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The value of this partnership lies in the connections it creates – by serving as a bridge between leaders in the industry and students interested in pursuing a career in textiles. The goal is to influence the generation of ideas that leads to exciting research, new careers, and advancement of the industry as a whole. The partnership will provide exhibiting and visiting companies with direct access to the latest research coming from the world’s leading materials programs, facilitate future careers and strategic partnerships through collaboration with the university’s administration and shine a spotlight on the high level of global innovation and industry development coming from all levels of the North American textile industry.
This partnership will bring about the convergence of advanced fibers, textiles, materials, and technologies. Not only is Georgia Tech the leading university for material science and engineering in the US, it is a key player when it comes to industry research and innovation. The Materials Science and Engineering program has repeatedly made the ten best list for both its undergraduate and graduate programs. Numerous companies have evolved from technologies developed within the university.
Next Techtextil North America will be held on May 12 to 14, 2020.
Trident’s total income was Rs 1318.51 crores during the period ended June 30, 2019, as compared to Rs 1418.31 crores during the period ended March 31, 2019. Net profit was Rs 122.43 crores for the period ended June 30, 2019, as against Rs 92.26 crores for the period ended March 31, 2019. EPS was Rs 2.46 for the period ended June 30, 2019, as compared to Rs 1.85 for the period ended March 31, 2019.
Total income was Rs 1318.51 crores during the period ended June 30, 2019, as compared to Rs 1145.36 crores during the period ended June 30, 2018. Net profit was Rs 122.43 crores for the period ended June 30, 2019, as against Rs 58.89 crores for the period ended June 30, 2018. EPS was Rs 2.46 for the period ended June 30, 2019, as compared to Rs 1.18 for the period ended June 30, 2018.
Trident is the flagship company of the Trident Group, an Indian business conglomerate and a global player. Based in Punjab, Trident is a vertically integrated textile (yarn, bath and bed linen) and paper (wheat straw-based) manufacturer and is one of the largest players in the home textile space in India. The company is upgrading its business operating system.
Fair Trade USA has raised funds to launch new fair trade products, reach new producer communities and channel additional income to farmers, workers and fishermen. Fair Trade USA is a leading third-party certifier of fair trade products in North America. Its certification seal is added to products that are made according to rigorous fair trade standards that promote sustainable livelihoods and safe working conditions, protection of the environment, and strong, transparent supply chains. Many home goods, include rugs, bedding, furniture, décor and more, are Fair Trade certified.
The certifier supports small-scale family farmers in the fair trade movement so they can tap into vital markets and improve productivity. It brings justice to farm workers both in the United States and abroad so they can build a future free of abuse and poverty. Fair Trade USA has trained more than 75,000 farm workers in human rights, workplace safety and community development. Fair Trade USA is actively investing in new technology to transform its business, developing a world-class monitoring and evaluation system, reducing cost and complexity in its certification standards, and continuing to build consumer demand for Fair Trade Certified products. It is identifying new opportunities for impact to dramatically expand the scale and reach of the proven fair trade model in new sectors.
Egypt’s exports of readymade garments grew by 4.4 per cent during the first half of 2019. But readymade garments exported by Egypt to European countries dropped by seven per cent while exports to African countries plunged by 60 per cent. Exports to the US rose by 19 per cent. In addition, Egypt’s readymade garment exports to Arab countries surged by 24 per cent.
June exports of readymade garments grew 11 per cent compared to the same month a year earlier. Egypt’s garment exports go mainly to the US, Turkey, Spain, Britain, North Ireland, Germany, Italy, France, Saudi Arabia, Belgium and the Netherlands. Egypt wants to have stronger trade relations with Africa. Steps include taking part in international exhibitions in the African continent and setting up an Egyptian-African free trade zone. Egypt’s main exports to Africa are engineering industries, pharmaceuticals, chemical garments, food industries, and construction materials. Egypt wants to increase exports to the African continent by 35 per cent in 2017. The main countries Egypt is interested in are Kenya, Zambia and Ivory Coast. However working to make Egypt a leading international trade center in the Middle East requires work to increase the capacities of Egyptian ports in order to attract more container ships as well as working on the development of logistics capabilities and infrastructure to support this trend.
Chinese e-commerce players in India like Club Factory, Shein, AliExpress have some way to go. For one, they may be charged a combination of customs duties and GST of up to 50 per cent on orders from China. As a result, these players are analysing whether they want to import versus procuring locally. And the issue will boil down to cost.
As most of these players have a strong presence in the value-conscious Tier II and beyond markets, figuring out a way to retain their current costs would be vital. But even sourcing locally may not be a long-term answer to the problem. These companies might not be able to source locally a very high quality of products at a lower cost and that might throw up a challenge. Further, since the products on these platforms are being sourced from China, they are unique in their designs and quality; therefore, e-tailers may lose their edge and face issues maintaining their erstwhile standard while sourcing from India.
Fierce competition is another roadblock as they look to establish themselves in the market. Competition is going to get more and more difficult as Indian players scale up. In such a scenario, it may prove crucial to figure out logistics and offer a better delivery experience to customers.
As per the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), sales in China's garment industry grew steadily in the first half of the year despite slower expansion of the sector. Retail sales of garment enterprises, each with annual operating revenue of 20 million yuan, rose by 2.7 percent year on year to reach 475 billion yuan (about 68.5 billion U.S. dollars). The outputs of these enterprises shrank by 1.1 per cent to a total of 10.4 billion pieces.
During the same period, online retail sales of apparels increased by 21.4 percent from a year ago, while exports of clothing and accessories decreased by 4.7 percent year on year to 66.6 billion U.S. dollars. In H1, these enterprises reported combined operating revenues of 761.6 billion yuan, up 2.2 percent year on year, while their profits dropped by 0.8 percent to 38.2 billion yuan during the period.
