4 Apparel Online India

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

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contact@apparelresources.com

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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editor@apparelresources.com

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.

HAVE YOUR SAY

Tell us your news by emailing at

news@apparelresources.com

BREAKING NEWS

To read the latest sustainability news, go to

http://news.apparelresources.com/sustainability-news/

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

pantone14-4506 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)

rani@apparelresources.com

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Send your industry gossip, photos and news toisaxena@apparelresources.com

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

HAVE YOUR SAY

Tell us your news by emailing at

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BREAKING NEWS

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http://news.apparelresources.com/sustainability-news/

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

PLANNING FOR AGGRESSIVE MARKET OUTREACH

TOADVERTISE

Contact Rani Mahendru+91-11-47390000 (512)

rani@apparelresources.com

GOING TO A GOODEVENT?

Send your industry gossip, photos and news toisaxena@apparelresources.com

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