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CONTENTWorld WrapA look at Back-to-School 'Season' once again As always
retailers have vied for the consumers’ attention by rolling out early promotions and luring the price-conscious consumers; and this year it seems to be no different with brands pushing Back-to-School (BTS) sales as early as possible… p12
Fair ReviewGarment Technology Expo, Bangalore: Technology brands present their latest offerings to garment industry p42
Lead Strategy
Relocating factories tonewer pastures…, thedebate continuesp18
Tex-File
Bianco continues to growwith responsive strategyfor Indian textile industryp24
H2FFair Review: Shanghai,China –Intertextile Shanghai Home Textiles, Gateway to Chinese market p28
33
FFT TrendsSpring/Summer '17: Colour Directions –Playing with the Colours of Calmness and Nature
36
Fashion BusinessThe Big Bow Galore! At the
end of a long season’s runways shows, international designers have given the fashion industry a superlative list of styles. One of the biggest styles to hit the runway this Fall season is something sweet, dainty and oh, so ladylike – bows galore...
14
Sustainability‘No Child Labour; No Discrimination’ in Indian Apparel Industry: FWF
N E X T M I N D T R E E Q U E S T I O N
The Cauvery water dispute issue is now more than hundred years old, but it is only recently that
violence hashitKarnatakaso severely.How do yousee the overall impactof thisdevelopment…?
Do you think this situation will have a long-term impact on Bangalore’s apparel export industry,
or will buyers understand that this is a temporary disruption? If you have a factory in and
around Bangalore, how much loss you have noticed due to these recurring strikes?
After 27 years, Dr. A Sakthivel is stepping down as the President of Tirupur Exporters’ Association (TEA). How do
you see his overall efforts and achievements for the growth of Tirupur as well as for the Indian apparel export
industry? You must be having some experience/memory with him…, do share the same with Apparel Online.
MIND TREE
Q-and-A
POST YOUR COMMENTS
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Ashok G Rajani,
Chairman, AEPC,
Gurgaon
Dr. A. Sakthivel has been
a prime mover of visionary
projects like TEA and Netaji
Apparel Park. He has also given
praiseworthy contribution to
the Indian financial sector with
his association to UCO Bank,
IDBI and ECGC. He has been
a great institution builder and
helped AEPC redefine itself in
the post-quota era with new
strategies for export promotion
and policy advocacy. I think the
industry has learnt a lot from him
and will always look up to him
as a friend and guide.
Elango Viswanathan,
MD, SNQS Internationals,
Tirupur
Like a true leader, A. Sakthivel
has kept up to his commitment.
During the run up to the
previous TEA elections, he
told the export fraternity
that this will be his last term
as he wants ‘youngsters’ to
take over the charge for the
future course. He has steered
the development of Tirupur
for the last 27 years and has
always put the interest of the
association as his top priority.
He has won several national
and international accolades.
We have been friends for the
last 30 years and have travelled
with him in public life for the last
5 years. I will always rate him
as a great negotiator with the
politicians, trade unions and
bureaucrats when it comes
to the challenges facing the
industry. He has run TEA without
any allegiance to any political
party and wish this tradition
continues. He has only stepped
down from the post and not
from our hearts.
Raja M. Shanmugham,
MD, Warsaw International,
Tirupur
No one person should
continue for years as it
means stagnation; this has
been witnessed in Tirupur
and in AEPC at the national
level. The declaration is an
acceptance of the fact that
people want change, which
was obvious during the last
elections. I think the industry
and the nation should vote for
change to surge forward and
become a super power nation
in the future.
Vivek Khandelwal,
President, Garment
Exporters Association of
Rajasthan (GEAR), Jaipur
Dr. A. Sakthivel is a motivation
for us, whenever and wherever
he met us, he motivated us
for the development of Jaipur
and discussed about various
growth avenues for Jaipur. He
is in fact a great supporter of
Indian apparel export industry.
I still remember when he was
elected Chairman of AEPC, he
assured us a visit to Jaipur first
and offered full support too.
R. Ramu, Partner,
Fashion Knits, Tirupur
I know Dr. A. Sakthivel from
day one, from the inception of
association and have become
a close associate of him after
becoming an EC member
of the association from year
2000 onwards. I have never
seen such a person who is so
dedicated to solve any issues
related to the industry. I wish to
share that all the projects which
have come in the past 27 years,
have been made possible due
to his efforts only; and now
Tirupur stands as a role model
among all the export hubs. If
any exporter called him for any
cause, he would make efforts to
resolve it and call them back to
inform them that their work has
been done, which is a quality
that needs admiration.
T.R. Sivaram, Royal
Classic Mills, Tirupur
Dr. A. Sakthivel and TEA have
become a synonymous name in
Indian apparel industry because
of his consistent and dedicated
efforts of past 27 years towards
the benefit of export community
and members of TEA. His
tenure can be classified into
‘Before quota regime (15 years)’
and ‘After quota regime (12
years)’. The first period was most
crucial for TEA members as all
first-time exporters were taking
baby steps of understanding
the AEPC policy, restrictions
of the importing country,
international banking norms,
customs procedure and so on.
His support for many startup
exporters are laudableand
his entire tenure of past 27
years was accessible for all
the members of TEA – just
over a phone call or a casual
personnel visit, and that too
without any prior appointment.
WORLD WRAP
ontrary to the earlier predictions,Cthe average family with children
in grades K-12 has completed almost
half (48 per cent) of their shopping as
of early August, slightly down from
last year (50 per cent) as per NRF’s
recent survey. “It is evident that many
families are still considering price
and value when shopping for their
Back-to-School and college needs.
Shopping early and often, is a trend
we have seen from many budget-
conscious consumers over the last few
years. In the weeks ahead, parents
will take advantage of the aggressive
deals that retailers will offer as they
get ready to welcome the Fall season
merchandise,” confirms Matthew
Shay, President and CEO,NRF.
This year parents are expected to
spend an average of US $ 673.57 on
electronics, clothes and notebooks,
compared with US $ 630.36 spent last
year. In total, parents of kindergarten
through 12th-grade students say they
will spend US $ 27.3 billion on school
supplies this year, up from US $ 18.4
billion in 2007.
To tap consumers, retailers are
providing an array of products from
a US $ 195 headband to a US $ 1
glue stick catering to all consumer
segments. Such is the case that luxury
brands like Kate Spade that are
known for its luxury handbags are
also offering gold-accented staplers,
monogrammed planners and US$
30 ballpoint pens to help raise sales
during the increasingly important BTS
shopping season. The discount retailer
A look at Back-to-School 'Season' once againBTS spending to reach US $ 75.8 billion
As always retailers have vied for the consumers’ attention by rolling out early
promotions and luring the price-conscious consumers; and this year it seems to be
no different with brands pushing Back-to-School (BTS) sales as early as possible.
According to the National Retail Federation’s annual survey conducted by Prosper
Insights and Analytics, the BTS spending for K-12 and college is expected to
reach US $ 75.8 billion, up from last year’s US $ 68 billion as the average family is
anticipated to spend more freely on school and college supplies this year.
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Dollar Tree is focusing on the other
end of price spectrum by offering
products such as a US $ 1 pack of
tape, glue sticks and pencils rather
than just fancy notebooks. A growing
list of designer notebooks, luxury desk
accessories and even beanbag chairs,
catering to wealthy Back-to-School
shoppers is quietly coming to power
against the budget departmental
store’s products. Now shoppers can
buy a US $ 195 Gucci Headband,
US $ 572 Versace backpack and US
$ 28 Terez pencil case on the Saks
website, while Restoration Hardware
has a new teen line that includes US
$ 2000 ‘riveted aluminium’ desk and
US $ 250 faux fur beanbag chairs.
While Nordstrom stores are providing
a mix of US $ 495 Burberry girl’s cross
body bag, US $ 32 backpack and a
set of US $ 17 gel pens, traditional
retailers catering to the middle-class
consumers are struggling to slash
prices in this aggressive race vying
for consumers. Sales at many such
stores have slumped and once-famous
retailers such as Macy’s and Sears
have had to shut down their stores.
Nonetheless BTS items are also
expected to buoy sales at discount
retailers such as T.J. Maxx, whose
appeal is increasingly wide and
which aims at the growing number
of poor students and families in the
US. According to the Department
of Education’s National Center for
Education Statistics, in 2007 around
9 million public school students came
from low-income households and in
2014 there were more than 11 million.
In order to tap in more consumers,
these discount retailers have pushed
their promotions earlier in the season
that has in turn pushed people to
research more about the products.
According to the recent data released
by Google, BTS search queries rose
sharply in the week of July 11, a
full week earlier than last year.
Others such as Walmart, the world’s
largest retailer, have used tax-free
holidays to encourage shopping of
school-related items.
Most importantly, many retailers
are promoting uniforms heavily with
retailers such as Target promoting 50
per cent off-prices on the uniforms.
“Our people said that whether its
Burlington or Target or JCPenney
or Sears, the uniform section was
the hottest part of the competitive
space for Back-to-School. About
twice as many stores this year as
last are doing specials on uniforms,”
reveals Craig Johnson, President,
Customer Growth Partners, a retail
consultinggroup.
With retailers offering an assortment
of products and strategizing it in the
best way to vie for the consumers
attention, each retailer whether
discount, luxury or mid-segment are
trying their best to offer the best to
its consumers so that they not only
visit the store but also convert it into a
sale. As Back-to-School season is the
second biggest shopping period of the
year behind Christmas, while families
will spend more than before; how they
will do it and where they will do it,
remains to be seen.
• Families with children
in grades K-12, plan to
spend an average US
$ 673.57 on apparel and
accessories, electronics,
shoes and school
supplies, up from last
year’s US $ 630.36 for
a total of US $ 27.3
billion.
• Consumer confidence in
the economy continues
to grow and is a
significant factor in how
families, will spend for
Back-to-School this year.
• College students and
families with children in
college plan to spend an
average of US $ 888.71
• Similar to K-12, 30
per cent of college
consumers say the
economy will not affect
their shopping plans, up
from 26 per cent and
the highest level in the
survey’s history.
According toNRF’s recentsurvey:
SUSTAINABILITY
between 2013 and 2016. Issues highlighted
were discussed with many stakeholders like
Associations/Councils/NGOs/Governmental
Institutions such as Labour Department
etc. On the issue of child labour, the report
says, “Various stakeholders agree that child
labour is generally not visible in garment
factories, although it is still present in small
establishments (10-15 workers) and in textile
low wages and violence against women, and
enhance social dialogue. The Foundation is also
involved in training for supervisors.
Recently, FWF organized a national stakeholder
roundtable in Delhi where the India Country
Study 2016 was presented and the way forward
discussed. For this report, the initial audits
were conducted in apparel manufacturing
hubs like Delhi, Noida, Tirupur and Karnataka
WF has been active in India for the last 13Fyears and its 40 members (mostly those in
fashion and sportswear) source from more than
160 Indian factories. Of these factories, 45 per
cent are located in north India, while 55 per cent
are based in south India. FWF provides training
through its Workplace Education Programme
(WEP). In next four years its strategic
partnership activities in India aim to combat
‘NO CHILD LA BOUR; NO DIS CRIMINA TION’
IN INDIAN A P P A REL INDUS TRY : FWF
Finally comes a report by an
NGO that projects positivity
for the Indian apparel industry.
Fair Wear Foundation (FWF)
India Country Study 2016, in a
detailed 56 pages report, states
that there is no child labour in
the country’s garment industry
today, a stark difference from
the situation that was alarming
in year 2000. Similarly, the
report also gives thumbs up
to fair practices claiming that
there is no discrimination
either on religion or caste, and
women are paid equal wages
for equal work. According to
the report, there have been
no worker complaints on
discrimination in employment in
India. Although the report does
have some strong opinions on
several industry-related issues,
it is heartening to see that at
least it reflects some good
points which are in fact the
strength of the industry.
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A similar kind of
report has also
been issued about
Vietnam garment
industry which too
has interesting
observationsand
findings like it rarely
finds cases of proven
forced labour,
discrimination
against women
among their 300-odd
factories…
The report says that female workers are often employed in unskilled work like thread cutting and packing,
but are seldom employed as line supervisors
mills. During the FWF audits, evidence
of forced and/or bonded labour was
difficult to find and was mostly linked
to forced overtime. Though since 2013,
violations have been found in two
to three factories in relation to the
employment of people 15 to 18 years
old. Some factories were found to have
a lack of maintenance of appropriate
license and permission from the
labour department when employing
young workers. In 35 per cent of
audits conducted between 2013 and
2015, age records of workers are not
appropriately maintained or verified
by the management. It also says that
there is an increase in the number of
adolescent workers employed in the
Tirupur region, as they represent a
cheaper alternative workforce that
is able to work for longer hours,an
average of 72 hours per week.
Another positive point that has been
highlighted by the report is that
discrimination based on religion and
caste was rarely observed during the
FWF audits. Though there is gender
discrimination in the type of tasks
assigned to women, like in the north of
India, female workers are employed in
unskilled work like thread cutting and
packing while in south India, although
women occupy skilled positions, such
as tailors, they are seldom employed
as line supervisors.
No complaints from workers on freedom of association
FWF has put in place a complaints
procedure, which it claims serves
as a safety net. When a complaint is
filed, FWF informs the member(s)
sourcing from the factory in question,
and investigates the complaint. All the
complaints are published on the FWF
website. Talking about the nature of
complaints, the report says that there
has been no worker complaint on
freedom of association and the right
to collective bargaining. In 2014 and
2015, FWF received three complaints
related to non-payment or delays in
payment of wages. As far as overtime
is concerned, between 2013 and
2015, it received several complaints,
although it is often mentioned together
with other issues, such as lack of
payment and dismissal. Since 2013,
it has received numerous complaints
of occupational health and safety
(OHS) violations. Similarly, there were
complaints regarding non-payment of
social security benefits andPF.
Scope for improvement
FWF also says that nearly all
factories in north India and in some
factories in the south, there is no
system in place to communicate to
workers regarding voluntary or
pre-announced overtime hours. This
happens all the more in factories with
no policies and procedures in place.
Similarly there is violation in the area
of occupational health and safety. In
the north, the second most recurrent
violation is the lack of internal and
formal means of communication,
followed by the absence of legal
contracts. In the south, the second
highest number of violations is in the
area of payment of wages, followed by
the lack of internal and formal means
of communication. “Most workers are
actually hired through
recommendations of fellow workers
or contractors, who help recruit
workers from their native villages,” it
further added.
The report insists on the need to
increase the activities of Labour
Departments, setting up the
Department of Labour in Noida
as an example. The department
only has 12 labour inspectors who, in
2015-16, carried out 21 inspections in
the 964 garment factories established
in Noida. It also added that the
Department of Labour in Noida
reports a high level of compliance with
the law under its jurisdiction, which is
not the case throughout the country.
