Apparel 2019

EAI 01 ISSUE 10
100
BURBERRY:
An incredible
transformation
story
India emerges
strong sourcing
destination for
global buyers
MSME
package for overall industry
development
AppArel eXpOrT prOMOTION COUNCIl MAGAZINe | January 2019
Apparel_Jan_2019_Pages.indd 1 28/12/2018 9:32:47 PM

AppArel / Chairman’s Message
Dear Friends,
O
n behalf of AEPC and entire
garment fraternity I wish all of
you a Happy New Year. I think
we have a very good reason to
welcome 2019, since the garment exports
have finally picked up in the last quarter of
2018. I am very optimistic that this positive
outlook will continue in 2019.
2019 holds opportunities for better
market access in US, given the US- China
Trade war. I look forward to a new policy
framework under way, which will be shaping
our next Trade policy, in the lines of WTO
compliances. AEPC has already shared a
detailed alternate scheme in this regard.
Several logistic and infrastructural changes
are underway, towards greater ease of doing
business. I look forward to their concretisation
and impact on ground in 2019. I also look
forward to a renewed Drawback and RoSL
scheme that takes into consideration the post
GST taxes that are still getting added to our met Ambassadors of each country, Apparel
production costs.. Buyers, Chamber of Commerce. The
With regard to the new All Industry meetings of the delegation were fruitful and
Rates of Duty Drawback announced in Dec we are expecting boost in trade with these
2018, AEPC was expecting higher drawback countries.
rates for apparel industry. For many of the Friends, lets welcome 2019 with
important product categories of garment some new thought and resolutions – let’s
like cotton garments, MMF garment, Blend introspect on how to reposition India as a
garments etc, the rates announced are lower leading apparel supplier. India is fast losing
than those recommended by AEPC through out to its competitors because of scales and
the cost datas. We are taking up the matter productivity issues. The Council is looking at
with relevant authorities. all possible interventions for benchmarking
Towards market diversification, I would our competitiveness to the best. I look
like to share that a high level delegation forward to your suggestions on this for
visited Czech Republic, Slovenia and Croatia shaping our next year’s action plan.
to explore the smaller market of European
Union to enhance the trade. The delegation Happy 2019! n
HKL Magu, Chairman, AEPC
APPAREL EXPORT PROMOTION COUNCIL MAGAZINE | January 2018 /1
Apparel_Jan_2019_Pages.indd 3 1/1/2019 11:45:25 AM

C O N T E N T S
EAI 01 ISSUE 10
100
BURBERRY:
An incredible
transformation
story
India emerges 04 | The brOAdcAsT 21| cOTTOn

strong sourcing India’s Ready-Made Garment • CAB estimates decline in
destination for (RMG) Export Update for FY cotton yield from October
global buyers (April-November) 2018-19 2018-September 2019
• India rejects US charge of
05 | The brOAdcAsT subsidising cotton beyond
MSME India’s Textile & Ready Made WTO limits
package for overall industry Garment (RMG) Update for • Draught and uneven rail to
pull down average cotton
Index for Industrial Production
development (IIP) for FY (April-September) yield in India
APPAREL EXPORT PROMOTION COUNCIL MAGAZINE | January 2019
2018-19 22 | OulOOK
CHAIRMAN AEPC
06 | AePc evenTs Textile & clothing industry needs
to continue innovations to
Mr. HKL Magu Plenary session of the emerge strong
First India-Russia Strategic
CHAIRMAN EP Economic Dialogue 24 | PrOducT secTOr
Mr. Sudhir Sekhri E-com to boost global knitwear
08 | AePc evenTs market in future
ADVISOR AEPC AEPC organises seminar on
Investment Opportunities in
26 | brAnd reTAIl
Mrs. Chandrima Chatterjee An incredible transformation
Haryana
story
10| busIness
PUBLISHER
Apparel Export Promotion Council 29 | reTAIl
India’s textiles, clothing Global fast-fashion chains
market, including exports growing aggressively
touched $164 bn: Study
31| brAnd reTAIl
12| TrAde TreATIes • Siegle+Gale names Uniqlo
• India wary of RCEP due to as the world’s simplest fashion
influx of cheap goods brand
• Tariff hike not to come into • UK probes retailing strategies
effect on January 1, 2019 of apparel brands/etailers
• India keen on trade with UK
post Brexit 32| brAnd reTAIl
• Zara expands outerwear
13| TrAde TreATIes collection
• Tirupur to sign Indo-Pacific • Inditex to retail 118 million
Editor-in Chief & Publisher & CEO - economic corridor treaty garments in 20182
Sanjay Chawla • India’s proposal of bilateral • Espirit to overhaul company’s
trade in local currencies operations
Director - Salil Chawla
rejected by China
Managing Editor - Sujata Dutta Sachdeva • FTAs with ASEAN, Japan 33| brAnd reTAIl
VP-Corporate Communications and Korea increases India’s • Guess expects positive results
Shraboni Mukherjee trade deficit for FY2018-19
Assistant General Manager - Saqib Meer • Gap to close
Editorial - Narayan Subramaniam 14 | sOurcInG underperforming stores
Editorial Asst. - Ranjit Kaur India emerges strong sourcing
destination for global buyers
34 | Trends
Correspondent - Ajay Kumar Goswami, ‘Not the US, more people
Special Contribution Editorial - Ajanta Ganguly 16| eXPOrT elsewhere, own denim’
Supported By - Abdul Hussain, Sumit Masand • India’s apparel exports to 36 | Trends
ART DIRECTOR - Sanjeev D. Sonavane Canada increase by 3% Streetwear finding immense
Production & Admn. - Dhansukh Rathod, • India exports 54 per cent traction globally
Dinesh Poojary more apparels in October
• India’s textiles and apparel 38| Trend
Mumbai Office: 38/314, Unnat Nagar 4, exports to grow at CAGR of • Great prospects for global
Off M. G. Road, MHADA Colony, Goregaon (W), 12.06% sports brands in China
• Denim on an upswing in the
Mumbai - 400 062. Ph: 022 2875 5181
e-mail: dfuif@yahoo.co.in / dfu@rediffmail.com 17| eXPOrT US
• Textile associations urge • Rise of jeans as streetwear
government to set up creates new opportunities for
Dehli Office: Salil Chawla, Business & Mktg: New Delhi
textile cluster in Ludhiana women’s denim brand
- 110017, Mobile: +9193503 18639/
• Arvind to open third
95601 79633 e-mail: dfudelhi@yahoo.co.in
garment facility in Gujarat 39| Tech Trends
• India to develop rating • Brooks Brothers collaborate
Printing Press: VIBA Press Pvt. Ltd. C-66/3, Okhla system for industrial parks with ORS to launch AI-based
Industrial Area, Phase-II retail program
New Delhi-110020 18| cOver sTOry • LVMH sets up Retail
e-mail: info.vibappl@gmail.com Government package for the Lab to speed up digital
MSME sector targets overall transformation
industry development • Levi’s to expand
customisation program
2 / APPAREL EXPORT PROMOTION COUNCIL MAGAZINE | January 2019

40 | Tech Trends
Micro-textile model
promises a new dawn for
the industry
42 | FAST FASHION
Fast Fashion industry needs
to take positive eco steps
44 | FAST FASHION
SAC’s Higg Materials Tool
aids designers in assessing
environmental impact
46| Sustainability
• Textile Exchange ranks
H&M Group as the
world’s biggest user of
sustainable materials
• C&A launches first
Cradle to Cradle
certified Gold denim
jeans
• Lacoste bans the use of
mohair in its collection
47| Sustainability
• Inditex launches
outwear capsule
collection
• UK survey the issue
of mass waste in the
fashion industry
• Chanel removes Python
skin bags from website
48 | AEPC events
MSME review meeting
organized at Tirupur
49 | AEPC events
AEPC organises Open
House Session on Updated
FTP in Bengaluru
50 | AEPC events
AEPC organises seminar
on Digital Trade Banking
Solutions
51 | MARKETS
Revolutionising the clothing
re-commerce market,
some players take lead
53 | event
Global Textiles Conclave
2018 highlights key industry
initiatives and plans
55 | event
Weaves 2018: Emerges
as a platform for Indian
weavers to showcase
globally
56 | event
CII organises 10th edition
of TEXCON
57 | GSt Update
58 | MINISTRY
NOTIFICATIONS
59 | aepc
Notifications
60 | AEPC EVENT
CALENDAR
CALENDAR OF EVENTS -
2019

AppArel / The BrOaDCasT
India’s Ready-Made
Garment (RMG)
Export Update for
FY (April-November)
2018-19
India’s RMG Exports
RMG exports were to the tune of USD 1129.02 million in

November 2018 with the growth of 8.98 per cent against
the corresponding month of November 2017, which was
USD 1036.01 million.
In rupee term export for the Month of November 2018 was

`8112.46 cr. as against ` 8327.42 cr. as against `6719.85
Cr. in November 2017 with the growth of 20.72 per cent.
India’s RMG export to World in the April-November
of 2018-19 was to the tune of USD 9976.14 mn.
which has decreased by -9.70 per cent compared
to the same period of previous fi nancial year. During
April-November 2017-18, India’s apparel exports
were to the tune of USD 11047.52 mn.
India’s rmG export to World

mom Growth of
Fy 2017-18 Fy 2018-19
month 2018-19 over 2017-18 (%)
In INr Crore In US$ million In INr Crore In US$ million INr US$
April 11272.24 1747.44 8859.67 1349.81 -21.40 -22.76
May 10342.55 1605.37 9040.63 1338.57 -12.59 -16.62
June 9979.57 1548.59 9202.63 1357.46 -7.79 -12.34
July 8262.94 1281.95 8757.23 1274.83 5.98 -0.56
August 8552.24 1336.95 8986.67 1292.18 5.08 -3.35
September 10704.85 1661.19 7967.69 1103.32 -25.57 -33.58
October 5401.86 830.02 8327.42 1130.95 54.16 36.26
November 6719.85 1036.01 8112.46 1129.02 20.72 8.98
April-November 71236.10 11047.52 69254.40 9976.14 -2.78 -9.70
Source: DGCI&S, Kolkata, 2018
4 / AppArel eXpOrT prOMOTION COUNCIl MAGAZINe | January 2019

AppArel / The BrOaDCasT
India’s Textile
& Ready Made
Garment (RMG)
Update for Index
for Industrial
Production (IIP)
for FY
(April-September)
2018-19
INDeX oF INDUStrIAl proDUCtIoN

manufacture of mom Growth rate manufacture of mom Growth
textiles (In %) wearing apparel rate (In %)
Month 2017-18 2018-19 2018-19/2017-18 2017-18 2018-19 2018-19/2017-18
April 116 114.2 -1.6 155.5 134.6 -13.4
May 116.7 116.1 -0.5 156.8 136.8 -12.8
June 116.4 115.5 -0.8 145.2 151.6 4.4
July 116.4 119.8 2.9 134.2 147.3 9.8
August 116 125.1 7.8 121.4 144.3 18.9
September 115.2 121.4 5.4 118.8 143.6 20.9
October 113.5 120.5 6.2 106.3 136.1 28.0
Total 115.7 119.9 3.6 134 142.1 6.0
Source: CSO, 2018

SUmmAry
• Manufacturing of Textiles has shown a growth of 6.2% in October, 2018 and growth
of 3.6% for the period of April-October, 2018-19
• Manufacturing of Wearing apparel has shown a growth of 28% in October, 2018
and growth of 6% for the period of April-October, 2018-19
AppArel eXpOrT prOMOTION COUNCIl MAGAZINe | January 2019 /5

AppArel / AEPC events
AEPC joins NITI

Ayog led High Level
Delegation to Russia for
1st India-Russia Strategic
Economic Dialogue
Apparel_January_2019-1.indd 8 1/1/2019 2:40:03 PM

Five roundtables sessions
dedicated to Development of
N
Transport Infrastructure and
ITI Ayog had mounted a high level delegation Technologies, Development of
to Russia for 1st India-Russia Strategic Agriculture and Agro-Processing
Economic Dialogue which commenced in
sectors, Support for Small
St Petersburg on 25 November, 2018. The
and Medium-sized Business
dialogue was chaired by Dr. Rajiv Kumar, Vice
(SME), Digital Transformation
Chairman, NITI Aayog & Mr. Maxim Oreshkin, Minister for
Economic Development, Russia. Shri HKL Magu, Chairman,
and Frontier Technologies and
AEPC and Mr. J D Giri, Director, M/s Shahi Exports P. Ltd., Industrial Cooperation and Trade
Faridabad were also the part of the delegation. Both countries have been organized
have identified priorities for enhancing the economic and trade about exhibitions in each other’s’ territories.
relation between India and Russia which are strengthening the To overcome customs related problems,
basis for cooperation, infrastructure, investment and finance, Mutual Recognition Agreements will do the
sectorial cooperation, new economy & sustainable development: custom certification.
Five roundtables sessions dedicated to Development of Mr. J. D. Giri, mentioned about long
Transport Infrastructure and Technologies, Development of business and trade relationship which India
Agriculture and Agro-Processing sectors, Support for Small and Russia have had in the past which was
and Medium-sized Business (SME), Digital Transformation pretty well in Soviet period but declined in
and Frontier Technologies and Industrial Cooperation and the recent past which needs to be geared up
Trade have been organized. again. He stated that reasons for low business
In the round Table session on support for Small and are – information gap, logistic issues and
Medium-sized Business (SME), Chairman, AEPC stated banking challenges. India follows complete
that 80% supply to the apparel exports in India comes from ecosystem approach, has skilled manpower,
SMEs. There was a time when Ludhiana depended largely on different institutes for training in SMEs sector,
Russia for its supplies like woolen garments. So, there is a huge especially textile (National Institute of Fashion
possibility of cooperation. There is no dearth of suppliers in technology, other textile institutions). India is
India ranging from small to big suppliers who export worth already providing the supplies to top fashion
more than US$ 1 billion also. Today all the fashion brands are brands of the world. Huge gap in Russian
buying from India. There are 8800 members in AEPC who market in terms of color, fiber in textiles can be
can take care of Russian market. He suggested to create one filled by India. He suggested to set up a target
nodal agency, may be Importers Council from Russian side who of bilateral trade of US$ 1 billion by 2020 in
will deal with the Exporters councils of India. He suggested textiles. This will stimulate the achievement
that BSMs, seminars, market studies should be conducted for of the larger target of bilateral trade US$
identification of bottlenecks. Both the sides can be informed 30 billion by 2025. EAEU FTA should be
expedited, logistics problems can be solved
NITI Ayog had mounted a high level delegation by INSTC coming into reality. India can be a
to Russia for 1st India-Russia Strategic good supplier in kid’s apparel section.
Economic Dialogue which commenced in St AEPC also suggested that a counterpart
Petersburg on 25 November, 2018. The dialogue of AEPC may be created by Russian
Federation for sourcing and close interactions,
was chaired by Dr. Rajiv Kumar, Vice Chairman,
North-South corridor to be expedited by
NITI Aayog & Mr. Maxim Oreshkin, Minister for
Russia, making India member of EAEU
Economic Development, Russia. Shri HKL Magu,
FTA, dedicated desk in Indian Embassy
Chairman, AEPC and Mr. J D Giri, Director, M/s for promoting apparel export from India &
Shahi Exports P. Ltd., Faridabad were also the opening of offices of Russian retailers in
part of the delegation India for sourcing.
Apparel_January_2019-1.indd 9 1/1/2019 2:40:03 PM

