FW
The British Fashion Council (BFC) has announced photographer Bruce Weber will receive the Isabella Blow award for Fashion Creator at The Fashion Awards 2016 to be held in partnership with Swarovski. He will be honoured at this year’s ceremony on December 5 at the Royal Albert Hall for his incredible creative achievements within the global fashion industry.
Weber’s iconic photography first graced the pages of GQ Magazine in the ’70’s after which he rose to prominence with the Calvin Klein campaign featuring Tom Hintnaus in Greece. Weber’s signature stripped-back black and white photography captured the spirit of the moment and he has endured as one of the most iconic and celebrated photographers of his age.
Weber’s work on campaigns for the likes of Pirelli, Ralph Lauren and Versace and for magazines such as Elle, Interview, Rolling Stone, Vanity Fair and Multiple Vogues has resulted in some of the most creative and iconoclastic fashion imagery to date. His multiple books have served to spotlight how influential his insight into the contemporary condition is
Arvind’s consolidated revenue grew 19 per cent for the quarter ended September 30, 2016. Consolidated EBIDTA was up two per cent against the corresponding quarter of the previous year. Profit after tax before exceptional items grew by 20 per cent. Profit after tax after exceptional items was Rs 72 crores.
The group’s textile business recorded nine per cent revenue growth. The brands business grew by 33 per cent. Arvind’s brand portfolio is among the strongest in India and has many power brands that have grown at a phenomenal pace. The turnover was Rs 2,300 crores for 2015-16 and is one of the fastest growing businesses in the country with a CAGR of 25 per cent for the past three years. The portfolio includes global marquee brands such as Calvin Klein, Tommy Hilfiger, US Polo Assn., Ed Hardy, Hanes, Arrow, Gant and Nautica, among others.
The company is confident of continuing the growth momentum and taking the business from over Rs 3,200 crores this year to Rs 9,000 crores by 2022. Meanwhile Arvind will dilute 10 per cent stake in its brand business arm and in doing so raise about Rs 740 crores. The entire stake will be picked up by Multiples, a private equity firm.
To boost textile exports from the country, the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) has urged Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to announce the ‘Textile Package’ for exporters without further delay. They say, this could revive the closed capacity, create jobs and attract investment in the country.
Sr Vice Chairman, All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA), Zahid Mazhar said that the PM should take ownership for exports and announce the much awaited textile package without any further delay or it will be too late and too little because Pakistan is rapidly losing customers globally due to high cost of doing business and poor competitiveness as compared to regional competitors. To prove his point, he claimed total exports had fallen from $25 billion in fiscal year ended 2013 to $20 billion in fiscal year ended 2016.
Mazhar said delay in proposed incentive package has been rapidly eroding the exports of textile sector. In support of his argument he said textile exports for September 2016 declined 12.1 per cent as compared to previous year. Textile exports from July 2015 to June 2016 went down 7.5 per cent over the corresponding period of 2014-15.
He further said the industry was facing a crisis because of high cost of doing business being 10 per cent higher than other regional competitors, high cost and shortage of raw materials and liquidity constraints. Duties/taxes/surcharges on exports in Pakistan are more than 5 per cent.
Traders in the United Kingdom have requested their government to take immediate action on Brexit as they say that there was a danger of it going out of control and paralysing the British industry. That would deal a devastating blow to the economy. They have also asked ministers to protect thousands of European employees fearing for their future in a Britain minus the European Union.
The alarm was raised soon after a High Court ruling that said Theresa May cannot trigger Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty without first consulting the Parliament. Businesses have putt decisions pertaining to investment on hold and delayed expansion plans and keeping on hold hiring new staff in response to the decision. Business groups are of the feel that ministers have to listen to their concerns. Privately, there are also people who feel that there is growing frustration that lines of communication have either been interrupted or severed by the turmoil created by the result of the EU referendum.