Bangladesh is aiming for better leather goods exports. The country has raw leather but needs to import almost all other raw materials for final products. By law, imports have to be done in phases and so it takes time to produce the finished goods and export. So the leather and footwear sector is playing second fiddle to the garment sector.
Presently, Bangladesh has around 165 footwear and leather factories and they could bring in bigger export receipts were they compliant and using modern technologies. There are about 60 companies in Bangladesh which export footwear and leather goods. The destinations are mainly Japan, Europe and the US to some extent. Bangladesh produces 400 million sq ft of finished leather annually. But the country can use only 30 per cent of its finished leather. The remaining 70 per cent is exported, mostly to China. Bangladesh can earn three times more from exports of leather goods if all the finished leather produced locally is utilised. Finished leather exports fetch less than a third of a footwear item.
Chinese companies are keen to invest in Bangladesh’s leather and footwear sector and relocate their manufacturing units to the country to avoid extra tariffs that emerged from the US-China trade war.
"As per the recent Deloitte report, ‘Global Fashion & Luxury Private Equity and Investors Survey 2019,’ mergers and acquisitions in the luxury industry increased to 265 in 2018. Of this, 75 deals were recorded in the luxury hotel sector while the luxury goods sector recorded 145 deals. Of this, 73 deals were recorded in the apparel and accessories sector while 28 were recorded in the watches and jewellery sector. Only cosmetics and fragrances category recorded an increase in the number of deals, which rose from 28 in 2017 to 44 in 2018."
As per the recent Deloitte report, ‘Global Fashion & Luxury Private Equity and Investors Survey 2019,’ mergers and acquisitions in the luxury industry increased to 265 in 2018. Of this, 75 deals were recorded in the luxury hotel sector while the luxury goods sector recorded 145 deals. Of this, 73 deals were recorded in the apparel and accessories sector while 28 were recorded in the watches and jewellery sector. Only cosmetics and fragrances category recorded an increase in the number of deals, which rose from 28 in 2017 to 44 in 2018.
As Elio Minantoni, Partner, Deloitte Financial Advisory & Corporate Finance reveals, the cosmetics and fragrances sector is increasingly attracting the attention of investors as is the apparel and accessories sector. Of the 70 per cent private equity firms who plan to invest in the fashion and luxury sector in 2019, 79 per cent plan to invest in the apparel & accessories, and cosmetics & fragrances sectors.
Digital luxury to lead with 10 per cent growth
According to Deloitte, the fashion and luxury sector will continue to grow between 5 per cent and 10 per cent
every year. Of this, the digital luxury, cosmetics and fragrances and furniture sectors will grow by over 10 per cent every year. On the other hand, the annual growth rate in the apparel & accessories, hotels and restaurants sectors is expected to range between 5 per cent and 10 per cent. Though the sale of cars and private jets are forecast to slump, those of yachts, jewellery and the selective distribution sector are expected to remain stable.
Growing interest in new technologies
Interestingly, the application of new technologies and digital innovations in fashion is increasing. As the survey reveals, nearly 43 per cent of the participants showed an inclination to invest in disruptive technologies such as innovations linked to the web, big data and analytics, artificial intelligence, robotics and blockchain applications. Geographically, only Europe recorded a significant increase in the number of fashion & luxury mergers and acquisitions in 2018, with 41 extra deals. North America and the Middle East emerged second with one deal less. Asia-Pacific recorded two more deals than Europe while Japan recorded four more. Investors are increasingly veering towards Asia and the Middle East with growth in these regions to average around 10 per cent.
Volume increases but value decreases
Though the number of mergers and acquisitions in the fashion and luxury sector increased between 2017 and 2018, their average worth decreased by 12 per cent to $233 million. Operations by medium-sized companies decreased by 25 per cent while those involving larger companies declined by 22 per cent. This trend is expected to further intensify in 2019.
Fila recorded double-digit growth in Philippines this quarter compared to the same period last year. This has been possible with organic sales, increased stock delivery, efficient distribution, business development and store segmentation. The label is better known in the country for lifestyle sportswear and sneakers than performance (tennis, basketball) footwear. In any case, while most others in the industry focus on brand awareness, Fila Philippines relies on sales-driven objectives supported by savvy price structures.
Fila is a global licensing brand from Italy. Every country, where it is found, is free to design and adapt styles according to market preferences. The game plan is to fulfill the needs of all markets while staying aligned with global strategies. Fila is the top-selling brand in the online fashion shopping network Zalora. Its own e-commerce is further propelled by influencers, online raffles and discounts. Buzz in social media is also created with product drops, a trend that entails a special release of products that will only be available for a limited time or quantity.
Once known chiefly as cut-rate athletic footwear, Fila has evolved into a fashion trailblazer. Collaborations with famous brands and designers have efficiently rebooted the 108-year-old trademark. Simultaneously, Fila capitalized on the retro movement by releasing its vintage styles, thus reconnecting with old customers and strategically developing new markets.
The U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol seeks to give brands and retailers a quantifiable and verifiable window to view the process and improvements of the cotton industry. The protocol is being implemented in partnership with The Cotton Research and Promotion Program, the National Cotton Council, USDA, state universities and private industry.
That is done with the help of Field to Market, which uses verifiable data to show how well U.S. cotton sustainability is advancing. Current numbers include an overall 30 percent increase in soil carbon, 13 percent increase in land use efficiency, 39 percent in greenhouse gas efficiency, 50 percent decrease in soil loss per acre, 18 percent decrease in water use and a 15 percent decrease in energy use.
