India and Vietnam have set a bilateral trade target of $15 billion by 2020. Ram Nath Kovind, President of India, called for cooperation between the two countries in agriculture, pharmaceuticals, textiles and IT. He said agricultural products from Vietnam already occupy over 45 per cent of India-Vietnam bilateral trade and there is immense potential for bilateral cooperation in agro-processing, agro-chemicals, farm machinery, bio-technology and high-tech farming.

He also sought cooperation from Vientam in the Indian pharmaceuticals industry for providing quality health-care, medicines and medical devices for the public health system at an affordable cost. Kovind highlighted significant opportunities between the two sides in the oil and gas, power, infrastructure and renewable energy sectors. Stating that the Indian IT services, including digital economy and fin-tech sector have much to offer to Vietnamese growth, he suggested encouraging start-up sectors and innovation based industry to leverage each other.

Luxury brand LVMH is planning to speed up its own digital transformation through the Retail Lab, an internal organisation set up to help the labels owned by Bernard Arnault's group develop innovative solutions in the digital and retail field. The Lab is designed to help the group's labels, whether in the fashion, wine-making, cosmetics, watch-making or selective distribution sector, in their digital and retail transformation.

The project commenced a year ago, when the group hired Gautier Pigasse to set up, launch and manage the LVMH Retail Lab. Pigasse is a digital marketing and customer experience expert, and has worked with several brands and major consumer product and media groups, notably in the luxury sector, on their multi-channel strategies. The project manager will bolster this project by sourcing and testing new technologies.

ICA Bremen conducted its ‘Cotton Classing’ training course, in association with the Spinners & Weavers Association of Korea (SWAK), between October 22- 26, 2018. Established in response to industry demand in 2014, this five-day training course was delivered by Karsten Froese from ICA Bremen and focused on the classing of US and other Upland raw cottons. This year’s training took place at the KOTITI testing and research institute in Gyeonggi-do.

The training course was based on approved standard procedures for visual grading and staple pulling. Various theories were covered along with learning about the agreed standards and regulations for quality evaluation according to the rules of the International Cotton Association Ltd.

The next ICA Bremen ‘Learning about Machinery’ and ‘Classing & Testing’ training programs will be held in 2019. ICA Bremen, in addition to its annual training programs, plans to continue delivering more bespoke training courses to the cotton community at other global locations.

US-based For Days is turning the idea of consumption on its head. This closed-loop clothing line cuts through the fashion industry’s textile-waste problem with a direct-to-consumer, zero-waste membership model. A customer can return a shirt and get a replacement. The new shirt comes with a pre-paid envelope for sending back the old, which For Days will sanitize, julienne and reinforce the recycled with virgin fibers before blending everything into fresh yarn for future products. At the end of a year, customers can opt to keep their shirt (or shirts) or choose to renew for another year at a discounted rate.

For Days, adopts only 100 per cent American-grown, GOTS-certified organic cotton. Besides expanding its assortment with new colors and styles, along with new product categories, For Days is embarking on a zero-waste manufacturing initiative for 2019 that leverages technology, renewable energy and water reclamation programs and innovative principles of biomimicry. This refers to the design and production of materials and systems that approximate those found in nature.

The company is also designing its own factory to verticalize production and hasten the advent of the circular economy. More than 15 million tons of textile waste is generated annually in the United States. The average American tosses nearly 80 pounds of used clothing every year.

The Fespa conference in the UK provided some practical guidance on how to move towards further automation to see the future of robotics and additive manufacturing that will allow for further miniaturisation and hopefully will contribute to bring manufacturing back to the UK. Zero tooling has enabled minimal set up as files are just run from the cutting queue and the sheet positioning is automated by scanning the sheet to pick up on optical marks to register.

While Britain has been responsible for the invention of numerous products including the mobile phone, lithium ion batteries, plasma TV it hasn’t been successful in manufacturing any of them. The conference was the perfect venue to discuss the opportunities that will result from greater automation and the integration of computer systems from web through to production across the print sector.

The focus of the Manufacturing Technology Center is to bridge the valley of death which advances the technology readiness level process to reach full capability, from university research through to full scale manufacturing. The center has 100 apprentices working on metallurgy, robotics, laser engineering, 3D printing and additive manufacturing. The MTC has strong links in the academic community and aims to facilitate the best use of intellectual skills. The organisation has close ties to many research-based universities.

A video showing Australian wool suppliers punching sheep in the face, slitting the throat of still-conscious animals and slicing and burning off lambs’ tails with no painkillers have animal activists up in arms. Shearers are seen striking sheep in the face with sharp metal clippers, kneeling on their stomachs and flinging them around.

