Bangladesh is one of the most preferred sourcing destinations owing to its low cost manufacturing. While this was true for low-end apparels till now, its competitive advantage is making way for high-end clothing as well. The country’s exports and sustainability have both grown faster than those of most of its global counterparts.

Bangladesh’s clothing manufacturers have been quite aggressive in making their factories greener. For starters, the top three LEED certified factories in the world are based in Bangladesh, the country has seven out of the top ten LEED certified apparel manufacturing plants. There are 67 factories in Bangladesh that are LEED certified, and 222 factories are on their way to becoming LEED certified.

Going by the trend, it will soon become the country with the most environment-friendly apparel industry and be an example for others to follow. Concepts such as lean manufacturing have improved efficiency. Among other things, the country’s success can be attributed to the academic institutions that have come up to address the demand for apparel education. In the past, their aim was to just provide basic education on merchandising but with industry expansion the curriculum has expanded to include engineering concentrations, part-time intensive diploma programs, and high-end fashion.

Makers of garment accessories in Bangladesh are gearing up to meet the demand of apparel sector. They are emphasising more on producing high-quality accessory items to establish the sector as an individual industry rather than a backward integration of the readymade garment industry.

About 100 new factories have started operations this year. Currently, around 1,700 factories are producing accessory items in the country. Bangladesh produces and exports accessories like woven labels, leather badges, stone and metal motifs, rubber patches, gum tapes, satin and cotton ribbon hangers, price tags, and buttons and zippers. In all, accessory makers and packagers supply 34 types of products.

The sector contributes 15 to 20 per cent of the net export earnings of the readymade garment sector. Bangladesh also exports accessories to the Middle East, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Europe, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos. Accessory items also meet the demand of the country’s agro-business and plastic sectors.

The industry wants cash incentives on exports. Since banks charge double-digit interest rates on loans from businesses, this increases the cost of doing business. China is the biggest player in manufacturing garment accessory items in the world. Bangladesh holds the second position. The market for garment accessories in Asia alone is worth $24 billion.

The Export Promotion Council for Handicrafts (EPCH) with the support of Embassy of India in Denmark and office of Development Commissioner (Handicrafts) organised a Buyer-Seller Meet from November 19-20, 2018 in Copenhagen, Denmark. The council is the nodal agency for the promotion and development of handicrafts exports from India to various destinations of the world.

Matching Indian companies with their Scandinavian counterparts

The Buyer-Seller-Meet is a B2B exhibition for order booking for future sourcing of foreign buyers in Denmark. It was inaugurated Ajit Gupte, Ambassador of India in Denmark alongwith and OP Prahladka, Chairman, EPCH and Rakesh Kumar, Executive Director, PCH. It is being attended by 26 Indian exporters who are displaying a wide range of Indian handicrafts, home furnishings, floorings & textiles, Indian houseware & decoratives, fashion accessories shawls, scarves, bags, fashion garments and Christmas décor from PAN India basis.

The objective of this Buyer-Seller Meet is to match Indian companies with the Scandinavian companies interested in sourcing Indian handicrafts, home furnishings, floorings & textiles, houseware & decoratives, fashion accessories shawls, scarves, bags, fashion garments and Christmas décor, gifts, lifestyle products for the Scandinavian market thereby creating a ‘Brand Image” of Indian handicrafts amongst Scandinavian buyers.

Potential market for Indian handicrafts

The main exports markets for Indian handicrafts are USA followed by EU, Middle East and Far East. However, Scandinavian countries are emerging as a new potential destination for exports of handicrafts. Indian craftsmanship, ethnic designs and colors are unique and have no comparison with products from other countries. The range produced in India is very large and wide and the quality and price structure varies from high-end market to middle end market.

The Scandinavian countries are the potential markets for the Indian handicrafts. The exports of handicrafts from India are at US$ million 3573.49 in 2017-2018. The exports of India handicrafts to Denmark was of US$ 26.50 million during the 2016-17 which increased to USD 28.94 million during 2017-18 registering a growth of 9.19 per cent.

Rakesh Kumar, Executive Director-EPCH hoped that with the overwhelming response and buyers turn out at Buyer-seller-meet will further lead to a growth in Indo-Danish Trade relations in the year ahead.

"The 9th edition of the International Sourcing Expo, co-located with the 3rd edition of the Footwear and Leather Show will be held from November 20-22, 2018 at the Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre. The three day event will be Australia’s premier international sourcing show for apparel, textiles, footwear and leather products. The trade-only event will occupy 16,500 gross sq. mt. space showcasing the full spectrum of product and service offerings from off-the-shelf clothing to made-to-order pieces, fabric and functional textiles. It will attract over 700 textile, apparel and footwear manufacturers and agents from 18 countries."

