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As per Office of Textiles and Apparel (OTEXA) affiliated with the US Department of Commerce, Bangladesh's apparel export to the United States (US) grew 9.83 per cent year-on-year in 2019, strengthening its position as the third-largest supplier to the American market, after China and Vietnam.
Bangladesh collected nearly $6 billion from apparel export to the US from January to December, 2019 against $5.40 billion earnings in the corresponding period 2018. Export increased amidst a price hike of Bangladeshi ready-made garments, caused by the elimination of US Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) facility. Bangladesh has been operating without the facility since 2013.
Bangladesh's readymade garments export grew because of the ongoing US-China trade war, prompting both the countries to impose additional tariffs on their respective products, according to industry insiders.
Between January and December 2019, Bangladesh shipped 2.01 billion square meters of apparel to the US. The figure was 1.93 billion square meters in the previous calendar year.
Kingpins Transformers is now the Transformers Foundation. As a foundation, Transformers will actively address and facilitate change in key areas of the denim supply chain including social responsibility, sustainable cotton, responsible chemical management and consumer education. The first step for the foundation is to recruit leaders throughout each of these areas and create an action roadmap for 2020 and 2021.
Besides continuing its events, Transformers Foundation will begin to produce annual reports, white papers, consumer testing and industry honors for outstanding achievements in denim. Its first event as a nonprofit will take place April 24, 2020, in Amsterdam.
What started in 2014 as a way for denim professionals to discuss ideas for change launched a spin-off event for students in 2019. And it’s changed once again—this time, into a nonprofit.
The industry cannot agree on facts or what is right and what is wrong. There is confusion and green-washing, misinformation and dishonest marketing along the supply chain all the way through to the consumers. Brands and retailers use resources when buying their products which are never replenished. The industry needs to understand and pay the true cost of a product, including environmental and social costs. And each day has new reminders that the clock is ticking and environmental change is needed immediately.
Texprocil organized Ind Texpo will be held in Tamil Nadu from March 17 to 19, 2020. This is a reverse buyer-seller meet. Over 75 Indian companies will exhibit their products, which would include quality yarn, apparel fabrics, denim fabrics, choicest home textiles and textile innovations, so as to make sourcing simple and under one roof. The event would also feature exclusive B2B meetings for exhibiting companies, facilitating the exchange of high-quality market intelligence to support industry efforts to attain a competitive edge and move up the value chain with renewed vigor and a better understanding of global trade.
The meet would open up opportunities for Indian companies to explore business potential. Over 100 importers from over 25 countries are expected to visit Ind Texpo. Buyers from Colombia, Chile, Peru, Paraguay, Ecuador, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, UAE, Middle East, Ethiopia, Kenya are expected. Importers in the EU are interested in sourcing Indian yarn, fabrics and home textiles.
The event assumes significance as a good number of textile importers are understood to be looking at alternative sources of supplies following the shutdown in China due to outbreak of the coronavirus. This is the second edition of the event and it is being organized by Texprocil.
Korean retail company Shinsegae offers a variety of retail technology solutions like CloudPOS, Smart Vending Machine, Self-Checkout (SCO) and Self-Scanning Robot. CloudPOS is a cloud-based solution that offers POS essentials to the retail business. The company’s SCO technology has been developed to take various payment methods including credit cards, cash and gift cards, while the Smart Vending machine allows selling of a wide range of products like fresh produce, cosmetics and smart devices.
Shinsegae, founded in 1955, is Korea’s first department store. The flagship store is an iconic place that symbolizes Shinsegae’s traditions and values and its elegant architecture recalls its long history. The company operates two businesses: E-Mart discount store and department store. The E-mart discount stores mainly provide foods, drinks and household products. The department stores mainly provide brand clothes, with seven branch stores throughout Korea. The company has overseas branch offices in China, Japan and the United States. Shinsegae believes in enriching the everyday lives of customers by delivering long-lasting values and commitment. With a network of over 860 stores nationwide, it provides exceptional retail experience for customers across its fashion, beauty and lifestyle brands. The company has been working ceaselessly to modernize the distribution industry of Korea.