On Trade Unions/Internal Complaints Committees
Findings from the FWF audits from
2013 to 2015 highlight the fact that
99 per cent of audited factories had
no trade union in their premises.
Audits found that no functional
grievance mechanism was available
to workers in 79 per cent of factories
in north India and 64% in south
India. Factories in the south often
have collective bargaining agreement
(CBA) policies. Works committees
and Internal Complaints Committees,
if present, discuss minor issues
related to working conditions (for
example broken toilet taps), rather
than focusing on the main issues of
concern such as wages, overtime, and
sexual harassment.
Recently, Denim Project that
produces garments made from
98 per cent denim waste has
launched a kickstarter campaign to
raise US $ 177,000 by September.
The amount raised will be utilised
in buying machinery, source waste
fabric and convert it into fibre
so that it can later be converted
into garments. This project aims
to save around 183,000,000 litres
of fresh water. “The purpose of
my engagement in Denim Project
has, from the start, been to
change our production, to show
how ‘easy’ it is to save water and
the environment. My dream is to
set a positive footstep within my
Li & Fung, the global leader in
consumer goods design,
development, sourcing and
logistics has recently joined
the Foreign Trade Association
(FTA) as its latest member. As
part of the FTA’s sustainability
services, Li & Fung has selected its
international trade policy services
reach. I think that should be the goal
for everyone. Especially the ones
fortunate enough to have kids,”
informs Jesper Kejser, Founder-
CEO, Denim Project.
A great initiative to cut down textile
waste, this campaign further focuses
on sustainability as up to 15 per cent
of fabric intended for clothing are
wasted during the cuttingprocess.
According to experts, thisestimated
waste can provide every person on
the planet three new T-shirts per
year and contains enough water
that could have supplied 25 million
people annually, which equatesto
38.5 billion litres of fresh water. The
Denim Project was founded to make
and has become a participant of
the Business Social Compliance
Initiative (BSCI). “Li & Fung is
committed to responsible sourcing
and to its engagement with BSCI,
whose benefits include, social
audits of the supply chain, training
activities and dialogue with
stakeholders,” revealed the FTA.
a change by creating garments by
cutting waste, thereby becoming the
most resource-neutral denim brand
in the world. All those fabrics that
are discarded by brands is sorted
Currently, FTA has a membership
of more than 1,800 businesses
who are committed towards
more sustainable trade and
demonstrate trust in FTA, to
prepare businesses for the
challenges of the future. “With
the proliferation of trade
agreements and new sustainability
out by colour, re-fibre and spun into
yarns and then Denim Project adds
2 per cent stretch to the 98 per cent
wasted fabric and designs a new
brand line.
regulations, keeping on top of
these important issues remains
a continued challenge. FTA will
help us maintain our knowledge
base in the EU and ensure we stay
ahead of the market as it evolves,”
informs Rick Darling, Head of
Government and Public Affairs at
Li &Fung.
Kickstarter campaign to raise US $ 177,000 for Denim Project
Li & Fung joins FTA
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BREAKING NEWS
To read the latest sustainability news, go to
http://news.apparelresources.com/sustainability-news/
R E L OC A T I N G F A C T OR I E S T O
N E W E R P A S T U R E S …, T H E D E B A T E
C ON T I N U E S
ver the last one month I have had someO really gruelling interactions with various
sections of the industry – from big exporters to
medium level players to technology providers
to consultants and even people in the corridors
of power. The topic was one – ‘relocating
factories to newer pastures’. Andthough
there is a consensus on the fact that growth
can no longer happen if companies continue
to operate in metropolitans mostly due to the
increasing cost of real estate, continuously
rising wages and scarcity of workers. What is
interesting is that most players are not really
motivated to shift base and Governments have
little or no idea on what needs to be done to
attract investment in new areas…; actually
they know very little about the industry.
The investors’ meets that states are holding
have become a fashion statement…; all that
they talk about is how much investment has
been promised. I was also invited to the Odisha
investors’ meet held in Bangalore recently…,
but the response was very lukewarm from the
garment industry…, obviously the focus was
on the big-ticket industries.
One thing I am very sure of is that the garment
industry has as yet not been able to impress
upon the Government the importance of this
industry in fulfilling the prime national agenda
of generating employment that is the top
priority of every political party, whether in
power or not. Nowhere do we see the stalwarts
of this industry sitting at important industry
problem of unemployment can be eradicated…
Is there a comparison…? I tried to explain this
to the industry’s Secretary at the Centre, but it
elicited no response.
The Governments also don’t seem to
understand that a garment factory cannot
exist in isolation; there has to be a synergy
with other ancillary inputs – from fabric to
accessories to value-added services to logistics
and even infrastructure, to accommodate the
huge worker base that would be employed.
Has any effort been made to understand the
industry…? How many meetings have been
organized to know ground realities from the
‘horse’s mouth’ as they say… If anyone knows
of such efforts do let meknow.
Some requirements can be sourced from
outside…, but what about skilled labour; and
it is not only about sewing operators, it is also
the pattern masters, the embroidery machine
operator or screen printers. One company
cannot have all of them in-house, there has
to be a pool of skilled workers in and around
the areas… We need training centres, hostel
facilities, medical facilities and other basic
amenities to ensure that workers are ready
for the job, which is performance-driven. But,
then there is also the management; why would
anyone be ready to go into the interiors, unless
there is some level of comfort.
Governments are announcing one Apparel/
Textile Park after the other but companies
are not interested… Has anyone ever tried
platforms or being asked opinions on budget
and other critical policy discussions. We are
the ‘tailors’ who have made it big!
I have repeatedly said that every advanced
economy in the world has grown on the back
of the garment industry…; it is the only
commercial activity after agriculture that
has the potential to employ large number of
people on small investments and with just 30
days of training. I am surprised that states
that are trying to entice garment companies
to set up factories in their territory are still
clueless about this reality. What are still
important are the big figures in terms of
investment and not the number of jobs that
can be created.
Why would any garment manufacturer invest
Rs. 100 crore to start a factory, when a much
smaller investment is enough to get a factory
up and running, while generating larger
employment opportunities? Since we all know
that an investment of Rs. 1 crore has the
potential to give employment to 120 people,
generate export business of Rs. 1 crore and
give employment to another 120 people in the
support industry… Which other industry can
boast of thisstrength!
Take the case of the car industry or other
high-ticket industries… An investment of
Rs. 12,000 crore in general generates 7,000
jobs in the main factory and another 7,000
jobs in the ancillary units… With this kind
of investment in apparel manufacturing the
WHY WOULD ANY GARMENT MANUFACTURER INVEST RS. 100 CRORE TO START A
FACTORY, WHEN A MUCH SMALLER INVESTMENT IS ENOUGH TO GET A FACTORY UP
AND RUNNING, WHILE GENERATING LARGER EMPLOYMENTOPPORTUNITIES?
LEAD STRATEGY
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to analyse ‘why not’? It is not only
about giving cheap land and few
other financial benefits… What about
labour laws, wage policy, support
infrastructure, connectivity to nearest
town, logistic facilities (very important
to export units)…, the list is endless.
But no one is listening.
In the past all movements away from
the home city have been spearheaded
by the industry… Orient Craft took
the industry from Delhi to Gurgaon; a
big move at that time. Tirupur moved
to the outskirts (Netaji Apparel Park)
led by TEA, while Mumbai companies
just took the easy way out, moving
to Bangalore or Tirupur when the
industry was very nascent in this hub.
But now there has to be support from
the Government.
Firstly, labour is not what it used to
be… Many of them do not want to
migrate and would prefer to work
from the comfort of their cultural
environment; and secondly, due to
MNREGA benefit, the industry has
become demanding and workers
prefer to look for easy jobs with less
pressure… How do we make the
industry interesting for them… Is the
Governmentlistening?
Another important factor is that
the garment industry is very owner-
driven and not many success stories
exist where the corporate type of
professionalism has worked for the
company… I can give many examples
of failures, but success to only one
– Shahi – their model of functioning
though is not impossible, is also not
easy to duplicate.
In the articles that follow, we have
traced the experience of a foreign
company (Aquarelle) that has set up a
very successful manufacturing format
in India and is now ready to expand;
a company (Indian Design) that has
already moved away from its original
roots into Andhra Pradesh and even
Bangladesh and is now looking at
options in Odisha; and finally what
the Government of Odisha, the hottest
destination today have to offer…, the
ground realities are laid bare for all
to read!
Editor-in-Chief
Choosing India overChina…The team at Aquarelle stresses
that they have seized to consider
themselves as a ‘foreign’ company
as an Indian team handles the
operations on a day-to-day basis, but
feels international because of their
existence in different countries. “I
feel like a foreign company because
of our management philosophy and
principles which are common to all
our factories in every country,” says
Nagesh. India was zeroed in as a
better option than China after much
deliberations. The top management
felt that China was already a big
manufacturing base with many state-
of-the art companies, so there wasno
sense competing for orders in China
against the Chinese, the choice of the
AquarelleGetting the best out of India with clear ‘glocal’ strategy
The Indian garment manufacturing industry has
never been a hot bed for investment by foreign
enterprises and there are very few success stories
to emulate. Yet, Aquarelle the casual shirts
division of the Mauritius-based CIEL TextileGroup
(Apparel Division) which has 20 factories located
in four countries – Mauritius, Madagascar, India
and Bangladesh, is a growing company which
is proud to be Indian by team but international
in its functioning. The Team of Apparel Online
visited their factory on the outskirts of Bangalore
and was impressed with the professionalism
that they observed. In conversation with the
top management of Nagesh Badida, Executive
Director and Parameswar Chopparapu, Global
Manufacturing Director, Aquarelle Group, the
strategy behind the success is decoded…
Nagesh Badida, Executive Director (extreme right) and Parameswar Chopparapu, Global Manufacturing Director, Aquarelle Group (standing next to him) with their
senior team at the Aquarelle factory that manufactures casual shirts
country had to be where opportunities
in garmenting still existed.
The next best bet was India for many
reasons, including the fact that the
company already had a tie-up with an
Indian company Essar Textiles (now
known as Consolidated Fabrics Ltd.
(CFL) which owed 25% of shares in
Woven Fabrics in Mauritius and there
were some Indians, including Nagesh,
already working for the company in
Mauritius. Further, Mauritius is pretty
similar to India culturally, with 70% of
the population originating from India.
Since Bangalore already had a culture
for manufacturing of men’s wear and
the labour is very well tuned to men’s
shirts, it was the first preference for
setting up a casual shirts factory.
No doubt, purchasing land and
building a factory by foreign
companies is a big hassle with
many procedural hurdles, with
the Government thrust at that
point of time being more on big-
ticket industries. “We were lucky
to find a built-up property with all
infrastructures in place near the city
otherwise we would have faced the
usual issues related to Government
policies and it would have been
difficult to get the factory up and
running so fast,” reasons Nagesh.
be international but thinking will
be local.
Standardisation of processes…On the other hand, there are a lot of
things – cutting, sewing, finishing;
and general operations or hard
core manufacturing which issimilar
everywhere. So for everysingle
product the clarity of operations isvery
clear. “We have a unique GSP (Global
Standardisation Processes) which we
are driving in for the last 3 years. We
have a team working on the system to
make all factories uniform. So what
runs here for casual shirts runs the
same in the other two factories in the
other countries. The product nuances
according to the customer is handled
and managed by the local people…
Like you talk about a certain sewing
automation process, whichhappens
as long as it makes cost sensein the
country,” saysParameswar.
Marketing Aquarelle, not acountry…When the marketing team meets
the customers they don’t talk on
Indian, Madagascar or Mauritius
lines, they introduce Aquarelle as
a global company that can produce
the same product from any country
be it in Madagascar or Mauritius
or India and GSP ensures that
no matter where it is produced
the goods remains standardised.
Interestingly there are some areas
of blurring in this very straight
jacket approach, mostly in terms of
pricing. “If the shirts are 100 per cent
cotton then they are produced in the
same price bracket at all the three
manufacturing destinations, but if
something is made on regional basis
then the prices vary. For example,
if denim or any hand-working job
is required and if it turns out be a
common product in 100 per cent
cotton then we give the customers
the liberty to pick their preference
locations from where they want pick
the products. If it is India you get
India prices,” explains Nagesh.
Having operations in manycountries
has its advantages, which thebuyers
People are the biggest challenge…Yet, these positive points in no
way negated the challenges that
international companies face when
setting up business in India. The
biggest being the handling of labour,
which according to most is not as
disciplined as in other countries
including China. “You can have good
or bad people, but more important
is how you structure the training
process and how you carry those
people around,” argues Parameswar.
Nagesh adds that their Chairman
strongly believes that a company
grows not from its infrastructure
and machines, but by its people.
This is a philosophy that has no
compromise. “We treat our workers
well and not like garment making
machines; we educate them as to what
is our concept, what is the culture
and what we expect from them, and
for that we have some 10-15 days of
training sessions that focuses on the
do’s and don’ts in the Aquarelle Group
and how we recognize their hard
work and pay them back in terms of
incentives,” shares Nagesh.
The HR team at Aquarelle is very
strong; their job is to communicate
and create linkages and update
workers constantly on what is
happening in the company… That’s
an ongoing process. “Since we are a
global company, most of our processes
are standardised and structured,
and followed in all four countries,
yet culturally there are differences
with every country having its
nuances, so we have to look at how to
manage them individually and that is
something that is left to us. In terms of
today, if you look at our products, be it
our services or deliverables, they are
more or less consistent. If you look at
our working you would hardly find any
deviation in the process from country
to country,” avers Nagesh. So the
formulae is simple – Local nuances
will always remain, and so will
the importance of local expertise to
hold and manage the factories and
the people. But at the end of theday,
the same road map will be carried
forward. To build local talents and
deal with the people, the formula may
When the marketing team meets the customers they don’t talk on Indian, Madagascar or Mauritius lines, they introduce Aquarelle as a global company thatcan produce the same product from any country be it in Madagascar or Mauritius orIndia.
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also recognize. “Mauritius is duty-
free to the US and I will not even try
to compete with Mauritius in this
market. Our flagship customer, J Crew
predominantly have their business
done in Mauritius, even then they
know we are in India too and India is
restively cheaper, but after the duty-
free advantage we lose outhands
down, so there is no competition.Again
for production in Madagascar, though
again it is more expensive than India
the proximity advantage it enjoys
attracts buyers looking for quick
turnarounds,” avers Parameswar.