The 9th edition of the International Sourcing Expo, co-located with the 3rd edition of the Footwear and Leather Show will be held from November 20-22, 2018 at the Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre. The three day event will be Australia’s premier international sourcing show for apparel, textiles, footwear and leather products. The trade-only event will occupy 16,500 gross sq. mt. space showcasing the full spectrum of product and service offerings from off-the-shelf clothing to made-to-order pieces, fabric and functional textiles. It will attract over 700 textile, apparel and footwear manufacturers and agents from 18 countries.

Indian involvement

Indian participation across both the International Sourcing Expo and Footwear and Leather Show continues to be by far the largest among all attending nations with 130 companies attending. Led by key export organisations, these Indian contingents of suppliers will attract sourcing managers from Australia’s large fashion retailers, niche fashion brands, online outlets and designers.

Apparel Export Promotion Council, Wool and Woolen Export Promotion Council, and Handloom Export Promotion Council will add to the Indian participation with their dedicated pavilions that represent suppliers, and their industry, at the International Sourcing Expo. The Council of Leather Exports will lead their industry contingent at the Footwear and Leather Show with 30 suppliers joining the pavilion. They will hold the largest pavilion at Footwear and Leather Show Australia for the third consecutive year.

A comprehensive learning program

The three-day Global Sourcing Seminar Program led by industry experts will provide a comprehensive program of learning for both exhibitors and visitors. From WGSN’S international denim trends, insights into the main Asian fashion supply industries, the Modern Slavery Act, ethical sourcing advice, help for fashion start-ups, international fashion and footwear insights and more, the seminar series will cater to various needs of industry professionals.

The two-day seminar program, on its first day will detail the potential and prospects of the local sector, both on the domestic and export front, investment opportunities and FDI incentives offered by the Indian government. Mukhtarul Amin, Chairman, Council Leather Exports India, will deliver an expert view of the Indian leather and footwear sector.

The second day of the seminar program will include an exhibitor-focussed seminar presented by senior retail consultant Sarah Gale to provide a comprehensive overview of the Australian market, and seasonality within different regions.

Global Runway, a major attraction

To be held exclusive for the first time as a part of the show, the Global Runway will draw significant attention and showcase collections by both emerging and established Australian and international designers. These runway shows will be held by Australian Fashion Council and designers from Indonesia and China.

Global Business Matching to fast-track buyer/seller experience

The 3rd edition of Australia’s only dedicated Footwear and Leather Show and the 9th edition of International Sourcing Expo Australia will introduce an online business matching program to fast-track buyer/seller experience. The program uses a powerful recommendation engine to match buyers and sellers. Exhibitors can connect with relevant buyers and attendees for private networking opportunities and meetings at their stand or in a business matching lounge.

The US has refused to back down from its ongoing trade dispute with China. Instead it has warned of doubling existing tariffs on Chinese imports and says it will take decisive action to address its imbalance with China. The country has imposed tariffs on $250 billion worth of Chinese imports this year to force concessions on a list of demands that would change the terms of trade between the two countries.

The current tariff rate is set at 10 per cent but is due to increase to 25 per cent on January 1, if a deal is not struck in the meantime. China has responded with a subtle warning the US risks closing itself off from the world and has been joined by a number of other Asia-Pacific leaders in urging free trade.

China is willing to expand imports from the US if the US is willing to meet it half way in trade negotiations. For China boosting imports is an established strategy and China doesn’t want to escalate trade tensions with the US. The country has offered to boost purchases of US goods by about $25 billion this year ahead of a mid-June deadline for imposing tariffs on Chinese imports.

During the period ended September 30, 2018, KG Denim’s net sales were Rs 183.60 crores as compared to Rs 162.23 crores during the period ended September 30, 2017. Net profit was Rs 6.41 crores for the period ended September 30, 2018, as against a net loss of Rs 0.47 crores for the period ended September 30, 2017.

EPS for the period ended September 30, 2018, was Rs 2.50 as compared to Rs 0.18 for the period ended September 30, 2017. Net sales during the six month period ended September 30, 2018, were Rs 345.20 crores as compared to Rs 310.64 crores during the six month period ended September 30, 2017.

