innovation in Activewear propelling its steady growth

2 AO India | November 2022

November 2022 | AO India 3


CONTENTS

26

COVER STORY

Innovation In Activewear

Propelling Its Steady Growth

INDUSTRY VERDICT

12 I Retail Giants To Various International And

National Brands Are Continuously Opening Stores. Is

This Growth Landscape Representing The Picture Of

The Entire Apparel Retail Industry Or Is This Growth

Mainly For A Few Selected Companies?

RETAIL RIGHT// //NATIONAL

14 I ONDC May Act As A Booster Shot For The

Buyers And Sellers - Reimagining The Future Of

Digital Commerce

p14

ONDC aims to facilitate a shift from an operator-driven monolithic, platformcentric

model, to a facilitator-driven, interoperable decentralised network

RETAIL RIGHT// //NEWS

17 I FREECULTR Becomes The Official Merchandise

Partner For FIFA 2022

RETAIL RIGHT// //INTERNATIONAL

19 I The Secret Sauce Of Target Demographics In

Social Commerce - Buying Pattern Of

Different Generations

RETAIL RIGHT// //NEWS

22 I LVMH Sales Jump By 19% In The Third Quarter,

As A Strong Dollar Boosts Europe Demand

p31

With social commerce, the entire shopping experience from product

discovery and research to checkout is different for different generations

EXPERT SPEAKS

24 I D2C In India: Opportunities, Challenges

And Solutions

BUYING & SOURCING

32 I Decoding B2B Fashion Marketplaces As The

Concept Expands In India

MANUFACTURING

35 I Eastman Exports Global Clothing On Growth

Path, Opening Offices Overseas

p36

Tailor and Circus: Not in the business of making underwear but in the

business of making people love themselves




CONTENTS

36 I Kolkata And Tirupur Ensuring Their Growth In

Innerwear With Different Focus Altogether

MANUFACTURING// //NEWS

40 I Shahi Exports’ Anant Ahuja Joins The Board

Of The BBI

SUSTAINABILITY

44 I Efforts Towards Women Workers’ Safe Period

Cycle Is A Win-Win For All

SUSTAINABILITY// //NEWS

47 I Louis Dreyfus Company Project Jagruthi To

Support Farmers On Sustainable Cotton Farming

p44

Shahi Exports has done a remarkable job for menstrual hygiene

management

TRENDS IN FOCUS// //RUNWAYS

49 I The Megatrend Round-Up From The Fashion

Capitals Of The World S/S ’23 Edition

FASHION BUSINESS

55 I Riding The Metaverse Wave - What Brands Need

To Know And Do

DESIGNERS & LABELS

59 I Gauri & Nainika - Painting Reality In Conversation

With The Connoisseurs Of Glamorous Evening

Wear In India

p49

Key trends round-up from the international runways for S/S ’23

START-UPS

63 I Start-Ups Leveraging Technologies In

Smart Textiles

START-UPS// //NEWS

67 I DaMENSCH Will Have 100 Retail

Stores By Next Year

TRADE STATISTICS

68 I US Apparel Imports (Jan.-Aug. 2022): Value Of US

Apparel Import Crosses US $ 10 Billion In August ’22

p55

How to ace the metaverse game

EVENT// //NEWS

72 I Hyosung Launches New Fall/Winter ’23/24 Textile

Trends At ISPO Munich

RESOURCE CENTRE

73 I André Lacroix, Intertek Group CEO And Author

Of ‘Leadership With Soul’ Shares Insights With

Apparel Resources

74 I Anju Modi’s ‘Damayanti’ Collection Presented By

TENCEL Fibre Brand

p63

Smart textiles are the most exciting innovation in the field of textile

engineering. The development of smart textiles reaches far beyond

imagination




Editor-In-Chief

DEEPAK MOHINDRA

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EDITOR’S NOTE

FROM THE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF’s DESK…

Holiday season brings

positive sentiments back, at

least for now!

Inventory gluts in major markets may or may not be

over but there is a clear indication that retailers are

delighted with the customers’ turnout, especially in

the North America market.

We have seen global fashion industry struggling

with massive inventory in 2022 that piled up in their

stores and warehouses, partly due to shipping delays

from sourcing countries and majorly due to retailers’

misjudgment of consumer demand, the ongoing

recessionary trends and many other factors such as

the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.

The retailers in the USA and even EU kept giving

hefty discounts to consumers across apparel items,

yet inventory glut remained as the orders that they

placed in the beginning of 2022 are still being

shipped to the retailers!