Motivating thelocal management…So what keeps the Indian team
motivated to show growth, when
India is thriving on private
business. “The biggest difference
that I see from an Indian company
is the entrepreneurship concept
which these guys put in. We have
corporate culture and we are
all salary-based, but there is a
balanced approach so that one
should feel that he is working in his
own company, as they give a lot of
freedom; they recruit top guys and
make them responsible for A to Z
of the company. Second thing is the
entrepreneurial way of working. Even
if I am spending one rupee, I would
think twice and think what the better
way is,” shares Nagesh.
The level of performance is aided
by the group philosophy where a
certain percentage share of profit,
as rider on sales per business unit
is distributed. “So we access that
part of the profitability and multiply
it my ‘X’ numbers, which is given to
the top people and the other people
who have really worked hard so I
can say that this is really motivating
for me,” shares Nagesh. He goes on
to elaborate, “Let’s say the business
turnover of my operations is ‘X’
number of dollar millions, then they
get a certain percentage of that
straight away. In our case we devise
a certain percentage of shares for the
staff and others. Our whole concept
of business is based on transparency
andperformance.”
What companies should take into account before making any shift…
One thing is clear, it is a big strategic
decision to move to a new place and
investors can no longer get into this
industry assuming that the returns
are high. Any company ready to make
a shift to new location should be
aware that it will take at least a year
or two before the unit can stabilize.
During that time one will have to
ensure that sufficient orders are there.
A unit which has insufficient orders
and low feeding and insufficient
working capital is more likely to fade
away into the twilight. Trained labour
is a scarce commodity. Provision
should be given to factor in costs of
training. One can tie up with all the
Skill Development organizations that
are there, but still it will take at least
six months before a ‘trained tailor’
becomes productive. Gone are the
days when a new entrant can poach
upon the neighbours’ labour force.
Doing that makes one open to quid
pro quosanctions.
Also companies cannot afford to
look at this industry as a cottage
industry but should look at it as
an organized sector involving deep
planning at all stages. Treat it at
par with any engineering industry
involving high labour. From the word
‘go’ sustainability in all operations
should be a key factor. ‘Efficiency’ is
the key word. ‘Efficiency’ not only on
the shopfloor but in all operations.
The industry here is still used to huge
wastages. These have to be cleaned
up and systems set to set off alarms if
wastages lookpossible.
As CEO, Ravi Kumar of Indian
Designs says, and he knows whathe’s
talking about, “Size matters! No buyer
of repute today likes to associate
himself with a small unit. Almost
everybody buys on credit. Deep
pockets are required. New entrants
should pay attention to the new buzz
word in the industry –automation.
Higher investments involving less
dependability on inconsistent labour
using automation should be studied
RELOCATION IMPEDIMENTS…
THE HOW AND WHERE OF
RELOCATION
In principle everyone agrees that factories should move into new regions where the
manpower is easily available and also that some basic requirements are essential to
set up a factory which the local Governments should assist in as Naseer Humayun,
MD, Indian Designs says: The Government has to understand that in the process of
setting up a garment unit there is a huge investment done by an entrepreneur to
develop skills in people who hitherto have had no experience in a manufacturing
unit, nor have any idea of the discipline needed in a factory.” But the critical question
that arises is do the State Governments really understand what is required, and is the
industry ready to move from its comfort zone?
Companies cannot
afford to look at
this industry as a
cottage industry
but should look at
it as an organized
sector involving
deep planning at
all stages. Treat
it at par with
any engineering
industry involving
high labour. From
the word ‘go’
sustainability in all
operations should
be a key factor.
ESSENTIALS
22 Apparel Online India | SEPTEMBER 16-30, 2016 |www.apparelresources.com
before closing in on machinery. The
scarcity of middle-management,
especially on the shopfloor, is a huge
factor to build in. Having said all that,
this is still an industry that keeps
one on toes with its distinct quirks.
And for somebody who has been long
enough here, like me, I wouldn’t like
to be anywhere else. It is fulfilling,
jobwise and especially when one looks
at the huge contribution to society and
the contribution to the upliftment of
womenespecially.”
Broadly the incentives or
enticements required by a new
entrepreneur from the Government
are free, or the land is nominally
priced; subsidised uninterrupted
electricity and water supply, also
subsidised travel facilities or
adequate bus facilities for employees
and hostel facilities for employees
to be built and managed by the
Government. Wage rate, which is
a major attraction to these areas,
should be frozen or nominally
increased yearly for the next five
years, and providing CETP facilities
and other facilities as may be
mandatory by law to run a garment
unit. Nothing that cannot be provided,
yet Governments of many states are
either not getting the formulae right
or are not making a genuine effort
to understand the nuances of the
industry, which makes it different
from many other industries.
Yet not everyone is convinced that
moving to a new place is a good
strategy. “Even if the Governments of
certain states are giving incentives,
why would I move from Bangalore
which has the right ecosphere to
ensure production of my product
category to the satisfaction of the
buyer,” argues Sanjeev Makhija,
Naseer Humayun (L), MD, Indian Designs with his CEO Ravi Kumar
MD, Goldenseam who manufactures
casual bottom wear with many special
washes and finishes. His logic is
echoed by other companies that are
making value-added products. They all
expressed concern of getting the right
workers with years of experience,
and by understanding of the craft will
I get workers and companies that
understand my product and deliver at
my terms in a new place,” echo many
other similarly placed exporters. It
is important that the Governments
evolve to understand the requirements
of the industry before the confidence
can be built that moving to a
new destination will be a smooth
transition.
The concern of finding a compatible
ecosphere to work in at a new place is
for real. Some companies have already
burnt their fingers in the process.
Also managing factories far away
from headquarters can be difficult as
the management of both Richa Global
and Pearl Global discovered through
their ventures into interior Karnataka
years ago. The area people aretalking
about most of late is Andhra Pradesh
where the Government has taken a
very pro-active approach. After the
failed attempt to invite industry to the
state some years ago, freshefforts
are on with a better understanding
of the industry and many companies
are showing interest. Among them
is Bangalore based Indian Designs,
which is among the companies that
has taken the bold step of setting up
a factory in Bangladesh also. The
company has a factory coming up in
Hindupur in AP, near the Karnataka
boarder, even Madura is building
a factory in the region that has an
Apparel Park, facilities of which are
supported by State Government.
Developing a new centre for an industry is always a
challenge, but when the industry is the apparel industry,
which not only entails many variables, but also involves
huge human resource management, the task is a wee
bit tougher. Picking up the challenge, the Government
of Odisha is very keen to establish the garment industry
in the state and is willing to go the full distance to
understand the special needs of the industry and create
a business environment that is flexible, responsive and
compliant to the growth of the industry. Team Apparel
Online, led by Deepak Mohindra, Editor-in-Chief,
recently met and discussed the uniqueness of the industry
with Sanjeev Chopra, Principal Secretary, Industries
Department, Government of Odisha and Sanjay Kumar
Singh, Commissioner cum Secretary, Skill Development
and Technical Education and CMD, Odisha Industrial
Infrastructure Development Corporation. The positive
and passionate attitude of these top officers was very
encouraging for the prospects of the industry inOdisha.
“There are no realsuccess stories for apparel parks and we are aware of the critical areas that hamper the development. So we want to pre-empt and address the issues...”–Sanjay Kumar Singh, Commissioner cum
Secretary, Skill Development and Technical
Education and CMD, Odisha Industrial
Infrastructure Development Corporation
“We have beentalking to stakeholders in the garment business and have realized that acommon policy format for the textiles and apparel sector is not viable, asthe need of both sectors is very different.”–Sanjeev Chopra, Principal Secretary,
Industries Department, Government of Odisha
Odisha, the next frontier for apparel manufacturing!
• Proactive Government takes the lead
• Bhubaneswar the nerve centre for new cluster
• Shahi and Madura already in the state
LEAD STRATEGY
he city of Bhubaneswar is aTclean and green city with all the
amenities that justify its position
as the capital city of a state on the
growth curve. Being endowed with
abundant natural resources, the state
also boasts of a strong disciplined
worker base of both men and women
who are culturally open to migrate
for better employment opportunities.
“The labour from Orissa forms the
backbone of many successful textile/
garmenting hubs in India, including
Surat, Bangalore and Chennai. It
is now time to use this workforce
to develop the industry within the
state,” argues Sanjay, batting strongly
for the development of the apparel
manufacturing industry in Odisha.
The state boasts of many training
centres for apparel industry under
the Skill India and Integrated Skill
Development Programs, and since the
exposure to the apparelmanufacturing
industry is wide-spread with large
migration already happening, the
synergy is obvious. “The Government
of Odisha is very proactive on skill
development and it is a major agenda
for them right now… The whole
political environment at the moment
is geared and focused on upscaling
employment... Which industry canbe
better than garmenting to create job
opportunities in large numbers with
relatively less capital investment?”
reasons Sanjay. With large tribal
population being integrated into
the workforce and wages in Odisha
comparable to Bangladesh, the state
no doubt is an attractive destination
for those looking for competitive edge
ingarmenting.
The serious intent of the Government
in developing this sector is evident
by the fact that a textile policy is
being framed for the first timeand
a separate chapter is being written
especially for the garment industry.
“We are now looking at a separate
chapter for apparels, as we realise the
need, which will delay the policy, but
is important for long-term growth,”
says Sanjeev. The openness of the
Government officials in listening to
experts and admitting that ‘out-of-
the-box’ thinking is the only way
forward, is indeed a fresh whiff of air,
signifying the changing attitude of
those inpower.
While mining has in the past been
the major revenue generator for
the state, unfortunately it has
not been able to generate enough
employment. Of late, one of the
biggest realizations has been of the
potential significance of the apparel
industry to the domestic economy of
the state. Under a new agenda, five
industries are the focus areas for
development, and textile and apparel
find a mention. In fact, one of the main
purposes of setting up IDCO was to
ensure that the right infrastructure is
established to support excellence for
apparel manufacturing.
There are many ‘plus points’ for the
success of the garment industry in
Odisha which Sanjeev and Sanjay
both endorse like trainable and
response labour force is only one
of the. The state is rich in natural
resources, it has its own port in
Paradip, besides other ports like
Dhamara and Gopalpur and some
others being developed under public-
private partnership, an international
airport in the capital, good roads and
train connectivity, huge land bank
owned by the Government, also being
a surplus energy producing state
there is good and cheap supply of
electricity. “If we charge say Re. 1 for
a unit of electricity, the rate nearest
to us is Rs. 1.5 that is the difference,”
explains Sanjay. The Government has
in the meanwhile already started the
process of developing air connectivity
to Dubai and Singapore, as they
are major centres for world trade.
Tenders have been invited and tax
on aviation fuel has been reducedto
attract airlines to start direct flights to
these destinations.
Two major garment companies Shahi
and Madura have already set up units
in the heart of the city. In fact, Shahi
and Aditya Birla Group (Madura)
are being presented as poster boys
for investment in Odisha and now
Jockey (Page Apparels) has signed an
agreement to set up a factory in the
state and Color Lines has promised to
invest, following an elaborate two-
day investor meet held in Bangalore
recently to update industry on the
incentives that the Government is
offering. While the major thrust was on
the IT sector, with the CM also making
an appearance, a session was held for
the garment industry in which some
local companies did attend.Expressing
satisfaction at the outcome of the
event Odisha Chief Minister Naveen
Patnaik said, “We have received a
total investment announcement of
Rs. 90,490 crore during the two days
with employment potential of more
than 70,000. We are now organizing
Make in Odisha conclave on December
1-2 this year at Bhubaneswar to take
the work forward.”
The area that is being promoted
and developed as a Fashion and
Apparel Park – Ramdaspur – is on
the outskirts, nearly 25 km from
Bhubaneswar. The area is being
developed like a mini city with all
amenities to facilitate comfortable
stay for management and families,
also common facilities are coming
up for manufacturers like ETP,
dormitories, training centre, etc. As
a strategic move, ancillary units are
being approached to open shop in the
cluster to develop the right ecosphere
required for successful manufacturing
of garments.
Sanjay is quick to add thatRamdaspur
is not a typical textile park, and the
terms and conditions are very flexible.
Freshness is in the way officers’ areas
open to ideas and are very determined
to make the cluster a benchmark
in industrial park development.
“There are no real success stories
for apparel parks and we are aware
of the critical areas that hamper the
development. So we want to pre-empt
and address the issues before hand,”
says Sanjay. One the interesting
experiments that the Government is
contemplating is to build the sheds
with all facilities so that companies
can just walk in and start business.
“The plug and play model could make
it worthwhile for companies to explore
the opportunities, as it ensures easy
entry, but we will also mix it with
independently-owned units so that
companies are more serious to make
it work,” adds Sanjay.
However, the road is still long and
many critical directions need to be
discussed and addressed to ensure
smooth implementation of the ‘intent’.
For one there is no study on what
could be the potential products that
could competitively be produced
in the state, also just inviting the
exporters and manufacturers is not
enough, there has to be interest from
the buyers to push the industry to
invest; Ethiopia is a classic example
of how buyers can play a pivotal role
in developing manufacturing bases,
and lastly, but the most important, is
how to put across the message to an
industry that is reluctant to move out
of its comfort zone.
The
preferred
destinations…
The ‘Make in India’
thrust has motivated
many and the time
to move away from
comfort zones has
arrived. But where to
move, is a question
mark. Many of the
technology providers
believe that Odisha
is the ideal place to
set up a garmenting
business today. “Look
at the amount of
female workers in
Odisha, a state where
the social ethos
encourages women
to work unlike Bihar.
With a traditional
base in textiles, the
basic foundations are
in place,” reasons
Pavan Kapoor, MD,
IIGM. His opinion is
strongly seconded
by Anil Anand,MD, HCA. “The State
Government is very
active in promoting
investment and there
seems to be a serious
intent looking at the
number of high level
conclaves being held
to woo the industry.
Also Shahi, which is a
trend setter in taking
factories to new areas
has already set up a
unit, there must be
something positive,”
he argues.
KP Prasad of ATE shares
that his company has
recently supported the
new unit of Mumbai
based Maxima
Fashions on the
borders of Karnataka
and Maharashtra in
an area that has only
untrained labour. He
also shares that many
companies in Mumbai
are contemplating to
move into the interiors,
but it is too early to
take names.
or the last 25 years, theItalianFtop brand Bianco has been
a trusted name for advanced
technology machines for the entire
textile industry of India, catering
to a full range of machines and
accessories for both textile and
technical textile industry. The
machines are entirely designed
and manufactured by the company
in-house in Alba Italy; it also
manufactures small accessories
machines in their factory in
Mumbai. In conversation with
Apparel Online, Andrea Pelissero,
Member of Board Bianco S.p.A,
shares the company’s strategy for
the entire Indian textile market and
what makes it the preferred choice
for Indian customers.