Participants at Seminar on Investment Opportunities in Haryana at Apparel House, Gurugram
AEPC organises
seminar on Investment
Opportunities in Haryana
A
EPC organised a seminar on Investment by MK Sardana, General Manager, HEPC.
Opportunities in Haryana at Apparel The session concluded with detailed information on key
House, Gurugram on November 29, incentives in policies like financial assistance, stamp duty, support
2018 in collaboration with Invest Haryana & skill development, support for common effluent treatment plant
Haryana Enterprise and Promotion Centre (CETP), Internal and External development charges and financial
(HEPC). The seminar included a presentation assistance for zero liquid discharge (ZLD) and investment
on the Haryana Textile & Apparel policy 2018 opportunities in Haryana for apparel sector. n

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AppArel / Business
India’s textiles, clothing

market, including exports
touched $164 bn: Study
T
he annual ‘Market for Textiles clothing including exports increased to $146.63 billion in
and Clothing (MTC)’: National 2016 and further to $164 billion in 2018. Aggregate demand
Household Survey 2017 reveals, for textiles & clothing was 41.06 billion meter in 2016 which
India’s overall market size for textiles and touched 45.32 billion meter in 2018, growing at a CAGR of

AppArel / Business
Power loom sector sees
highest demand
The mill/power loom sector contributed
33.97 billion meters (82.72 per cent) to the
overall demand of textiles in 2016 compared
to 31.85 billion meters in 2015. Similarly, the
knitted sector contributed 4.94 billion meters
to the total basket in 2016 as against 4.77
billion meters (12.39 per cent) in 2015.
At the same time, the handloom sector
contributed 5.24 per cent to the total demand
for textiles in the household sector. Aggregate
demand for handloom textiles is 2.15 billion
meters in 2016 as compared to 1.91 billion
meters in 2015. The aggregate demand for
textiles by sector of manufacturing for 2018 for
mill made/power loom, knitted/hosiery and
handloom sector was 37.24 billion meter, 5.56
billion meter and 2.53 billion meter respectively.
Household sector growth

highest
The demand for household sector is a
major contributor to overall growth with
53.39 percent share in the total market. While
export of textile and clothing decreased 4.66
per cent, demand in household and non-
household sector grew 2.82 and 1.51 per cent
respectively during 2016.
5.34 per cent from 2011 to 2018. In value terms, demand

touched Rs 6, 204.02 billion in 2018, with CAGR of 9.54 per
cent between 2011- 2018.
The per capita demand for textiles in 2016 was Rs 4,081.60
as compared to Rs 3836.13 in 2015. It touched Rs 4,762.90
in 2018. On the other hand, per capita demand for textile in
quantity terms increased to 31.85 meter in 2016 and further to
34.58 m in 2018.
Cotton fibers most in demand Growth in household demand of textiles

Aggregate demand for cotton fiber-based products, was has created an additional demand for 2,525
17.22 billion meter in 2016 and increased to 19.29 billion meter million meter of fabrics, which is an indication
in 2018. Comparatively, demand for manmade fiber-based of the required capacity expansion in fabrics
product was 23.34 billion meters in 2016 which increased to manufacturing in the country. Similarly,
25.46 billion meters by 2018. Similarly, aggregate demand for growing demand for newly emerged products
pure silk and woolen fiber based product was 0.34 billion and like legging etc, provides an indication of the
0.16 billion meter respectively in 2016. It is expected to have change in preference pattern of consumers in
touched 0.37 and 0.20 billion meter respectively in 2018. the country during the period. n
APPAREL EXPORT PROMOTION COUNCIL MAGAZINE | January 2019 / 11

AppArel / Trade Treaties
India wary of RCEP due to influx of cheap goods
I
ndia has some reservations on the Regional Comprehensive
Economic Partnership (RCEP) as the deal might deluge its market
by cheap goods from the other members, particularly China.
The annual year-on-year growth in Chinese imports was about
9 per cent in 2014, which soared to 20 per cent in 2018. The
trade deficit with China constitutes more than 40 per cent of
India’s aggregate trade deficit. In quantum terms, Chinese goods
constitute about one-sixth of all imports into India.
Countries in diverse stages of development, from Australia,
China, Japan and India to the ten members of Asean, are part of
the RCEP, besides South Korea and New Zealand. Once wrapped
up, RCEP would foster the largest regional trading bloc, making up
25 per cent of global GDP, 30 per cent of world trade and 26 per
cent of cross-country foreign direct investment flows the world over.
A modern, comprehensive and mutually beneficial economic
partnership agreement for an open trade and investment milieu
in the Asia-Pacific region is the core objective of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership. n
Tariff hike not to India keen on trade with

come into effect on UK post Brexit
January 1, 2019
A
bout 800 Indian firms, that use UK as a getaway to enter the
European Union (EU), plan to continue their ties post Brexit.
T
he 25 per cent hike in tariffs that President The annual trade between both nations stands at $24 billion.
Donald Trump had threatened on $200 India is reportedly keen on deals facilitating the export of software,
billion worth of Chinese goods will the movement of information technology and healthcare
not come into effect on January 1 as was professionals, and offering a greater access for generic drugs and
originally planned. Instead, the 10 per cent pharmaceutical firms.
tariff will remain in place as the two countries India’s textile and garment sectors are also extremely keen on a
begin negotiations that also trade pact. India’s trade rivals, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Vietnam
address China’s alleged and Pakistan, receive the benefits of preferential agreements or
forced technology transfers quotas in garments. Indian exports of garments to Europe attract a
and cybercrimes. 9.6 per cent duty, making such products uncompetitive.
The most recent set of India, in its bid to pave the way for a post-Brexit deal, will allow
tariffs already affect clothing 100 per cent foreign direct investment in insurance brokerages.
and accessories, including India is also keen on deals to ease the export of software as well
handbags and wallets, while as the movement of IT and healthcare professionals. India’s textile
the fourth set, which would and garment sectors are also extremely keen on a trade pact with
hit $257 billion in goods, can the UK. These sectors are major forex earners, after software and
hugely affect the footwear industry. Since gems and jewelry. n
the levies encompass a wide variety of
consumer products, retailers would have to
raise prices to accommodate soaring import
costs. A number of companies, including
Steve Madden, are planning to relocate their
factories from China, which could potentially
disrupt their supply chains as well as affect
shipping times and sourcing strategies. n
Jan_shortstories.indd 1 28/12/2018 9:36:53 PM

AppArel / Trade Treaties
Tirupur to sign Indo-Pacific economic corridor treaty
T
irupur is planning to sign the Indo-Pacific economic corridor
treaty which will open up traditional apparel markets. This
treaty will include 12 countries such as India, the US, Australia,
Indonesia, Japan and New Zealand, on board. Under this
treaty, each country will provide a conducive climate for trade
exchanges for different members and investment to develop
infrastructure.
The US recently announced an investment worth $113 million for
new infrastructure initiatives in the corridor. The corridor will group
selected nations who will help others to develop their economies.
If the partners are provided preferred status by other nations, it will
be a win-win situation for both the sides.
Especially in the apparel market, India could utilise the
advantage, if the US, which has a traditional apparel market,
provides a lower import tariff and a softer approach. Apparel already made big investments in countries
exporters in India could get a huge help from the corridor. such as Bangladesh, Vietnam and Cambodia,
Though the economic corridor is mainly mooted to counter the which are top competitors of India in the
advantages of China, it will not affect the neighboring country apparel industry, the former may not feel the
much, at least in the apparel market. Since Chinese firms have heat of the corridor. n
India’s proposal of bilateral FTAs with ASEAN, Japan

trade in local currencies and Korea increases India’s
rejected by China trade deficit
A
s per a study published by think-tank Third
C
hina has not accepted India’s proposal to carry out World Network, India’s three free trade
bilateral trade in local currencies. India had suggested to agreements with the ASEAN, Japan and
China trade in local currency in order to boost its exports South Korea have resulted in growing deficits in
and tackle the widening trade deficit. merchandise trade. The government is at present
India’s exports to China stood at only $13.4 billion while imports focused on how to make India’s free trade
were $76.4 billion in 2018, leaving a trade deficit of $63 billion. agreements deliver more for all stakeholders and
India has proposed trade in national currencies with some other has also employed three think-tanks to analyse
countries, too, including Russia, Iran and Venezuela. New Delhi the on-going RCEP negotiations.
has a trade deficit with these three countries too. After the initial spurt in middle of the
Bilateral trade in domestic currencies will help India only in the previous decade, trade imbalances increased
case of those countries with which it has a trade balance. There sizably after the three Comprehensive
should be no trade imbalance with the country with which India Economic Partnership Agreements (CEPA)
wants to do trade in the rupee. with the ASEAN, Japan and Korea came into
It will not help in bridging the effect. Trade deficit with the three countries,
deficit. which stood at $4.5 billion in 2004 and
Indian industry and exporters $16.4 billion in 2010, shot up to $29.7 billion
have time and again raised in 2015 before cooling down a bit to $26.6
the issue of increasing trade billion in 2016.
deficit with China and have Available trends in both exports and
sought greater market access imports point to a hollowing out of the
for domestic goods in the manufacturing base, which has prompted the
Chinese market. Recently, China permitted exports of rice and present government to initiate measures for
sugar. But India wants to increase exports of several other items, the revival of the manufacturing sector. n
including pharmaceuticals, engineering and services. n

AppArel / SOURCING
India emerges strong sourcing

destination for global buyers
Italy’s Alessandro Lenzi, Administrator of Lebiz srl, he came
to India to explore factories for intimate apparels. And he is
not alone as many companies are now exploring India as they
face challenges in their existing sourcing destinations, and as
customers are pushing them for Indian products. For India, this
is perhaps the best time to explore new growth opportunities.
India emerges strong sourcing option

Lebiz srl has 26 stores in Bologna and they realised Italian
consumers prefer Indian products hence, India is a hub they
can’t ignore anymore. They plan to source 20,000 pieces per
collection annually with four to five collections a year. Other
sourcing companies too are looking at India. For example,
C
ompanies across the globe are Saudi Arabia’s Nama Arabia Apparels, (‘Blooming’ label) was
facing challenges while operating working primarily out of China but now they are impressed
businesses within their own with Indian manufacturers and rethinking options. Fawzi
countries. India therefore, is emerging the Alnahdi, CEO, Nama Arabia Apparels points out around 95
preferred sourcing destination for many. Take per cent of their products, including underwear and outerwear,

AppArel / SOURCING
in India. Around 70 per cent products are
sourced from India, while the remaining 30
per cent basic/core lines are sourced from
are sourced from China but now they are actively looking to China. Hand embroidery is at the core of
start working with casual womens wear that would appeal to most of the products sourced from India.
women in Saudi Arabia. Meanwhile, Russia is a potential market for
Some buyers say they are working hard to ensure timely Indian exporters. As Valery Sidorenkov, Chief
delivery from Indian exporters and insisting on focusing more Production Officer and quality assurance,
on product development. Rayes Gimenez, Manager, Kuini Modis, Moscow points out they are working
Creation, Spain and Jaime Barba of 360 Streetwear, are upbeat with six exporters in India and sourcing
about their sourcing tie-up. And for Ada Kamara, Mykonos, good volume of women’s, men’s and kid’s
Greece, India is the biggest sourcing destination. They are wear from India. He says, garment exporters
looking for fresh collections and hope to make new contacts should have proper data and start analysing
with exporters that will support their growth plans as they plan where they exactly are. Some key areas like
to become wholesalers and spread their wings. good quality can make a company profitable.
For Sarabjit Singh E.E., Manager, Siba International, Strong quality management system and data
Denmark, any exporter who can offer innovative patterns can assessment system will help reduce issues like
gain winning contracts. Twinset S.P.A., from Italy has been extra procurement of material, amount of
sourcing from India for the last 15 years and their journey have manpower invested on check, rechecks, so
been impressive. The company is represented by Preeti Walia proper data would be the starting point. n

