FW
The Benettons family willsoon relinquish its control over Italy’s main highway company, Autostrade per l’ItaliaSpA, or Aspi.
As per Women’s Wear Daily, the Benettons’ family holding company Edizione has a 30.3 percent stake in AtlantiaSpA, which has controlled Aspi for more than two decades. The board of Atlantia has agreed to sell the entire stake in Autostrade per l’Italia to a consortium formed by CDP Equity S.p.A., The Blackstone Group International Partners LLP and Macquarie European Infrastructure Fund 6 SCSp. CDP is controlled by Italy’s Ministry of Economy and Finances.
The deal, which come after lengthy negotiations and false starts, will be formalized on June 10 and is reported to bring €2.4 billion into the Benettons’ coffers.
The sale comes almost three years after the collapse of a section of the Morandibridge in Genoa in August 2018, which caused 43 deaths, evacuations of hundreds of people, and heavy structural damages. Opened in 1967 and part of the A10 highway linking the French and Italian rivieras, the bridge was maintained and operated by AutostradePerl’Italia.
The government had been threatening to strip Autostrade of its lucrative toll-road business since the fatal accident and accused it of neglecting maintenance of the bridge. Aspi is to pay a compensation fee of €3.4 billion.
The European Commission (EU) has been trying to adopt the European textile strategy that encourages apparel and textile industry to become more competitive and sustainable.
As per Apparel Resources, since the last five years, Euratexhas been working on developing a strategy to help the industry move towards a sustainable, yet competitive, future.
The Brussels-based organization has been calling for alignment of EU textile strategy with EU Green Deal and many EU policies such as the new EU Trade strategy, the EU Pact for Skills, and the Sustainable Chemicals strategy, amongst others.
In addition to creating a good balance between sustainability and cost for the industry, Euratex has also been urging to work on areas like research, innovation and digitalization, standards, public procurement, market surveillance, global value chain and more.
The organization along with the Secretariat of the Sustainable, Long-term Investments & Competitive European Industry Intergroup will organize the event ‘The EU Textile Strategy: Source of Competitiveness?’
To be held on June 03, the event will address critical factors for building a competitive European textile industry and also what should be prioritized in the European textile strategy so as to build a new business model that’s based on sustainability, digitalization and fair trade.
A court in the United Kingdom ruled in favor of Nike in an ongoing trademark squabble with Puma that centers on the Beaverton-based sportswear titan’s quest to register the word “Footware” as a trademark for use in connection with computer hardware modules, electronic devices, and computer software.
Following an unfavorable outcome before the United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office in September 2020, in which a Hearing Officer rejected Puma’s bid to block the registration of Nike’s “Footware” mark, Puma lodged an appeal with the High Court of Justice in London, arguing that Nike’s registration should be barred because it is a deceptive term, not an indicator of source of the proposed goods and services listed in its application.
In a decision dated May 27, Justice Zacaroli of the High Court of Justice in London dismissed Puma’s appeal, paving the way for Nike’s application for the “Footware” mark – which it filed with the United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office (“UKIPO”) in March 2019 – to proceed in the registration process.
Global industry non-profit Textile Exchange has launched its latest Material Change Insights Report. As per Eco Textile, the report was launched alongside a new Material Change Index (MCI) Leaderboard, which tracks individual company progress, and an 'Impact Dashboard' which models sourcing impacts.
Textile Exchange launched all the three reports together to provide a comprehensive, multi-pronged analysis of the industry which would enable s users to explore and engage with the data in multiple ways. Through these reports, users can track progress towards the industry’s climate goal of a 45 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions over the next decade, as well as global efforts like the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the transition to a circular economy.
As per Claire Bergkamp, COO, Textile Exchange, the Material Change Index is the largest peer-to-peer comparison initiative in the textile industry. It helps companies and suppliers focus their efforts and drive towards substantial change. The 2020 MCI reveals the average overall score is up 9.8 points - or 17 per cent - this year while remaining at Textile Exchange's Level 3 'maturing' performance band. However, the number of companies in the Level 4 'leading' band more than doubled from 16 to 36.
The uptake of preferred materials increased by nearly a quarter, now accounts for 44 per cent of the MCI portfolio. Preferred renewable cotton and recycled polyester accounted for most of this growth. Circularity scores increased on average by 37 per cent with the biggest growth among outdoor/sports brands. Nine companies - C&A, H&M Group, Knickey, MUD Jeans, Nudie Jeans, Outerknown, Patagonia, prAna and The North Face - achieved the 'leading' Level 4 ranking.
Greenhouse gas savings also increased due to the use of recycled polyester. Participation in the program also increased with 191 companies participating this year compared to 173 the previous year, with the most growth within the apparel and footwear sub-sector.
A new report from UK-based card payment provider Dojo shows, the UK consumers’ online searches on reopening on IKEA stores increased by 984 per cent in April compared to February.
As per Fashion Network, consumers also searched for stores like Stores Direct, Homesense, JD Sports, The Body Shop, Waterstones and TK Maxx.
According to Dojo, one reasons for the increase in searches for Primark stores is because the retailer does not have a webstore. Matalan on the other hand, benefited from the fact that it sells school supplies, homewares and many household items, as well as fashion and Clarks is in demand due to kids returning to schools and parents wanting to wait until stores were open to find the best-fitting shoes.
Based on data between April 12 and 29, Dojo says, Portsmouth emerged as top apparel spender with £132 per person. This was followed by Coventry on just over £116, Stockport and West London on just over £106, Guildford on almost £94 and Slough and Manchester on almost £92. Meanwhile shoppers in Derby spent just under £86, in Southwest London they spent just over £84 and in Blackburn they spent almost £81.
