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The annual trade show Make it British will now be known as Make it British Live! The show is a leading British sourcing event attracting designers, manufacturers, retailers and academics each year. Since its launch five years ago, the event has grown from 56 to over 200 exhibitors and is becoming increasingly more popular among British manufacturers and businesses, who want to source products that are made in the UK.
The new name, Make it British Live!, reflects the essence of the Make it British campaign and encourages more people to buy British and manufacture in the UK. The rebrand is expected to attract even more progressive businesses, looking to source locally and re-shore their production back to the UK.
From garment manufacturing and textile mills to pattern cutters and trimming suppliers, Make it British Live! aims to bring together all manufacturers under one roof, if they want to make in the UK. More and more businesses in the UK are looking to manufacture locally. More companies from overseas are seeking out brands with a Made in Britain label. For many years, the fashion and textiles supply chain in the UK was fragmented but Make it British Live! is all about bringing that supply chain back together.
Bombay Dyeing has reported a net profit of Rs 3.38 crore for the third quarter ended December 31, 2017. The company had posted a net loss of Rs 5.57 crore in the same period last fiscal. Total sales during the period under review stood at Rs 635.08 crore, up 28.07 per cent, as against Rs 495.88 crore in the year-ago quarter, up 14.38 per cent.
Bombay Dyeing's total expenses were at Rs 626.92 crore in Q3/FY 2017-18 as against Rs 501.45 crore, up 25.02 per cent. The stock hit an intraday high of Rs 248 and intraday low of 236.4.
Dhaka will host the first Bangladesh Fashionology Summit on February 12, 2018. The aim of the show is to inform key stakeholders, entrepreneurs and authorities how new technologies, automation and digitalisation will transform the future of industry. Mostafiz Uddin, Founder and CEO of Bangladesh Denim Expo, initiated and organised the summit where its main theme is ‘Step into the Future Today’. Industry 4.0 would be among the key discussions points at the Summit and the topics include artificial intelligence, industrial Internet, big data, robotics, 3-D printing and knowledge work automation.
Experts from 11 countries including the US, the Netherlands, France, the UK, Japan, Canada, Sweden, Thailand and India will participate in discussions and panels in four separate sessions: Factory of the Future; Eco and Sustainable Innovation; On Demand Manufacturing and Mass Customization; and Smart Wearables (Fusion of Fashion and Tech).
Mostafiz says they are bringing together under one roof the most inspiring and innovative thinkers and companies from across the globe to initiate the much-needed conversations around technology, digitalisation and innovation in the apparel and fashion industry to shape the future of Bangladesh apparel industry. The first ever ‘Fashion Tech Runway Show’ hosting the latest digital tech collections by designers from The Netherlands, Spain, Paris, the UK and India will also be held during the summit.
Futuristic fashion tech creations such as smart wearables, 3-D printed items and LED embedded glow pieces will be displayed on the runway. Mostafiz points out smart and tech embedded wearables are the future of fashion. As seeing is believing, we are going to organise the Fashion Tech Runway Show to inspire the industry to step into the future. The aim of this initiative is to build a bridge between the present and future of the apparel industry of Bangladesh, the world’s second largest readymade garment exporting country.
US retailer, Macy's plans to launch a women's clothing targeted at Muslim shoppers. The line will feature hand-dyed hijabs, cardigans, dresses and tops. The company has teamed up with Muslim designer, Lisa Vogl, a graduate from The Workshop at Macy's minority- and women-owned business development program, to showcase her brand Verona Collection.
Shawn Outler, Macy’s executive vice president, says, "Through The Workshop at Macy’s, we want to nurture and support minority- and women-owned businesses to build their capabilities and become the next generation of retail partners. Lisa Vogl has said in a statement, “Verona Collection is more than a clothing brand. It’s a platform for a community of women to express their personal identity and embrace fashion that makes them feel confident on the inside and outside.”
Last year, Nike also launched a women's clothing line targeted at Muslim shoppers and started offering a high-performance hijab tailored for athletics after Ibtihaj Muhammad, a successful American fencer, became the first American woman to compete in the Olympics while wearing a hijab in the 2016 Summer Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Verona Collection’s clothing line ranges in price from $12.95 to $84.95 and will launch on Macy's website on Feb. 15.
