The 36th India Knit Fair for Spring/Summer Collection 2014 held recently in Tirupur was a small fair where 35 garment export companies showcased their collections. With few international buyers visiting the show, exhibitors were disappointed, although there were many agents/representatives of various buying house from Tirupur, Delhi-NCR and Bangalore but these were not the priority of the exhibitors. On display were value added knit garments for men, ladies and kids made with 100 per cent man-made fibres; linen and polar fleece were an added attraction. Neppy mélange, space dyed, poly cotton blended with step dyed jacquard, double mercerized and 100 per cent modal auto stripped fabrics, were commonly used. Fluorescent colour based yarn dyed, garments made of florescent colours and florescent cold pigment prints were also among the popular trends seen.
With increased competition and growing dynamism of the number of designs spilled over the fashion markets, it has become critical to understand the sample development process, firstly to get the attention of the buyer and then once an order is placed to control quality and costs in the initial stages itself. Vasanth Kothari, Assistant Professor, DFT, NIFT Bangalore along with Team Apparel Online, throws light on the industry practices in sampling development currently in use…
Starting as a dedicated home furnishing manufacturer about a decade ago, Urban Monsoon initiated its design studio about three years ago to give design support to its three key clients B&Q, UK; Castorama of France; and Hornbach of Germany to elevate itself from just being a convertor to a design solution provider. Having two units in Mumbai with 120 picanole and rapier looms to produce its own cotton fabric, Urban Monsoon is also outsourcing production from Karur. Ninety per cent of its exports is of decorative items like curtains and cushions and the balance 10% are utility items like table covers, runners, etc. Lalit Gupta, Managing Director and Founder of the company shares with Team Apparel Online how his design studio is helping him to speed up approval process and reduce lead times.
What is keeping denim alive for years is its comfort and longevity along with new innovations. The best aspect of this product is that it is for rugged wear and also a fashion statement. The denim manufacturers are on the path of innovation design and sustainability to bring in exclusivity and premium value to their products in a bid to stand out in a market, struggling to cope with oversupply. The capacity is being added continually across the country, hence it is now imperative to differentiate oneself. Recently-held Indigo had five denim fabric companies exhibiting their latest developments in denim, namely Malwa Denim, LNJ Denim, Vinod Denim, Modern Denim and a new entrant in denim from Surat, R&B Denims Ltd. Besides fabric, other companies feeding denim with their yarns, dyes and machinery were also present. Team Apparel Online highlights some of the innovative concepts that attracted attention...
The retail environment in the US is improving and though not all companies have seen growth, the optimism is palpable. Among the concepts that have really shown growth is e-commerce. According to eMarketer, B2C e-commerce sales in the US will grow 12 per cent to US $ 384.80 billion in 2013 – after growing 13.8 per cent to US $ 343.43 billion last year – as average B2C e-commerce sales per user reach US $ 2,466 this year among those who buy goods online in the US. With the economy still taking its time to consolidate and unemployment still high, the focus of retailers is on tightening the inventory and offering products that customers really want. While few companies were able to get the strategy right, some namely JCPenney and A&F could not impress the shoppers. In fact, JCPenney is a case study on how bad execution of a restructuring initiative can cause huge damage to both image and sales of a company. Moving ahead, most retailers are positive and international expansions, e-commerce and fresh merchandise offering is on the cards for most. 10 top retailers from the US are analyzed, and the outcome is almost identical to the issues of retailers worldwide…
Menswear is predominantly characterized by its sophistication and sound tailoring – structured suits, expensive fabrics and flawless cuts being the hallmark. However, though the contemporary man continues to cut a dapper image, only this time, it's transcended the traditional perception of formalwear. Designers, this spring, discovered the most unexpected season essential in menswear – the shorts. Welcome to the new world of menswear, where formal is deconstructed and chinos and shorts have replaced the trousers, as men become more experimental than ever.
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