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Diesel, the Italian denim brand has partnered sustainability and communications consultancy company Eco-Age to create a strategy to identify areas in which the brand can give back to the community.
The plan is build upon four pillars that consider the health and safety of the planet and workers. Under the pillar ‘be the alternative,’ Diesel will invest in research and development to create low-impact materials and processes. ‘Stand for the planet’ reflects how the brand will work to reduce water usage and carbon emissions. ‘Celebrate individuality’ speaks to how Diesel will create a safer, more inclusive space for its workers and ‘promote integrity’ will provide transparency throughout the denim label’s supply chain.
Aside from launching upcycled denim capsule collections with Coca-Cola and Readymade last year, Diesel’s sustainability initiatives have been kept relatively quiet—especially for a brand that’s known for its bold marketing.
Troubled over the steep escalation in cotton prices and the Cotton Corporation of India’s (CCI) cotton trading policy, the mill sector has appealed to Union Textile Minister Smriti Irani to intervene and direct CCI to arrest the price rise. Accusing the corporation of holding large volumes of cotton and quoting prices higher than market rates, industry sources said that the Corporation’s present stand not only affects market sentiments but also puts the competitiveness of the user industry at stake.
The sector has advised CCI to be prudent in pricing and rethink its trading policy. Its policy of operating MSP through CCI instead of direct transfer to farmers or allowing free market to function is neither helping the farmer nor the user industry. Mills are unable to source cotton from CCI as the base price quoted by the Corporation is Rs 46,000 per candy while the market price is Rs 40,000 a candy
According to SIMA, industry-friendly cotton trading policy followed by CCI will help mitigate current challenges and enable the industry to grab the market opportunities in the wake of the thaw in the US-China trade relations.
Lycra’s ground-breaking innovations include LycraFitSense, LycraMyFit, LycraEcoMade and Planet Agenda. Lycra will showcase these latest innovations at ISPO, a leading multi-segment trade fair for sports that takes place 26-29 January.
LycraFitSense technology is a patented water-based dispersion. This revolutionary innovation is screen printed onto fabric containing Lycra fiber to provide lightweight, targeted support exactly where it is needed the most. This solution also helps streamline garment manufacturing by eliminating sewn-in panels and extra seams. LycraMyFit is a polymer engineered to deliver a customized fit experience by offering greater shape tolerance for a range of body types within a size. This innovation directly addresses major consumer needs around fit, which can help brands reduce returns, increase consumer satisfaction, and build brand loyalty. The Lycra Company is also featuring its first branded elastane that is made with pre-consumer recycled materials at ISPO. LycraEcoMade is an elastane offering the same performance as the original Lycra fiber but is made partly with fiber waste collected at the company’s manufacturing sites, which is blended with virgin polymer at specific concentrations. This sustainable solution reduces waste and puts it back into production. Planet Agenda is Lycra’s sustainability platform created to provide insights, technologies, products, and processes that can help customers reduce waste, save energy, extend garment wear life and more.
Lycra works with brands, and their supply chains, to create offerings that bring tangible value to garments, consistent with consumers’ active lifestyles and their desire for lasting comfort, fit and shape.
Bangladesh will focus on certain garment products for value addition and exports. The global market size for these products is $132 billion and Bangladesh earned $7.16 billion by exporting them in 2018. Among these are: women’s briefs, panties, blouses, men’s underpants, coats, trousers, T-shirts, stockings, socks and other hosiery.
These products are either made of cotton where Bangladesh has an edge or non-cotton having features similar to traditional products. These products are relatively easy to manufacture so the cost of making them would not be too high. The aim is to help the sector diversify and reduce its dependence on a few products and progress upmarket.
About 73 per cent of Bangladesh’s total readymade garment export earnings in the last fiscal year was from T-shirts, sweaters, trousers, jackets and shirts. Bangladesh lost 1.61 per cent off the unit value of readymade garment products on the global market in the last four years.
Future expansion will be in non-cotton, women’s/girls’ clothing and outerwear/athleisure. It is important for Bangladesh to consider more investments in primary textiles, especially in the woven and non-cotton sectors, as the preferential regime by the EU for middle-income countries require a double transformation process as per its GSP rules of origin.
In 2019, Vietnam’s exports of textiles and garments were up eight per cent year on year. However, cotton imports fell 7.4 per cent year on year, and fabric imports were up 3.9 per cent year on year. In terms of origin, cotton imports were mainly from the US and Brazil in December 2019. Cotton imports from US was around 36.9 per cent, up 6.5 per cent from the same period of 2018; Brazilian cotton share rose 18.9 per cent year on year; while cotton import proportion of Indian and Australian cotton declined by 7.4 per cent and 14 per cent to 6.1 per cent and 2.6 per cent respectively. The lower shares of Indian cotton were mainly due to their high prices, and those of Australian cotton were attributed to the sharp output reduction and high prices. Brazilian cotton attracted buying interest due to its higher output and cost performance.
For the whole of 2019, the major origins remained the US and Brazil. Import volumes of US cotton accounted for 59.8 per cent, up 12 per cent year on year, and Brazilian cotton share was up by 3.5 per cent to 15.2 per cent. However, the share of Indian cotton and Australian cotton declined by 7.9 per cent and 7.6 per cent to 6.9 per cent and 3.3 per cent respectively.