Post 2005, the market has seen
increasing awareness amongst
consumers regarding best product
quality that has eventually led to
a surge in demand for advanced
technology machines. “25 years
ago the market was very small
for us but after 2004-2005, the
market is booming,” asserts
Andrea. The company has seen
a surge in its business in India,
with a market share that is more
than 75 per cent compared to its
European competitors. What makes
the company a success for the Indian
consumers, is its growing adaptability
to the consumer’s need and market
condition with customised machines
along with standard high efficiency
machine range.
Bianco has accepted the
price-sensitive nature of the Indian
market and aligned its strategy
keeping this in mind. “We realize
that the Indian market is not for
making quick profits, but rather it’s a
market for volume. Indian customers
are buying a lot of machines, but
without giving much profit at the
end of the year. When we mix good
markets (giving profits) with a market
like India with volume, we have a
collaborative average of profits in
order for the company to sustain
growth,” claims Andrea. Apart from
this smart strategy, the company is
working close to its customers by
having a strong outreach pan India
through 3 agents; one handling North
India, which includes Delhi, Ludhiana,
Chandigarh and Kolkata, namely Dipti
International; the second covering
Gujarat and Maharashtra, known as
Comtex Engineering; and finally the
third covering south India, such as
Bangalore, Coimbatore, Hyderabadand
Chennai, by name Lords Consultancies.
In fact each of its agents has developed
a fleet of technicians through the
company’s support, who are regularly
trained in Italy and provide prompt
after-sales services and delivery of
spare parts that is stocked with them.
Over the years the company has
benefited from India’s large pool of
buyers; and this is mainly what setsthe
company aside from its competition.
“First priority should be the buyers,
and India has a lot of potential buyers.
Secondly, we are a good quality brand
accompanied with good pricing and
we adjust to consumers’ demands
and never try to let go of thebusiness;
Andrea Pelissero, Member of Board Bianco S.p.A
Bianco continues to grow with responsive
strategy for Indian textile industry
“When we launch
a new machine
in Italy, we ensure
that various trials
are done in Europe
before proposing the
same worldwide.”
“For skewing, we
have a machine
called weft
straighteners. This
is a machine to
specifically solve
the problem of
skewing. All our
machines are heavy
duty construction
developed with
tensionless concept
and therefore are
able to minimize
50 per cent of
fabric elongation
and fabric stability
compared to our
competitors. We
are 10 per cent
price-competitive.”
ESSENTIALS
In last two years the company sold70 piecesof HappyScour globally, and in India the first machinehas been bought by BabbuSachdeva, MD, Mercury Fabrics, Bianco’s best elite Indian customer
TEX-FILE
and thirdly our agents are verygood
and organised as Bianco’s policy is
that we believe a lot in relationships,”
explains Andrea. The company is also
manufacturing all small accessories
machines like Weft Straighteners,
Centring Device, Dry slitters and some
accessories machines in its own local
manufacturing setup in Mumbai since
2004, which is targeted at customers
looking for ‘cheaper’ options. This
push from the expensive Italian made
machines to cheaper Indianones
have come solely from the fact that
in places such as Surat there are a
lot of potential customers, who make
polyester fabric for sarees and other
Indian garments using economical
fabric. “Though these units arehuge,
but practically they would not import
the machine from Bianco as they don’t
have the financial power and neither
they have the export licence. So we
started this manufacturing unit to give
them Bianco machines without having
the import licence, without spending
more money. It’s an economy range
for Bianco, withoutcompromising
on the quality of machines andits
productivity,” informsAndrea.
A continuously growing Indian
market with a more quality-conscious
consumers and a pro-Government
policy is providing scope for
companies such as Bianco to push
further growth and investment in the
Indian market. “It’s a growing market
and I think in the next few months
it will grow even more. Now the
yarn cotton price is going down and
reaching a point of stability; so the
market will improve very soon. And
the new Government is also giving a
lot of benefit to the textile industry
and the direct exporter is also getting
help from the Government, which will
eventually push the textile industry,
and for us it will increase scope to sell
our machines,” believes Andrea.
The company is known in India
for its Tensionless Slitting Line,
Balloon Padder, now new age Open
and Tubular Compactors, and Rope
Opener and Weft Straighteners, which
are among the top finishing range
of the company. Within the last 3
years the market has provided better
opportunities for Bianco making it the
biggest manufacturer of open-width
felt compactor, thereby reflecting
a mature market for technology
as these machines itself is not for
increasing production, but rather to
provide value addition to the fabric.
“This means that market is mature
and is looking to gain and jump up,
one more step on the quality scale,”
states Andrea. The company provides
a mix of machineries for woven and
knitting, and is therefore able to cater
to all kinds of blends, fabrics and
compositions along with terry towels.
Recently, the company has developed
two new systems – one is weight
gsm fabric control system – ‘Bianco
Weightex’ that is capable to provide
online gsm fabric control without
contacting the fabric through X-ray
technology, thereby improving
the fabric quality. “Thanks to the
sensors, the machine does not stop
and customers are able to get better
efficiency in their production while
maintaining consistency in gsm
throughout the fabric,” maintains
Andrea. The other new system is
called ‘Bianco Happy Scour’ that
allows the consumers to do the
scouring process but with reduced
consumption of chemical, water and
energy while saving time as well. The
company has also attained Green
Label certification for this process
and it also reduces the processing
cost for its customers. In fact, all the
machines from the company qualify to
meet sustainable parameters and the
company gets its certification revised
time to time. “Thanks to this scouring
process we are able to reduce the
overall cost by 10 times,” adds
Andrea. In last two years the company
sold 70 pieces of Happy Scour globally,
and in India the first machine has
been bought by Babbu Sachdeva, MD,
Mercury Fabrics, Bianco’s best elite
Indian customer, after he saw the
machine at the Milan show last year.
Though the Bianco Italian
manufactured machines are more
high-end and technologically
advanced than the Indian produced
ones, but nonetheless through its wide
range of products targeting different
market segments, Bianco has made
its niche in the textile industry. In fact,
by targeting the right product at an
affordable price towards the Indian
audiences, the company’s share of
business is on an upward climb with
many manufacturers eager to invest
in the latest technologies.
Bianco Italy has just completed the
moving of activities to a new location
in Alba, very close to the previous
one, with a strong expansion of its
production space. The new centre
consists of over 10,000 square metres
of office space, and more than 30,000
square metres of production area.
“This new arrangement will allow the
company to grow and be increasingly
competitive in the market,” explains
Andrea. “Thanks to a new and even
more efficient organization, Bianco
will be able to optimize and speed up
the production process, increasing
the quality of products and services,”
heconcludes.
“Apart from India,
Bangladesh is also
one of the key
markets for Bianco,
as now Bangladesh
is also investing a
lot in technology for
textiles. They used
to import a lot of
fabric from India,
but now it’s a good
time for them. They
do everything by
themselves because
they don’t have any
secondary industry.
Practically all the
people are working
in garmenting.”
ESSENTIALS
The factory of Bianco follows all sustainable practices from building to processes
“There was one thing that stood out and that was the number of companies interested in sustainable fabrics, agood news for us as this just happens to be in our DNA,” says Thomas Dislich, Managing Director, VICUNHA TEXTIL for EuropeandAsia.
Government of India is
planning to set up a ‘green’
textile park in Chhattisgarh
with an investment of
around Rs. 12.26 crore. The
Chhattisgarh State Industrial
Development Corporation (CSIDC)
has already identified a land parcel
spread over 30 hectares in Raipur
VICUNHA TEXTIL, a Brazilian
denim expert, is content with its
participation in apparel trade
fairs as it noted good response
from the visitors, particularly for
sustainable denims.
“A good selection of customers,
mix of loyal customers and new
once visited our booths, while
some were closing deals on Spring/
Summer 2017, others were making
their final selections for Autumn/
Winter 2017-18. We look forward to
a successful ongoing season.
The athletic range is still growing
from strength to strength with
district for the development of
proposedpark.
The park will comprise solid
waste management practices,
rain water harvesting with
treated water supply system,
storm water management, and
a common effluent treatment
plant. The proposed textile
article ‘Squash’ remaining a firm
new favourite now with additional
options considered in textures
such as article ‘Spinning’. Dark
looks were in demand and so too
were denims with more character
in the warp, a definite vintage
revival,” said Thomas Dislich,
Managing Director, VICUNHA
TEXTIL for Europe and Asia.
“There was one thing that stood
out and that was the number
of companies interested in
sustainable fabrics, a good news
for us as this just happens to be
in our DNA. We find ourselves
park is also envisaged to house
a testing laboratory, design
centre, training centre, trade &
display centre, warehouse/raw
material depot, and packaging
unit. The project is aimed to
provide ‘one-stop’ integrated
facilities with manufacturing
support, welfare and common
working with many companies who
are now actively promoting their
products as such. As the largest
individual consumer of BCI (Better
Cotton Initiative) cotton coupled
with the fact that VICUNHA creates
zero landfill, we had much to offer.
Of course three selected garments
that we chose from the UdK –
University of Arts Berlin, students
project ‘Denim Otaku’, that we ran
earlier in the year, attracted much
interest as visitors marvelled at
their creativeness with VICUNHA
fabrics,” he
further added.
infrastructure facilities to the
prospective textile industries. It
may be mentioned here that the
Indian Government has also
approved projects worth Rs.
99 crore for the upgradation of
key industrial infrastructure in
Chhattisgarh which will further
uplift the sector.
Government to set up ‘Green' Textile Park in Chhattisgarh
VICUNHA TEXTIL content with its participation in apparel shows
India's cotton import likely to double this year
India, which is world’s second
largest producer of cotton, is
looking to explore overseas
market for cotton import as the
country’s cotton production is
expected to fall by 12 per cent
to 33.8 million bales in the year
ending September 30, 2016,
according to India’s Cotton
Advisory Board.
The fall in domestic production
during the current year was
mainly due to the back-to-back
years of drought and an outbreak
of damaging pests. Even though
India received a strong amount of
overall rain during the monsoon
period in the current year, lack
of early rain when the farmers
needed the most, has proven to
be the matter of concern. While
the country has already procured
around 1.5 million bales of cotton
so far, another two million bales
are expected to be imported.
India has also reportedly signed
contracts for additional 4,00,000
bales. These imports will double
the country’s total cotton imports
this year. However, B. K. Mishra,
Chairman of Cotton Corporation
of India assured, “Cotton
purchases from abroad will not
go beyond 2 million bales.”
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Niche products from Design 2100 Inc
A variety of products was offered by Mahesh Carpets
Sweet Dreams,
Realistic Utopias, Happy Manifesto
and Exquisite
Temptation are trend directions
from Shanghai.
H2F
Known as Asia’s leading home textile event, Intertextile Shanghai Home Textiles at the National Exhibition and
Convention Center, Shanghai, China witnessed almost 1,150 exhibitors from 30 countries. The four-day long show was
organized in 1,60,000 sq. metre area spread across six halls. The mega show was dominated by Chinese exhibitors as
well as Chinese visitors but it also witnessed 22 Indian companies which includes giants like BSL Ltd; Alps Industries Ltd; D
Décor and some medium level or emerging companies from across the nation. Though the fair was comparatively
slow but exhibitors are of the opinion that it is one of the best ways to enter the Chinese market where people have
enough money to buy. Apart from China, the event was also visited by buyers of few other countries.
he show was segmented intoTcategories like upholstery fabrics,
bedding & towelling, digital printing,
designer studios and sun protection
systems &window accessories.
Helping buyers make sense of all the
sourcing options on offer, domestic
exhibitors either feature in product
categories, regional pavilions or in
specially zoned halls. The Glamorous
Brands Hall featured some of China’s
leading home textile, brands, such as
Jinhua Textile, which has more than
500 franchise partners and over 3,000
partner stores throughout China. It
displayed embroidered curtains and
screens and more at the fair.
While The Taiwan Textile Federation
and Taiwan Weaving Industry
Association pavilion feature a wide
range of upholstery and blackout
fabric, exhibitors in the India Pavilion
focused more on handcraft home
textile products. “Arrangements at
the fair were good but visitors were
dominated by Chinese, while I was
expecting some US or European
buyers which were missing. This fair
is not conducive for our products
and was thus a total failure for us,”
says S. Jagadees, Sri JothiImpex,
Karur. The company displayed
a wide range of home furnishing
products in 100 per cent cotton mainly.
Universal Overseas, Delhi too had
similar opinion, and was not happy
with the overall response of the
visitors. “We have a complete range
in home segment and we displayed
handloom items which are hard to
copy but we did not get the response
we anticipated,” said Ram Gopal of
thecompany.
Among the regular participants at
the event, Delhi-based Mughal
Art Traders however, had abetter
experience at the fair. “No doubt
the fair was not as enthusiastic
compared to last year, but I must say
that this event is meant for those
who are willing to work with Chinese
buyers, and they must have some
niche which can sell in China. In my
opinion the Chinese market is giving
better opportunities than Europe
today. Chinese have more money than
Europeans and less expenditures.
As labour cost is increasing in
China, niche or hand-made products
are being imported rather than
Fair Review: Shanghai,China
Intertextile Shanghai Home Textiles, Gateway to Chinese market
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Booth of Sri Jothi Impex in the fair
Shezan Mukhtar Shah (L) with one of his Japanese buyer
Overall the markets are running slow,
be it US or Europe. The same feeling
I got in China. The real income of the
people is very high but the companies
are not very aggressive in placing
orders. Just like the US, even China
likes to order lesser quantity in the
start and they do not mind paying
extra cost for not meeting the MOQ
order.” Chirag, handling marketing
and business development, also
came across products from Belgium,
Muhammad Salman Malik, Managing Partner
of Design 2100 Inc.
manufactured in the country,” says
Shezan Mukhtar Shah, Export
Manager of the company, calling the
fair a gateway to enter the Chinese
market. Mughal Art Traders offers
products like wool scarves with hand
embroidery/pashmina. Its FOBranges
from US $ 8 to US $ 1000. According
to Shezan, currently paisley designs
are more in demand. Working in
China market from last 4-5 years, the
company has 6 regular buyers and is
happy with its growth.
Some of the Indian exhibitors felt that
due to the dull economic condition
of China, the visitor footfall was
comparatively less, despite that the
fair is a great window for someone
to peep into the China market and
reach out to a complete new set of
customers. Having the same opinion
Chirag Maheshwari, Partner of
Mahesh Carpets, Varanasisharing
his experience about the buyers’
opinion said, “The buyers have
become very specific these days. They
know what they are looking for and
they do not like to explore new lines.
Pakistan, Korea, Nepal and many
other countries but could not recall
anything unique worth remembering.
“We are trying to do cushions, wall
& poufs to add something extra in
our platter and offer them to its
clients,” he added. Mahesh Carpets,
manufacturer/exporter of handmade
carpets and kilims had a major focus
on flat weave rugs with intricate
designs in many colours as China is a
country that likes colours.
