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BIGTEX – Bangladesh Int’l Garment & Textile Machinery Expo 2017 will be held in Dhaka from November 30 to December 3 at the International Convention City Bashundhara. This is an international expo on Garment & Textile Machinery. China Textile Machinery Association, (organizer of ITMA + CITME) is the strategic partner of this expo. Garment and textile machinery, equipment, technology and accessories manufacturer, dealers, suppliers and importers will participate at this mega exhibition that is targeted at the entire textile, garment and apparel industry of Bangladesh.
Two more simultaneous exhibitions will take place: The Bangladesh Int’l Fabric & Yarn Expo 2017 and the Bangladesh Int’l Dyes, Pigments and Chemicals Expo 2017. The expo will have almost 180 stalls with products from 12 countries including Bangladesh, China, England, France etc. Bangladesh is the second largest apparel exporter in the world, is the top denim exporter to the EU and has become the world’s second largest knitwear exporter. Every third European wears a T-shirt made in Bangladesh and every fifth American wears jeans manufactured in Bangladesh. To ensure continued growth the industry needs proper machinery and regular supply of raw materials, yarn, fabric, dyes and chemicals.
Bangladesh now has set a goal of earning $60 billion from exports. To achieve this target they need to focus more on value added, high-end apparel items rather than basic, traditional products to make the business sustainable in fiercely competitive markets in the global garment trade.
Bangladesh’s apparel manufacturers are demanding implementation of a clear strategy in energy supply to its industry following fears of a hike in bulk power tariff. Manufacturers feel a need for holistic plan for energy supply as key area of concern for entrepreneurs to take planned investment decisions. The country has already raised the retail power tariff by BDT 0.35 per unit, to be effective from December 2017. The bulk tariff, used by industries, is not yet raised, prior to the hike, Bangladesh’s Power Development Board proposed raising the power tariff by 15 per cent per unit at the bulk level.
Currently, the bulk tariff per unit of electricity is BDT 4.90. The Power Development Board proposed that it should be set at BDT 5.99, however, a final decision is yet to be announced. Mohammed Nasir, Vice President of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) points out energy is an absolute prerequisite to tap the potential of the industrial sector, especially the apparel industry. More development requires more energy. Therefore, the government must draw a clear strategy for supply.
All major apparel exporters associations of North India have welcomed the increase in the rates of Merchandise Exports from India scheme (MEIS) and RoSL. The NCR region, comprising Delhi, Noida, Gurgaon and Faridabad, comprises around 35 per cent of the overall apparel manufacturing base of India. While thanking the government for enhancement, the associations in this region - The Apparel Exporters & Manufacturers Association (AEMA), Garments Exporters Association (GEA), Okhla Garment and Textile Cluster (OGTC) and Noida Apparel Export Cluster (NAEC) have also expressed disappointment with the dilution of drawback and RoSl benefits to the industry, post GST.
Discussing the enhancement rates of MEIS, Sudhir Sekhri, Chairman, Garment Exporters Association (GEA) said, "The enhancement in MEIS rates will help in the fulfilment of orders for Christmas as it will ease blocked capital." In the wake of dwindling apparel exports, the exporters have requested the government to increase the amount of duty drawback and RoSL from existing rates to mitigate losses. Industry estimates the blockage of taxes is significantly higher than the drawback and RoSL rates announced and therefore, a higher rate of duty drawback and RosL should be announced at the earliest.
PMS Uppal, President OGTC points out the apparel Industry is witnessing a major crisis and to prevent the situation from deteriorating further, the government should increase the rates of duty drawback and RoSL as the sharp reduction in rates have dealt a huge blow to competitiveness. Vinod Dhawan President, AEMA said says major competitors like Vietnam and Bangladesh have several cost advantages on account of competitive wages. On the issue of Issue of preferential tariff, Dhawan said, "India has to pay the duty of 9 per cent in EU vis- a-vis the 0 per cent of Bangladesh and Vietnam besides other logistics and infrastructure benefits."
