrod that at the moment, we place our orders with factories in China and Bangladesh, but we are interested in Russian manufacturers. The company is now busy looking for opportunities to move its production to Russia.
With the start of the economic crisis, many Russian retailers have started moving their production from Asian countries to Russia. Thus, the local brands Befree, Zarina and Love Republic have increased the number of orders they place with Russian factories.
Meanwhile, Kira Plastinina has launched its own production in the Moscow Region, not far from the capital. The list of those contemplating a move to Russia is not limited to just Russian brands. The MMD East and West group of companies that forms part of the Bosco di Ciliegi group (which makes clothes for Russia’s Olympic team) intends to build a sports clothing factory in the Kameshkovo industrial part in Vladimir Region (130 miles southeast of Moscow). Investment in the project is estimated at 1 billion rubles ($17.4 million).
The French sports clothing retailer Decathlon has signed a memorandum of intent with the Novosibirsk-based factory S-Tep to produce trainers. To begin with, the factory will produce trainers for Decathlon’s stores in Russia but in future, for the chain’s global network too, the business daily Vedomosti reported in February 2015.
At the same time, many Russian manufacturers are not too overjoyed at the prospect of the arrival of foreign players.
Success stories
Examples of successful integration between global business and the Russian consumer goods industry are many. The Swedish company IKEA, which together with clothes retailers has received an invitation from the country’s authorities, has been successfully cooperating with Russian manufacturers for a long time. IKEA’s purchasing office was opened in Russia back in 1991, long before its first store.
The IKEA in Russia press service said that at present, over 50 percent of volumes sold in IKEA stores in Russia are locally produced. In the textiles category, locally-produced goods make up 40 per cent.Furthermore, IKEA is planning to further increase its local production in Russia.
Currently, the Swedish retailer sources its goods from some 60 Russian factories. Russian manufacturers are fully integrated into the global production and distribution chain: Russian-made goods can be found in IKEA stores in Europe, America and Asia. In addition, IKEA owns four factories in Russia and is planning to launch a fifth one soon.