AppArel / Export
India’s apparel exports to Canada increase by 3%
I
ndia’s exports to Canada have increased by 3 per
cent year on year. However, its share in Canada’s
textile and apparel imports has declined over the
last five years. Apparel has a 50 per cent share in
India’s textile and apparel exports to Canada. This is
followed by home textiles and fabrics having a share
of 50 per cent and eight per cent respectively.
Apparel is the largest imported category by Canada,
representing 66 per cent of total textile and apparel
imports. This is followed by home textiles, fabrics and
others with a share of 16 per cent, six per cent and five
per cent respectively. China is the largest supplier to
Canada, accounting for a 34 per cent share, followed
by the US and Bangladesh with a share of 16 per cent and 8 per demand, Indian apparel manufacturers
cent respectively. The top 10 suppliers account for 85 per cent need to undertake suitable investments on
of textile and apparel imports by Canada. product innovation. Focus on technology
Over the years, apparel production in Canada has fallen enhancement and manufacturing excellence
while imports continue to increase. So India has a huge scope will act as a key mantra for raising the trade
for expansion of apparel exports to Canada. To cater to this flow between the two countries. n
India’s textiles and apparel exports

India’s textiles and
in November up 14 per cent
apparel exports to grow
I
ndia’s textile and apparel exports grew by 14 per cent in
November. Textile exports jumped nine per cent and apparel
exports jumped 21 per cent. For the period between April and
at CAGR of 12.06%
I
November, textile and apparel exports grew by seven per cent. ndia’s total exports of textiles and apparel
The old duty drawback rate which was very attractive came to are expected to grow at a CAGR of 12.03
an end in September 2017. Because of this attractive scheme, per cent to reach $82 billion by 2021. The
Indian exporters advanced their delivery schedules to avail of total textile and clothing exports, during April-
the duty drawback scheme. Consequently, textile and apparel September 2018, stood at Rs 1.30 trillion
exports skyrocketed in September 2017. Exports one year later ($18.56 billion). Ready-made garments
in September 2018 declined sharply. From that level, however, exports were Rs 52,810.51 crore ($7.53 billion)
exports are normalizing which is believed to continue in future as during the same time. Fiber exports from the
well to end the current financial year flat. country in 2017-18 were valued at $2,481.90
Indian’s textile and apparel exports are destined for all million. During
countries including China. April-September
The recovery in the US 2018, fiber
economy has given a exports stood
boost to India’s textile and at Rs 8,429.05
apparel exports. Since the US crore ($1,201.06
economy is on a continuous million).
growth path, India’s textile Total value
and apparel export growth is of yarn, fabrics
expected to continue. and made-ups
India registered a growth exports of the
of 5.37 per cent in textile and apparel exports in 2017. India’s country was $14.33 billion. During April-
share in world trade in textile and clothing is estimated to be September 2018, the exports stood at Rs
4.95 per cent. With these exports, India is ranked second among 54,422.11 crore ($7.75 billion). n
suppliers in the world. n
Jan_shortstories.indd 3 1/1/2019 11:41:54 AM

AppArel / Export
Textile associations urge government to set up

textile cluster in Ludhiana
A
delegation of Knitwear and Apparel Exporters Organisation
in Ludhiana recently sent an MoU to the chief minister
Captain Amarinder Singh apprising him of their problems.
In the MoU, Harish Dua, President of the Association noted that
Ludhiana needs a big international class textile cluster with
availability of all essential services.
An MSME unit cannot afford all kinds of machines and services
like embroidery, printing, knitting, dyeing, and electronic
computerised cutting. Therefore, it will be in the best interest Punjab government, which is already taking
of exporters and manufacturers of garments that a cluster several steps to improve business environment
be made in Ludhiana, where all these facilities — along with in the state, should also start initiatives to set
the latest state -of -the -art machinery is made available at a up hostels for working women. The state
subsidised cost to members of the cluster. government can also offer land free of cost
Narinder Chugh, Executive Council member of Apparel Export for this purpose, besides constructing hostels
Promotion Council emphasised the need to train and mobilise with aid from the Central government at the
women’s workforce in the state, especially in Ludhiana. The earliest. n
Arvind to open third India to develop rating

garment facility in Gujarat system for industrial parks
A I
rvind will open its third garment facility in Gujarat over the next ndia plans to develop a rating system for
few weeks. The company already has two manufacturing industrial parks which is expected to raise
facilities in the state. These facilities will add a capacity competitiveness of industries and promote
of three million garments a month and generate additional manufacturing. This system is being developed
revenues of Rs 1,000 crores. They are aimed at strengthening based on four parameters: internal and external
Arvind’s position in the global textile and garment market as infrastructure, connectivity, environment and
an integrated fiber to fashion provider and solutions provider to safety management, and business support
global retailers and brands. The facilities will also contribute to the services. The system could become a reference
company’s foray into performance and functional wear (active database for prospective investors.
wear) and synthetics. There are suggestions that the parks should
At present only 10 per cent occupy a minimum of 1,000 acres, with
of the fabrics Arvind produces infrastructure support in the form of readymade
are converted into garments. factory sheds, warehouse, effluent collection
The aim is to convert 50 treatment and disposal systems, incubation
per cent of Arvind’s fabrics centers and testing labs, first aid centers, with
into garments over the next express connectivity to seaports and airports.
five years. Some 12,000 The Scheme for Integrated Textile Parks
people are expected to be was launched in 2005 to encourage private
employed in these facilities. investments and employment generation in the
Arvind plans to invest Rs 500 textile sector. The primary objective of the SITP
crores a year for the next four was to provide the industry with world class
or five years with an aim to state-of-the-art infrastructure for setting up new
double revenue from its textile business to Rs 12,000 crores. textile units. The Scheme for Integrated Textile
Gujarat has been at the forefront of the textile value chain. The Parks was launched by merging two schemes,
state’s progressive textile policy has seen Gujarat become the Apparel Parks for Exports Scheme and Textiles
leader in cotton production, spinning and fabric production. The Center Infrastructure Development Scheme. n
state is poised to become a large garmenting hub. n

AppArel / COver sTOrY
Government package for the

MSME sector targets overall
industry development
the latest msme package announced by the government will surely
boost the textile and apparel sector which has been facing trying times.
medium and small players who make up a huge chunk of the sector will
be big beneficiaries say experts and industry bodies
T
he msme support and outreach 12 decisions, including a 59-minute loan portal for sanction of
programme announced by Prime up to rs 1 crore for small and medium enterprises. it may be
minister narendra modi has noted that over 75 per cent of india’s garment industry is in
been welcomed by the textile and the msme sector and the 12 announcements covered in the
apparel industry. The programme includes package would benefit a large segment.

AppArel / Cover Story
Bank. GST-registered MSMEs will get 2 per
cent interest rebate on incremental loan up to
Rs 1 crore.
Features of MSME programme Textile minister Smriti Irani also outlined
The latest MSME Support & Outreach Programme that for the first time banking institutions have
include is broad and covers many aspects of the industry. been directed to give in-principle approvals to
Some salient features are: loans in 59 minutes. She urged the industry
• GST-registered MSMEs will get 2 per cent rebate on an to avail benefits of the ATUF scheme, as
incremental loan of up to Rs 1 crore. provided under the special package of Rs
• Interest subvention increased on pre and post shipment 6,000 crore for the made-ups and garments
credit for exports by MSMEs from 3 to 5 per cent. sector and assured that the ministry would
• Rs 6,000 crore package for the technological upgradation in provide all support to the cotton textile sector
MSMEs. 20,000 hubs and 100 tool rooms will be developed in increasing exports.
around the country for this. In this milieu, the government’s move to
• Mandatory sourcing by PSUs from MSMEs increased to 25 launch the portal to assess and sanction loans
per cent from the previous limit of 20 per cent. of up to Rs 1 crore will help micro enterprises
• Government companies to buy at least 3 per cent of their significantly, while TReDS can change the
purchases from women entrepreneurs. game for small and medium enterprises by
• It is now mandatory that all the companies with a turnover engendering their credit history, enabling
of more than Rs 500 crore will have to join TReDS platform, tracking of receivables’ realisation — or,
that is Trade Receivables e-Discounting System. So, MSMEs when and how dues from corporates were
won’t face trouble in cash flow. received. Indeed the announcement has
• MSMEs will have to file just one annual return on eight come as a huge relief for MSME sector with
labour laws and 10 central rules. majority of them being in the informal sector
• Environment clearance and ease of self-certification for they find it extremely difficult to raise funds
MSME. as credit appraisal is a major challenge.
• Changes in Companies Act and relief to MSMEs from legal
complications. Export subsidies to boost
growth
Fast loan disposals to address credit The apparel industry saw a dip in exports
woes from October to December 2017 – a fall of 39
Bank credit to micro and small enterprises (MSEs), especially per cent, 11 per cent and 8 per cent year-on-
in manufacturing, has shown no signs of growth in the past two year, respectively. This was mostly attributed
fiscal years. In fact, it actually declined for medium enterprises. to the Goods and Services Tax (GST), which
For a long time, there has been a structural need to address rolled out in July, and discontinuance of
funding and liquidity woes of the entire MSME landscape, certain export incentives. Therefore, from
particularly working capital. seeking restoration of export incentives at
CRISIL’s analysis of nearly 10,000 MSMEs shows average
trade receivable is about 75 days — a significant stretch that forces
Under new the package, a portal
them to resort to high-cost debt to keep business running. As for
credit flow from banks and non-banks, a marked improvement
has been launched through which
will take time because of enduring challenges they face. MSMEs can avail of loans up to
Under new the package, a portal has been launched through Rs 1 crore. The portal will enable
which MSMEs can avail of loans up to Rs 1 crore. The portal principal approval of loans up to
will enable principal approval of loans up to Rs 1 crore for Rs 1 crore for MSMEs from Small
MSMEs from Small Industries Development Bank of India Industries Development Bank
(SIDBI) and five public sector banks viz: State Bank of India, of India (SIDBI) and five public
Bank of Baroda, Punjab National Bank, Vijaya Bank and Indian sector banks

AppArel / Cover Story
pre-GST rates (7.5 per cent duty drawback

on cotton apparel and 3.5 per cent return of
state levies or ROSL) to exemption of 18 per
cent taxes levied towards air freight charges
under GST, industry body Apparel Export
Promotion Council (AEPC) made around
8-10 demands.
Addressing these demands, interest
subvention on pre-shipment and post-
shipment finance for exports by MSMEs has
been increased from 3 to 5 per cent. These
measures would provide much-needed support
and encouragement to the MSME sector,
which contributes significantly to textiles
exports. Under the package, GST -- registered risk management post Global Financial Crisis. The LEI is a
MSMEs would get 2 per cent interest rebate on 20-character unique identity code assigned to entities who are
incremental loan up to Rs. 1 crore. parties to a financial transaction.
The increased subsidy is applicable from
November 2. Exporters can avail the subsidy Special apparel package to boost
under the ‘Interest Equalisation Scheme on employment
Pre and Post Shipment Rupee Export Credit’. The garment industry being the most labour-intensive
The scheme (earlier called Interest Subvention segment of the manufacturing sector, complying with the
Scheme) was announced by the government requirements under various labour laws is a major responsibility
in November 2018 for all exports of MSME for the industry.
and 416 tariff lines. The scheme covers mostly Textile Commissioner, the Ministry of Textiles had earlier
labour intensive and employment generating stated the textiles and clothing industry had promised the
sectors like processed agriculture/food items, government to bring an investment of Rs 800 billion along
handicrafts, readymade garments, glass and with creation of employment opportunities for 10 million
glassware, medical and scientific instruments, people within three years. Already two years have passed but
and auto components/parts, among others. investment to the tunes of Rs 70 billion and employment of
only 100,000 persons were achieved. To fulfil its promise given
LEI code to improve to the government, the Textile Ministry announced a Rs 60
accuracy of financial data billion special apparel package in July 2017 and the garment
As per a notification of the RBI and made ups industry should take advantage of the scheme.
all participants, other than individuals, The package would complement the Amended Technology
undertaking transactions in the markets Upgradation Fund Scheme, introduced in 2016, to provide
regulated by it -- government securities capital subsidy for machinery at 15 per cent for garmenting and
markets, money markets and non-derivative technical textiles segments with a cap of Rs 30 crore and at
forex markets -- shall obtain Legal Entity 10 per cent for weaving, processing, jute, silk and handloom
Identifier (LEI) codes. The RBI has given segments with a cap of Rs 20 crore.
timelines for different types of participants to The present government had initiated some labour reforms
comply with the directions. for the segment earlier under a special package. Strict regulation
The LEI code has been conceived of as of visits by inspectors and stipulating returns under 8 labour
a key measure to improve the quality and laws and 10 union regulations have to be filed now only on an
accuracy of financial data systems for better annual basis, have taken this process ahead. n