For the fourth quarter Puma’s net sales went up 20.6 per cent. There was double-digit growth in all regions and product divisions. Gross margin improved to 47.3 per cent led by small positive mix effects as well as slightly positive currency effects. Operating expenses rose 19.4 per cent in the fourth quarter. Net earnings increased 55 per cent.
Sales for the full year increased 18.4 per cent. Sales in the footwear division increased 16.8 per cent. The strongest growth was achieved in the sportstyle, running and training, and motorsport categories. In the apparel division, sales increased 22.6 per cent and was also driven especially by strong growth in sportstyle, running and training as well as motorsport categories. The accessories division showed a sales increase of 13.5 per cent. Higher sales of legwear, bodywear and cobra golf clubs contributed to the increase. Wholesale continued to drive growth with an increase of 15 per cent. Direct-to-consumer sales increased 22 per cent. This was driven by like-for-like sales growth in Puma’s own stores, the expansion of Puma’s retail store network and a continued strong growth of its e-commerce business. Direct-to-consumer sales represented a share of 25.4 per cent of total sales in 2019 compared to 24.3 per cent in 2018.
The National Cotton Council’s 39th Annual Early Season Planting Intentions Survey says, US cotton cultivation is likely to drop 5.5 per cent to 13.0 million cotton acres this spring. Upland cotton intentions are likely to fall by 5.6 per cent to 12.8 million acres while extra-long staple (ELS) intentions will decline by 2.7 per cent to of 224,000 acre.
Aimed at 13.8 percent for the United States, Cotton Belt harvested area totals 11.2 million acres. Using an average US yield per harvested acre of 848 pounds generates a cotton crop of 19.8 million bales, with 19.1 million upland bales and 675,000 ELS bales.
The NCC questionnaire was mailed in mid-December 2019 to producers across the 17-state Cotton Belt. It asked producers for the number of acres devoted to cotton and other crops in 2019 and the acres planned for the coming season.
Hong Kong-based brand Bossini’s sales have dipped as much as 20 per cent. It began with continuing protests in Hong Kong, which completely brought a halt to tourist traffic flow from mainland China. Then the Coronavirus outbreak as further impacted sales.
Bossini is a brand with unmistakably chic fashion. There is a collection of alluring abstract print tops, cool geometric print midi dresses, funky graphic print tees and more. There are graphic tees for casual days, dresses for party nights and tops for Monday mornings. Simple, solid colored tops and tunics are wardrobe essentials that every woman must own. Easy to dress up, they can be paired with shorts as well as trousers and a coat. Bossini has a wide range of solid colored tops with tie-ups, high-low hems, tassels and more. The brand also has chevron striped tops for those who are looking to wear the classic style with a little bit of a twist. Also on the shelves on this women’s clothing brand is a wide array of cool graphic printed tees and tops for women. Skinny jeans for women are in lightly washed and low-rise variants. The brand also houses an equally chic collection of skirts that are great fashion-flexible picks.
Sales of brands like Adidas and Puma have fallen because of the Coronavirus outbreak. Adidas’s business activity in Greater China has been around 85 per cent below previous year level since the Chinese New Year on January 25. The brand has faced a significant number of store closures in its network of 500 owned stores and 11,500 franchises in China, while fewer people are shopping at those which remain open. The group’s Greater China region, which includes Taiwan and Hong Kong, has for years been one of the fastest-growing areas of the world for Adidas sales.
Puma’s business in China has been heavily impacted due to the restrictions and safety measures implemented by the authorities. More than half of its own stores and partner outlets are closed at the moment. Puma’s business in other markets, especially in Asia, is also suffering from lower numbers of Chinese tourists. But the company expects the situation to normalise in the short term, keeping it on track to achieve its full-year targets.
Both Adidas and Puma are German sportswear makers. Adidas is celebrating 70 years. In India the brand has a very strong business in football and a very strong business in running. Puma has increased its sales by 84.4 per cent in the last ten years. In the same period, the company’s profit has exploded 72.2 per cent.