However, as we move ahead in 2022, it’s becoming

clear that apparel retailers are all set to clear the

piled-up inventories in the coming holiday season.

All thanks to consumers who, even with persistent

inflation, rising interest rates and volatility in

the market, aren’t shying away from spending on

household priorities.

Even Brian Cornell, Chairman and CEO of Target

USA hinted at the expected robust growth in

consumer visit to the store “Economic slowdown

triggered inventory bulge but now we have left

inventory problem behind. Consumers are excited

about these seasonal holiday months and want

to celebrate with friends and family, therefore we

are focusing on making consumers ready for a big

holiday season.”

I’m not just speculating this or going by any random

report as I have data to back this up! After analysing

official US import data, I realised the country

imported apparel worth US $ 10.36 billion in August

alone – its highest import values in last 50 months.

This September, with the onset of holiday season,

the retail sales in the USA witnessed around 8.20

per cent growth on Y-o-Y basis out of which apparel

retail sales alone were up by over 4.50 per cent.

The positivity was reflected by the export figures

of various Asian countries as well. India, from April

to August ’22, shipped apparel to the US market

worth US $ 2.67 billion noting 25 per cent Y-o-Y

growth; Bangladesh’s shipment to the USA valued

US $ 4.16 billion, that grew by 48.79 per cent;

whereas Sri Lanka noted growth of 38.77 per cent

to clock US $ 1.21 billion export revenues. These

statistics and positive developments are a huge sigh

of relief for factories.

The retailers have actually planned in advance this

year for the busy holiday season and brought apparel

products in the market earlier than normal to avoid

ongoing supply chain disruptions.

Not just USA, even other markets such as Canada,

Japan are starting to see positivity in consumer’s

sentiments who are on streets to shop for upcoming

holiday season. It’s only the European countries

which are showing constraint due to aftereffects of

war and recession.

Though the sentiments are positive, the possibility

of another slowdown can’t be denied as indicated

by the retail industry and that can be only be

seen when official US custom data is released for

September month.

Deepak Mohindra

Editor-in-Chief

e-mail me at dmohindra@apparelresources.com

Deepak Mohindra




INDUSTRY VERDICT

Q&A

Retail giants like Reliance Trends, Reliance Brands, Aditya Birla Group, Arvind to various international and national

brands are continuously opening stores to name a few like Puma, Tasva, Forever New, Turtle, Bombay Shirt Company,

Octave etc. Is this growth landscape representing the picture of the entire apparel retail industry or is this growth

mainly for a few selected companies?

If the growth is for the entire apparel retail industry, how do you see it? What are the major factors contributing to

the growth?

Or if the growth is just for selected companies, why it is so?

Ankur Bhatia

CEO, Chogori India Retail Limited

Retail companies which have strong

balance sheets are able to forecast and

cater to demand better than relatively

weaker ones. This helps them to be

nimble and be able to adjust to any

scenario very quickly. For instance,

when Covid-19 pandemic struck us,

we were able to scale back on our

expansion and quickly prioritise

cash outflow to certain key areas like

employee welfare, e-commerce sales

etc. Similarly, when customers are

thronging the malls back again, we are

now well-capitalised to take advantage

of the situation and cater to this

revenge shopping phenomenon. Also,

it’s important to understand that there

are certain categories like outdoor,

athleisure, casualwear etc., which have

higher growth than ever in the past.

This has been the pandemic-induced

change brought about in the consumer

behaviour which has resulted in faster

expansion for such brands. It’s also

partly true that brands get created in

the offline space. Thirdly, every brand

is in a different stage of their lifecycle.

As far as our brands Columbia and

Adventuras are concerned, we feel

we have just started and our offline

expansion will continue aggressively for

at least a few more years. Some brands

might not have this kind of demand, and

hence expand more conservatively.

Last but not the least, a lot of mall

projects are now materialising postpandemic,

so being part of them

comes naturally to top brands like ours.

The other way to look at this is that

weaker brands had to let go off their

retail inventory (due to cost pressures

because of the pandemic), and now that

space has become available for others

to take, hence you also see fair amount

of expansion as a result of this.

Deepak Aggarwal

Founder and MD, Kazo Fashion

Business and fashion majorly align

at one point and that’s customer’s

trust. So, having said that, it’s quite

understandable why most brands are

opting for stores. From international

to national to small businesses, most

brands are now opening stores to

understand customer preferences and

gain their trust without losing the fun

and focal essence of retail therapy!

Of course, this shift towards the

presence of stores is likely to change

the fashion industry’s landscape. I

believe it leads to growth for

the whole industry, for example,

it leads to higher demand and

profitability for the textile and

garment industry as consumption

is being increased in the market.