AppArel / Cotton
CAB estimates decline in cotton yield from

October 2018-September 2019
C
otton Advisory Board (CAB) headed by the Textile
Commissioner in its first estimate released this week,
forecasted cotton yield will decline to 501.47 kg per
hectare (ha) for the cotton season October 2018–September
2019. As a result, average cotton output for the season is the
lowest in three years. During the crop year 2016-17, the yield was
reported at 459.2 kg per ha. With this, the 2018-19 cotton season
is set to become the second slowest year in nearly a decade.
The CAB estimates India’s cotton output at 36.1 million bales season. As a result, total acreage under the
(1 bale = 170 kg) for 2018-19 compared with 37 million bales crop rose to 12.24 million ha from 10.83
in the previous year. The statistics collated by the CAB showed million ha in 2016-17. However, uneven
Maharashtra as the least yielding cotton producing state in the distribution of monsoon rainfall in Gujarat —
India with an average productivity (yield) of 334.3 kg per ha this deficient in cotton growing belts and surplus
year compared to 343.48 kg last year. elsewhere — coupled with drought in major
To capitalise on benefits, such as procurement at minimum cotton cultivating areas in Maharashtra such
support price (MSP), offered by the government, farmers had as Marathwada, is set to pull down India’s
brought additional area under this natural fibre last kharif sowing average yield this year. n
India rejects US charge of Draught and uneven rail

subsidising cotton beyond to pull down average
WTO limits cotton yield in India
I D
ndia has rejected the US charge of subsidising cotton beyond rought and uneven rainfall in Gujarat
the limits prescribed by the World Trade Organisation (WTO). and Maharashtra is likely to pull down
It says the support provided is intended to ensure that poor the average cotton yield in India. As per
farmers do not resort to sales under distress. The country has been estimates from the Cotton Advisory Board, the
using a consistent reporting approach since 1995 and uses a country is likely to produce 36 million bales
robust methodology as compared to the US in its calculation of of cotton during the 2018-19 compared to 37
the support. million bales in the previous year.
The US has accused India of After touching Rs 136
under-reporting the value of its per kg (Sankar-6 variety),
minimum price support (MPS) for cotton prices have eased
cotton. In its 2015-16 notification to Rs 124 per kg. On
to the WTO, India reported Rs 1.2 the other hand, robust
billion in MPS for cotton whereas demand for yarn both in
the US estimated India’s support domestic and international
at over Rs 504 billion. According markets has supported
to the US these actual support yarn prices. A 35 per
levels mean India is well in excess of its WTO spending limits on cent jump expected in yarn exports between
cotton support, which is fixed at 10 per cent of the total value of April and October from a year ago and a 25
overall production. per cent growth in overall textile exports will
Other countries that raised red flags over India’s support to bolster yarn prices in the near term. Stable
the sugarcane sector include Guatemala, Thailand, Paraguay, demand and production would kick in benefits
Brazil and the European Union. Questions have also been raised of operating leverage too. This should help
regarding India’s decision to increase import duties on milk sustain operating margins n
powder from 30 per cent to 40 per cent. n

AppArel / OULOOK
Textile & clothing industry

needs to continue innovations
to emerge strong
T
he global economy is in a fragile China’s textile and clothing exports have risen more than
state, poised delicately between a fourfold since 2000, compared to stagnant exports from other
slow recovery and second slide. top exporting countries. China’s capacity development is also
Therefore, it is important to analyse the current peaking as more than 40 per cent of the world’s production of
scenario, and jointly consider future strategies. clothing and textiles is done in China and India.
Continuous global crisis, high oil prices and
turmoil and political instability are huge Discontent among Chinese middle
concerns for all businesses particularly textiles class
as crisis leads to a dip in expenditure on textiles. Over the past few months, China’s middle class has been
Interestingly even in such a scenario, noticeably critical of the government’s economic and sociopolitical

AppArel / OULOOK
China, South Korea, Indonesia, Turkey, India,

Pakistan etc. As the Middle East economy
is affected, textile business is also affected.
Though improving oil prices are offering some
relief, it take time as the economy has been
adversely affected for last few years.
Innovation and research

strengthen base
Despite odds, textile industry has to
policies, including the way the leadership has handled relations constantly innovate and research. It needs to
with the US. Some suggest this middle-class discontent threatens constantly invest in quality control and new
President Xi Jinping’s broader position and economic vision and opportunities such as defense textile, huge
indicates that the US holds the advantage in ztrade dispute with requirement of camouflage fabrics as size of
China. But the middle class’ views which are the foundation of armed forces is increasing all over the world.
Chinese public opinion might be poised to turn in the Communist Similarly coated fabrics, industry textiles
Party’s favor. Interdependency between emerging economies have become huge markets now. The textile
and developed economies could thwart latent demand in major and apparel industry is buyer-driven and
manufacturing centers, specifically in Southeast Asia. dominated by retailers, brands and sourcing
companies. Retailers demand full-package
India to remain strong production service from their suppliers, but they are
centre reluctant to pay for additional services. It is
In all this, India will continue to be a major textile production important in today‘s business environment to
center catering to a huge domestic market. But imports from select customers who see you as partners.
China, Bangladesh are causing disturbance in supply chain E-commerce platforms are turning out to
however, government is taking corrective steps and a lot of be a big blessing as online sale is improving
favorable initiatives are being taken by textiles ministry to eliminating middle man. Amazon, Flipkart,
improve production synergies and textile business model. Snapdeal, Shopclues and many other small
platforms are helping small manufacturers
The Middle East a big consumer to produce high quality stuff. Current times
Middle East continuous to be a big consumer of textiles based are tough but textile manufacturers have seen
on imports, major exporting countries to Middle East include much harder times in the past. n

AppArel / PRODUCT SECTOR
E-com to boost global

knitwear market in future
E
-commerce will give a huge boost to class population with higher discretionary income, and innovative
global knitwear market from 2016 and advanced e-commerce technologies are driving demand for
to 26, suggests a study. Online sale knitwear. Online knitwear sales are also increasing due to a rise
of knitwear products has got a boost globally. in average revenue per user (ARPU) in e-commerce knitwear
The global e-commerce business of fashion products compared to ARPU of offline knitwear product sale.
and apparel is expected to increase from $408 The ARPU of e-commerce clothing market is expected to
billion in 2017 to over $706 billion in 2022, increase from $270 in 2018 to $301 in 2022. Knitwear products
rising at a CAGR of 11.6 per cent. are a major segment of the fashion industry.
E-commerce in fashion industry in the US and Europe
Ecom drives up market size are expected to expand at a CAGR of 8.8 per cent and 8.7
Online sales of knitwear products is per cent between 2017 and 2022 respectively; while in China,
increasing due to growing penetration of e-commerce in fashion industry is expected to grow in double
e-commerce in BRICS - Brazil, Russia, India, digits at a CAGR of 14.1 per cent between 2017 and 2022.
China, and South Africa countries. Increasing Thus, rising penetration of e-commerce is boosting market size
penetration of smartphones, a rise in middle for knitwear products across the world.

AppArel / PRODUCT SECTOR
Products, fabrics et al rev-up sales

The study segments the global knitwear based on product
and material types, application, consumer group and distribution
channel. Products are classified as: innerwear, t-shirts & shirts,
sweaters & jackets, sweatshirts & hoodies, shorts & trousers
etc. Based on fabric, the market is classified into natural,
synthetic, and blended. On the basis of application, the market
is segmented into outerwear, innerwear, sportswear and others.
Based on consumer group, the market is segmented into men,
women, and kids. Further on the basis of distribution channel,
the market is segmented into online and offline.
The analysis of these segments is based on present and
forecasted global demand for knitwear products and prevailing
and future trends across North America, Europe, Asia Pacific,
Middle East & Africa, and South America.
material analysis of the knitwear industry.
Top players in the market The report highlights major companies
The report includes a SWOT (Strength, Weakness, operating in the global knitwear market
Opportunity, and Threat) analysis of the market, Porter’s including Adidas, Gap, Gildan Activewear,
Five Force analysis of the market, ecosystem analysis, key Hackett, Abercrombie & Fitch, Loro Piana
macroeconomic indicators influencing the market and raw S.P.A., Marks & Spencer, Nike, among others. n

AppArel / Brand Retail
An incredible
transformation story
Burberry’s early commitment to digital marketing, and willingness to try new and exciting
marketing avenues, has undoubtedly positioned the company as the pre-eminent luxury
brand on social media. The numbers speak for themselves – by the time CEO Angela
Ahrendts left in mid-2014, share value had trebled since 2006 (to £7 billion), and Burberry
enjoyed the greatest combined social followership of any luxury brand and that’s the power
of social media we are talking about…
A
s a brand, Burberry can come Marketing history
across as a contradiction in terms. At 21 years of age, Thomas Burberry, a former draper’s
The company has historically apprentice, opened his first store in Basingstoke in 1856. After
represented old-world British gaining a foothold in the local market, he made a name for
charm, elegance and refinement. Its use of himself in 1880, after introducing gabardine to the public, a
timeless fabrics like tartan, and enduring styles waterproof yet breathable fabric perfect for the often inclement
such as its signature trench coat, give the British weather. Burberry’s big break, however, came off the
impression of a brand that is quite comfortable back of World War I.
with its place in the market. But its recent The British war office requested the company to adapt one
marketing efforts have been quite at odds with of its most popular lines, the officer coat, to cope with the
its conservative and traditional reputation. challenges presented by the recently developed tactic of trench

Facebook and Twitter, and in the top 10
on Instagram. No mean feat when you’re
competing with the likes of Chanel, Dior
and Gucci; noted luxury brand superpowers.
Burberry used Burberry has worked hard to create a uniform
technology to look across all of their social platforms. The
drive its digital content that they use across their accounts,
strategy. It while similar, is subtly optimised to cater to
collaborated with the strengths of each platform; using the
tech companies, live streaming abilities of Facebook, saving
artfully minimalist photos for Instagram,
streamed content
and posting the material that will promote
on Snapchat and
audience engagement on Twitter.
maximised social
media Facebooks feeds
Facebook is Burberry’s most popular
warfare. The design worked beautifully, and after supplying account, with over 17 million likes. This puts
an incredible amount of uniforms to the armed forces, they them only marginally behind Louis Vuitton
released it to the general public at the conclusion of the war, to (18 million) and Chanel (17 million) in terms
huge success. The trench coat continues to be Burberry’s most of most followed luxury brands, and, up until
iconic line, and biggest seller, to this day. recently, they very much owned top spot.
Through the 20th century Burberry focussed on maintaining Burberry posts quite sparingly, averaging an
this brand perception of elegance and refinement, employing update every 3-4 days.
the likes of Audrey Hepburn, Humphrey Bogart and Ronald The content Burberry uses for Facebook is
Reagan as brand ambassadors. essentially a highlight package of their Twitter
Until late 90s, its place as one of the most iconic British feed. They save it for large announcements,
fashion houses was without question. That changed with the or high production value videos. The
arrival of the new millennium. An influx of counterfeit Burberry engagement is solid, with each post enjoying
goods entered the market, and were a hit with chavs (lower class, a few thousand likes, although it must be said
often welfare-dependent Brits) and football hooligans alike. that this communication is very much one
Burberry’s current success can be traced back to 2006. A way – Burberry doesn’t appear to respond
new CEO, Angela Ahrendts, was appointed, and her first move to – or even acknowledge – any of its fans’
was to remove the iconic Burberry check pattern from all but comments. This lack of engagement could be
10 per cent of the brand’s designs, to minimise the association the reason behind Burberry losing 1 million
with hooliganism. She also announced that Burberry would aim fans over the course of the last year, and may
to be the world’s first fully digital luxury company; an incredible be an area that could use some improvement.
statement from a company so steeped in history and tradition.
Insta imagics
The Burberry Social Strategy Instagram provides Burberry with perhaps
Over the last decade, Burberry has placed heavy focus on the brand’s most natural social network fit.
digital marketing. Over 60 per cent of their marketing budget The simplicity of the minimalist platform
is now spent on digital media, a percentage that comfortably ties in beautifully with the minimalism of
outdoes every other luxury fashion brand. Over the years, their much of Burberry’s content, which results in
social channels have become the centrepiece of this digital a very successful account. From 7.5 million
strategy, with Facebook, Twitter and Instagram forming their followers, 50k+ likes and 100k+ video views
main points of focus. isn’t an uncommon occurrence (this video,
This focus has been generously rewarded, with Burberry for example, has 400k+ views). The content
sitting in the top three most followed luxury brands on is beautifully created, with an almost even mix

Other social marketing efforts
Burberry has always been comfortable on the leading edge
of digital marketing, breaking ground where many other luxury
of images and videos getting uploaded daily. brands feared to tread. They were one of the first major brands
There is a strong focus on simple beauty, with to experiment with Snapchat, using it for nothing less than a
the photos, and even videos, never too busy or seasonal product launch. They are currently one of the first
complex. The healthy engagement numbers brands to use the new Messenger Codes – a new QR code type
show that Burberry is doing Instagram as well portal for Facebook Messenger.
as almost any fashion house out there. One of the company’s most successful social campaigns
was initially not intended to spread to social networks at
Twitter tweets all. Art of the Trench – a 2009 mini-site that collated
Twitter is the most active of Burberry’s photos of customers wearing their Burberry trench coats
social accounts, with an average of 5 posts – became so popular that the company expanded it to
uploaded per day. With another 7 million Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and even Pinterest, using
followers, Burberry is behind only Chanel hashtags such as #ArtoftheTrench and #AOTT to spread
(12 million) in terms of luxury brand the word. This campaign kick started Burberry’s social
Twitter audience size. While the ‘favourite’ strategy, adding millions of followers across a host of
and ‘retweet’ numbers may appear to pale social accounts.
in comparison to those that the Burberry
Facebook and Instagram accounts enjoy, it The ultimate positioning
needs to be remembered that a retweet on Burberry’s understanding of each social platform’s
Twitter is extremely valuable, getting a host strengths, combined with their beautiful content and their
of fresh eyes on the content. Burberry were digital innovativeness, firm them as the leading digital luxury
also one of the first brands to make use of brand in the world. They are well on their way to fulfilling that
Twitter’s ‘Buy Now’ function, back in 2014. promise made back in 2006. n

AppArel / Retail
Global fast-fashion chains

growing aggressively
T
he arrival of fast-fashion brands
such as H&M, Zara and Forever
21 has disrupted the specialty
apparel sector as these fast-fashion
players not only imitate runway fashions at
affordable prices, but also beat other retailers
in the market to the latest styles.
Making fashion affordable

Fast-fashion chains, over the past decade,
have grabbed huge market share in the
apparel sector and grew aggressively, opening
hundreds of stores. The companies boast of
short production and distribution lead times