But some of the regular exhibitors
were very dissatisfied with the
experience. Participating from
the last four years, Muhammad
Salman Malik, Managing Partner
of Design 2100 Inc, Noida expressed
disappointment with the last two
editions of the fair. “Earlier we used
to get good orders from this fair and
we completely enjoyed it. But from
the last two terms we have observed
that the fair is converting into a retail
platform as very small buyers visit it
and most of the small or medium level
companies prefer to sell off whatever
products they have displayed there
and make little profit rather than
looking at a long term business
perspective. We have decided not to
participate again in the show,” he
said, adding that repeat orders or
regular business from Chinese buyers
were also missing as he found new
buyers rather than repeat buyers. “I
have not seen any kind of loyalty in
Chinese buyers,” he said. Design 2100
Inc is into soft as well as hard goods
and it displayed a home collection
which had mainlyhandwork.
A few buyers from other countries
showed interest in displays by
some big players like Mumbai-
based Birla Home Decor (part
of Sutlej Textiles andIndustries
Ltd.), which displayed its range of
curtains and upholstery in 100 per
cent polyester, polyester cotton,
linen blend with polyester/cotton.
The company received buyers from
South East Asia, Middle East and
some from Russia too. “The whole
world is sourcing from China, so
buyers have to come there and we are
able to meet them on this platform.
Though buyers from US and EU are
comparatively less but visitors from
other markets were present in good
numbers,” said Amit Suryavanshi,
Marketing Manager of thecompany.
The company recently increased its
capacity and is focusing more on
capturing various markets.
tionsTrend
Direcfrom
Shanghai
Sweet Dreams:
Under Nature’s
influence, this lifestyle
looks to the great
outdoors, communes
with the elements and
cultivates the kind
of mystery found in
the wild.
Realistic Utopias: The
ambience is
aesthetically pleasing,
precious and refined.
It goes back to
essentials. This quest
for excellence is
reflected in luxurious
simplicity and a
minimalist, albeit
sophisticated, lifestyle.
Happy Manifesto: This
theme unites folklore,
influences and know-
how in an energising
and stimulating mix.
The luxuriance of
these associations of
graphic and cultural
references is positively
extravagant.
Exquisite Temptation: This
design mode has
a predilection for
collaging shapes in
a clash of periods
and cultures. Late
19th-century Victorian
meets family crests
as well as surrealistic
and theatrical objects.
There’s an esoteric
aura and magic in
the air.
andNatureaking inspiration from the world of art and the
desire to disconnect from technology and unwind,T designers this season have gravitated towards a
palette that is first and foremost calming. Paying homage
to the beauty of natural resources, colours emerging in the
spring collections are also inspired by the contrast of urban
design and lush vegetation, leading to unexpected colour
combinations and collections reminiscent of architecture,
travel and nostalgia. By creating looks that truly represent
the world we live in, both constructed and organic,
designers sought to awaken a sense of reflection, followed
by playful escapism. Artists, many of whom are known for
bold colour usage and strong shapes and lines, played an
influential role in this season’s styles. Team FFT explores
the five shades that will shape the year’s
summer collections…
Spring/Summer '17 ColourDirections
Playing with the colours ofCalmness
The soothing, calming nature is
led by Rose Quartz, a blush shade
that is persuasive, yet has a gentle
tone that conveys compassion
and a sense of composure. This
quintessentially feminine colour
is everywhere for resort, from
head to toe. Like a serene sunset,
flushed cheek or budding flower,
designers like Delpozo and Apiece
Apart created relaxed looks with
long gowns and dresses. Rose
Quartz reminds us to reflect on
our surroundings during the busy
but light-hearted like spring and
summermonths.
RoseQuartz
DIRECTIONS BY
The high energy Fiesta is
a harbinger of excitement,
encouraging free-spirited
exploration to unknown but
welcoming locales that represents
a bright orange shade that
borderline on red. A strong and
fiery, yellow-based red, the vivid
Fiesta provides a stark contrast
to the calming, softer nature of
this season’s palette. Mugler
offered a sensual off-the-shoulder
dress with slits whereas, Tibi
went for a casual yet striking
look, using the shade only on the
sweatshirt and styling it with
wide-legged striped pants.
While the majority of the
spring/summer palette trends
lean towards calmness, a few
diversions from the theme
emerge that offer a contrast.
With Buttercup Yellow designers
reveal a shining beacon
transporting its wearer to a
happier, sunnier place where
they feel more alive. Rochas
went for an out-and-out look
with a sunflower coloured
cut-out coat, on top of a yellow
printed dress. Adam Lippes
put the shade in focus with
oversized yellow pants in satin,
worn with a navy knit sweater.
Fiesta
ButtercupYellow
Weightless and airy, like the
expanse of the blue sky above
us, Serenity comforts with a
calming effect, bringing a feeling
of respite even in turbulent times.
A transcendent blue, Serenity
provides us with a naturally
connected sense of space. Thom
Browne merged this soft shade
with other pastels, like pink and
mellow yellow on a patchwork
shirt and long skirt. Jil Sander’s
interpretation was more basic
as she paired a billowy-sleeved
peasant top and a knee-length skirt
boasting of gathers on the waist.
Serenity
A transitional colour that will
take us through the seasons,
Teak manifests as another
strong neutral for the season.
With its natural earthy quality,
the softness and subtlety of this
shade creates a stable foundation
when combined with the rest
of this season’s palette. Chanel
presented a beautiful knit dress
and matching sweater in the
shade that made it give off a
beach vibe and Red Valentino’s
collection featured a leopard print
satin skirt and a Teak coloured
sweater ontop.
TeakBrown
Shoulder pee-ka-bow
One-shoulder tops and dresses saw
a huge resurgence this season,
thanks to the recent comeback of
pretty bows. However, the bows
were just not a decorative item.
A continual strand of the fabric
was tied on the shoulders creating
gathered and ruffle like structured
bows. Isabel Marant, shoulder bow
style defined a knotted bow on a
black satin mini dress glided with
ruffles, while Alexiz Mabille played
The Big BowGalore!
FASHION BUSINESS
At the end of a long
season’s runways shows,
international designers
have given the fashion
industry a superlative
list of styles. One of the
biggest styles to hit the
runway this Fall season
is something sweet,
dainty and oh, so ladylike– bows galore. From
neatly tied to fringed
to beaded, bows in all
sorts of shapes, sizes and
varieties are popping up
everywhere from, tops,
sleeves to the shoulder of
dresses. Statements bows
were displayed indesigns
suited to any taste; the
big bow game was strong
while still remaining
authentic. Tallying things
up from the international
influences, Indian
exporters have got a high
and are ready to mark
this style for their new
collection to prove how
sexy showing off bows
could be.
This season the bow has
supplanted any delusion
that it belongsexclusively
in the Thatcher era or
uponthe twee heads
of mawkish Disney
characters. It’s no longer
just an emblem for girlish
style, instead havingbeen
revived in all manner
of shapes, sizes and
varieties to become the
new ‘it’ embellishment
for Fall 2017. In sync
with the industry’s recent
preoccupation with
femininity – think dreamy
ruffles and a spate of
Victoriana inspired
collections – this season
beautiful bowscombined
the ethereal with the
flamboyant.
with big satin bow strands hailing
till the waist. Moschino vamped a
bow with a frill covering an arm
and the other accentuating the
shoulder with an embellished brooch
entrancingly resting on the chest.
Shalini Bisht, Director, Bits and
Pieces, discussing the bow trend for
Fall said, “The bow trend is visible
but not only as an accessory; and
for our Fall ’17 collection we have
garments with statement bows, both
on the short and long dresses. The
satin strands are extending from
one side of the shoulder of the dress
that tie in a huge beautiful bow;
these bows not only beautify the
garment but add an elegant vibe to
the dresses.
Bow-full-sleeves
For a unique arrangement, many
sleeves seen on the runways had
no other details except the bows
interestingly clinging to the elbows,
cuffs and other areas of the sleeves.
Alexandre Vauthier added a delicate
detail of big bows on an embellished
sheer maxi dress providing
a sensual appeal to the inner
outerwear trend. Dolce and Gabbana
took the stage adding fuller loose
bows detailed with statement buttons
to the cuff covering the entire wrist.
Marni added a similar detail, giving
a slight twist. These bows stayed
fixed above the elbows, stretching
firmly to the placement creating a
puffy sleeve pattern extending from
the elbow and getting wider and
puffier at the wrist. Zakir Hussain,
CEO, Cotfab, who is creating causal
and formal shirts for women informs,
“Bow add beauty to the garment. We
have gone slightly different this time,
by adding mocked and fixed bows on
cap sleeved tops. Formal shirts too
have subtle fancy bows on the cuffs
with statement buttons. These small
detailing have made the designs
look versatile and preferable by the
international markets.”
Bow blotch
Sidelining every other style,
designers like Marc Jacobs, Viktor
Rolf and Ronald Venderkemp
chose to emphasize heavily on the
1
1
2
2
IsabelMarant
AlexandreVauthier
Moschino
Marni
1
12
2
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bows! Sinfully intricate, translated
mostly in duo colours, delicate and
big bows were seen overlapped
and ruffled on the garments. Few
in gauzy organza tied up to look
fluffy and large against the chest
while some just bunched either on
the waist or on the neck. Double
bows appear at Viktor Rolf, again
in gauzy net material against a
transparent frilled dress, while
feline print come into play with
bunched tied up bows all over
the dress at Ronald Venderkemp.
Blingy big bows embellished
with sequence appeared at Marc
Jacobs, amusing the audience to
no end. Puneet Rishi, Director,
Aspiration Clothing sharing his
thoughts on the same said, “Bows
are on demand for international
markets. There are bows in
many of the designs. Following
the trend from international
runways, we are using bows in a
similar fashion. And this time the
bows have gone bigger, having
the uncanny ability to evoke bold
and vibrant look at the same
moment. Then just as quickly it
can be transformed into subtle and
understated looks.
Pretty bow dress
Surprisingly bows found another
perfect yet uncommon influence on
Fall runways which no longer stayed
restricted to a specific garment
area; however the whole garment
looked like a huge bow framed with
intricate craftsmanship. Designers
like Moschino, Maison Martin and
Giambattista Valli decoded their
tops and dresses with vivid folding
and gathering styles. The gallant
creations appeared like huge bows
resting on the body. Mini bra tops
were prudent on the runways
declaring unique aesthetic appeal
to the glamour, mini jacket by
Maison Martin with centre knotting
and ties clasped the hands to the
body accentuating the silhouette of
the garment!
Holding the bow style high for the
season, exporters seem lured and
are ready to use them irrespectiveof
their sizes. Ravi Poddar, Director,
Cheer Sagar concludes, “We are
developing new range of designs in
small bows which are still holding its
significance in the garment. Arriving
with the concept of everyday styling,
bows are being used in amuch
more mature and elegant way in
comparison to the archaicplacements
and sizes, which signified them only
as an accessory.” Rounding up the
queue of styles, it turns out to be
evident that bows galore will remain
as one of the most called-off style for
the Fall collection.
THIS TIME THE BOWS HAVE GONE BIGGER, HAVING THE UNCANNY
ABILITY TO EVOKE BOLD AND VIBRANT LOOK AT THE SAME
MOMENT. THEN JUST AS QUICKLY IT CAN BE TRANSFORMED INTO
SUBTLE AND UNDERSTATEDLOOKS.
For a unique arrangement, many sleeves seen on the runways had no other detailsexcept the bows interestingly clinging to the elbows, cuffs and other areas of thesleeves.1
1
2
2
MarcJacobs
MaisonMartin
ViktorRolf
Moschino
1
1
2
2
with the spirit
of this season’s
venue – opento
the public where
the collection will
be available to
buy following the
show’s finale.The
label joins the
likes of Burberry,
Tommy Hilfiger
and Tom Ford,
which have also
announced plans
to shift tothe
see-now,buy-now
model.
interesting
world
nowadays
because the
customer
wants more of
an individual
identity. But
he also wants
timeless,so
you are always
balancing on
that line.”
Topshop discloses changes for next showTopshop’s forthcomingSpring/Summer
2017 show will adopt thesee-now,
buy-now model, the brand revealed
this morning as it announced its new
Runway-to-Retail initiative. Customers
will be able to purchase selectedpieces
from the Topshop Uniquecollection
online and in certain storesimmediately
after the show on September 18, which
this year, is heading east.Taking
place in the London landmark Old
Spitalfields Market, the brand will
also host a pop-up stall – inkeeping
Haider Ackermann joins BerlutiHaider Ackermann is the new Creative
Director of Berluti, the brand has
confirmed. Ackermann, who has
helmed his eponymous label – which
counts Tilda Swinton and Kayne
West among its famous fans – since
2003, will show his first collection for
Berluti during the Autumn/Winter
2017 menswear shows in Paris in
January. Known for his contemporary
signature style of layered designs and
his use of draping, Ackermann will
bring a fresh approach to the luxury
brand, which was founded in 1895
as a footwear label and launched
its first ready-to-wear collection in
2011. “It just felt right,” Haider said.
“Like having a new lover. Menswear
is avery
Oscar de la Renta has appointed
Laura Kim and Fernando Garcia –
the design duo behind labelMonse
– as the new Co-creative Directors.
“We are beyond thrilled to go back
to the house where we learned the
fundamentals of fashion from Oscar
and the business of fashion from Alex.
Having further learned so much this
past year with Monse, we will applyall
of those lessons to expand the vision
that this amazing house has already
established,” Kim and Garcia said.
Oscar de la Renta CEO Alex Bolen
commented: “For many years, Laura
and Fernando worked here directing
our design teams. Oscar respected
their talent, and their work withhim
brought tremendous critical acclaim
and success to the company.” Kimand
Garcia’s first collection for the brand
will be for Autumn/Winter 2017.
Oscar de la Renta appoints new Creative Directors
The only thing better
than one interesting
print is a bevy of them,
pieced together
to make up the
season’s must-have
pieces. Fausto Puglisi
infused two different
floral prints half-
and-half on a short
full-sleeved dress,
whereas Christian Dior
merged three different
patterns of mini-florals
on loose slip dresses.
Alexander McQueen
took it a notch higher
by incorporating 5 to
6 different patterns,each used on a different panel of the garment.
Carven used different fabrics to display the
mixed media trend and so did Altuzarra, with
various textures.
FASHIONFILE
ColourStory
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pantone18-4027 TPX
pantone15-0513 TPX
pantone13-1008 TPX
pantone17-1464 TPX
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INDUSTRY WIRE
ri Sowbarnika Tex, a 20-years-old companySbased in Tirupur is spreading its roots, multi-
dimensionally in many of the segments of textile
industry. Beginning as a garment trading office,
the company is now into garment manufacturing
and export, including chemical manufacturing
(for screen printing and silicon softeners), and
screen printing machinery manufacturing.