These wool suppliers cater to brands like Forever 21, America’s fifth-largest specialty retailer. In June, following violent footage of Angora goats being abused in South Africa, Forever 21 joined 110 other brands, including Gap, H&M, Uniqlo and Zara, in banning mohair from its inventory. Similar calls for companies to abstain from wool, on the other hand, haven’t gained nearly as much traction.

Cruelty is rife in the fashion industry. Baby goats bleat in fear as they are sheared until bloody for mohair sweaters and scarves. Once upon a time, cutting-edge fashion equaled fur, leather, and wool. Today’s consumers are more aware of what they’re really supporting with their purchases and many are saying no to the thought of wearing the fur or skin of another creature and instead are looking for more animal- and earth-friendly options to complete their wardrobes.

This shift of consciousness has made cruelty-free, sustainable, and organic more than just marketing buzzwords — they’re now labels that consumers are actively seeking out and distinctions that designers are proudly offering in their product lines.

A new analysis by Kroll, a division of Duff & Phelps, a global leader in risk mitigation and investigative services shows, China registered the highest percentage of suspected counterfeit goods detained and subsequently not released at EU borders. It is followed by Hong Kong, Turkey, Vietnam, Syria and India.

The firm’s review of EU customs enforcement data reveals that after seized watches, whose collective retail value increased by 56 per cent from 2016 to 2017, fake clothing was the highest seized with collective value (€66m), up 46 per cent). Jewellery and other accessories came in third place (€58m), up a massive 562 per cent since 2016, followed by bogus bags, collectively valued at €52m.

Kroll says while the number of customs seizures have decreased overall, it has seen an increase in counterfeiting activity and was involved in the seizure of over €50m worth of counterfeit goods in 2017 close to where they were produced, suggesting that efforts to track and seize bogus goods in the country of manufacture before they reach customs are having a positive impact. With criminal gangs becoming more sophisticated in transporting illicit goods across borders, manufacturers and retailers still face a difficult battle against counterfeit goods coming in from all over the world.

Coats’s revenues fell two per cent in the four months ending October. Sales were affected by the recent weakening of certain emerging market currencies in which it operates, particularly the rupee, yuan, and lira. On a constant exchange rate basis, group revenues increased three per cent from July 1 to October 31.

The company’s strong first-half performance helped it offset the recent decline in revenue, and group sales for the year to October are still ahead of the same period last year, up three per cent. On a constant exchange rate basis, revenue increased by four per cent in the year to October.

Coats’ high technology performance material threads are enjoying strong growth, up four per cent between July and October, and there is increasing momentum in its industrial division.

But the company’s apparel and footwear division was hit by mixed demand from retailers, and despite growing four per cent on a constant exchange rate basis, it fell by one per cent on a reported basis. Crafts, which accounts for 11 per cent of group sales, continued its fall due to lower sales in both North America and Latin America. Craft revenues fell by 31 per cent between July and October, and have fallen by 17 per cent in the year to date.

China’s luxury goods market is expected to grow by 20 per cent this year. In Mainland China, luxury sales grew 18 per cent at current exchange rates, driven by rising demand rather than by price increases. Luxury purchases in Japan softened slightly this year. However, retail sales still grew at three per cent at current exchange rates.

Across the rest of Asia retail sales grew seven per cent at current exchange rates, due to dynamic growth in South Korea. Brisk growth in other Asian countries – Singapore, Thailand and Taiwan – also contributed while Hong Kong and Macau benefitted from Chinese purchases. Europe lagged in 2018 due to a strong euro that impacted tourists’ purchasing power. Local consumption was positive overall, despite mixed country performance, helping to boost retail sales one per cent at current exchange rates.

The Americas grew five per cent at current exchange rates. A positive US economy boosted disposable income and overall luxury spending from locals, even as brands remained wary of continued economic prosperity. In other areas, there was nil growth, mainly due to stagnation in the Middle East. Luxury shopping online continued to accelerate this year compared with physical channels, growing 22 per cent.

More and more brands are using hemp fiber in their collections. These include brands like Armani, Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, Nike and Patagonia. In Mumbai, Boheco has been working with policy makers, scientists and farmer groups to position India in the exploding cannabis space worldwide. They are researching on the wild cannabis that is widespread in North India to standardise low THC seeds that could eventually be used to grow industrial hemp within the country’s legal stipulations.

Boheco has developed hemp denim in conjunction with Arvind Mills. The brand is also working with IIT Delhi on technology to process hemp fibres from the plant and has also launched two hemp fabric brands. Brand Label B sells hemp clothing at affordable prices via Boheco.org and is present in 10 boutiques across the country including Creo in Mumbai, People Tree in Goa and Mo Studio in Ahmedabad. The second label is called Hemp Fabric Lab.