AppArel / Retail
like that. Online retailers have opened up a lot of
options for consumers that didn’t exist before.
Two factors are affecting fast fashion.
These include: decline in demand many of
these brands experienced aggressive growth
for years and a slowdown is natural. At least
two of the three big ones—Forever 21 and
H&M—were due for a slowdown anyways.
They were kind of reaching capacity in the
marketplace. But that’s not to say that they
couldn’t find new markets to exploit and
get market share… But the two were at the
forefront of growth early.”
The second factor is the “encroachment
of e-commerce and the rise of the off-price
guys. Also, some fast-fashion concepts have
been slow to get into online sales and are now
which allows them to respond to market changes in a matter paying the price and trying to catch up.
of just a few weeks. They are largely immune to the problems
of the larger specialty apparel industry. However, lately they’ve Big players report mixed
started to encounter certain roadblocks including increasing results
competition, changing consumer shopping habits and more Swedish powerhouse H&M reported a
intense competition from online players like Amazon and ASOS. dip in total sales by 4.0 per cent on a global
Come what may there are certain things in this world that basis in 2017. Sales in the US fell by 6.0 per
never change ditto for the consumers’ appetite for discounted cent. The retailer would close 170 stores
while opening 390 new stores globally, and is
dealing with $4.3 billion in unsold inventory.
In the first half of 2018, H&M opened 10 net
new stores in the United States.
Los Angeles-based Forever 21 is rethinking
the size of its stores and looking at downsizing
locations. Their average store is 38,000 sq.
ft. and the largest is around 162,000 sq. ft.,
according to the retailer’s website. Forever 21
is rolling out its 21Red concept that’s going
into power and community centers. These
stores are in the 10,000- to 12,000 sq.ft. range.
Inditex said strong sales and investment in
fashion apparel. These discounts allow people to buy high fashion technology for its online and physical stores
at affordable prices. However there’s an increasing competition boosted net profit in the past fiscal 7.0 per
in the fast-fashion industry, including pressure on existing US cent. The brand’s net profit for the 12 months
chains because it’s become a huge international business. ending January 31, 2018, rose to $4.11 billion.
It posted a 5.0 per cent increase in same-store
Increasing competition sales globally for the quarter ending Aprils 30,
As consumer appetite has been sustained and actually grown, 2018. Meanwhile, Spanish clothing retailer
more and more players are coming into this space, which then Zara, revealed same-store sales growth for all
obviously creates more competition for existing players and can regions in which it operates was positive, but
sometimes affect revenue, expansion, profit margins and things didn’t disclose specific figures. n

Siegle+Gale names Uniqlo as the world’s

simplest fashion brand
U
niqlo has been named the world’s
simplest fashion brand by Siegel+Gale.
The brand was ranked on the basis of its
philosophy of simplicity, quality and longevity,
which resonates around the world.
Siegel+Gale ranks companies for delivering
on their promise of simple, clear, and intuitive
experiences. Topping the overall ranking
was Netflix, followed by German discount
supermarket Aldi, then Google, Lidl and
Carrefour. Siegel+Gale’s study reaffirms an
increasing demand for transparent, direct,
simple experiences that make peoples’ lives ranked in the 94th place.
easier. The simplest global brands have outperformed the average
British retailer Marks &Spencer was ranked of the major indexes by 679 per cent since 2009. The top
77th, followed by department store chain performers in the study operate in crowded, highly competitive
Debenhams at 85, while sportswear brand marketplaces. Their ability to consistently deliver their brands with
Under Armour was 87th, and Topshop was simple, compelling experiences sets them apart. n
UK probes retailing strategies of apparel brands/etailers
S
ourcing practices of UK clothing retailers
Boohoo, Asos and Missguided are being
probed on charges of below-legal wages
and unethical working conditions. Online clothing
retailers in the UK such as Primark, H&M, and
Zara get 21 per cent of their stock from China, 14
per cent from Bangladesh and India and 12 per
cent from Vietnam. All these four e-tailers have
manufacturing facilities in the UK.
Missguided has reduced its presence in
Leicester, after recognising its inability to
satisfactorily audit the factories it was using. Having started this year
working with 35 manufacturers at 80 different sites, the company now
sources from 12 suppliers at 20 factories.
There have been allegations Boohoo underpays workers and
promotes unsustainable and non-environmental consumer buying
patterns. In the meantime, retailers in the UK like John Lewis, Marks
&Spencer and Next have agreed to support moves to stop modern
slavery in the textile trade.
Global fashion brands have increased the overall social and
environmental transparency of their sourcing practices by just five per
cent since last year. While many have taken widely publicised steps in
recent years to ensure the safe working conditions and living wages of
their workers, a lot remains to be done. n

Zara expands outerwear collection

Z
ara has expanded its outerwear Zara is the signature
collection. Although the brand brand of the Spanish group
had already launched some Inditex. Earlier this month,
outdoor clothing pieces in previous Zara launched its online
seasons, including anoraks, jackets store in 106 new markets,
and children’s clothing, the chain bringing the total number
is strengthening its presence in of countries where it
the segment with the launch of operates an e-commerce
a dedicated outerwear capsule channel to 155. Currently,
collection. the chain has a physical
Called TRF Recycled, the presence in 96 markets and
collection reiterates the brand’s is progressing towards its
commitment to sustainability goal of selling all its brands
with pieces made from recycled online worldwide by 2020.
polyester derived from plastic bottles. Meanwhile, the words ‘Please Zara also has the best conversion rate in the
Recycle; are printed on belts and hoods to remind consumers Spanish online fashion sector. Its conversion
of the line’s sustainability message.The collection includes silver rate is 12 per cent, which is more than its
puffer jackets, puffer coats, joggers, technical backpacks and competitors Asos (nine per cent) or Massimo
chunky trainers, and waterproof, two-in-one parkas. Dutti (nine per cent). n
Inditex to retail 118 million Espirit to overhaul

garments in 20182 company’s operations
E
sprit’s new CEO Anders Kristiansen
plans to overhaul the clothing company
over three years with job cuts and store
closures. He plans to close stores, streamline
the administration
and simplify the
product ranges. The
restructuring will take
two to three years and
cost around 1.5 to
I
nditex is on path to achieve its target to retail 118 million 1.7 billion Hongkong
garments across all brands under its Join Life label collection in dollars, or €168
2018, which flags best practices in the choice of raw materials million to €190 million.
and production processes. Inditex broadened its sustainable Kristiansen plans to boost sales of basic
production as it published another set of stellar trading figures garments like sweatshirts, jeans and T-shirts
for the first nine months of 2018. They showed that net sales at to make Esprit less dependent on fashion
the business increased by 3 per cent on a year-on-year basis to trends. In addition, the product range will be
€18.4bn in first nine months, up 7n per cent in local currencies. reduced by 20 to 30 percent by next June to
Besides Net sales mark a record for the nine-month period cut design and production costs.
ending October 31. Sales growth was accompanied by gross Esprit, like its peers Gerry Weber, Tom Tailor
margin expansion of 60 basis points to 58 per cent. Net profit also and Hugo Boss, has been expanding its retail
hit a new nine-month record, climbing four per cent to €2.4bn. Like- network in recent years. Kristiansen wants to
for-like sales in the second half of 2018 to the end of November shut unprofitable stores but that can’t be done
grew three per cent, following a good start to the season, an overnight because the company is locked into
extraordinarily warm September and five per cent like-for-like sales rental contracts. n
growth in October/ Novemberg Copenhagen and Milan. n

Guess expects positive results for FY2018-19

A
ccording to Herrero, Guess expects
positive results in all regions, and
profitability across all business segments
for the remainder of the fiscal year, which ends
Feb. 2, 2019. During the third quarter ended
Nov. 3, the company recorded a net loss of
$13.4 million compared to $2.9 million for the
third quarter. Its GAAP per-share earnings were
17 cents, compared to 4 cents for the prior
year. Analysts expected 16 cents per share.
The company estimates that currency had
a negative impact on diluted earnings per
share of 2 cents for the quarter.
The company’s revenue during the period
was $605 million, beating analyst estimates of
$603 million. Same-store sales in the Americas
rose by 3 per cent, beating analyst estimates
of 2.1 per cent. The fashion retailer has been violated European competition rules. It is likely to reach an
cooperating with a European Commission agreement that is expected to result in a fine ranging from
investigation into whether the company $42.4 million to $46.6 million. n
Gap to close underperforming stores
G
ap will close a part of its 775 brand specialty
stores globally, due to underperformance.
Details on the locations and sequencing
of the upcoming closures are yet to come, but
the specifics should come as part of the forecast
for FY2019. The brand will continue to grow its
e-commerce business, which makes up roughly
20 percent of revenue, and the more than 500 Gap
outlet stores that account for about 30 percent of
total Gap Global revenue.
The other 50 percent of revenue for Gap stores
all comes from the ailing specialty store segment of Gap Global and
there is a wide variance in profitability among the group.The company’s
sales declined 7 per cent in Q3 and earnings per share guidance for
FY2018 narrowed to $2.55 to $2.60 from the previous guidance of
$2.55 to $2.70. Meanwhile, sales were up 4 percent at Old Navy and
up 2 percent at Banana Republic. n

AppArel / Trends
‘Not the US, more people

elsewhere, own denim’
F
illed with themes and variations an average of nine pairs of blue jeans, the highest in the survey.
that will help create $130 billion This is followed by Mexico, with more than seven pairs per
sales by 2021, the blue jean is an person. Germany comes in third for ownership with 6.84 pairs
American original with a global per person. Turkey and Thailand come in fourth and fifth, with
appeal. Consumers, around the world, own an average of 6.10 and 5.12 pairs per person, respectively.
an average of 5.4 pairs of blue jeans. It would
therefore be natural to expect United States Frequency of wear corresponds to
to own the highest per capita in blue jeans, total number owned
given its seasonal temperatures and the fact The number of days per week global consumers wear their
that it is its birthplace. The truth however, jeans is equal to 60 percent of the total number of pairs they
is that denim enjoys the greatest ownership own, on average. Germany, for example, owns 6.84 pairs of
and frequency of wear in warmer and more jeans and wears them 3.24 times per week. Notable exceptions
humid climates. Cambodian consumers own to this corollary are Great Britain and Italy. British own 4.66

AppArel / Trends
as a purchase driver, with 63 percent claiming
that they would pay more for a pair of jeans
that were made predominantly from cotton,
pairs of jeans and wear them 3.74 days per week; Italians own but with some stretch.
5.93 pairs and wear them 4.04 days per week. Almost 67 percent of US respondents
Around 35 percent of the total respondents cite denim claimed the inclusion of performance features
as ideal for work, particularly in Mexico (48.5 percent), Italy would influence their decision to buy a pair of
(45.5 percent) and Turkey (41 percent). For a dinner out, jeans jeans. For example, 40 percent of US respondents
ranked highly among respondents from Germany (52 percent), said they would pay more for denim that could
Colombia (42.7 percent) and Thailand (41.3 percent). repel water. This has been achieved already
Most Americans (87 percent) would pay more for a pair through the STORM Denim™ technology,
of jeans that fit them ‘perfectly.’ While engineering a pair of a textile chemical finish. Forty-eight percent
jeans with a universally perfect fit may prove elusive, comfort of US respondents cited moisture wicking
emerged in the survey as a key denim purchase driver for 97 as a desirable denim feature that they would
percent of Americans. Since authentic denim is 100 percent or be willing to pay more to have. Again, textile
predominantly cotton, there is a comfort component built-in. finishing chemistries such as the TransDRY™
technology offer this without compromising the
Preference for cotton fabric authenticity of cotton denim.
Cotton is the key to the continuing popularity of the Blue jeans seem as popular as ever with
denim category. Perhaps buoyed by a general consumer trend global consumers and, interestingly, are very
towards authenticity, more than three-quarters of American popular in warmer climates such as Colombia
respondents (76 percent) cited cotton content as important and Mexico. While closet space allocations in
to their decision to buy a particular pair of jeans. Around 84 Asian markets may hamper ownership totals,
percent of American respondents cited stretch in their denim the enthusiasm for denim is high. n

AppArel / Trends
Streetwear finding immense

traction globally
F
orecasting firm Trendalytics a branding tool for both brands and individuals. According to
has reported the evolution of the firm, as digital natives with significant spending power, the
streetwear from its start as a millennial and Gen Z consumers have played an integral part
1970’s California social movement in driving the growth of streetwear. The hunt continues for
defined by the laidback surf style of the most Instagrammable products, and consumers looking for
Shawn Stussy, the founder of Stüssy, into a unique and exclusive items are willing to pay.
mainstream global category estimated to be
valued at $309 billion. That evolution has A global phenomenon
been fuelled by influencers—be it celebrities, Today, streetwear has become the urban uniform for people
athletes or the masterminds behind hype in New York, Tokyo, London and more. A new breed of cities
machine brands like Ronnie Kith and Virgil are emerging which is lifting the growth of streetwear globally.
Abloh and the prevalence of social media as These are Kazakhstan, Iceland, South Korea, etc. Kazakhstan,

AppArel / Trends
companies are quite fast in producing fakes by painting jean

jackets, scribbling on white sneakers and making spoofs of
popular logos. Iceland has all the vintage look and feel. Classic
skate brands like Thrasher and Stüassy are paired with retro
furry jackets and sweaters. In Nigeria, streetwear is a blend
of Western fashion like jeans, T-shirts and Vans, and native
elements like brightly colored and patterned cotton textiles.
In South Korea and Mexico, they have punk and rock
undertones. Combat boots, leather jackets and piercings make
up streetwear in Korea, while Mexico skews toward goth pieces,
logo T-shirts and hats. Meanwhile, streetwear in the United Arab
Emirates reflects hip-hop’s affinity for luxury brands. The report
named side bags, snapbacks and colored sunglasses as key items.
Social media and influencers