Recently, the company has taken a giant leap in
processing technology and invested into salt-free
colouring process. Claiming that this is the first
machine of its kind to be installed in Tirupur,
Senthil Kumar, Proprietor of the companyinformed Apparel Online, “We have invested almost
Rs. 2 crore in Pad Batch colouring technology.
Our motivation to invest such a huge amount in
this technology was my determination to offer
salt-free coloured fabric to buyers as well as to
adopt go green policy, as a gentle gesture to our
Mother Earth. Past issues in regard to dyeing in
Tirupur, convinced me that, we can gain more by
using advanced technology. Some people in Kochi
and Erode have already invested in this technology.
Initially, we may not have much benefit of this
investment but in long run it will help us to grow
by 25 per cent.”
The Pad Batch colouring technology, being provided
by Kusters Calico, a German-based company, is
closely related to continuous dyeing but it only
requires the use of special padding mangle and a
means of winding fabric onto a roll. He further added
that once he uses this technology, others will also
follow for sure. Senthil insisted on collective efforts
and knowledge sharing as the only way to grow. “I
tried to see the working of this technology but could
not succeed as exporters using it didn’t allow me to
go into their units,” he said. The company has 130
stitching machines and is exporting kids and ladies
garments to Italy, France and Canada. Talking about
its other textile-oriented businesses he adds, “We
have developed oval type screen print machines with
some basic support from overseas companies, the
machine we offer is a complete solution.”
umbai-based Silk AppealM is planning to double
its capacity. The company
manufacturing scarves and
shawls is doing good business
despite the challenges in
Europe which is its main
market. Kavita Peswani and
Shiven Ramdassaney of the
company are very upbeat and
shared their future plans with
Apparel Online. “We have a small
stitching unit, and now we want
to enhance the infrastructure by
increasing capacities and also
adding machines which currently
we don’t have, for that we are
exploring all kinds of machineries
which we require like digital
printing and washing/laundry
solutions, etc. We have plans to
double our capacity,” said the duo.
Silk Appeal is manufacturing
scarves and shawls in various
fabric blends from 1992 for the
international market and is
quite creative with use of hand
embroidery too in their products.
Sri Sowbarnika Tex invests in Pad Batch Colouring Technology
Silk Appeal to double its production capacity
Senthil Kumar, Proprietor, Sri Sowbarnika Tex
TOADVERTISE
Contact Rani Mahendru+91-11-47390000 (512)
GOING TO A GOODEVENT?
Send your industry gossip, photos and news [email protected]
LIVE NEWS
Carrying forward the fight for
change and transparency in
Apparel Export Promotion Council
(AEPC) – an official body of
Indian apparel exporters – for
the ‘sake’ of small- and medium-
level exporters, a team has
been created to give a strong
competition to the old team in the
upcoming elections of AEPC’s EC
(Executive Committee) members.
Elections are to be held in the
end of this month. Flag bearers
for the ‘change’, JL Sehgal (Kiran
Associates, Gurgaon) and Rajiv
Kapoor (Affordable Exports,
Delhi) have already started
campaigning with their team
and fellow exporters. The team,
contesting the elections, includes
names like Naresh Sadh, AK
Dyeing, Noida; Zakir Hussain of
Cotfab India, Jaipur; CD Mehta of
Shah Originals, Mumbai; TR
Vijaya Kumar of CBC Fashions;
Raja M. Shanmugham of Warsaw
International; and Muruganatham
of Gomathy International, Tirupur.
Apparel manufacturing units
in Bangalore (Karnataka) are
facing the heat of strikes/bandhs
with 5 bandhs in the last 50 days
which have seriously impacted
the business. There are more
than 800 apparel manufacturing
companies in Bangalore which
have their units in and around
the city. The bandh on 9th
September was a complete
shutdown to protest against the
Supreme Court decision to release
Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu.
Public transport was paralyzed
in the city, both Government and
private vehicles were hardly
seen on the roads. Surrounding
areas like Bellary and Hassan is
impacted similarly.
“Future of AEPC is with us,
we will win and change the
AEPC for the benefit of all
exporters,” said Rajiv Kapoor.
The team is enthusiastic with
the response it is getting from
the member exporters of the
council as they have ensured
them of their vote and support.
These member-exporters are
the apparel exporters and AEPC
members who have the voting
right to elect EC members of the
council. Generally, AEPC has
around 8,000 members across
the country, but out of them only
900 are member exporters – 373
in Delhi-NCR, 190 in Tirupur, 122
loss due to such issues, there is no
solution or option in front of us.We
can’t take risk and open factories
whenever bandh is called for.”
Will these kinds of bandhs
have any long-term impact on
Bangalore’s apparel industry…?
Answering this critical question, P
Radhakrishnan, Head-Karnataka
State Council, Federation of Indian
Chambers of Commerce & Industry
(FICCI) says that Cauvery issue
is quite an emotional issue for
the people of Karnataka and it is
hard to say how long the impact
of the issue will continue to cause
disruptions. Just 4 months ago, in
April, there was violence due to
change in PF withdrawal system.
The Bangalore garment industry
offers employment to 5 lakh
worker, and industry experts
analyse that such bandhs
cause loss of about US $ 15.38
million (Rs. 100 crore) per day to
apparel exporters. More than this,
due to delay inproduction,
last minute air shipments
create much headache for the
garment exporters.
“These bandhs are causing delays
in delivering shipments on time. We
are just about managing, but if it
continues, than it would be a huge
loss to us,” said Pratap Kumra, MD,
Wonder Blues. Adding more to this
Atul Ruparelia of Maestro Fashion
says, “Overall there is massive
AEPC Elections: New team to give tough fight
Apparel Industry in Bangalore facing heat of bandh
in Mumbai, 85 in Jaipur, and rest
in other apparel manufacturing
hubs like Ludhiana, Kolkata
and Chennai.
Team Apparel Online has the
inside information that the
announcement of this team and
its impact have created a buzz
and apparel exporters in all major
hubs are now keen to vote this
time, unlike previous years. The
team is also spreading the letter
of Secretary, Ministry of Textiles
to the Secretary, Ministry of
Corporate Affairs, highlighting
the present mess created by the
management of AEPC.
Online voting for EC members’
selection process will commence
from 27 to 29 September 2016. The
37th AGM of AEPC will be held on
September 30, 2016 in Delhi where
the results will be announced.
For filing the nomination, last
date is September 16, while
last date to become a member
exporter (eligible for voting) is
September 23, 2016.
Promotional poster released by new team during the campaign to win the AEPC elections
Even on the 12th
September, some of the factories were closed
down 2 hours earlier
due to violence, but on the 13th September,
there was a complete
shutdown. Exporters are helpless, and
are just waiting and
watching for the situation to calm down.
The event hadmany
latest innovations
in sewing,printing,
embroidering,
cutting rooms
and washingand
finishing equipment.
Automation in
sewing sawa
new angle, with
companies working
towards improving
mobility and offering
technologies that
can work from
mobile phones.
R Selvan, (extreme right) Executive Director, Mehala in discussions with some visitors at the booth
he three-day event broughtTtogether the industry in its
quest for solutions to run factories
more productively, and very few
companies were looking at machines
for expansion. Most of the brands
admitted that there was really
nothing new to showcase, but as
many local brands are searching
options to upgrade their factories,
the machines were definitely
interesting for them. In fact, a bevy
of local brands were seen at the
event exploring new ways to improve
quality and productivity. “Since
labour in Bangalore has become very
difficult to retain, it is becoming
important to use technology to
replace them wherever possible,”
said Karan of Versalis International
that is manufacturing jackets for the
local market. He was also enquiring
about options to source the product
from Vietnam, considering how
difficult it is getting to good quality
jackets made in India.
The hub which is known for trouser
and shirt manufacturing has seen an
increase in the number of companies
investing in knit production
capabilities. “I am showing machines
for jeans manufacturing and knits
because these are the two major
categories that are on an uprise
currently,” said Anil Anand, MD,
HCA. He added that showcasing in
Bangalore was more focused as the
industry had a product niche, while
in the north, everyone was making
everything. His views were shared by
Pawan Kapoor, MD, IIGM, who
pointed out that companies were
very clear on what they wanted when
visiting the fair and rarely did one
find exporters just walking around
‘having a look’.
The composition of the visitors also
reflected the same and most of the
companies were represented by their
senior managers meeting up with
regular suppliers and sharing notes
on what they need now. Teams from
ITC, Texport Industries, Madura,
were among the prominent ones seen
at some booths, though this is just
the tip of a long and impressive list
of visitors. However, this does not
mean the owner level visitation was
missing. Right from Indian Designs,
Golden Seams, Gokaldas Images
(from Bangalore) to Sree Santhosh
Garments, Tirupur and Global Mode
and Accessories, Delhi were
represented by their owners,
creating quite a buzz among the
technology suppliers.
Garment Technology Expo, BangaloreReview
Technology brands present theirlatest offerings to garment industry
ESSENTIALS
The purchasing team from Global Mode and Accessories Pvt. Ltd. which created quite a buzz at the event, seen
with the Owner, Aman Mehra and Project Manager, Arun Sahu
FAIR REVIEW
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www.apparelresources.com | SEPTEMBER 16-30, 2016 | Apparel Online India 43
Most of the
companies were
represented by their
senior managers
meeting up with
regular suppliers
and sharing notes
on what they
need now. Teams
from ITC, Texport
Industries, Madura,
were among the
prominent once
seen at some
booths, though this
is just the tip of the
long and impressive
list of visitors.
Pavan Kapoor, MD, IIGM was happy with the footfall at the event with many Bangalore-based customers coming in Randeep Sahani, (extreme right) GM – Industrial SewingMachine Divisionfrom Brother International (India),
with somecustomers
With over 400 brands displaying cutting-edge solutions for the garment manufacturing industry from IT interventions
to attachments and folders, the recently concluded 23rd edition of Garment Technology Expo held in Bangalore had
something for everyone. Visitation came from all major garment exporters and brands that operate from the city, and
exhibitors expressed satisfaction at the quality of footfall with many claiming to have received some serious enquiries.
The purchasing team from Global
Mode and Accessories Pvt. Ltd.
along with the Owner, AmanMehra
and Project Manager, Arun Sahu
created quite a buzz as the Delhi-
based exporter, considered one of
the biggest manufacturers for H&M,
is setting up a factory in the Binary
Apparel Park in Karnataka. The team
was scouting for relevant technology
and took great interest in the seam
sealing technology of H&H. “The team
showed interest in the seam sealing
technology as they want to upscale
their offerings, and we are hopeful
that the interest will be converted
into sales,” said Anshuman Dash,
Marketing Director, H&H Asia
GroupLtd.
The Morgan team was ecstatic to
see Naseer Humayun, MD,Indian
Designs at the show. The company
had already shown interest in
their cutting systems and it was an
opportunity to take the discussion
forward. “For the new factory we are
putting up at Hindupur in Andhra
Pradesh, we want to invest in best
of technology, as per the philosophy
of the company and investing in
a computerized cutting solution
makes sense,” said Ravi Kumar,
CEO, Indian Design. IndiaDesign
is considered among the fastest
expanding companies in India and the
technology providers were happy to
see him at the Expo.
The event had many latest innovations
in sewing, printing, embroidering,
cutting rooms and washing and
finishing equipment. Automation
in sewing saw a new angle, with
companies working towards improving
mobility and offering technologies
that can work from mobile phones.
Embroidery machines from Husqvarna
Viking come enabled with a touch-
enabled tablet that worked on an
iOS platform and is connectable to
Wi-Fi, allowing users to download any
designs available on the internet.
Typical offered a similar solution, but
in terms of production handling. The
sewing machines showcased by the
company come equipped with the app
based technology, which keeps track of
the production rate of each and every
employee in the line. Each machine
will have a QR code, which when
scanned by a mobile phone, allows
the user to control the operations
of the machine. The Android-based
technology also aids in keeping track
of the machine’s maintenance records.
Displaying for the first time, the
one-of-its-kind Rhinestone Setting
Machine from NC Korea, Rajiv Jain,
Director, Needles and Elements
informed Team AO that the machine
comes with the ability of setting 160
stones a minute. “The machine is
here to automate the manual task of
setting rhinestones in apparel and
accessories, which is a critical value
addition in the industry,” said Rajiv
enthusiastically, though he was a bit
disappointed that people were looking
at actual cost and not ROI. With a
large memory storing up to 1,000
designs, the machine can work with
stones of any size and even comes ina
6-colour version.
In the washing segment, Xcel Stiro
displayed one-of-its-kind washer-
dryer-extractor, which combined
three activities performed in washing
into one machine. With a cycle
time of an hour and 30 minutes, the
machine uses less water, less labour
and less electricity as compared
ESSENTIALS
FAIR REVIEW
ROSL scheme to boost apparel export cleared
No impact of strike on apparel factories
In a bid to support Indian apparel
exports, Revenue Department of
the country has started the process
to operationalize the Rs. 5,500
crore (US $ 846 million) Rebate of
State Levies (ROSL) Scheme from
September 20 (and will remain
effective for next threeyears).
Under this scheme, exporters willbe
compensated for state levies. As of
now, apparel exporters get only
duty drawback on the central levies
imposed during the process of
manufacturing goods for exports.
Earlier, the Cabinet had cleared
Rebate of State Levies (ROSL)
on export of apparel to refund
the state levies which were not
refunded so far. It will provide
for remission of state leviesin
In a move to demand better
wages and protest against the
Government’s changes in labour
laws, trade unions of India
called upon nationwide strike
on September 2, but fortunately
no impact was seen on apparel
factories as almost all the units are
running smoothly in all the hubs of
thecountry.
Apparel Online confirmed
the input from exporters in
various apparel manufacturing
hubs like Delhi-NCR, Jaipur,
Tirupur, Bangalore, Ludhiana
and Mumbai. All of them denied
about any impact of strike and only
some impact was observed on work
due to closure of (some) banks and
transportation services in various
parts of the state. However, bus
services crumpled due to strike
in Bangalore which caused some
addition to the duty drawback
scheme on export of garments on
an average basis only. Also a part
of the process to operationalize
the scheme, Central Board of
Excise and Customs(CBEC)
has stated that officers who are
designated as Drawback DDOs at
the respective Customs locations
are to be designated as the
DDOs. The scheme is in linewith
the recognized economicprinciple
of zero rating of export products
and in recognition of the fact that
at present only central levies are
rebated by way of the drawback
scheme. The rebate willbe
disbursed from budgetaryallocation
of Ministry of Textiles using the
Customs EDISystem.
issues there, and the impact of
bandh was quite visible.
