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Flat knitting machine manufacturers are spending on R&D in order to incorporate new technologies and products with more features and increase their customer base and revenue shares, thus gaining a competitive edge in the market.
A flat knitting machine is a two-bed machine used to create flat knitted fabric. The advantage of a flat knitted machine is that it has vertical and horizontal stationary threads which can be combined into the fabric. It has two stationary beds, which are arranged in an inverted V formation. The machine has tracks in which the needles can be moved. Jumpers, pullovers, cardigans, dresses, suits, trouser suits, hats, and scarves are some common products produced using flat knitting machines. These machines are available in a variety of options in terms of price, size, and other facilities.
Staggering growth of automated flat knitting machines is expected due to rising labor cost and market shift toward automation. Large and growing domestic and global demand combined with increasing purchasing power of people is also anticipated to drive the global flat knitting machine market. The growing apparel market, automation of the textile industry, rising demand for fabric cloths, and increasing disposable income are the major factors expected to influence the global market.
Egypt plans to develop its textile industry with the objective of becoming the next textile factory of the planet. More factories will be opened. Machinery will be renovated and workers will be trained. The vision is to quadruple exports of textiles and garments by 2025, have a million employees in the industry and attract investment worth 17.5 billion dollars.
Egypt is upgrading its upstream textile industry. The aim is to support the country’s private upstream manufacturers’ competitiveness in world markets. The restructuring program aims at restoring Egypt’s prominent position in the world market and capitalising on the globally renowned fine Egyptian cotton fiber. The program includes the modernisation of spinning, weaving, knitting, dyeing, finishing, printing and confection, based on a product line definition which brings forth added value to Egyptian cotton, from cotton farming to readymade goods with world class levels in terms of quality and efficiency. The total value of the program includes around 7,80,000 new spindles and 1,250 new looms, dyeing, printing and finishing machinery and state-of-the-art cutting and sewing equipment.
The investments will stimulate the dynamism for upgrading technology in the entire industry and ensure a continual increase in productivity as well as technical and management skills, to maximise value creation within the Egyptian textile value chain. It will affect Egypt’s vertical integration and competitiveness.
Cotton prices are rising in India.
Among the reasons are crop damage following erratic rainfall and pink bollworm attacks on standing crops in major growing regions. Raw cotton prices have turned around from below the minimum support price, due primarily to a surge in mills’ demand. The lower output last year and delayed arrivals this year have helped the price rise. A continuous downpour in major growing regions has flooded cotton fields.
Rising cotton prices are likely to compound the woes of spinning mills, which have been facing weak demand from China and Bangladesh, which buy over 75 per cent of India’s cotton yarn. Some mills have already reduced their production capacity. But the rising prices have raised hopes for a further increase in the use of manmade fiber in the Indian textile industry. Shortage of cotton yarns and high prices are major factors which have led to a better demand for polyester yarns. Moreover, domestic manufacturers of polyester yarns have been able to increase their capacity utilisation as the anti-dumping duty imposed on China led to a pick-up in demand for domestic yarn compared to imported yarns.
In the international market, cotton continues to trade lower on the US-China trade war.
According to the Council for Leather Exports (CLE), Russia offers ample export opportunities to Indian leather and footwear industry. Though Russia imported leather and footwear worth $3.9 billion in 2018, India’s exports to that country stood at only $52.6 million, clearly pointing to prospects of penetration. Russia is the 13th largest global importer of leather, leather products and footwear.
India’s total export of leather and footwear products was worth $5.7 billion in 2018-19. The current major export destinations for the sector include Europe and the United States.
Aurora Specialty Textiles has developed next-generation, custom-coating capabilities and products to meet the needs of pressure sensitive tape, industrial belt, home furnishings and printable textiles industries.
Aurora Specialty Textiles, based in the US, is a leader in coating, dyeing and finishing of both woven and nonwoven fabrics. A leading custom-coater and finisher for the North American textile industry supply chain, Aurora provides a wide variety of finishes – water repellency, antimicrobial and FR – and is well-known for engineering industrial belting and printable textiles as well as backings for pressure sensitive tape fabrics.
In the printable textiles category, Aurora has the Expressions Canvas line. Treated with a proprietary coating developed by Aurora, Expressions has been engineered to maximise print output and throughput with the newest digital printing equipment. The entire line is cross-compatible with the latest generation of latex, solvent/eco-solvent and UV printers without sacrificing quality or productivity.
Founded in 1883, Aurora operated solely as a bleaching operation before adding finishing, dyeing and coating capabilities. As the global textile industry changed, the company saw the opportunity to move into ultra-wide-width coating of textiles and establish Aurora as a premier textile coater. That move required finding a larger manufacturing facility and investing in new equipment.
Asian streetwear like hoodies, T-shirts, trainers, and tracksuit bottoms is the flavor of the moment. A fashion genre, streetwear is a style of comfortable, casual clothing inspired by skateboarding, surfing, hip-hop, punk and other subcultures.
In recent years a growing number of new Asian labels have entered the sphere. And their sales are increasing strongly. While a few Japanese labels have long had a presence on the global streetwear scene, the big growth in recent years has come from companies in other Asian nations, from China to South Korea, Singapore even Indonesia. Seeking out fresh, unique pieces rather than just flashy logos from big name heritage brands is a major trend both within streetwear and the luxury market.
Asian streetwear has grown in popularity around the globe because it is of an increasingly high standard. The world is looking east because of the tremendous amount of young talent that has emerged in recent years. It is a reflection of Asia rising. The big increase in the worldwide popularity of Asian streetwear has been further helped by fashion bloggers and others in the online and social media sphere. These individuals are increasingly focusing on Asian designers, who had previously been ignored by established fashion publications.