In such a burgeoning growth, social media has a major
role to play. Instead of relying on endorsed posts, important
streetwear labels like Vetements, Bape and Palace Skateboards
saw the most engagement from their own brand postings,
Trendalytics said. The report highlighted that streetwear brands
like Fear of God and Undefeated received nearly four-times the
social actions per mentioned post than Adidas for the last year.
While millennial celebrities like Zayn Malik, The Weeknd and
AnselElgort have the highest total social post engagement from their popularity to appeal to the affluent,
their branded posts, Trendalytics said top influencers gaining pro-consignment consumer. In appealing
social buzz include surfers Laura Enever and Kelly Slater, each to millennials who came of age during the
capturing more than 10-times the engagement per mentioned Great Recession, luxury is able to channel the
post than Kanye West. appeal of appreciation, which they had already
mastered with handbags, to sneakers. n
Luxury marrying streetwear
Trendalytics stated that ’80s artist Jean-Michel Basquiat
was known for combining high and low aesthetics by pairing
streetwear and thrift store finds with formal wear, a style that
still inspires streetwear influencers like Jay-Z and Kanye West.
Meanwhile, Japanese artist Takashi Murakami has a developed new
fan bases through his long-running and colorful collaborations
with Louis Vuitton and subsequent artwork collaborations with
artists like Kanye West and Kid Cudi. The artist is also working
with streetwear labels like Billionaire Boys Club. The impact of
streetwear on luxury cannot be understated and that influence
is poised to grow as the spending power of streetwear-loving
millennials surpasses older generations. Luxury brands are
prepping up for this shift by attracting young designers with
streetwear roots.
Sneakers have become the new ‘It’ bag and brands are leveraging

AppArel / Trend
Great prospects for global sports brands in China
C
hina offers great prospects for sports brands. Adidas has
more than 11,000 retail outlets across China. It is also
expanding operations with 1,000 new store openings a year
in the country. The brand registered a year-on-year sales growth
of 29 per cent in 2017 in China. Its sales grew by 26 per cent on
an annual basis in the third quarter this year. Decathlon, a France-
based sporting goods and equipment retailer, had 267 stores in
China by the end of 2017.
This rapid growth of overseas sports brands in China has been
spurred by increased spending on sporting goods, whether
sportswear and active wear, fitness facilities or products like protein
powers for body builders. Consumers are spending more and
more on sports products as they pursue more outdoor hobbies like
diving, kayaking and paragliding. They are buying outdoor gear like
clothes, shoes, professional watches, socks and so forth. due to the country’s economic downward
Overseas sports brands are flourishing at a time when many other pressure, fiercer competition from domestic
overseas brands are facing a tough time with Chinese consumers, brands, and tough global trade environment. n
Denim on an upswing Rise of jeans as streetwear

in the US creates new opportunities
D for women’s denim brand

enim is on the
upswing in the US.
T
Retailers are starting he rise of street wear has invited
to rebuild their denim new opportunities for women’s
assortments. The global denim brands to experiment
jeans market is growing at outside the confines of the skinny
a CAGR of 0.8 per cent from 2018. Brands that are consumers’ jean. The trend has created a shift
favorite are Levi’s, Lee, Wrangler, Gap, Old Navy and so on. in women’s silhouettes. A wider and
Denim jeans are more square aesthetic is now leading.
a cornerstone of the Layering has become more playful
American wardrobe and and innovative, with a mixing up of
an important cotton weights and lengths.
product accounting for Denim jackets, coats, shirts, vests,
almost one-fifth of all cotton skirts and dresses are giving off that
clothing at retail. Although nonchalant street wear aesthetic
mostly known as a fashion thanks to the casual feel of the fabric.
garment, they are still worn Street wear also has pushed a less
as protective garments by gender-defined aesthetic.
some individuals in the US, Street garments have cross-appeal,
such as cattle ranch workers with women shopping from menswear
and motorcycle riders, due lines and some brands catering to this
to their high durability as compared to other common fabrics. with unisex lines. Across genders,
Denim jeans are purchased for durability, longevity, and versatility there has been a general loosening
because consumers find greater value in a product they know of silhouette, with wider fit jeans, puffed-out
will last longer and fit better; therefore price is not the main factor jackets and longer-line top. From drop crotch
in the denim jeans purchase decision, unlike other clothing. This to baggy denim, voluminous denim shapes
positioning ensures that denim jeans will continue to have a place are already in stores. n
on store shelves and in consumers’ closets. n

AppArel / Tech Trends
Brooks Brothers collaborate with ORS to

launch AI-based retail program
B
rooks Brothers has collaborated with ORS to introduce an
end-to-end AI-based retail program. The program will help
the US apparel brand aims to stay fresh and relevant in a
constantly changing industry.
The brand will use the platform’s algorithm and AI to get
insights throughout its value chain which will help the label to
enhance and modify decision making for the betterment of the
business. The partnership will boost the retailer’s Buy Anything, sales opportunities.
Get it Anywhere (BAGA) platform that performs the fulfilment The apparel retailer has also launched a
across its outlets in the US. cloud-based platform for a hassle-free omni
With the help of ORS, Brooks Brothers will be able to form channel shopping experience. Brooks Brothers
an extremely sensitive and responsive digital supply chain to currently operates 280 stores in the US and
control stock in real-time and to modify work end-to-end. It is a over 700 worldwide, featuring high-end,
disruptive solution for automated omnichannel fulfilment to help classic family fashion, well-suited to both men
the label build a better customer experience and maximize and women.n
LVMH sets up Retail Lab to

Levi’s to expand
speed up digital transformation customisation program
L
uxury brand LVMH has set up Retail Lab- an internal
organisation to speed up its own digital transformation. The
organisation will help the labels owned by Bernard Arnault’s
group develop innovative solutions in the digital and retail field.
The Lab is designed to help the group’s labels, whether in the
fashion, wine-making, cosmetics, watch-making or selective
distribution sector, in their digital and retail transformation.
The project commenced a year ago, when the group hired
Gautier Pigasse to set up, launch and manage the LVMH Retail
Lab. Pigasse is a digital marketing and customer experience
L
expert, and has worked with several brands and major consumer evi’s plans to expand its
product and media groups, notably in the luxury sector, on their customisation program next year
multi-channel strategies. where consumers can follow
The project manager will bolster this project by sourcing and Aldridge’s lead and get their denims
testing new technologies.n customised. The brand will install a
laser machine, developed by Spanish
company Jeanologia, in one of its
stores in the U.S. Online and in stores,
consumers will use a similar app to
personalise their jeans. Levi’s is yet to
finalise the cost for customisation of
their jeans.
Besides beating fast fashion at their
own game, customisation delivers
what people need when they want
it, and giving them the freedom to
express their creativity. n

Micro-textile model promises

a new dawn for the industry
A
T-shirt manufacturing factory exposed during all cycles of this model, be it speed to market,
proved to be the torchbearer for value of stock, or consumer relevance. Also, the market uses
digital printing technology and extended financial credit lines which leads to reduced yields
DTG (direct to garment) printing and offers a meager return on investment. As a result, profits
that facilitated customised manufacturing. grow slightly; stock grows in line with profits, until the time is
Today, multiple textile technologies offer a reached when all of the profit is in the stock.
sustainable option to conventional production.
They rationalise workflow besides offering Providing a way forward
the client “just in time” manufacturing. The The Digital Textile Revolution including developments in
traditional textile model is risky as both the CAD/CAM, augmented reality software, online workflow, laser
manufacturer and retailer are unreasonably cutting, and digital textile printing are providing a way forward

buys and pays for their product before the
item is produced. The model is capable
of producing and delivering in 24 hours
through n the speed of image processing,
computerised workflow, digital printing and
cutting and with computerised sewing (as an
option) then dispatch,
This business model was first used by
direct to garment (DTG) printers, who would
deliver a sale within 24 hours of receiving the
payment. The producer was able to cater to its
consumers demands by creating and approving
artwork, sending it to print, then packing
and dispatching the blank t-shirts within the
timeframe expected by the customer. The
model has grown to encompass and attract
many other sectors, with athleisure, swimwear
and fashion taking up the opportunity to
rationalise their production systems.
that is not only risk free but also consumes fewer resources. The online e-commerce tool in this model
The micro-factory model of “Sell, Produce, Deliver,” uses all the visual space of the selling website
and not “Produce, Sell, Deliver” is driven by an online sales to make an extended offer in terms of
presence, alongside AR and AI software. The client selects product, color, size and design. When online
orders are received, they immediately go into
a computerised workflow, where the artwork
is completed, the customer contacted and,
upon approval, the production is initiated, all
within a matter of minutes.
Adaptability with efficiency

and profitability
The micro-factory produces textiles by
using digital textile printing. The machinery is
a fraction of the size of traditional machinery
and also smaller in dimension. It consumes
lesser heat, light, water and power than the
traditional textile manufacturing model.
The micro-factory model is infinitely
adaptive. A huge online range can be
serviced efficiently and profitably, without
enormous warehouses, without the risk of
clearances, and without the uneconomic
use of scarce cash reserves. It’s no wonder
then, that the model is hailed as a new
dawn for textiles, with its efficiency and
profitability bringing manufacturing back
to a more local base and offering jobs for
workers in the country of origin. n

AppArel / FAST FASHION
Fast Fashion industry needs

to take positive eco steps
F
ashion is responsible for 92 million The fashion industry is also the second biggest consumer
tons of solid waste dumped in of water, producing 20 per cent of wastewater while also
landfills each year. There are an generating more greenhouse gas emissions than all international
estimated two billion new consumers waiting flights and maritime shipping combined.
to buy the latest trends. The average number The equivalent of one garbage truck of textiles is wasted
of clothing collections in Europe more than every second. Around one lakh marine animals are killed each
doubled between 2000 and 2011. year by plastic waste, including microfibers.

AppArel / FAST FASHION
Need to take onus down, and unfair working environments in

It’s up to apparel brands to take responsibility for the waste the clothing industry.
they’re creating. Brands need to address head-on the chemicals, No-waste economy must be applied to
use of textiles waste and synthetic fabrics that don’t break fashion, just as it is in the food industry. There
is a need for action at each stage of the supply
chain, starting with sustainable sourcing of
fabrics, through to design, exploration of
possible alternatives to distribution, and
recovery and recycling of clothing. Poorer,
developing countries need to be included in
sustainable manufacturing models so they can
produce clothing locally and more sustainably. n

AppArel / SUSTAINABILITY
SAC’s Higg Materials Tool

aids designers in assessing
environmental impact
T
he Sustainable Apparel Coalition apparel, footwear, and textile industry to assess the environmental
(SAC) has announced an update to impact of materials used in global manufacturing. With the most
the Higg Materials Sustainability recent update, businesses around the world can more effectively
Index (Higg MSI), a tool that enables the assess the environmental impact of materials as they design more

AppArel / SUSTAINABILITY
and textile industry, this can help companies
design products that will attract and retain
key consumers, who increasingly demand
sustainable products. The SAC, a global industry coalition that is knowledge of greater transparency in how
standardising social and environmental sustainability performance their clothes and shoes are made. Using
measurement, is constantly improving and expanding the Higg more sustainable materials will reduce the
MSI. Higg MSI users are encouraged to contribute material data environmental impact of global manufacturing
to the tool’s growing library of materials. Once data is submitted, and help businesses stay relevant in today’s
it is reviewed and verified and scored by third-party experts. marketplace of increasingly aware consumers.
The Higg MSI originated at Nike
A reliable tool about a decade ago. In seeing the benefit
The Higg MSI, the industry’s most trusted tool for accurately global collaboration would bring ongoing
measuring and scoring a material’s environmental impact, now development and industry-wide use of the
features 80 base materials, including cotton, polyester, and silk. Higg MSI, Nike contributed the tool to
When blended, these account for the majority of all materials the SAC in 2012. Now one of the six tools
the industry currently uses. The update includes a new feature comprising the Higg Index, the Higg MSI is
that enables suppliers to share sustainability performance considered the leading materials assessment
information about their materials with brands and retailers. Such tool for the industry. “The Higg MSI has
upstream communication promotes greater transparency and helped us make better choices to reduce
improved sustainability performance within the industry. Jason our product footprint by providing critical
Kibbey, CEO, SAC says, “With the opportunity to play a key role insight and transparency into materials and
in determining a product’s sustainability performance, being a processing decisions,” points out Joël Mertens,
designer today is really exciting. With the Higg MSI, product material technologies integrity engineer, MEC
designers can access an incredible amount of information, and
then use it to significantly reduce environmental impacts of
materials production.”
Assessing process
Applying trusted metrics, the Higg MSI assesses a material’s
environmental performance and scores the results. Calculations
account for energy, water, chemistry, and additional impacts (Mountain Equipment Co-op).
used in material production, giving designers greater insight in Sean Cady, VP-Global Responsible
creating more sustainable apparel. For the apparel, footwear, Sourcing, VF Corp said, “Across VF Corp and
our brands, we integrate material sustainability
metrics into design decisions. The Higg MSI
provides an objective, comparable metric,
which informs our material choices and
allows us to meet consumer expectation and
brand promises.”
The SAC’s global members have
demonstrated the apparel, footwear, and
textile industry already trusts the science-
backed data the Higg MSI offers. Kibbey
adds, “Other industries have approached
us about how they could use the Higg MSI,
making us realize there is an opportunity to
expand the tool’s application in the coming
months.” n

