With the pandemic behind us, the opening up of the economy has resulted in the flourishing apparel industry becoming a driving force for the growth of the sewing thread industry. As the market is on an upward growth trajectory, it is estimated that the global sewing thread industry is valued at around US $ 4.80 billion in 2022, of which around US $ 500 million is expected to be contributed by India.
KTL is among the very few Indian sewing thread manufacturers to have a turnover in excess of Rs.100 crore. The company started operations in 1984, initially manufacturing zippers, soon adding sewing and embroidery threads to its repertoire which became KTL’s core business. The company has been a preferred supplier to numerous renowned apparel manufacturers and buying houses.
“The journey has been very challenging and we can now proudly say that we are one of the largest manufacturers of sewing threads with extensive production facilities in the state of Uttarakhand. We believe that to survive, one has to excel in all fields and mastering everything in the trade is the need of the hour. That is what we at KTL are all about,” commented Rakshit Bhatia, Managing Director, KTL while talking to Team Apparel Resources (AR).
In spite of stressed margins in the sewing thread manufacturing business, KTL has been on a consistent growth path, owing to continuous investment in R&D, technology and automation.
Growth of an industry depends on its customer database. There has been an enhanced demand for sewing threads as garment enterprises are flushed with orders. KTL has been keenly followed this trend which is likely to continue in the foreseeable future. However, the volatility in pricing has served as a challenge to sewing thread manufacturers so far as matching pricing expectations are concerned. Rakshit Bhatia strongly believes that here KTL has seized the advantage by taking bold and quick decisions with respect to investing in increased production capacities through automation.
“The production capacity is now on the verge of reaching more than 3000 tonnes of sewing thread per annum. KTL is in the process of installing close to 400 fully automatic winding machines along with significant modification in dyeing and soft packaging infrastructure. All this will help KTL manage the pressure on margins,” mentioned Rakshit Bhatia.
The concept of Unique Shade Bank makes KTL a frontrunner in the sewing thread industry. KTL has distinguished itself by introducing a ‘Unique Shade Bank’ concept that provides garment manufacturers and buyers with a game-changing solution, ensuring ready and accurate matching of bulk thread colour against the sample selected from the shade bank. According to Rakshit, KTL gives factories a solution to reduce their lead time by addressing their instant sampling needs, thus eliminating random sampling. Manufacturers can have the instant advantage of choosing from close to 1000 colours by placing KTL’s shade bank in-house. They just need to select the required sample from the shade bank and KTL shall arrange speedy delivery of the ready bulk material.
“Factories can select what the design demands without worrying about what may be available. It doesn’t stop here as we ensure the auto refill systematically,” added Rakshit, who went on to say, “We believe that the sewing thread industry is now more of a service-based industry than just a product industry. KTL has heavily invested in keeping ready stocks, which is a customer-centric business decision. Hence we are in a position to promise same-day deliveries to our customers. Inventory levels across various shades are managed intelligently by an adaptive online stock management system which ensures maximum availability.” To maintain the same standards while looking to aggressively and systematically grow by another 40 per cent in the next 24 months, KTL has already planned one of the largest warehouses of its kind, approximately 13,000 sq. ft.
Sustainability is in our DNA
#StitchingTheSustainability Story
Sustainability is a growing focus today. It is the need of the hour. Brands are now increasingly using recycled polyester threads amidst rising global demand for more eco-friendly products across the textile supply chain. KTL is a GRS-certified thread supplier for all recycled qualities and is among the frontrunners in making sustainable threads such as ECOSPUN – Recycled Spun Poly Thread; ECOCORE – Recycled Poly Corespun Thread; and ECOFIL – Recycled Texturised Polyester Thread. ECOSPUN is powered by Recron® GreenGoldFibres, made from 100 per cent post-consumer used PET bottles, which is a brand of specialty sustainable polyester fibres from Reliance Industries Limited.
“KTL is one of the first sewing thread manufacturers in India that has introduced co-branded products with Recron® SHT and Recron® GreenGoldFibres brands from Reliance Industries Ltd used under trademark license agreement. This co-branding initiative between us is paving the way for easy availability of high quality sustainable sewing thread in the country,” averred Rakshit.
KTL keeps the highest compliance with regard to ecological and environmental norms. The in-house Thermax water treatment plant with a capacity to treat 300,000+ litres of effluent meets the criteria stipulated by ZDHC. “We ensure that all the water discharged from our plant is treated twice before final disposal,” shared Rakshit, adding, “We have also tied up with the designated and compliant service providers to dispose of the sludge and solid waste.”