The active wearable lighted apparel and fabric market is expected to grow significantly in the next few years.A major factor driving growth is consumers who prefer practising sports at dusk or dawn. Low visibility often results in accidents, therefore, consumers are opting for lighted apparel.
The concept of lighting apparel and fabric was initially introduced for people working in hazard-prone environment such as mining and construction sites. Reflective fabric, which uses the phenomenon of light reflection to enhance the contrast of the clothing, was used. Soon enough fashion brands introduced the idea of lighting apparel and fabric, which gained rapid popularity among celebrities, hence establishing a new trend.
As consumers around the world are taking conscious efforts to implement a healthier lifestyle, retailers are extending the technology of embedding smart sensors to active wear as well. Lighted apparel is made by a special kind of fabric, stitched with light emitting devices, such as LEDs. The apparel is embedded with lights that can be charged using a USB charger. Companies are focusing on introducing interesting innovations in lighted apparel, such as interactive garments, to attract potential customers. Prominent fashion brands embed lights in apparel, in order to enhance its look.
Denimandjeans will be held in Japan, March 4 to 5, 2020.
The trade show will primarily focus on technology. The event will showcase 40 exhibitors representing various areas of the denim production process. Their latest innovations will not only add function but also a design appeal for consumers. Attendees will share insights on design innovation, sustainability and other topics surrounding the denim and sportswear industries. The aim is to create a niche show in Japan which will aggregate the best innovators in the denim and related sportswear industries and showcase the latest products to visitors.
Japan is a key market for denim. The country imports more than 179 million pairs of jeans annually. Denim is a favorite apparel for Japanese customers and in spite of high costs a decent amount of production still happens in Japan. But the prevailing narrative of price sensitiveness while buying a product fails in Japan. Quality and design are the clinching factors.
Denimandjeans was launched in 2007 as a global resource for B2B denim news, reports and analysis. Since then, the company has held a number of conferences and fairs around the world. In 2014, Denimandjeans launched its first trade show in Bangladesh, followed by shows in Vietnam and India.
"While there was a stigma attached to buying secondhand clothes earlier, now, “one person’s trash is another’s treasure,’ the resale market for secondhand fashion has become a runaway success with everyone jumping on to the bandwagon. In the United States alone, the secondhand market generated $24 billion sales in 2018. This is expected to increase to $51 billion by 2023. As the per ThredUp estimates, the secondhand market in the United States is likely to grow bigger than conventional market in the next five years."
While there was a stigma attached to buying secondhand clothes earlier, now, “one person’s trash is another’s treasure,’ the resale market for secondhand fashion has become a runaway success with everyone jumping on to the bandwagon. In the United States alone, the secondhand market generated $24 billion sales in 2018. This is expected to increase to $51 billion by 2023. As the per ThredUp estimates, the secondhand market in the United States is likely to grow bigger than conventional market in the next five years.
Internet shaping growth
Around 56 million of American women shopped for secondhand clothes in 2018. This was around 64 per cent of
the total world’s female population over 18 years of age. One of the most important growth drivers was increasing use of Internet. Through e-commerce platforms, ranging from eBay to Rent the Runway, Internet not only shaped but also professionalised the universe of secondhand clothes.
Another business that is forecasted to grow at a rapid speed by Reuters is that of garment rentals. It is estimated that the clothing rental business will grow at an annual average rate of 10.8 per cent until 2023, when it is expected to reach $1.9 billion.
Changing consumer mentality a big plus
Although several factors like sustainability and transparency have led to the growth of secondhand clothes market, an important factor that has driven this growth is the change in the mentality of the new age consumers. The new generation of consumers prefers to experiment with their lot more clothes rather than own just a few of them. This gives fashion rentals the biggest growth potential in the next few years.
Several brands and retailers in the United States have opened their doors to secondhand, rental or even subscription market, either through their own resale channels or by collaborating with specialized marketplaces. This can be seen from ThredUp which started its resale service this year in collaboration with companies like Macy’s or JCPenny. The company has also tied-up with Reformation to resale around 7,500 garments at the beginning of this year.
Similarly, Farfetch has launched the Farfetch Second Life platform, which enables luxury bag makers to exchange them for credit for Farfetch’s own ecommerce. H&M organised secondhand sales in April through the ecommerce of &Other Stories, whileNeiman Marcus, bought a stake of Fashionphile last April, a company specializing in selling secondhand accessories.
Rental market attracts consumers
The rental or subscription market is also attracting conventional retailers Urban Outfitters, Nike or Gap. Urban Outfitters launched the monthly clothing rental service Nuuly; Nike created the Adventure Club service of footwear for children between two to ten years old, while Gap has begun testing this terrain with Banana Republic, through the new Style Passport platform.
Vietnam’s cotton imports in August 2019 were down 25.6 per cent year on year and 22.8 per cent month on month. From January to August 2019, cotton imports were down 8.2 per cent year on year. In August the export value of textiles and garments was up 6.6 per cent year on year and 2.2 per cent month on month. In the first eight months of 2019, the export value was up 10.2 per cent year on year. In August, Vietnam’s imports of US cotton were up 23 per cent year on year, but down four per cent month on month. From January to August 2019, imports of US cotton were up 16.19 per cent year on year.
But imports of Indian cotton were down 56.29 per cent, imports of Brazilian cotton down 0.67 per cent and imports of Australian cotton down 65.25 per cent. Due to a high product inventory, Vietnamese plants have reduced their demand for cotton. In September, cotton imports may continue to fall.
US cotton exports to Vietnam have increased 294 per cent over the last five years. Vietnam is the largest export market for US cotton. Vietnam has overtaken China to become the largest cotton importer in the world.