Fashion designers and movie stars have decided to bat against violence against girls and women as a part of a new social campaign for the fashion conglomerate Kering. The campaign called ‘White Ribbon For Women', it features Hollywood actresses Salma Hayek Pinault, alongside Gucci's Alessandro Michele, Stella McCartney, Christopher Kane, Joseph Altuzarra and Dennis Chan. The star-studded cast is raising awareness about violence against women through the hashtag #ICouldHaveBeen and its complementary website ICouldHaveBeen.org.
The website asks men to imagine who they could have been had they been born female and asks women to imagine being ‘her', highlighting the fact that globally, one in three women/girls is the victim of violence. Michele, Kane, Altuzarra and Chan have each revealed the names their parents would have given them had they been girls, while McCartney and Hayek Pinault take on the moniker ‘Her', inviting social media users, particularly from Generation Z and Y, to do the same before sharing their photos across Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and WeChat.
François-Henri Pinault, Chairman & CEO of Kering, and Chairman of the Kering Foundation said, "Being born a girl should not equate to a higher risk of violence yet, unfortunately, it is the case in our world today. We all could have been born a girl, we all must take on this combat. A combat I am proud to confront together with the Kering Foundation, our Houses and their designers via our sixth annual White Ribbon For Women campaign."
This is the sixth time that Kering has run the ‘White Ribbon for Women' campaign but the luxury brand isn't the only fashion conglomerate to have taken on a cause. In August, French giant Dior teamed up with the WE Charity to support its educational initiative through a new social media campaign called the ‘Dior Love Chain’, recruiting a range of stars, including Natalie Portman, Rihanna, Robert Pattinson, Jennifer Lawrence and Charlize Theron to spread the message by revealing what they would do for love. For each post hashtagged #DiorLoveChain posted to social media, Parfums Christian Dior pledged to donate $1 to support the WE Schools initiative to provide education for young girls in Kenya up to $2,50,000. The campaign runs through December 31, 2017.
The Northern India Institute of Fashion Technology (NIIFT) has teamed up with Groz-Beckert Asia, NIIFT to train underprivileged in industrial sewing machine course. NIIFT is is giving space for training facility while Groz-Beckert Asia has offered machinery, equipment, furniture and other related installations including IT peripherals. It has set up a skill development and training facility for the underprivileged students which will be used in a free course of the Industrial Sewing Machine Operator.
Moreover, for the smooth functioning of the training facility Groz-Beckert Asia will provide essential financial support. Once the training is over, every pass-out will become employable in the apparel and textile industry. The facility will also help them in finding suitable jobs. The content of the training course has been designed looking at the current and future needs of the industry.
The facility was inaugurated by Anton Reinfelder, Managing Director, Groz-Beckert Asia and Inderjit Singh, Registrar, (NIIFT) in the Ludhiana campus of NIIFT.
"Los Angeles, home to denim labels lie True Religion, Lucky Brand, Hudson and 7 For All Mankind, was once a Mecca for jeans makers in the US. But recent rise in California and Los Angeles’ minimum wage, a move by blue-jeans owners to strengthen profit margins, is having a devastating impact on Los Angeles denim factories. Earlier this month, United Denim informed state employment officials that it planned to lay off 164 of its approximately 200 employees by the end of the year. As per experts, by 2021, the minimum wage will be at $15 an hour."
Los Angeles, home to denim labels lie True Religion, Lucky Brand, Hudson and 7 For All Mankind, was once a Mecca for jeans makers in the US. But recent rise in California and Los Angeles’ minimum wage, a move by blue-jeans owners to strengthen profit margins, is having a devastating impact on Los Angeles denim factories. Earlier this month, United Denim informed state employment officials that it planned to lay off 164 of its approximately 200 employees by the end of the year. As per experts, by 2021, the minimum wage will be at $15 an hour.