AppArel / Sustainability
Textile Exchange ranks H&M Group as the

world’s biggest user of sustainable materials
T
extile Exchange, in biggest user of organic cotton. IKEA is the
its yearly Preferred biggest user of recycled cotton. Inditex is the
Fiber Materials second largest user of lyocell and the fourth
Market Report, has largest user of preferred manmade cellulosics).
ranked H&M Group Target is the third largest user of recycled
as the world’s biggest polyester and the fifth largest user of preferred
user of sustainable down. The North Face is the second largest user
cotton and man-made of preferred down.
cellulosic materials (e.g. lyocell, among others). The group aims All these companies are committed to scale
to use only recycled or other sustainably sourced materials by their global value chains of preferred fiber and
2030. With its yearly and steady increased use of recycled or benchmark their progress against the industry.
other sustainably sourced materials, the group not only pushes They have also made significant investments
the demand for widely used materials such as organic cotton, in developing the supply chain needed to
but also influences the scalability of new sustainable materials. achieve the necessary measures of scale in
Nike tops the list of recycled polyester users. C&A is the world’s preferred fiber production. n
C&A launches first Cradle to Lacoste bans the use of

Cradle certified Gold denim jeans mohair in its collection
C L
&A has launched the world’s first Cradle to Cradle certified acoste has decided to ban the use of
Gold denim jeans. This science-based quality certification mohair from its collection after PETA
acknowledges continuous improvement and innovation Asia’s investigation of the industry
of products and processes. The release of C&A’s jeans comes revealed abuse and exploitation of angora
on the heels of the first ever Cradle to Cradle certified Gold, fully goats, material. Lacoste joins
compostable T-shirt collection an ever-growing list of brands/
launched in 2017. The denim retailers including ASOS,
jeans provide an example of Marks & Spencer, John Lewis,
ways to collaborate within the H&M, and, most recently,
industry to split the materials Notonthehighstreet – that have
into biological and technical made this compassionate move.
nutrients to create a closed- To date, over 330 brands have
loop system of design. committed to a ban, proving
The challenge to create a that cruelty to animals is not in
garment having the same fashion. Famous for its crocodile
performance as traditional logo and boasting 1,200
models but in either 100 shops and 10,600 outlets spread across
per cent technical or 100 120 countries, Lacoste had also previously
per cent biological way to committed to angora and fur bans.
allow them to return to their PETA’s first-of-its-kind video exposé
respective cycles at the end of angora goat farms in South Africa, the
of use. Another option, which world’s top mohair producer, has pulled back
was adopted for the jeans, the curtain on the violent industry, showing
was to separate their components so that the biological and workers dragging, roughly handling, throwing
technical nutrients can return to their respective cycles. around, mutilating, and even cutting the
All the components in the jeans could be easily separated throats of fully conscious goats, some of
which enabledthe biological and technical nutrients to return to whom cried out. n
their respective cycles. n

AppArel / Sustainability
Inditex launches outwear capsule collection

I
nditex, the parent Earlier this month, Zara forayed into over
company of the 100 new markets, as it expanded its online
Spanish apparel and presence, bringing the total number of
accessories retailer countries where it operates an e-commerce
Zara has expanded channel to 155. At present, the chain operates
its outwear range by
launching outwear
capsule collection.The
new collection named;
‘TRF Recycled’ portrays
its commitment towards a sustainable future. The collection is
curated using recycled polyester taken from plastic bottles.
In line with the group’s pricing scheme, the collection is marketed
at an affordable range for up to £ 160. A silver puffer jacket is sold
at £ 95.99, while a puffer coat is placed at £ 119. The sustainable via brick-and-mortar retail in 96 markets and is
line also offers joggers, a technical backpack and chunky trainers. progressing towards the group goal of selling
A waterproof, two-in-one parka in the collection is priced at £ 159. all of its brands online globally by 2020. n
UK survey the issue of mass Chanel removes Python

waste in the fashion industry skin bags from website
A C
ccording to a survey in the UK, most consumers aged 18 hanel removed Python skin bags
to 35 never wear the0 garments that they purchase. This from its website recently as it banned
highlights the growing issue of mass waste in the fashion the use of exotic animal pelts in its
industry due to the new generation’s insatiable appetite for the collections. Although the brand still sells
latest trends. secondhand bags on online resale sites. These
These consumers have no interest in quality, long lasting clothing, handbags reportedly sell for up to $10,300.
instead preferring to buy cheaper clothes that only last one season. Animal rights groups
Twelve per cent consumers choose to throw clothes away rather welcomed the move,
than recycling them, with only 60 per cent of those who do recycle with People for the
Ethical Treatment
of Animals (PETA)
hailing Chanel as
giving a lead to other
luxury brands.
Although top
fashion brands have
been under heavy
pressure to renounce fur, with Gucci, Armani,
Versace and John Galliano all deciding to
go fur free, Chanel’s decision to stop using
saying they buy second clothes – highlighting a peculiar gap in the exotic skins came as a big surprise.Animal
buying and disposal habits of fashion customers. rights campaigns against the use of crocodile
In general consumers like the idea of wearing sustainable and snake skin products have not got the
clothing but would not pay more than a certain amount for a same traction with the public as similar
sustainable garment. Recycling is not only good for the consumer crusades against fur, with some luxury brands
who can purchase clothes more affordably but also massively even investing in reptile farms so they can
reduces the environmental impact of clothes and lessens the guarantee that skins are sourced ethically. n
personal fashion footprint. n

(L to R), Dr. A Sakthivel, Vice Chairman, AEPC, Dr. K.S. Palanisamy, I.A.S., District Collector, Tirupur, Beneficiary (Center),
Shri. Bandla Srinivas, I.A.S., Joint Secretary and Prabhari Officer Ministry of MSME, Shri. M.M.Chiniwar, GM, Canara Bank
MSME review meeting

organized at Tirupur
C
anara Bank, under the Chairmanship meeting. The meeting also sanctioned MSME loan approvals/
of Dr. K.S. Palanisamy, I.A.S., District cheque.
Collector, Tirupur in presence of
Dr. A Sakthivel, Vice Chairman, AEPC complimented
Shri. BandlaSrinivas, I.A.S., Joint Secretary and District Collector and Canara Bank for putting their strenuous
Prabhari Officer Ministry of MSME, Govt. efforts and wished all the beneficiaries to use the loan money
of India, Dr.A.Sakthivel, Vice Chairman, for the growth of their business. He has also informed that the
AEPC and M.M.Chiniwar, GM, Canara Bank, Council has opened a Help Desk for this cause to support/
officials from the bank, state and central govt. facilitate the trade members. Around 125 applicants have been
departments, associations, entrepreneurs, registered with the Council, out of which nearly 25 per cent
garment exporters etc., were also present at the applications have got in principle approval for their loans. n

A group photograph session with speaker at the Open House session on updated FTP organized at Bangalore
AEPC organises Open

House Session on Updated
FTP in Bengaluru
A
EPC organised Open House session on Updated Lakshmikumaran & Sridharan. The Open
Foreign Trade Policy with ADGFT in Bengaluru on House was moderated by G. Shivadas, Sr.
December 6, 2018. Counsel, High Court of Karnataka
The session on Updated Foreign Trade Policy was The open house session was highly
inaugurated by JV Patil, ITS, Addl. Director General of Foreign interactive and thought-provoking since most
Trade. IT was followed by a session on Issues and Challenges of the participants interacted well with the
in Foreign Trade Policy by Siddharth Bhatt S, Jt. Partner, speakers throughout the program. n

Participants at Seminar on Digital Trade Banking Solutions, at Apparel House, Gurugram
AEPC organises seminar

on Digital Trade Banking
Solutions
A
EPC organised a seminar on Digital Trade Banking and advisory solutions on EDPMS/IDPMS,
Solutions at Apparel House, Gurugram on packing credit facilities and export bills
November 29, 2018 in collaboration with ICICI discounting, simplification and transparency
Bank. The seminar covered areas of digital solutions for trade of e-BRC issuance by Naveen Gupta, Zonal
transactions (Paperless trade transactions), regulatory updates Head, ICICI Bank n

AppArel / MARKETS
Revolutionising the clothing

re-commerce market, some
players take lead
A
s re-commerce, when particularly projected to grow by 15 per cent annually over the next five years.
executed by partners, unleases a The country offers tremendous opportunities in secondhand
low-risk, high-reward market for clothing sales, with branding making a margin on selling the same
goods, and offers a straightforward garment multiple times while maintaining its quality control.
path into a more circular business model, Four companies are catalysing the secondary apparel retail
clothing brands are increasingly turning to markets in India…
re-commerce partners to tap into secondary
markets. As thredUp’s 2018 Resale Report ThredUp
indicates, the secondary retail apparel market The company offers customers the opportunity to either
in India, currently valued at $20 billion, is receive cash or store credit in exchange for their clothes. Its new

AppArel / MARKETS
marketplace under their own names, without
investing in a new website and warehouse or
straying from their core competencies. These
brands encourage customers to return used
goods in exchange for store credit. These
goods are then repaired and refurbished by
Yerdle enabling apparel companies to sell
them again under their own brands in their
own online stores, complete with warranties,
customer service and return policies.
The Renewal Workshop

This is a fully outsourced re-commerce
service which manages the reverse logistics,
repair, cleaning, quality assurance and resale
of used clothing to companies such as the
North Face, prAna and Icebreaker. To avail
this service, apparel brands pay a processing
program UPcycle offers an additional 15 per cent in value if fee at a rate comparable to apparel waste
sellers select payment in the form of a partner brand’s gift card. management and can sell “renewed” clothing
If a brand agrees to drive traffic to its online thrift store and pay in their stores or on the Renewal Workshop’s
the 15 per cent bonus to sellers, it can drive sales to returning website under a revenue-sharing agreement.
customers without even touching the used clothing. ThredUP
manages apparel intake, pricing, marketing, selling and shipping. The RealReal
The program has been initiated with only one brand partner; An online consignment store that targets
the sustainable apparel company Reformation. But ThredUP the luxury resale market, this was set up in a
will announce its second partner soon. The company plans to founding partnership with Stella McCartney.
form 10 new partnerships next year. Aiming to be the first $1 billion circular-
economy company, this store offers its sellers
Yerdle Recommerce that consign pieces from it a $100 Stella
This company offers a white label service to its apparel McCartney gift card. Similar to thredUP’s
retailers — including Eileen Fisher, Patagonia and REI — approach, a financial incentive drives sales
which enables brands to develop an online re-commerce back to the company, while also giving apparel
a second life.
RealReal recently launched an online
“sustainability calculator” to quantify its
impact. An initial calculation found that the
2.5 million women’s clothing items consigned
to the RealReal since 2012 have offset the
equivalent of 65 million car miles worth of
greenhouse gases and energy.
So far, only a handful of companies are
embracing re-commerce. Many fear that by
making refurbished versions of their products
available, they’ll curb sales of new ones.
Whether brands will embrace re-commerce at
scale, or if this trend quickly goes out of style,
only time will tell. n

AppArel / EVENT
Global Textiles Conclave

2018 highlights key industry
initiatives and plans
V
ice President of India, M.
Venkaiah Naidu, inaugurated
Global Textiles Conclave 2018
on November 27, 2018, in New
Delhi. The Union Minister of Textiles, Smriti
Zubin Irani also graced the occasion as guest
of honour and delivered the keynote address
in the inaugural session.
Focus on skill development

and technology
upgradation
Speaking at the session, Venkaiah Naidu
stated that innovations and transformations
should be focus area for textiles and apparel
sector. He advised the industry to focus on
backward and forward integration, value
addition and diversifying products. He also

AppArel / EVENT
organisation will collate the data of Indian
textile retail market by collaborating with office
of the Textile Commissioner. To establish the
size of Indian market, the government is also
going to conduct a Size India survey.
A pat on their backs

Naidu conferred the Lifetime
Achievement Award to Suresh Kotak,
Chairman, Kotak & Co. And also gave away
Pioneering Awards to Shekhar Agarwal, Vice
Chairman, RSWM Ltd., P. Nataraj, Managing
Director, KPR Mill Ltd., Neeraj Jain, Joint
Managing Director, Vardhman Textiles Ltd.
And Sanjay Jayavarthanavelu, Chairman &
Managing Director, LMW Ltd.
Global Textiles Conclave 2018 was
organized as part of Diamond Jubilee
celebrations of Confederation of Indian
Textile Industry- CITI .
Awarding excellence and

innovation
Suresh Prabhu, Minister of Commerce &
Industry and Civil Aviation, gave away Innotex
2018 Awards to the top three Winners for
doing excellent work in their fields. R. Pothiraj
received the first prize for his innovation on
stated that the industry should consolidate MSME sector by ‘32 per cent reduction in energy consumption
establishing Hubs and Spoke model of cluster development in running airjet looms.’ Dhivagar bagged the
facilities, give major thrust to skill development, upgrade second prize and
technology and adopt Industry 4.0. The industry also needs Raj Kumar got third prize for their
to adopt lean manufacturing systems to remain globally innovations in “Zero Defect of Spandex Miss
competitive. Plating in Knitted Fabric” and “Computerised
Vertical Embroidery Machine”, respectively.
Key initiatives and schemes for industry
development Support for industry
Naidu also highlighted the various initiatives taken by concerns and export
the Indian Government such as establishing textile parks, promotion
technology upgradation through TUFS, etc., scheme for The minister advised the industry
integrated textile parks which have fuelled the growth of the stakeholders to have brainstorming sessions
textile industry of India. on the current challenges and opportunities
Irani highlighted initiatives like Silk Samagra, Samarth prevailing in the global T&C Sector and
introduced by the Government to support Indian textile value prepare a roadmap for the future of the
chain. She appreciated the industry captains for supporting the Indian textile sector. He assured them of
government by adopting GST reforms and urged them to tap his government’s willingness to address the
the huge potential in technical textiles which has been identified genuine concerns of the industry and support
as a sunrise sector. She also stated the national sample survey export promotion. n