Outdoor apparel brand Patagonia has launched an online platform the ‘Patagonia Action Works’ platform which permits users to find local events, sign petitions in support of environmental issues as well as volunteering and donating money to local causes. Patagonia says it has supported activists working to find solutions to environmental issues since the last four decades. To this effect, the company has launched a platform ‘Patagonia Action Works’ to connect committed individuals to organisations working on environmental issues in their local communities. Patagonia’s founder, Yvon Chouinard says, Patagonia’s reason for existence is to force governments and corporations to take action in solving our environmental problems. Since the last 35 years, his company is giving out around $90 million to grassroot environmental activists. Patagonia says it supports people working on issues in the areas of land, water, climate, communities and biodiversity.
Lisa Pike Sheehy, VP, Environmental Activism at Patagonia, says “If we could connect our community, our friends, our customers, directly with local groups near where they live, working on issues they’re passionate about, suddenly these organisations would have the capacity to achieve even more.”
The California-based company donates a so-called ‘self-imposed tax’ consisting of a 1 per cent share of annual sales to the preservation and restoration of natural environments, through the ‘one per cent for the planet’ initiative.
Cut-price fashion chain Primark published details of factories in its supply chain to show to the world that it has nothing to hide when selling products manufactured without using slave labour. The budget retailer, which has 350 stores across Britain, Europe and the US, has published an online map showing details of over 600 suppliers’ factories in around 30 countries, including information about the number and gender of workers. Primark’s head of ethical trade, Katharine Stewart says, they are opening up about suppliers to boost transparency and visibility in supply chain. The numbers are adding on, from big brands Adidas to fashion retailers H&M and ASOS, are sharing information on their supply chains as they face mounting regulatory and consumer pressure to ensure their products are slavery-free.
It may be noted that supply chains are often complex as a product is manufactured, packaged and distributed in a process linking multiple suppliers in many countries, making it difficult to see forced labour. The International Labour Organization (ILO) and rights group Walk Free Foundation reports about 25 million people worldwide are estimated to be trapped in forced labour in 2016,
Peter McAllister of the Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) points out Primark joins the select but growing group of leading companies that disclose details of their supplier factories. It is one more step in meeting consumer expectations. Primark said it had decided to divulge the details as most of its suppliers were also contracted by rival companies, many of which had already made the details public. Post alleged accusations that it used “sweatshops” and “modern-day slaves” to produce clothes sold for just a few pounds, Primark says it has stepped up efforts to tackle the risk of forced labour. The retailer minimises costs by spending very little on advertising and buying materials in bulk, Stewart said.
Maharashtra’s cabinet has approved the new textile policy for 2018-2023 aimed at attracting an investment of Rs 36,000 crore to the state and generating 10 lakh employment. Some of the major parts of the policy include cutting back on power tariffs and increasing capital subsidy to 45 per cent for spinning mills.
Officials say the policy uses the ‘Make in Maharashtra’ concept to strengthen the cotton industry and silk business. It is targeted at reducing regional imbalance in the state as higher concessions would be given for setting up units in Vidarbha, Marathwada and North Maharashtra. More emphasis would be placed on cotton producing regions which recorded a large number of farmer suicides.
Several schemes of Rs 4649 crore will be implemented under the new policy. The policy intends to create infrastructure for textile cluster and garment parks. The policy has also suggested a proposal for setting up a textile university in the Vidarbha region. Subhash Deshmukh, State Textile Minister says they have made provisions to reduce power tariffs for spinning mills. Besides, spinning mills were given financial assistance in several instalments. Now, they would get financial assistance in two instalments only. A key reason for spinning mills reporting losses is the higher power tariffs, when compared to other states. The power tariffs in Gujarat, Karnataka and a few other states are between Rs 4 and Rs 6 per unit, while it is Rs 9 per unit in Maharashtra. Correspondingly, spinning mills will be urged to set up solar power plants on their land and the power generated from it will be used by spinning mills. Hence, the power tariffs are likely to be reduced to Rs 3.5 per unit. Further, capital subsidy has been substantially increased for processing units, spinning mills and modernisation of powerlooms. It proposes to give 45 per cent capital subsidy for processing units and 25 per cent for spinning mills and modernisation of powerlooms.
