April, 1-15, 2016

Over the years some international NGOs have continued to ‘disgrace’ popular apparel companies in India with their ‘untrue’ and ‘unverified’ reports. Apparel Online had earlier highlighted one such ‘callous’ report on Sumangali… The current report ‘Unfree and Unfair’, which is lacking both in credibility and accountability, has named Shahi Exports, Texport Industries, Arvind Ltd. and K Mohan, for not providing adequate ‘hostel facilities’ and ‘freedom of movement’ in their companies. These exporters, in their replies to AO, have strongly refuted charges. Most exporters too in general have ‘condemned’ this report and are unhappy over NGOs, bringing out reports without seeking clarifications from individual companies. The issue also includes a review on the just concluded Première Vision Paris, which despite the overlapping New York Fashion Week and Chinese New Year, witnessed 55,025 visitors from 123 countries, with France leading with over 15,070 visitors. Despite handicraft industry being an important component of the textile sector, artisans are far from being able to generate enough to sustain their livelihood. But many known brands are ensuring that traditional techniques are translated in modern processes to touch today’s need for innovation. Read under ‘Value Addition’ segment… Besides the above, our regular columns of Mind Tree, Fashion Trends, Industry Wire, Resource Centre, Export Statistics, etc. make the issue worth reading.