Earlier it was said that the
possible fallout of the strike
could mean a complete shutdown
of all the factories, excluding
Government offices and medical
shops. Experts say this shows
that even workers understand
what is feasible, rather than just
supporting unions blindly.
It may be mentioned here that
minimum wage for unskilled
non-farm workers of the Central
Government has recently been
increased to Rs. 350 a day
from the current Rs. 246 (up
42 per cent) while the unions
are demanding minimum wage
of not less than Rs. 18,000 per
month. However, states are
free to follow this decision of
CentralGovernment.
to the normal 3-machine setup.
The consolidated machine also
requires less space and takes
the same time that the current
set upstake.
Though most of the companies
represent international brands,
one company that stands out as a
true representative of the ‘Make
in India’ movement is Krishna
Lamicoat. The company is known
for its cutting room accessories
like specialty papers and films.
The most recent addition is the
sustainable film made from used
packaging material, which was
tested for the first time at the
fair. The company has always
invested in R&D and is today
exporting their products to many
countries. “We are expanding our
factory and adding capacity as
the cutting room in manufacturing
units is getting more automated
and many factories who earlier
considered cutting solutions
as cost, now realize the actual
saving they are making on fabric.
This has expanded our market,”
averred Ashok Chhajer,Director,
KrishnaLamicoat.
Though the event was a success,
the participants did point out that
due to slow market conditions
many projects that were expected
to seal the deal at the event did not
happen…, yet the silver lining was
the interest that exporters and the
domestic manufacturers showed for
new technology.
D. Anandakumar, (extreme right) Executive Director (Asia Operation), Morgan Dynamics, explaining the
nuances of his technology to Naseer Humayun and Ravi Kumar of Indian Designs
TheVibemac team led by KevinReddy, Salesand ProductionManager (third from left) at the Turel booth
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Review Gartex India 2016
A GOOD BEGINNING WITH QUALITY VISITORS
Gartex India 2016,
organized at Pragati
Maidan, Delhi by MEX
Exhibitions, proved that a
good and organized fair
has many takers. Though
the debut show was
mainly focused on digital
printing, but it also had
few exhibitors from other
segment like machinery
for stitching, machines
for value addition, fabric
manufacturers and
accessories. The biggest
achievement of this well-
managed show was the
good quality visitation
from across India and the
Delhi-NCR in particular.
Team Apparel Online
too met many exporters,
domestic brands, medium
level manufacturers, teams
of industrial engineers
and merchandisers at the
fair, looking for relevant
technology. Exhibitors as
well as visitors were on the
whole satisfied with the
show, though it was small
and many requested for
a bigger show next time.
“We are very happy with
the feedback, and satisfied
that so many visitors came
in. We will carry on with
the show and make it
much bigger and wider in
its product offerings over
the next two years,” said
Gaurav Juneja, Director,
MEXExhibitions.
he USP of the first ever GartexTIndia show was the presence of all
big companies of digital printing with
their latest models (from entry
level to high speed industrial use)
be it Mimaki India, DCC, NEGI Sign
Systems & Supplies Co., Apsom
Infotex, Apsom Technologies,
MS Orange, Arrow Digital, Tanya
Enterprises, Britomatics India or
Monotech Systems, to name a few.
Visitors too took the repertoire of
digital offerings enthusiastically.
Commenting on the same,
Ravi Poddar, MD, Cheer Sagar,
who had come in from Jaipur
said, “Sampling is becoming
difficult and is costly too as far as
traditional printing is concerned,
so digital printing is good and
is the only option for us.” The
company is expected to install
a digital printer in the next one
month. Achyutananda Nayak, IE,
Choudhary Fashions, Jaipur was
also a visitor to the show with his
team. Who added, “As of now our
digital printing job-work is being
done from Mumbai and we are
planning to do it in-house very soon.”
The company has upgraded some of
its machines recently.
Vikas Jain and Manish Chopra,
both VP – Merchandising, Monte
CarloFashionsLtd.,Ludhianawere
also busy exploring digital printing as
the company is planning to add two
to three digital printers in the near
future. The company is focusingmore
onfashion along with its regular basic
products to strengthen itsportfolio.
Many good exporters from Jaipur
visited the show as a part of Garment
Exporters Association of Rajasthan
(GEAR) delegation. Some of them were
of the opinion that as more and more
companies are offering digital printers,
prices are now little more competitive
and more choices are available. The
team also liked laser marking and
cutting machines and wished to add it
in their products as engraving ondenim
fabric is a bigcraze.
The growing trend of digital printing
seems a concern for companies
working on other segments of value
addition and these companies are now
also planning to add digital printers
to their facilities. Satish Chand,
Swastik Embroideries, a well-known
job-worker of Noida opines, “In the
long run, digital printing may affect
our business as it is a growing trend.”
The firm is planning to add more
branded and advanced embroidery
machines also. Not only the user, but
even companies like Baba Textile
Machinery, Delhi who is selling more
than 1,000 embroidery machines per
year, has plans to add digital printers
in his portfolio of offerings. Murari
Lal Parasurampuria, Owner of the
company said, “We are talking to some
Chinese companies of digital printers
to represent them in India. It may
take one year as we are quite busy
Sanjeev Kumar Mehan (second from right), Senior Manager (Order Control Group), YKK India
interacting with the visitors
Parvesh Gorshi (L) and Rahul Gupta of High Heads, Chandigarh exploring fabrics
Gaurav Juneja, Director,
MEXExhibitions
selling our embroidery machines.”
Apart from embroidery, the company
displayed laser cutting machines,
which is currently in great demand
with around 40 installations every
month of the same. Harsh Bhatia,
Merchandiser Manager, RB Knit
Exports, Ludhiana appreciated
such value-added machines. “I liked
the new development in embroidery
machines for aari, sequinwork.
Broader width of such machines
is another feature I like,” he said.
RB Knit Exports is exploring newer
markets like South America for which
it is upgrading its facilities.
Exporters from less discussed areas
like Pune, Chandigarh and Hyderabad
too visited the event. One of them
was Parvesh Gorshi, High Heads,
Chandigarh who is currently into
men’s wear products (western as well
as ethnic). “We are planning to add
jeans and casual wear in our product
basket which is comparativelya
new product category. So I am here
searching for fabric options,” he said.
The technical teams who visited
the show like Zakir Husain Saify,
Manager IE & PPC, Richa & Co.,
Gurgaon and Rajesh Kumar, IE,
Sunlord Apparels Mfg.Co., Noida
were expecting more options in
stitching and allied technology, and
were a bit disappointed asthere
was only one exhibitor – Fucen – inthis
segment. “We are disappointed to see
only printing machines with stitching
and finishing section missing,” said
Zakir. Richa and Co. is working
towards Lean systems while Sunlord
Apparels Mfg. Co. is starting a new
factory in Karur for soft toys. Similar
was the experience of merchandising
teams as they were expecting more
fabric and accessories companies.
The event also witnessed few
overseas visitors and one of them
was Dato Hjh Ida SurayaBt.
Mustapha, MD, Bianco Mimosa,
Malaysia with his team. The
company mainly catering to domestic
market of Malaysia is willing to start
export soon and exploring Indian
garment manufacturers to source
fabric/garment from India. The
players showcasing from the fabric
and accessory segment, included YKK
India, Dona Doni Fashion, KC Astir
& Co. and PashupatiOverseas.
Big chunk of unorganized domestic
market too was seen at the show
and was enthusiastic about the
market. Some of them are in the
process to add capacity while few
are working towards upgradation
of their infrastructure. Susheel
Nasa, MD, R K Sports (Select
brand), Rohtak having a factoryof
300 machines in Delhi, is planning
to shift the factory to Kundli as
minimum wage is expected to
increase in Delhi, and NGT may issue
any ‘unfavourable’ order regarding
industries. Many manufacturers from
Gandhi Nagar and other such areas
of Delhi also said that they are adding
all kinds of machines. Some players
from other industries are also looking
to foray into apparel, like the team
from Kolkata-based Manna Realcon,
a real estate company visited the fair
and discussed how they can enter
and establish themselves in this
industry. Bangalore-based TINTA,
initiated by Mayur B is also working to
start its Tee business very soon with
production capacity of 5,000 pieces
per month.
ESSENTIALSGartex witnessed
visitors from different
industries like
footwear, apparel,
home furnishing and
accessories sector.
The event focused
on the trend of
value addition with
a number of digital,
sublimation printers,
laser machines
and embroidery
machines
on display.
(L-R) Lalit Arora, Jimmy Mode International; Aseem Kumar, Fashion Images Overseas; Vimal Shah, Goodwill Impex; Ravi Poddar,
Cheer Sagar; and Vivek Khandelwal from Patterns India
Dato Hjh Ida Suraya Bt. Mustapha (C), Tn Hj Muhammad Nur Adhhli Ikram bin Dato Mohd
Fauzi (L) and Damodhar (R) of Bianco Mimosa, Malaysia exploring embroidery machines
Zakir Husain Saify (C), Manager IE & PPC, Richa & Co., with his teamVikas Jain (L) and Manish Chopra, both VP –Merchandising, Monte
Carlo FashionsLtd.
US apparel imports continue with downward trend…First 7 months difficult for retail
J a n u a r y – J u l y 2 0 1 6
Though US retail is performing better than what is seen in the European Union, a slowdown for sure is being noticed with apparel imports from
all major destinations taking a dip. India could register only 1.47% growth in volumes, while the values took a negative turn of (-) 0.34% in the
period Jan.-July 2016. The average UVR for India was US $ 3.52 which was higher than US average of US $ 3.03, during the review period.
EXPORT STATISTICS
Global Apparel Imports by the US:
Jan.-July 2016
ValueDecrease
3.95%
VolumeDecrease
0.48%
[The information has been extracted
from US custom site and further analyzed.]
US $ 3.13
US $ 3.03
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
02015 2016
Year
Av
era
ge
UV
R(p
er
kg
of
fab
ric
eq
uiv
ale
nt)
Total apparel exports to the US by India and its competitors — Jan.-July ’16
Countries Jan.-July ’15 Jan.-July ’16 %Change
Qty Value Qty Value Qty Value
India 649.53 2330.16 659.073 2322.174 1.47 -0.34
Bangladesh 1105.83 3195.33 1139.279 3230.388 3.02 1.10
China 5928.03 15959.14 5886.307 14942.225 -0.70 -6.37
Pakistan 349.24 848.73 315.379 732.874 -9.70 -13.65
Sri Lanka 276.53 1177.16 275.117 1166.541 -0.51 -0.90
Vietnam 1803.15 5948.83 1903.33 6136.257 5.56 3.15
Qty & value in mn M2 & US$
%Change
Qty Value Qty Value Qty Value
Cotton 7095.03 23952.50 6876.388 22307.685 -3.08 -6.87
Wool 84.87 1614.30 79.921 1486.617 -5.83 -7.91
MMF 7812.36 21153.09 7957.985 21033.972 1.86 -0.56
Silk & Veg 209.29 926.36 213.683 933.942 2.10 0.82
Total 15201.55 47646.25 15127.98 45762.22 -0.48 -3.95
Qty & value in mn M2 & US$
Total global apparel imports by the US — Jan.-July ’16
Type of Apparel Jan.-July ’15 Jan.-July ’16
Percentagedecrease in UVR
3.19%
6.87%Cotton
7.91%Wool
0.56%MMF
0.82%Silk & Veg
Change in Values
3.08%Cotton
5.83%Wool
1.86%MMF
2.10%Silk & Veg
Change in Volumes
APPARELTYPE
Total Imports byUSExports to US
India Bangladesh Vietnam
Qty % Change
Value % Change
Qty Actual
Value Actual
Qty % Change
Value % Change
Qty Actual
Value Actual
Qty % Change
Value % Change
Qty Actual
Value Actual
Qty % Change
Value% Change
BabiesWear -7.31 -9.38 4,967,569 101.76 22.23 5.36 6,430,519 118.88 -16.66 -16.57 4,803,309 113.47 -10.65 -7.78
Foundation Garments -0.23 3.71 1,007,444 76.88 16.61 26.04 2,194,234 45.22 1.52 -6.08 1,321,543 67.39 123.75 122.73
Jackets & Blazers -5.22 -8.43 355,027 44.93 -2.04 -11.52 1,107,559 160.22 -8.12 -5.14 3,572,938 610.41 -1.80 -2.75
Ladies Blouses 6.61 3.78 5,472,232 406.98 1.95 1.41 1,950,125 110.38 33.16 34.06 4,911,189 263.88 3.74 7.63
Ladies Dresses 6.14 0.18 3,144,914 281.90 4.56 6.91 1,286,796 47.26 51.28 40.94 6,614,213 465.78 6.74 0.95
Ladies Skirts -14.96 -15.39 514,817 41.80 -24.99 -23.34 769,450 33.05 7.82 12.63 2,230,052 123.05 8.90 -2.18
Legwear -5.03 -9.17 1,495,100 10.07 -21.74 -3.57 71719 0.691 – – 1574322 8.796 43.99 18.05
Men's Shirts -0.21 -3.23 1,820,489 144.47 13.45 1.79 6,726,822 387.21 -3.14 -5.54 2,664,416 214.85 17.90 16.01
Nightwear -1.21 -3.01 1,845,679 59.11 -0.26 0.77 849,159 24.32 -9.67 -5.18 2,160,066 97.90 15.68 2.72
Suits/Ensembles -0.67 -5.70 382,180 37.99 38.83 -9.78 178,655 11.67 -23.13 -26.94 1,330,905 104.79 1.28 22.54
Sweaters -9.64 -15.89 24,285 1.76 -41.63 -47.72 397,398 19.80 -11.54 -10.76 123,861 5.56 -19.95 -59.86
Trousers 0.10 -2.58 3,389,394 252.56 -2.74 -5.13 28,422,524 1,574.14 7.28 3.57 26,769,676 1,602.51 9.05 9.41
T-Shirts -0.29 -4.84 14,567,942 576.602 0.09 -1.58 12,975,003 341.37 0.15 0.57 45,934,194 1,794.64 2.97 -0.79
Undergarments -4.80 -4.61 9,975,737 167.91 -2.70 -4.94 15,754,776 170.52 -6.90 -6.60 24,056,376 308.00 -6.80 -5.95
Qty. in Doz.; Legwear in Dpr.; Babies Wear in Kg.
Item wise percentage increase in total apparel imports by US from India, Bangladesh and Vietnam:
Jan.-July 2016 as against Jan.-July 2015
Undergarments too register downfall in exports for IndiaUndergarments, considered a very basic category,
saw a downfall in the total imports by the US in the
first seven months of the year, while values declined
(-) 4.61%, volumes fell (-) 4.80%. India’s export of
undergarments to the US also noticed decline in
both quantity of (-) 2.70% and value by (-) 4.94%. In
foundation garments, India grew substantially by
16.61% in quantity and 26.04% in value terms.