Union leaders, meanwhile, have started demanding reassurances on the issue of worker’s rights. They are of hope that working people need to know that the Prime Minister’s promise to protect their rights will be delivered in the Brexit agreement. They also feel that a commitment to comply with existing and future EU workers’ rights must be at the heart of any transitional agreement and of any future UK-EU trade treaty. This, they feel will be good for both workers and business. By committing to match EU workers’ rights, the British will have a stronger negotiating position for British businesses keeping access to the single market.
"Nearly 97 per cent of the world’s clothing manufacturing happens outside America. The country’s shopping habits have changed dramatically. In 1965, 95 per cent of the clothing Americans purchased was made in the US. Today, it’s just 2 per cent. In order to keep up the sustainability tag, some of American brands are proudly displaying ‘Made In USA’ tag, which is far from reality."
Nearly 97 per cent of the world’s clothing manufacturing happens outside America. The country’s shopping habits have changed dramatically. In 1965, 95 per cent of the clothing Americans purchased was made in the US. Today, it’s just 2 per cent. In order to keep up the sustainability tag, some of American brands are proudly displaying ‘Made In USA’ tag, which is far from reality.
Companies that used to manufacture everything in the US, such as Red Wings and New Balance, have shifted production of most products overseas. Some companies who are still producing in the USA showcase limited quantities of a product. For instance, Tanner Goods, a leather accessories brand; New England Shirt Co, a men’s shirts brand; and Oak Street Bootmakers, a footwear company.
Costs drive brands to source from outside
Branding strategy
Brands wanting to position themselves as American-made must factor in transparency and an uncertain future as the industry changes. Similar modern brands like Zady, Everlane and The Reformation use a transparent business model as the emotional hook for customers, rather than ‘Made in America’. The key lies in branding your product well while staying true to your ethical manufacturing practices.
Sourcing the need of the hour
Retailers need to maintain a discipline and focus on a greater mission in order to avoid cutting costs on manufacturing overseas. Overseas factories compete on more than just cheaper cost. For brands looking to create designs using advanced skill sets, like block printing or embroidery, they should look beyond American factories. Moving beyond your area of expertise is when you require outsourcing. Of late, investment in manufacturing technology and quality in the US has declined substantially as the industry has shifted to other parts of the globe. At the same time, small domestic brands with very limited production capacities might still be a viable option for some American brands who truly want to stay localised.
There’s no holding back the Malaysian textile industry for the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA) for the country will soon sign the agreement. The agreement holds promise of growing investment. International Trade and Industry Ministry (MITI) secretary-general Datuk J Jayasiri said Malaysia could capitalise on the yarn-forward rule of origin and serve the needs of textile and garment makers as well as consumers among the signatory countries. The yarn-forward rule stipulates all fabrics produced in a garment from yarn made by TPP member states qualify for the trade agreement's duty-free status.
Jayasiri said that before the agreement comes into effect, Malaysia has already seen foreign investors coming in as they find the country a better choice to produce input supply to this market. He was speaking on the sidelines of a three-day seminar themed ‘Unboxing TPPA for Business Strategy for the Textile and Apparel Industry’ organised by the Malaysian Textile Manufacturers Association.
Malaysia could grab hold of the manufacturing of synthetics-based products and high-end garments, which were high value-added products, that the country needed to promote. As the agreement specified a provision of short supply list providing an exception for TPPA member states to buy raw materials from non-members, Malaysia would benefit from it to a certain extent.
The 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement (Nafta) is the reason for the plight of the US denim trade today. Across the US there were more than a dozen denim manufacturers. Now there are just three. Free trade forced American manufacturers to move to cheaper shores or be undercut on price by foreign competitors.
Nafta did not just hit the textile industry; across the US factories making everything from shoes to cars began to close down. The effect of trade deals has turned many areas of once-booming cities across the US into ghost towns. The reliance on a single factory or single industry sometimes cost cities nearly all their jobs when that work moves overseas. Cities in the US have changed from textile towns to data processing centers. Old mills have been turned into loft apartment and studio spaces.