Searches for charity shops also increased by 469 per cent while those for nail salons increased by 474 per cent.
US’ Customs and Border Protection department plans to collect antidumping duties in the amount equal to cash deposit rates for imports from Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam. The US Department of Commerce has accused these countries of unfairly selling imports of polyester textured yarn below the fair value in the US at margins ranging from 2.67 percent to 56.08 percent.
The department has directed importers to post duty deposits at AD rates on the date the preliminary determinations are published in the Federal Register. These deposits will be collected until the Commerce Department and US International Trade Commission (USITC) conclude their investigations later this year. At that time, the duties could change, reports Sourcing Journal. Imports of polyester textured yarn from China and India are currently subject to significant double- and triple-digit AD and countervailing duties as a result of prior investigations that concluded in January 2020.
Two major US synthetic yarn producers – Unifi Manufacturing and Nan Ya Plastics Corporation America – filed petitions with the Commerce Department and the USITC in October alleging dumped imports of polyester textured yarn from Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam were causing material injury to the domestic industry.
The Commerce Department initiated the investigations in November and the USITC preliminarily determined in December that imports from the four countries were causing injury to the U.S. domestic industry.
Oerlikon has acquired he leading components’ provider Coeudor. This acquisition helps Oerlikon meet the needs of its customers in the luxury market, says Markus Tacke, CEO Oerlikon Surface Solutions Division.
A well-established brand, Coeurdor provides the entire services for design, manufacturing and coating of metallic components to world-leading luxury brands. The company’s accessories form parts of leather bags, belts, watches and other luxury goods. Coeurdor is headquartered in France and has production facilities in Italy and Portugal, employing a skilled workforce of more than 220 employees.
Oerlikon provides innovative surface solutions, such as PVD (physical vapor deposition) coatings for metal and plastic components, diamond-like coatings (DLC) and surface coating systems, as well as additive manufacturing powders and printing services. These solutions serve customers in the aerospace, automotive, medical and tooling markets, and are also used in high-end deco, consumer and white goods. Coeurdor’s expertise lies in designing and manufacturing components and using PVD and sustainable electroplating for the finishing of luxury goods.
Modefabriek transferred its live trade event, that was scheduled to take place from July 11-12, 2021, to a digial platform, reports The Spin Off. Brands and retailers can participate in the Digital Fashion Week Europe, which Modefabriek is organizing in collaboration with Copenhagen fashion trade show CIFF and digital wholesale platform Fashion Cloud from 6-8 July.
Dutch brands like Summum, Ichi, Goosecraft, Scotch & Soda, Juffrouw Jansen and Petrol Industries have already confirmed participation in the digital event. Modefabriek also plans to hold another live event in autumn 2021. Its next regular edition of Modefabriek will be held in January 2022.
Recognized as a procreative and inspiring fashion trade event, Modefabriek is a mash-up of brand presentations, expos, stores, talks, food and drinks, music and more. The event prides itself on creating a relaxed and friendly festival that unites fashion professionals in their desire to connect with each other and their customers.
The government has modified the Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme to extend ECLGS including borrowed credit to eligible MSMEs’ under ECLGS 1.O to five years. According to Cotton Textiles Export promotion Council (Texprocil), this will help micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), including textile MSMEs.
As per the new rules, borrowers who are eligible for restructuring as per RBI guidelines as of May 5, 2021 and had availed loans under ECLGS 1.0 of overall tenure of four years comprising of repayment of interest only during the first 12 months with repayment of principal and interest in 36 months can now extend their ECLGS loan repayment tenure to five years
The new scheme also provides an additional ECLGS assistance of up to 10 per cent of the outstanding as on February 29, 2020 to borrowers covered under ECLGS 1.0 has also been extended.
The current ceiling of Rs 500 crore of loan outstanding for eligibility under ECLGS 3.0 has also been removed, subject to maximum additional ECLGS assistance to each borrower is being limited to 40 per cent or Rs 200 crore, whichever is lower. Further, the validity of ECLGS extended to September 30, 2021 or till guarantees for an amount of Rs 3 lakh crore are issued. Disbursement under the scheme is permitted up to December 31, 2021.
The removal of the ceiling and extension of ECGLS will enable more units to avail benefits, opines Manoj Patodia, Chairman, Texprocil
New partnerships can help the textile sector in Lesotho recover from the impact of COVID-19, says a new report by Private Sector Foundation of Lesotho (PSFL). As per this report, textile and apparel companies in Lesotho are suffering owing to lack of customers, high rentals, closing of borders and rising prices of fabrics amid the pandemic.
Border closing has also led to an increase in prices of raw materials in local markets. This forces production units to use low-quality materials for production. Manufacturers also have to deal with lack of funds as deposits were not paid. They failed to receive institutional support.
The report recommends stabilizing industry-wide structures and embracing new partnerships to reconstruct the textile industry. The recommendations include establishing Textile and Apparel Association (TAA) at national and district levels for dealing with issues related to the textile industry.
The TAA can ensure that all textile and apparel companies are licensed by One Stop Business Facilitation Centre (OBFC) to encourage investors to provide financial resources.
The report also urges the government to make policies and introduce special programs for the textile and apparel industry with the help of development partners like Aid for Trade. It also urges the government to make provisions for training, mentoring and providing technical assistance for the members of the TAA through Business Development Services.
Some other recommendations include: encouraging partnerships between corporates and MSMEs; using the Third Industrial Development Decade in Africa (IDDA 3) to uplift the textile and apparel sector; developing sustainable textiles and boosting production capabilities; and introducing new financial schemes to help manufacturing units to invest in technology.