Levi Strauss announced its full year revenue grew 8 per cent to touch $4.9 billion. Chip Bergh, President and CEO said in a statement “Our growth and momentum accelerated in Q4 capping the strongest revenue year the company has had in more than a decade. Our strategies are working and the investments that we’ve made to diversify our business over the past few years are paying off, best demonstrated by the strength of the Levi’s brand globally."
For the fiscal year November 26, 2017, net revenues grew the most in Europe touching $1.3 billion, up 19 per cent compared to the same period last year. In Asia, net revenues grew by 5 per cent to $818 million, primarily reflecting direct-to-consumer expansion and performance, while in the Americas, the group's leading market, revenues grew 3 per cent to touch $2.8 billion.
Net revenue growth shows both strong results among direct-to-consumer sales and wholesale, however, due to unfavourable exchange rate adjustments and debt refinancing activities this year, Levi Strauss's full-year net income was down by 3 per cent. In its Q4, net revenues grew 13 per cent on a reported basis. Similarly full year results, net revenues grew the most in the European market rising 21 per cent to $374 million. In Asia, net revenues grew by 13 per cent to $237 million and in the Americas by 7 per cent to $855. The company had 53 additional company-operated stores at the end of fiscal 2017 than in a year earlier period.
The next edition of Kingpins Transformers denim seminar series will be held on April 17 in Amsterdam, and the focus will be on transparency. Leading ‘The Charge of the Light Brigade’ is Everlane, with its promise of ‘radical transparency’. A single click enables customers to see the entire process chain along with photographs. Andrew Olah, Founder of Kingpins Transformers discloses, “Everlane is growing by leaps and bounds because of what they’re doing. We can be sure their business model will be copied as all successful business models are copied.” In the long term every company will have to be transparent and show their entire supply chain. And consumers won’t want to buy from brands that don’t give that information, withhold that information or don’t know it.
For those that refuses to face the consequences, he sees a fate that’s similar to the rise and fall of IBM, which failed to recognise that the industry was going in the direction of personal computers, remained rooted in mainframe and ultimately lost it’s dominance. Olah does not claim to have the answers there is no one-size-fits-all solution he warns. Through panels and interactive sessions that include movers and shakers in the fibre, textile, technology, chemical and machinery sectors, Kingpins Transformers educates companies to help them sail through rocky waters. Kingpins Transformers, is a summit series spotlighting members of the denim community who are committed to creating, implementing and sharing the changes that need to happen in the jeans industry to make it more environmentally viable, socially responsible and financially sound.
Inditex Group, the world’s biggest clothes retailer and owner of the well-known fashion brand Zara has opened its first branch office in Pakistan. As per a Pakistan government statement, “Due to Pakistan Embassy and its Commercial Section in Spain’s sustained pursuance with Inditex Group, which comprises of 8 international renowned brands (Zara, Massimo Dutti, Pull and Bear, Bershka), Inditex Group has opened its buying house in Pakistan first time ever. It is heartening to inform about the significant and positive development with regards to trade between Pakistan and Spain,” It added.
Jose Manuel Romay de la Colina, a representative of the Inditex Group recently met Commercial Counsellor Muhammad Hamid Ali at the Embassy of Pakistan in Spain and “officially confirmed opening of its buying house in Karachi”. Romay was hopeful that due to the presence of buying house it is likely that Inditex Group will double its imports from Pakistan in the coming year or two with additional technical collaborations in the field of textiles and design,” the statement from the group’s official said.
Pakistan exports to Spain touched $405 million in the first five months of the current fiscal 2017/18. “It is likely to reach $550 million once we will include the data of December 2017 in terms of value the maximum increase in exports from Pakistan to Europe took place in Spain,” the statement noted.
“We are sanguine that for the first time in Pakistan and Spain bilateral trade history, our exports to Spain will cross $1 billion mark during the current financial year of Pakistan. Similarly, it will also likely cross one billion dollars as per the financial year of Spain which is from January 2017 to December 2017,” the statement added. After recording slow growth during the past couple of years, exports of textile and clothing went up by eight per cent to $6.642 billion in the first half of the current fiscal year of 2017/18. Textile exports from Pakistan which account for over 60 per cent of the country’s total annual exports.