Vietnamese textile manufacturers are seeing orders decline as buyers are moving to other, cheaper developing countries. Orders have shifted to emerging countries in Africa, while competition with textile superpowers like China, India and Bangladesh is becoming increasingly fierce. Even China’s orders are being transferred to countries with preferential tariff rates such as Bangladesh and Cambodia.
Many businesses do not have enough orders for 2020. Some have had a 20 per cent drop in orders from last year. Contracts for products have been monthly or quarterly rather than long term. Not only Vietnamese textile and garment producers, but also its fiber industry is facing increasing competition from foreign businesses and rivals in countries such as India, Thailand and Indonesia.
The US-China trade war and the new free trade agreements were expected to help Vietnam increase its textile exports but that has not really happened. The slowdown in global economy has affected consumer demand and Vietnamese enterprises have failed to adopt radical solutions to comply with FTAs’ rules of origin. Other difficulties being faced by Vietnam’s textile industry include rising costs of raw materials from China and lower prices demanded by foreign buyers. Vietnam is losing its low labor cost edge over other countries.
Indian start-up dealing in hemp-based products, Hemp Horizons is looking to expand into the fashion arena. Hemp Horizons is looking to expand into the textile industry because hemp as a fiber shows great potential as well. It has a unique framework that allows the body to breathe easy and adjust to the external temperature, irrespective of whether it is hot or cold. The fabric is additionally soft, long-lasting, easily washable and fire-proof. Hemp breathes in four times the carbon dioxide than any other plant and so helps the environment. Besides, hemp is a quickly developing plant that needs fundamentally less water than cotton and doesn't require herbicides, pesticides, manufactured composts or transgenic seeds.
In 2019, sale of hemp seeds and hemp seed oil witnessed a rise in India. These products are utilised primarily as dietary supplements to lose weight, as a source of vitamins, essential fatty acids, proteins etc. As the hemp plant is associated with narcotics, its development has been seriously hampered in India. The company's aim is to enlighten people about the differences between hemp and marijuana, and introduce them to the benefits of this non-psychedelic variety. While a new act legalising industrial hemp in Uttarakhand has helped, there is still some way to go.
The 7th edition of Techtextil India, 2019 promoted a gamut of technical textile solutions from across 13 contingents including India. The event witnessed a strong participation of 192 exhibitors from major countries across the world. It attracted 4,446 quality visitors from major cities like Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Pune, Raigarh, and Mumbai. Visitors from international countries like Canada, Dubai, Germany, Italy, Turkey, UAE, UK and USA gave the show a global feature.
The fair marked a 17 per cent increase in exhibition space, growing 23 per cent in terms of exhibitors and 25 per cent growth in international exhibitors compared to the previous edition. Smart textile machineries, recycled fibers, industrial fabrics, fire retardants, industry wearables, and other sustainable solutions were among some of the key highlights on the show floor. Among the areas discussed during the B2B event, the exhibition majorly divulged into the subject of recent technical advancements, all-round growth, sustainability, and reusability of materials in technical textiles.
The three-day event attracted media-wide attention, as eminent figures from different sectors, including the government, converged at the venue. Efforts by the ministry into the survey and analysis of problems and challenges ailing the growth of technical textiles in India and various subsidy schemes launched by the state government for the promotion of technical textiles, were a major highlight at the show.
The ongoing global trade war has opened doors for Indian apparel exporters. However, it would require companies to scale up operations. Other necessities would include meeting the rigorous compliance demands of clients and managing strict fulfillment schedules. India still manages to be the world’s second largest manufacturer and exporter of fashion garments after China. The factories within the supply chain alone employ close to 13 million individuals.
Exports to the EU declined between two to three per cent for the first four months of the fiscal year. Key competing countries like Vietnam and Bangladesh have taken advantage of their bilateral trade agreements and least developed country status, respectively, and contributed to India’s declining position in the EU market. Not only have they affected India’s market share, they have gone forward and tapped into the opportunities in China’s declining market share. Indian apparel exports have been suffering but somehow persisted, mainly due to export incentives. In spite of that, there is undoubtedly going to be an impact on margins, as there are several other factors apart from just lower demand that play a vital role in determining India’s place in the global apparel and textile trade. Competitive pressure from countries like Bangladesh and Vietnam persists and raw material costs are rising rapidly.
In 2019, Turkish yarn exports decreased 6.1 per cent. Exports of home textiles increased 1.8 per cent. The share of fiber in total textile exports decreased from 13.7 per cent to 6.4 per cent. Total exports of the Turkish textile and raw material industry in 2019 decreased 5.5 per cent compared to the previous year. The share of textile and raw material exports in total exports decreased from 5.9 per cent to 5.5 per cent. In 2019, the main export market of the Turkish textile and raw materials industry was 28 EU countries. Exports to the former Eastern bloc countries increased 5.9 per cent to 10.5 per cent. African countries ranked third among the biggest export markets. Exports to these countries decreased by 1.7 per cent.
During the year exports of textiles and raw materials to Germany decreased by two per cent. The amount of textile exported to Germany increased by five per cent. The highest increase in exports was to the Iranian market with 10.2 per cent. Woven fabrics were the most important product group of textile and raw materials exports in 2019. Exports of woven fabrics, which account for 23.5 per cent of textile and raw material exports, decreased by 6.6 per cent compared to the previous year.