A struggling section of the US is resisting globalization of the economy. Democratic Presidential candidate Hilary Clinton in the past supported free trade deals and called for more open economic borders. She praised the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade agreement while it was being negotiated. But she later said she would not support TPP in its current form though she would want the US to remain a large player in the global economy.
In the first nine months of the current calendar year Bangladesh’s apparel exports to the United States grew by a meager 0.61 per cent. In comparison, one of its main competitors, Vietnam, posted a 1.64 per cent growth during the January to September period of 2016. Sluggish economic recovery in the United States, Bangladesh’s single largest shipment destination, is largely to blame for the slowdown in export growth. For the first time, readymade garment exports from India maintained a negative growth of 0.08 per cent in the current calendar year while Cambodia's exports declined by 14.39 per cent.
Orders from China are shifting to Vietnam as the latter has developed its strength in producing non-cotton items which also helped it in earning more. On the other hand Chinese apparel exports continued a negative growth of 8.64 per cent during the same period this year. Global demand for apparel has slowed down in recent times, which means prices of apparels are not increasing.
The current global apparel market is estimated at 1.1 trillion dollars. Almost 75 per cent of this market is concentrated in EU, US, China and Japan. The next largest markets are Brazil, India, Russia, Canada and Australia, in descending order. Bangladesh’s exports of non-apparel items, including shrimp and plastic products, also declined by 6.92 per cent in the first nine months of the current calendar year.
Undeniably, this season has thrown the fashion world into unfamiliar territory. As an effect, consumer confidence is low but the luxury sector’s performance is on a high. The pound continues weakening while high street insists on lowering prices. A cold Spring and a warmer than usual Autumn has been the stuff of buyers’ and merchandisers’ nightmares.
The above circumstances created a perfect storm for the fashion market, with it suffering its deepest decline this month since 2009 at -1.9 per cent sweeping away £700 million from the market. Retailers, however, have not helped themselves by investing heavily in trend led products and ignoring the back to basics mentality that shoppers resort to in this volatile environment.
Latest data from Kantar Worldpanel’s Fashion Panel shows that product mix may be dragging the market down more than expected. Desperate to entice and engage shoppers, many high street brands made very bold buying decisions investing in trendy product offerings hoping to stand out from one another and appeal to millennial shoppers. By doing so, however, all of them now look like similar versions of themselves; compounding these decisions with the current retail climate and these retailers are all struggling in the same boat.
Analysing quarter year data on denim shows women’s jeans saw downslide at -6.8 per cent in the total denim market. Retailers followed fashion crowd’s lead by heavily promoting new cuts and styles of denim on high street. Wide leg, cropped flares, stepped and frayed hems are just some of the styles high street stores are championing this season, but this push of new styles onto consumers hasn’t translated into sales.
The Cotton Textiles Export Promotion Council (Texprocil) has welcomed the revision of Duty Drawback Rates announced by the government. Welcoming the drawback rates, Chairman Texprocil R K Dalmia said the move will certainly give a boost to exports of cotton textiles as they will provide adequate neutralisation of the incidence of duties and taxes on the export goods and make them more competitive in the international markets.
As per the revision, the drawback rates and caps have been increased for made ups both made of cotton as well as cotton blended with manmade fibre. This is a step in the right direction as it will promote exports of value-added products in line with the stated policy of the government, according to Dalmia. The drawback rates and caps for different types of cotton yarns have, by and large been retained with no significant reductions. This has come as a major relief to the spinning sector which is currently under severe pressure due to various reasons, averred Dalmia.
However, he pointed out that there should have been some increase in the drawback rates for fabrics as India is fast emerging as a manufacturing hub for these items. Government has also been keen to promote investments in the weaving sector, he pointed out. Further, un-rebated state levies should also be refunded through the drawback route for yarns, fabrics and made ups as in the case of apparels.