India has shipped some six lakh bales of cotton to China. But some are either in the middle of the sea or lying at ports in China as there are no officials to unload the consignments. As a result, the payment cycle is stuck since no banks are open to clearing the letters of credit.
Cotton prices have gone down owing to the weak market sentiment. Private traders buying cotton from farmers at Rs 5,200 per quintal are now offering Rs 5,000 per quintal. The cotton yarn business has been hit more than cotton trade. So far, 28 lakh bales have been exported. Bangladesh, Vietnam and Indonesia are other export destinations. Bangladesh accounts for 20 lakh bales to 22 lakh bales and seven lakh to eight lakh bales go to Vietnam. The Cotton Corporation of India is estimated to have purchased some 68 lakh bales from farmers under MSP operations. While wholesale prices are hovering near the MSP of Rs 5,550 per quintal, traders are cautious of them falling once the quality of cotton arriving in the markets deteriorates.
Cotton export shipments already shipped from October 1, 2019, to January 31 this year are estimated at 20 lakh bales, while the balance 22 lakh bales are expected to be shipped during February 1 to September 30 this year.
Richard L. (Ricky) Clarke, III, a merchant from Cordova, Tenn., will serve as president of Cotton Council International (CCI) for 2020.CCI is the National Cotton Council’s (NCC) export promotion arm and carries out programs in more than 50 countries globally under the Cotton USA trademark.
Clarke, who moves up from CCI first vice president, succeeds Hank Reichle, a cooperative official from Greenwood, Miss., who becomes CCI board chairman. Clarke, Reichle and other CCI officers were elected at CCI’s board meeting during the NCC’s 2020 Annual Meeting held February 14-16 in New Orleans, Louisiana.
“I look forward to leading CCI in its mission of making U.S. cotton ‘The Cotton The World Trusts’ for mills, manufacturers, brands, retailers and consumers worldwide,” Clarke said. “Cotton USA promotional events in 2020 will continue to educate this audience and stimulate U.S. cotton sales via networking opportunities throughout the global supply chain.”
Clarke is vice president/senior merchant for Cargill Cotton, Business Unit of Cargill, Inc. His current merchandising responsibilities include sales to several Asian markets.
Other CCI officers elected for 2020 include: first vice president, Ted Sheely, producer, Lemoore, Calif.; second vice president, Carlos C. Garcia, cooperative official, Lubbock, Texas; and treasurer, Steven Dyer, merchant, Cordova, Tennessee. In addition, Gary Adams, Cordova, was elected as secretary and Bruce Atherley, Washington, D.C., elected as assistant secretary.
Elected as CCI directors for 2020 were: George G. LaCour, Jr., a ginner from Morganza, La.; John C. King, III, a merchant from Helena, Ark.; Neal Isbell, a producer from Muscle Shoals, Ala.; and John F. Lindamood, a producer from Tiptonville, Tennessee.
Re-elected as 2020 CCI directors were: Producers – J. Lee Cromley, Brooklet, Ga.; Richard Gaona, Roby, Texas; Craig A. Heinrich, Lubbock, Texas; Matthew R. (Matt) Hyneman, Jonesboro, Ark.; and Paul (Paco) Ollerton, Casa Grande, Ariz.; Ginners –Curtis H. Stewart, Spade, Texas; Merchants – Philip R. (Phil) Bogel, II, Dallas, Texas; Tim G. North, Dallas, Texas; Ernst D. (Ernie) Schroeder, Jr., Bakersfield, Calif.; and William Barksdale, Cordova, Tenn.; Cooperatives – Frederick Barrier, Greenwood, Miss.; Carlo Bocardo, Bakersfield, Calif.; Donald Robinson, Garner, N.C.; Cottonseed – James C. Massey, Harlingen, Texas; Warehouseman - Vance C. Shoaf, Milan, Tenn.; and Manufacturers – Robin Perkins, Sanford, N.C.; and Davis Warlick, Charlotte, North Carolina.