Ladies dresses from Bangladesh shows growthIn the first seven months of 2016, while the US
witnessed growth of 0.18% in value and 6.14% gains
in quantity in the import of ladies dresses, Bangladesh
registered massive increase of 40.94% in terms of
value, and 51.28% gains in volumes.
Men’s shirts take a beating in exports from BangladeshA very core product from Bangladesh, men’s shirts
have not performed as per expectation and in the first
seven months of the year, the country registered a
decline in both value and volume, while the value
dipped (-) 5.54% the quantities were down (-) 3.14%.
Exports of ladies skirts to the US by India registers declineIn the first seven months of 2016, import of ladies
skirts by the US witnessed a significant fall of
(-) 14.96% in quantities and (-) 15.39% in value. India
too registered negative growth in value as well as in
quantity terms. While there was decline of (-) 24.99%
in regards to quantity, the values fell (-) 23.34% during
theperiod.
Suits/ensembles advance from VietnamIn suits/ensembles, export to the US by Vietnam saw
positive growth of 22.54% in value terms while
quantity growth was only 1.28%. Bangladesh saw
decline of (-) 23.13% in quantity, while the value of
exports decreased by (-) 26.94%.
1
3
5
2Vietnam registers growth
in exports of trousers to theUSIn the period under review, export of trousers, a strong
product category from Vietnam, witnessed 9.05%
increase in quantities and 9.41% gains in value. In the
same period, Bangladesh noticed gain of 7.28% in
quantities and 3.57% in value.
4
6
Canada Apparel imports
J a n u a r y - J u l y 2 0 1 6
Canadian economy starts to show signs of slowdown
After a fairly strong start to 2016, the Canadian economy showed signs of stalling in Q2. GDP expanded at an annualized rate of
2.4% over the previous quarter in Q1, supported by strong private consumption and exports. However, monthly GDP fell in May following
feeble growth in April, as wildfires in Alberta (the largest oil producing province) and low oil prices combined to create the worst monthly GDP
figure since March 2009. In addition, manufacturing output and utilities also contributed to May’s drop. Meanwhile, the housing sector
remains robust. Housing prices grew 2.0% in July over the previous month…
CanadaImports
11.14%While the knitted segment saw
decline of (-) 15.99 %, the woven
segment registered decline of
(-) 7.41% in value terms.
Sri LankaExports
10.82%While it saw 13.16% growth
in woven category, inknitted
segment the country registered
growth of 9.08% .
B’DeshExports
5.69%Though its woven exports
increased by 5.14% in value,
exports in knitted garments
increased by 6.44%.
PakistanExports
IndianExports
0.30%In the woven category there was
growth of 14.72%, while in knitted
segment value of exports registered
decline of (-) 12.14%.
3.09%In knitted segment there was dip
in value of exports of (-) 0.57%
and in woven, the growth was
of5.68%.
2.82%In woven category there was growth
of 0.59%, while in knitted segment
it registered decrease of (-) 6.04%
in value of exports.
Vietnam Exports
ChinaExports
7.74%The country lost in knitted as well
as woven segment. In knitted
segment the loss was of (-) 8.62%
and the fall was of (-) 6.89% in
wovengarments.
US’ apparel import decreased by 4.98%During the January-July 2016 period, US’ apparel import decreased by 4.98% to US $ 60.23 billion from US $ 63.39 billion
in the same period last year. According to the data of US Department of Commerce, only two countries: Vietnam
(2nd top exporter to US) and Bangladesh (4th largest exporter to US), noticed growth as Vietnam’s exports grew by 1.83%
to US $ 6.51 billion while Bangladesh noticed 0.87% year-on-year increase to US $ 3.36 billion in the first 7 months of 2016.
Despite losing market share by 8.49% in the US, China is still at the top with the export of US $ 21.39 billion in the period
under review while total apparel export to US from other top nine apparel exporting countries in the same period stood
at US $ 24.08 billion. India, which is on third spot in apparel export to US, exported apparels worth US $ 4.39 billion in the
said period, noting a 0.97% fall. Spending on apparels and home furnishing products by US people is increasingly falling,
this trend could hurt the businesses in future. Bangladesh’s competitiveness eroded by 15.62%, Vietnam’s 8.38%, China’s
3.08%, and India’s 2.29%, though due to lower gas prices US people have more disposable income but most of them are
spending more on rent, personal services and cell phones.
Ma
rke
tU
pd
ate
RESOURCE CENTRE
imaki, the Japanese leaderM in digital printing solutions
is completely geared up to grab
the Indian digital printing market.
The group, targeting to achieve a
turnover of US $ 1,000 million in
next 10 years, is expecting 300 per
cent growth in textile and apparel
segment and is sure that India will
play an important role to achieve
this target as it takes India as the
most important market. Recently the
company initiated Mimaki, India Pvt.
Ltd. (MIPL), the new international
subsidiary of Mimaki Engineering, to
facilitate its growth. Top management
of the company including Kazuaki
Ikeda, President, Mimaki
Engineering Co., Ltd. (Japan);
Tomohiro Ikeda, MD, MIPL; Mandar
Nalawade, Director, MIPL and many
other officials of the company gathered
in New Delhi on the occasion of opening
ceremony of the office of MIPL, which
is its first office in India. The company
is looking at expanding its base in the
country with more offices in future. The
Western region will be serviced by an
office in Mumbai, which is also going
to be a textile lab centre. Training
facilities and various printers of the
company will be available here. Later
such offices will be opened in other
textile hubs of India.
Talking exclusively to Apparel Online
on this occasion, Kazuaki Ikeda said,
“India is a very important market for
us. We are expecting almost US $ 100
million worth of business from India
in the next few years.” Sharing the
company’s vision and future plans
he added, “The company will offer
newer products and give best services
to its customers. In this endeavour
we hope to introduce our first 3D
printer to the industry within the
next one year.” The India Team of
Tomohiro and Mandar is very upbeat
and confident of prospects. “We are
quite enthusiastic about further
installations of Mimaki printers in
India as we are getting good response
about our printers. We are expecting
very good growth in all the hubs of
India,” averredMandar.
The company already has more than
1000 installations (in all segments)
in India and in the last 10 months it
has installed almost 150 printers. The
company has also launched itsPro
series (belt type direct-to-textile inkjet
printers) which includes Tiger-1800B,
Leopard-1800B, and Fox-1800B, in
India. At the recently held Gartex 2016,
the newly launched printers were
highly appreciated by the visitors.
Though many players are entering
into the digital printing segment, MIPL
is undeterred by competition.The
company does not see Chineseprinters
as competitors despite the pressure on
prices being created by these printers.
Whereas European companies are
concerned, Mimaki’s association with
LA Meccanica is a strength assome
of the products are from Europeas
well. “In this regard we are in lead
compared to all the companies,”
saysMandar.
The office and showroom/demo centre
in New Delhi is very impressive.
Spread over 3,000 sq. feet, the
showroom is centrally located in the
capital and there are 12 printers
displayed here which are for sign
graphic/industrial printing and
sublimation printers for textile. The
corporate office of 2,000 sq. metres is
in the same building. This office will
help the customers and the company
to coordinate better. The office
includes a spare parts store and takes
care of all-India operations including
assisting distributors, all marketing
activities will be managed from here.
The company associates like Insight
Print Communications, Angel India
Cad Cam etc. were also present on
this occasion and appreciated the
company’s support.
Mimaki aggressive for Indian market;
opens office and showroom in Delhi
Besides developing new
products and supporting sustainability, Mimaki is
taking special care of its
environmental footprints, be it use of UV LED
printing technology (for
saving on energy) or in providing greener inks.
(L to R): TeamMimaki – RakeshBhatia, Kazuaki Ikeda, Tomohiro Ikeda and Mandar Nalawade
Tomohiro Ikeda, MD, MIPL proudly stands with the newly launched Tiger-1800B printing machine
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Interview
Tomohiro Ikeda, MD, MIPL
AO: What is Mimaki’s strategy to capture market share in India…TI: Mimaki India has been established as the new
subsidiary of Mimaki Engineering. But we are not new to
the country and we started to build up theorganization
in the Indian market even before we entered printing.
Now we are focusing on the textile segment. Currently,
more than 90 per cent of dyeing (textile business) units
in India are using traditional methods of printing, but
are now moving into digital and inkjets, so the market is
huge. With the demonstration centre in Delhi, we can
show companies even before they buy the machine,
what can be achieved… We want to give total
solutions for textile industries. As direct manufacturers
of the technology, our Japanese printer quality is very
good and reliable, which is another edge for us.
AO: What are customers looking for in digital printers, today?TI: Not every customer wants speed. Only few
big customers who are already into digital
printing understand a high-speed machine. More
than 50-70 per cent are new entrants to the segment.
So, customers need variety of options, like entry point
machines and high speed machines. We are giving
them these options. Further, reactive printing or
sublimation printing (transfer) is a trend in India. If the
customer already has a big textile mill, then he has
a big market printing. Even, if the customer does not
have knowledge of reactive printing, but wants to go
into textile business, then it is easy to do so with low
investment, so digital has to face all these competitive
situations. But, we also have low-investment machines
and with the environment-friendly nature of the
machine and depth of colour and imaging, the
industry has a fresh option.
everything immediately, they are
saying – ‘not tomorrow but yesterday’.
Local offices will help a lot in this way
too. Once GST rates are finalized,
things and processes will be clearer
and hopefully easy, than we will expand
more aggressively in all the possible
ways as currently ‘C’ form is a big
issue forus.”
Kesavar is enthusiastic about its
thread division as it produces quality
sewing thread that has made its
presence felt in the industry. “Our
thread (for knits as well as woven)
quality is same compared to any
international thread company. Many
top thread companies of India have
visited our facility and want to work
with us but they have condition of
work with them exclusively, which is
not acceptable to us as we have to sell
our own thread directly to our regular
users. We are looking for international
players that don’t have manufacturing
facility in India for collaboration. We
are hopeful to have such collaboration
in near future. Once it happens, we
will grow much faster. In Tirupur we
are supplying our thread to more than
1,000 factories and all of them our
satisfied with the quality,” he says.
Though Kesavar feels that he is
lacking just because of not having
buying house nomination which few
other thread companies, especially
multinationals have, but he surely
aving its own dyeing unitwithHZLD and a strong technical
know-how is an edge,claims
Kesavar Senthil, CEOof the company.
Sharing his strategy and future plans
with Apparel Online, Senthil said,“We
have clients across India; so in next
few years we will have our own well
maintained offices (like showrooms as
well as stockists) throughout India, be
it Delhi, Mumbai or other such apparel
manufacturing hubs. We are starting
with Bangalore, as very soon we will
have our office there. It will help us to
serve our clients better, as well as to
increase our foot prints in Bangalore
market. Decreasing lead time is a
challenge for all and exporters need
believes that sooner or later his
company will also have the same.
“Buyers are now little open on
this front and believe on supplier’s
guarantee/undertaking later which we
are also providing,” hesays.
Having the advantage to do production
of all its offerings in proper and
organized way, the company has
a large customer-base across the
country. It is among the few accessory
manufacturers that follow compliance
norms completely, offering Oeko-Tex
certified accessories too. The company
is also agent of Uflex (basic raw
material for sequin) and witnessing
good demand of double colour sequin.
Many top exporters of Tirupur are
working with the company for such
products. The company is also
focusing more on its interlining now.
About the growth and further
business opportunities, he is quite
enthusiastic. “We are making our
company strong as a brand, so more
and more garment manufacturers
can believe us. Every year we are
achieving 30 per cent growth. Our own
dyeing factory proved a good support
for us and it helps us to grow by 50
per cent,” he avers. Timely payment
collection is the only challenge for
which Kesavar is concerned and he
suggests that there should be some
system for accessory providers also
like exporters have LC.
One-stop solution is a commonly used term in apparel and
textile industry to describe operations having a wide spectrum of
products and services, be it raw material or variety of readymade
garment. Most companies dealing in accessories are also moving
in the direction and getting good growth also. Tirupur-based
VenkatachalapathiTraders, parent company of Mithra & Company/
Rainbow Inc/DharnissTraders, isalso suchagroup which isoffering
ample variety in accessories like sewing threads, buttons, sequin,
zippers, gum tape, spot lifter, needles, cutting equipment, finishing
products and is growing inmulti-directions.
Kesavar Senthil (C) with C G Ramesh, GM Marketing (L) and Manoj Pandey, AGM-
Marketing of Uflex Ltd., Noida
Venkatachalapathi Traders
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Contact Rani Mahendru+91-11-47390000 (512)
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EMBROIDERY FABRIC /LACES BUTTONS /BUCKLES
HOOK /BAR
ELASTICS / TAPES / BUTTONELASTICS /TAPES
KNITTING / WEAVING YARN
The company is also
looking for printers that are good in
producing digital
and reactive prints, especially from
NorthIndia.
EYES & EARS
Next Sourcing looking to add more vendors
he Tirupur (India) office ofTNext Sourcing is looking for
apparel manufacturers who are
good in R&D, with focus on newer
fabric blends and have good
printing setups. As of now, the
company has over 10 vendors in
Tirupur who are supplying to it
on regular basis round the year.
It sources all kinds of knitted
with Apparel Online, shared the
current direction of developments
from the hub. “We are using
textured fabrics more than other
fabrics, and we do a lot of work at
the yarn stage to get different looks
for the fabric. As of now, garments
made of 100 per cent modal and
poly cotton are more in demand.
Also, we try to incorporate new
items from Tirupur, including
men’s, ladies’ and kids’ wear. The
company majorly procures infants’
and kids’ wear. Currently, Next
sources almost 2,00,000 pieces a
month from Tirupur alone.
Karthik Shetty, Product
Developer and Karthik,Fabric
Technical Manager of the
buying office inconversation
value-addition techniques, effects,
washes, etc. in products being
sourced from Tirupur. To further
support these efforts, we are
looking for garment manufacturers
who focus on R&D,developing
new blends of fabrics for all kinds
of products,” said the duo. Apart
from this, the buying office is also
looking for printers that are good
in producing digital and reactive
prints, especially from North India.
“We feel that reactive print is not
as good here as it is in NorthIndia;
also the prices are little too high
in Tirupur,” they said. As per the
website of Next, it trades from
more than 500 stores in the UK and
Ireland, and around 200 stores in 40
countries overseas. Next Sourcing
provides around 40 per cent of
Next Brand stock from its global
supplier base, sourcing from 18
countries. It employs 3,700 people
in 12 countries, including 2,700 in
factories which it owns.(L-R) Karthik Shetty and Karthik exploring fabric