Mateo Juarez, owner, United Demin Inc, opines if you make blue jeans in China, including the fabric washes, it is $6. If you do the same jeans in Mexico, you can make it for $10, which includes dropping if off in Los Angeles. And if you do it in the US, you are looking at $40 to $50. That’s a big difference. If 100,000 jeans are manufactured in Mexico, it will cost $1 million. Make those jeans in Los Angeles, the price skyrockets to $4 million. The difference is astronomical and only economically practical if blue jeans are selling for $100 to $200. These days, new leaders in the executive offices are less concerned about that ‘Made in USA’ label and more concerned about return on investments. They are reducing costs by heading to Mexico, Vietnam and India, where labour costs and regulations aren’t as stiff as they are in the US. Ilse Metchek, President, California Fashion Association feels almost all denim in LA is going out the door. It’s because of minimum wage as denim is very labour-intensive.
Finding alternatives
Around five years ago, Atomic Denim employed 1,000 workers in its two Los Angeles factories making blue jeans for True Religion. Today, there is only one factory with 70 to 100 workers who fluctuate with season in their production for Hudson, Tom Ford and Diesel. Last year, to meet lower price demand, Atomic Denim opened a Tijuana, Mexico, factory where the salary for 70 workers is about half of what they are in Los Angeles. Claudia Bae Kye, VP, E&C Fashion, the parent company of Atomic Denim and Pacific Concept Laundry, said large volumes are missing in Los Angeles unlike before. The market is different.
Similarly, three months ago, Steve Rhee took over the 100,000 sq. ft. factory with 600 sewing machines from his parents. Now called Factory One Studio, Rhee has only 75 workers that where he used to employ hundreds earlier. The factory’s biggest clients used to be True Religion and Lucky Brand. One year ago, the factory was rolling out nearly 3,000 pairs of blue jeans a day. Now, the company is making about 1,500 pairs of blue jeans for Diesel, J Brand and Fear of God. Many companies are only interested in making 100 to 200 units at a time. These days, every company is shifting to Mexico. It is hard to find consistent work in Los Angeles.
Last year, True Religion’s business shrunk and blue jeans made up only 20 per cent of production for labels such as Current/Elliott, Joie, Kate Spade and Theory. About 80 per cent of production became army uniforms and the rest was denim. The employee workforce dropped to 100. Also, military-uniform makers only wanted to pay the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour rather than the higher Los Angeles minimum wage. All these together are forcing companies to move away from LA and find another suitable haven.
The Mexican Ministry of Economy has issued a new standard for clothing care labels and symbols – NMX-A-3758-INNTEX-2014 “Textile – Code of Generation of Caring Labels with the Use of Symbols”. The new standard is identical to the international standard ISO 3758:2012 “Textile – Care Labeling Code Using Symbols”. The new standard uses five basic care symbols for wet and dry cleaning but excludes industrial laundry techniques. The symbols are ordered washing, bleaching, drying, ironing and professional textile care.
This standard set out the most severe treatments that can be used on an item of clothing without causing irreversible damage. In Mexico, textile and garment labels must comply with the correct standards (NOMs) and/or voluntary standards (NMXs).
If the relevant NOM specifies a NMX, this becomes mandatory. In general, all apparel, accessories, textile products and home textiles with over 50 per cent textile content must comply with the Official Mexican Standard NOM-004-SCFI-2006 for mandatory labelling requirements.
Mexican labelling standards normally require one or more permanent and legible label to be attached to the collar, waist or other visible location. They must show: Commercial brand name; Fibre composition a NMX-A-2076-INNTEX-2013 and NMX-A-6938-INNTEX-2013; Size; Care and preservation instructions must be indicated using brief and clear legends or the symbols indicated in the NMX-A-3758-INNTEX-2014, or both. Symbols different from those stipulated in the aforementioned standard may be used, only if the legend relating to proper treatment and the care and preservation instructions also appears in Spanish; Country of origin; Name and address of the manufacturer/importer with a voluntary mention of the RFC (federal taxpayers register) number.
Kenya’s garment sector export processing zones (EPZs) has recorded significant growth in recent years and boosted the country’s economy. This comes as good news because the fall in export was due to mismanagement and stiff competition from cheaper imports. Their EPZs saw growth in most of their performance indicators in 2016, revealed the Economic Survey. Total capital investment of enterprises increased from Sh48.1 billion in 2015 to Sh51.2 billion in 2016; the number of local staff working in the EPZ increased by 3.4 per cent to 52,019 in value terms’ exports increased 3.7 per cent to Sh63.1 billion in 2016.