Net profit was Rs 6.89 crores for the six month period ended September 30, 2018, as against Rs 0.44 crores for the six month period ended September 30, 2017. EPS was Rs 2.68 for the six month period ended September 30, 2018, as compared to Rs 0.17 for the six month period ended September 30, 2017.

KG Denim is a denim and apparel fabric manufacturer. The company’s product divisions include denim, apparel fabric and home textiles. Its denim products include authentic ring denims, selvedge denim, organic/bio denims, tencel denim, printed denim and coated denim. The apparel fabric products include stretch twills, jean twills, and stretch, with or without Lycra.

Knitwear industrialists in Tirupur feel a free trade agreement (FTA) with Russia will help them. Russia imported knitwear garments worth Rs 241 crores and woven garments worth Rs 295 crores from India in 2017-18. Russia has a similar treaty with Bangladesh that allows for duty-free imports of readymade garments.

India and Russia plan to strengthen economic cooperation in the coming decades. The areas under focus include Indian pharmaceutical plants in Russia, long-term leasing of agricultural land in Russia’s Far East, export of automobile components from India and entry of new Indian textile players in Russia.

The list also includes heavy engineering under the Make in India initiative, investments by leading Indian IT firms in Russian tech parks, entering the infrastructure market in Russia, collaboration in mining and metallurgy sector, and joint collaboration in the Arctic sector.

Indian pharmaceutical companies are looking at the possibility of setting up plants in Russia. Agriculture and food processing sector is one of the emerging areas of cooperation. There is considerable demand for import of agricultural products, mainly fresh vegetables and fruits from India. One of the reasons for the inability of Indian exporters to cater to this demand is the logistics. One solution proposed could be direct long-term contracts between major supermarket chains in Russia and major exporters from India.

Apparel exports increased by 54 per cent in rupee terms in October compared to the same month last year; in dollar terms it increased by 36 per cent for the same period. Total textile and apparel exports grew by 38 per cent in rupee terms and 22 per cent in dollar terms for the same period. A big reason for this increase was the drop in exports last year due to the impact of GST introduction along with rupee depreciation.

According to Sanjay K Jain, Chairman of Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI), the IIP data for textiles and clothing saw a year-on-year growth during September this year from a year earlier. Textile manufacturing increased 5.4 per cent in September 2018 year-on-year whereas manufacturing of wearing apparel increased by 20.9 per cent for the same period.

C&A Foundation provides interest-free loans to smallholder and marginal cotton farmers in India to help them buy and install drip irrigation units. These efforts have resulted in higher earnings and an increased quality of life for thousands of cotton farmers. The affordability of drip irrigation for small landholders has resulted in a 31 per cent higher net income from cotton cultivation compared to non-drip farmers. Farmers previously dependent on rain-fed cotton to make a living have increased their gross earnings after joining the program. India is the world’s largest producer of cotton.

The program provides far more benefits beyond just an increase in income, with farmers seeing environmental and agronomic impacts thanks to drip irrigation. Water saving is also an achievement of this program as farmers involved in this initiative have reported using just 1,191 liters of water per kilogram of cotton compared to the 5,923 liters consumed by non-program farmers.

Uniformity in production, better yield of seed cotton and increased fertiliser cost efficiency as well as reduced weeding and lower labor costs are some of the other benefits of the program. C&A Foundation is the charitable arm of global fashion retailer C&A. The foundation has launched a global initiative aimed at helping brands, retailers and manufacturers find more innovative and sustainable ways of producing fashion.

Levi’s opened a 16,902-sq-ft, multi-level store at the “crossroads of the world”. The store replaces the previous Times Square Levi’s store, which occupied a corner space a couple of blocks north of the new locale. The flagship was designed for a seamless and highly personalised shopping experience. It houses mobile points-of-sale and associate-assisted ordering. Large dressing rooms are enhanced with convenient call buttons, comfortable seating and a bright atmosphere. And sustainable design elements can be found across the store, including hangers made from 100 per cent recycled jeans.

On the ground level, shoppers will find limited-edition New York City-centric pieces, including Levi’s Premium jeans with Statue of Liberty motifs and repeated ‘NYC’ patterns. The prints are achieved using the company’s new laser finishing process, F.L.X. Technology.

The ground floor also houses the Levi’s Tailor Shop. The shop offers consumers the most comprehensive customisation options to date with four on-site tailors and direct-to-garment (DTG) printing capabilities. Through iPads, consumers can access a broad scope of customisable options, including preloaded photos, images, logos and text designed by local New York artists. On-site tailors are also on hand to add patches, paneling, chain stitching and more to jeans, jackets, tees and totes.