AppArel / EVENT
Weaves 2018: Emerges as a platform

for Indian weavers to showcase globally
W
eaves, South India’s premier revenues of over Rs 800 crore. The theme of the event was
textile fair, hosted 250 Global Connect for Weaving’. It attracted about 1,000 business
stalls spread over 20,000 visitors and over 250 exhibitors representing the textile industry
sq. mt. pavilion, acted as a ranging from fabrics to weaving machines.
gateway to the textile industry for the weavers The event was inaugurated by Dr. A. Sakthivel, Vice-Chairman,
and providing them with an opportunity Apparel Export Promotion Council and Regional Chairman,
to showcase their products and connect Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO), who noted
with global customers. The event, held that the state accounted for 60 per cent of yarn and fabric exports,
from December 5 to 8, 2018 at Texvalley, and 85 per cent of knitwear exports. It provides 40 lakh jobs per
Erode, Tamil Nadu, facilitated partnership year, 60 per cent of which are held by women employees. The
between Indian and international buyers state this year registered a 15 per cent decline in its exports.
with manufacturers and traders of this
region. Weaves was held in partnership with Single point of textile sourcing
Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), at Texvalley is an integrated textile market, first of its kind in
Texvalley, largest wholesale textile market in South India. It is an initiative by the government of India with
the heart of Erode. the support of the government of Tamil Nadu to help weavers
in this cluster elevate to the next level. The market represents the
Weaves generates Rs 800 southern states textile activities, which has grown in terms of
crore revenue value, volume and variety over the decades. It houses domestic
The buyer-seller meet Weaves generated textile zone and export zone with a complete eco-system of

APPAREL / EVENT
business ethics, compliance and certifications. It has thus become It houses the domestic textile and the export
a single point of textile sourcing for domestic and global market. zones, with a complete eco-system of
business ethics, compliance and certifications.
elevating Weavers to tHe next level A coffee table book titled “Titans of
Texvalley, an integrated textile market, in South India Textiles” featuring 28 successful entrepreneurs
represents the southern states textile activities, which has in the textile sector was also released at the
grown in terms of value, volume and variety over the decades. event. n
CII organises 10th edition of

TEXCON
C
onfederation of Indian Industry (CII) in partnership success and created a platform for the
with Ministry of Textiles organised the 10th edition stakeholders to deliberate and work on the
of TEXCON 2018 during December 13-14, 2018. growth and development of the Textile
The event, over the past 9 years, has witnessed overwhelming Industry in India. n

AppArel / gsT UPDaTe
Step by step process of Refund

of unutilized Input Tax Credit
(ITC) under GST
Accumulation of Input Tax Credit happens when the required to be given to the applicant in case the
tax paid on inputs is more than the output tax liability supply is zero rated supply or also in the case of
or the same is accumulated due to zero rated supply accumulation of Credit.
under letter of undertaking or bond. The CGST Act,
Steps to get refund of accumulated ITC or refund on
2017 visualized this situation and prescribe refund
account of export without payment of tax:
of tax in the situation mentioned in section 54 of
the act read with section 16 of the IGST Act and 1. File online refund application in form RFD-01A
Rule 96A of the CGST Rules, 2017. The assessee on the common portal along with statement-3.
is entitled for the refund in case of zero rated 2. Mention turnover of Zero-Related supplies and
supply of goods or services made without payment Adjusted Total Turnover for the period refund is
of tax and refund is also given in case credit has sought for and the net ITC. The turnover should
accumulated due to higher amount of tax on input pertain to the period of refund only.
and lower amount of tax on output supply. Of course
3. System will auto calculate the eligible refund
the refunds are subject to restrictions made in the
amount and post it the last column of table.
proviso of section 54 of CGST Act, 2017, they are
as follows: 4. After submitting application form system will
generate proof of debit (ARN – Acknowledgment
Provided further that no refund of unutilized input
Receipt Number)
tax credit shall be allowed in cases where the goods
exported out of India are subjected to export duty. 5. All necessary documents in support of
refund application (GSTR-3B, GSTR-1 return,
Provided also that no refund of input tax credit shall
Statement-3, GSTR-2A etc) manually submitted
be allowed, if the supplier of goods or services or
to the jurisdictional offi cer.
both avails of drawback in respect of central tax
or claims refund of the integrated tax paid on such 6. If the jurisdictional offi cer has found that refund
supplies. application is acceptable then they will issue a
refund order.
Section 54 of CGST Act, 2017 itself prescribes
documents, procedures and time limit for getting 7. After issuance of refund order the concern
the refund of ITC. The time limit prescribed is 60 authority will transfer the refund amount to the
days from the date of application and the same is bank account mentioned in the application form. n
AppArel eXpOrT prOMOTION COUNCIl MAGAZINe | January 2019 / 57

AppArel / minisTrY nOTiFiCaTiOns
Ministry Notifications
Sub.: Regarding Registered Exporter System
(REX)
DGFT in its Public Notice No. 53/2015-20 dated 30
November, 2018 has amended that, the competent local
authorities would undertake post verification of self-
certified Certificate of Origin based on the request of the
importers/customs agencies of the importing country.
Agencies may also charge TA & DA as per government
rates, separately from the unit.
For Full Notification: http://dgft.gov.in/sites/default/files/

PN-53-dt-30.11.18%28E%29.pdf
Subject: Availability of Speed Post-dispatch

particulars in MEIS module
DGFT in its Trade Notice No. 38/2018 dated 3 December,
2018 has stated that For trade facilitation and furthering
lease of doing business’, a system driven automated
approval of MEIS claims is in operation from 13.09.2018,
the details of which are available in Trade Notice 30 dated
11.09.2018. A new feature is being added, with immediate
effect, so that exporters can track the MEIS speed post-
dispatch made by the Regional Authorities.
For Exporter - The exporters need to log in DGFT website

MEIS ECOM module -7Query -7 Dispatch details -7and
Select File No.
For Full Notification:

http://dgft.gov.in/sites/default/files/TRADE%20NOTICE%2038.pdf

AppArel / aepc Notifications
Invites applications for issuance of 5% Duty Free Import
of trimmings & embellishments under EPC Scheme
available for Readymade Garment exporter.
Applications are invited from all members of Apparel Export Promotion Council to
avail the benefit of duty free import of embellishments used in manufacturing of
Readymade Garments under 5% Export Performance Scheme as per Government
notification no.06 /2018-Customs dated 02.02.2018.
The list of eligible items is appended below.
Sl. No. in the

Table appended to ITEM
relevant Customs
Notification
288 Lining and Interlining Materials
311 (a) Fasteners including buttons & snap fasteners, zip fasteners including zippers in roll,
sliders/ pullers & end stoppers, and parts thereof
(b) lnlay Cards
(c) Shoulder Pads
(d) Buckles
(e) Eyelets
(f) Hooks and eyes
(g) Rivets
(h) Collar stays, collar patties, butterfly and other garment stays including plastic stays
(i) Fusible and non-fusible embroidery, motifs or prints
(j) Laces
(k) Badges including Embroidered badges
(l) Embroidery threads
(m) Sewing Thread
(n) Stones (Other than precious & semi-precious)
(o) Sequin
(p) Tape, Elastic tape & hook (tape of width not exceeding 75 mm
(q) Velcro tape
(r) Cord & cord stopper
(s) Toggles
(t) Poly wadding Materials
(u) Stud
(v) Elastic cloth and elastic band
(w) Quilted wadding materials
(x) Beads for embroidery
(y) Sample fabric of total length upto 1000 metre imported during one financial year
(z) Printed Bags
(za) Knitted Ribs
(zb) Anti-theft devices like labels, tags & sensors
(zc) Bobbin Elastic
(zd) Textile Flowers
(ze) Water soluble lining, poly pouch, high density sticker, heat transfer sticker
(zf) Anglets on draw strings-hooded jacket
(zg) Bra cup, bust cup, moulded cups for bra and metal underwire for bra
(zh) Hook and bar, extra button covers-plain, ribbons, waist bands, shooter pin, O Ring,
thermo strips and metal clip
(zi) Pin bullets for packing, plastic tag bullets, metal tabs, bows, ring & slider and rings
You are requested to avail benefit of this scheme.

For full Circular visit - http://www.aepcindia.com/sites/default/files/pdfs/EPC%20CIRCULAR%202018-2019_new_0.pdf

AppArel / aepc event calendar
CALENDAR OF EVENTS - 2019

1 February, 2019, USA
2 March, 2019, Uruguay & Chile
Sourcing Buyer Seller

at Magic, Meet at
Las Vegas, Uruguay &
USA Chile
3 July, 2019, HONG KONG

4 July, 2019, JAPAN
Hong Kong India Trend

Fashion Fair (ITF) at
Week at Tokyo, Japan
Hong Kong
5 August, 2019, USA

6 September, 2019, France
Sourcing WHO’s
at Magic, Next, Paris
Las Vegas, – France
USA
7 October, 2019, SPAIN
India
8 November, 2019, AUSTRALIa
Apparel
& Acces- International
sories fair Sourcing Expo
at Madrid, Australia
Spain
60 / APPAREL EXPORT PROMOTION COUNCIL MAGAZINE | December 2018

BOOK YOUR SPACE
4-7 Febuary 2019

Las Vegas Convention Centre,
3150 Paradise Road,
89109 Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
This one-of-a Kind Convergence

of Fashion’s Global Supply Chain connects
Established and Emerging Brands to
an unparalleled network of
Manufacturers, Materials, Technology, Logistic Solutions & Talent
Contact for further details : Mr. K S Bisht, Jt. Director (Fairs & Exhibition)
Apparel Export Promotion Council Apparel House, Institutional Area, Sector - 44, Gurgaon-122003, Haryana, (India)
Tel: +91 124 2708156(D), 2708000-003, Fax: +91 1242708004, Mobile: +91 9810527747, Email : kbisht@aepcindia.com
The Application form may be downloaded from our website www.aepcindia.com (Highlights Section)
Limited Stalls available on First Come First Serve Basis

Apparel 2019

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EAI 01 ISSUE 10

Apparel_Jan_2019_Pages.indd 1 28/12/2018 9:32:47 PM

HKL Magu, Chairman, AEPC

APPAREL EXPORT PROMOTION COUNCIL MAGAZINE | January 2018 /1

Apparel_Jan_2019_Pages.indd 3 1/1/2019 11:45:25 AM

India emerges 04 | The brOAdcAsT 21| cOTTOn

2 / APPAREL EXPORT PROMOTION COUNCIL MAGAZINE | January 2019

Apparel_Jan_2019_Pages.indd 4 28/12/2018 11:03:04 PM

APPAREL EXPORT PROMOTION COUNCIL MAGAZINE | January 2019 /3

Apparel_Jan_2019_Pages.indd 5 28/12/2018 11:03:04 PM

RMG exports were to the tune of USD 1129.02 million in

In rupee term export for the Month of November 2018 was

India’s rmG export to World

4 / AppArel eXpOrT prOMOTION COUNCIl MAGAZINe | January 2019

Apparel_Jan_2019_Pages.indd 6 28/12/2018 9:32:53 PM

INDeX oF INDUStrIAl proDUCtIoN

Source: CSO, 2018

AppArel eXpOrT prOMOTION COUNCIl MAGAZINe | January 2019 /5

Apparel_Jan_2019_Pages.indd 7 28/12/2018 9:32:54 PM

AEPC joins NITI

Apparel_January_2019-1.indd 8 1/1/2019 2:40:03 PM

APPAREL EXPORT PROMOTION COUNCIL MAGAZINE | January 2019 /7

Apparel_January_2019-1.indd 9 1/1/2019 2:40:03 PM

Participants at Seminar on Investment Opportunities in Haryana at Apparel House, Gurugram

8 / APPAREL EXPORT PROMOTION COUNCIL MAGAZINE | January 2019

Apparel_Jan_2019_Pages.indd 10 28/12/2018 9:32:59 PM

Credit Limit upto $2.5 million.

80% invoice value upfront

Apply now on Speak to our Export Finance Advisor

Apparel_Jan_2019_Pages.indd 11 28/12/2018 9:32:59 PM

India’s textiles, clothing

10 / APPAREL EXPORT PROMOTION COUNCIL MAGAZINE | January 2019

Apparel_Jan_2019_Pages.indd 12 28/12/2018 9:33:02 PM

Household sector growth

5.34 per cent from 2011 to 2018. In value terms, demand

Cotton fibers most in demand Growth in household demand of textiles

APPAREL EXPORT PROMOTION COUNCIL MAGAZINE | January 2019 / 11

Apparel_Jan_2019_Pages.indd 13 28/12/2018 9:33:02 PM

India wary of RCEP due to influx of cheap goods

Tariff hike not to India keen on trade with

12 / APPAREL EXPORT PROMOTION COUNCIL MAGAZINE | January 2019

Jan_shortstories.indd 1 28/12/2018 9:36:53 PM

Tirupur to sign Indo-Pacific economic corridor treaty

India’s proposal of bilateral FTAs with ASEAN, Japan

APPAREL EXPORT PROMOTION COUNCIL MAGAZINE | January 2019 / 13

Jan_shortstories.indd 2 28/12/2018 9:36:54 PM

India emerges strong sourcing

India emerges strong sourcing option

14 / APPAREL EXPORT PROMOTION COUNCIL MAGAZINE | January 2019

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APPAREL EXPORT PROMOTION COUNCIL MAGAZINE | January 2019 / 15

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India’s apparel exports to Canada increase by 3%

India’s textiles and apparel exports

16 / APPAREL EXPORT PROMOTION COUNCIL MAGAZINE | January 2019

Jan_shortstories.indd 3 1/1/2019 11:41:54 AM

Textile associations urge government to set up

Arvind to open third India to develop rating

APPAREL EXPORT PROMOTION COUNCIL MAGAZINE | January 2019 / 17

Jan_shortstories.indd 4 28/12/2018 9:36:55 PM

Government package for the

18 / AppArel eXpOrT prOMOTION COUNCIl MAGAZINe | January 2019

Apparel_Jan_2019_Pages.indd 16 28/12/2018 9:33:04 PM

APPAREL EXPORT PROMOTION COUNCIL MAGAZINE | January 2019 / 19