The extension of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) initiative up till September 2025 has kick started the growth trajectory in textile sector. Though AGOA originally covered eight-year period from October 2000 to September 2008, amendments by then US President George Bush in July 2004 extended it to 2015. The US Congress then extended it further to 2025.
Several Kenyan products, notably apparel and agricultural produce have benefitted from this arrangement which has enhanced import duty on all eligible products and granted preferential market access post compliance with Rules of Origin.
The resurgence of the Kenyan textile has attracted new foreign investments. Several top global fashion brands including Calvin Klein, Arrow, Izod and Cherokee have recently signed production contracts with local textile manufacturers in the country.
The government has launched subsidy schemes to provide financial assistance of up to 90 per cent under the Pradhan Mantri Credit Scheme for powerloom weavers. Under this scheme, the government will provide margin money subsidy of up to 20 per cent of the project cost with a ceiling of Rs 1,00,000 and interest subvention at six per cent per annum for working capital and term loan up to Rs 10,00,000 for a maximum period of five years.
The government has also introduced technology up gradation scheme, Sustainable and Accelerated Adoption of efficient Textile technologies to Help small Industries (SAATHI), to help the country’s ailing powerloom segment.
Ujwal Lahoti, Chairman, Cotton Textiles Export Promotion Council (Texprocil) explains, “This initiative is expected to benefit almost 2.5 million powerloom units, which produce 57 per cent of the total cloth in the country, across India. The use of efficient equipment would result in energy savings and cost savings to the unit owner who would in turn repay in instalments to EESL (Energy Efficient Services Limited) over a three- to four-year period.”
These schemes enable powerloom units to upgrade their technology and install solar power generation equipment to cut energy costs. After repayment of bank loans in around four years, the cost of electricity for power loom units will be zero, say experts. “The Union Textile Ministry and State Governments have announced several promotional schemes for power loom textile industry, but there is hardly any awareness of the schemes in the industry. The maximum benefit of these schemes has been taken by the entrepreneurs of Gujarat and Tamil Nadu” said Kavita Gupta, Textile Commissioner while speaking on the occasion of the buyer-seller meet in Mumbai. Of the 2.5 million powerlooms, 50 per cent are in Maharashtra. There are 108 power loom clusters in the country and 72 textile parks.
The VDMA Textile Machinery Association has accomplished successful events for the textile industries in the US and Mexico. Over 80 decision-makers from the US textile, nonwoven and carpet industry and 25 leading textile machinery and accessories manufacturers participated in the VDMA textile machinery conference held this month in Charlotte (NC). The two-day event in November in Mexico City attracted nearly 450 customers and 30 textile machinery and accessories manufacturers, making it one of the most successful events of the VDMA Textile Machinery Association ever.
The conference in Mexico City was addressed by José Cohen Sitton, President, National Chamber of the Textile Industry CANAINTEX, who said German textile machinery and engineering are one of the best in the world and added that the Mexican textile industry has to invest to be on top of technology no matter what the outcome of the on-going NAFTA negotiations are.
These two events focused on customers, training session at the Instituto Politécnico Nacional (Escuela Superior de Ingeniería Textil) in Mexico City held in November aimed at future engineers. About 500 textile engineering students followed the technical presentations from 18 textile machinery and components manufacturers. In the US and Mexico, VDMA member companies presented latest production technologies from spinning to dyeing and finishing. Major topics addressed were digitalisation of the textile and textile machinery industry, higher efficiency and profitability, energy, water and material savings, new applications with growth potential such as composites and nonwovens, higher quality with measurement, control and testing devices, technical training centres.
In 2018, the VDMA Textile Machinery Association will be supporting sales and marketing of member companies through trade fairs (German pavilions), own technical conferences and B2B as well as official trade missions in the following countries: Indonesia, India, USA, Belarus, Brazil, Uzbekistan, Iran, China, Egypt.