Moreover, this also motivates

other national and international

organised retail to capture a stake

in the Indian market, which in turn

also leads to opportunities for

manufacturers in India to produce

and sell locally to the brands.


INDUSTRY VERDICT

Daksh Kapoor

Chief Marketing Officer, Kapsons Group

The retail sector of India has been

seeing a pattern recently, with many

national and international brands alike,

continuously opening stores. More than

representing the growth landscape of

the entire retail industry, it is a reflection

of what’s in store for brick-and-mortar

and how the D2C shopping experience

is evolving outside the screens.

However, to say that this growth

represents the entire apparel industry

would be like taking a myopic look at

the complete picture. Indian retail, while

largely unorganised, is bubbling with

potential, both for online and offline

modes of business. Growth appears to

be different for many but the factors

pertaining to it share commonalities.

Even with physical mode of operations,

the latest trend seems to favour

growth where companies prioritise

personalisation of services and ease

of buying, both made possible through

digitisation, as seen in experiments with

virtual reality or companies moving to

WhatsApp for promotions.

Another key factor is ethics and CSR,

especially sustainability as a mission

adopted by businesses. This suggests

a change in the behaviour of the

modern millennial consumer, for whom

the choice is no longer just between

quality and quantity but also the ethical

practices adopted by the businesses

they buy from.

Nitin Chhabra

CEO, Ace Turtle

The entire Indian apparel retail industry

is expanding its offline retail stores.

The major factors contributing to this

growth in offline stores are the pent-up

consumer demand for the last two years

due to the pandemic, rising awareness

and preference for branded apparel in

Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities, and an increase

in the target consumer base due to

rising disposable incomes. Having said

that, at Ace Turtle, we believe retail

channels will evolve in terms of their

relevance. Some will become more

relevant whereas others will become

less relevant with time. New channels

would also come into play. Brands and

retailers need to prepare for a channelagnostic

future through the omnichannel

route. This means investments must

be made in technology, people and

upskilling of the existing workforce.

Based on our experience of providing

SaaS-based technology solutions to

brands and retailers, we have seen

that adoption and change management

are often the most critical aspects

determining the success or failure of

this approach.

The top leadership of the companies

need to take the onus of adoption and

change management. Fortunately, we

were native to omnichannel when we

started our journey 9 years ago as an

omnichannel SaaS enabler. This was a

huge plus for us when we launched our

Licensed Brands vertical with Lee and

Wrangler in India.

NEXT INDUSTRY VERDICT QUESTIONS

E-commerce giant Flipkart has recently unveiled Flipverse, a virtual shopping experience in a bid to expand its metaverse offerings.

Prior to this, luxury & designer label Papa Don’t Preach had entered into metaverse and famous designer Manish Malhotra took the

NFT route to launch his digital collection. Few of the other Indian brands or designers are also on the same path.

But unlike overseas, where brands have successfully commercialised metaverse, Indian brands and companies so far have not been

successful in connecting with customers on this front. What more needs to be done in this regard so that Indian consumers can

have similar transactions like overseas customers?

SEND YOUR COMMENTS

contact@apparelresources.com


RETAIL RIGHT / NATIONAL

ONDC MAY ACT AS A BOOSTER

SHOT FOR THE BUYERS AND SELLERS

- REIMAGINING THE FUTURE OF

DIGITAL COMMERCE

According to reports, through the

investment of just US $ 24 billion,

Amazon and Flipkart have reportedly

captured 80 per cent of India’s retail

market with aggressive discounts and

special offers for preferred sellers alone,

impelling the MSMEs and new retailers

into a vulnerable position.

New apparel retailers in India are often

faced with the challenges of accessing

the benefits of digital commerce

because of the monopoly of existing

big retailers. Whether it is to capitalise

on larger markets; engage customers in

superficially rich e-commerce experiences

that transcend borders; or find new

ways to deliver compelling shopping

experiences, new retailers are at a

ONDC, the governmentbacked

open network

e-commerce platform,

will cost small retailers

a quarter of what they

pay to e-commerce

platforms like Amazon

and Flipkart to access

their technologies and

processes. More than 20

government and private

organisations have

confirmed Rs. 255 crore

investment.

disadvantage of being shackled to old

processes and digital infrastructure.

For instance, a typical small retailer with

an 800 sq.ft. store used to sell T-shirts

and shorts and produced earnings close

to an average of Rs. 4,000 daily but the

scenario changed when people started

ordering online and the retailer’s income

slashed drastically. Such incidents are

not only limited to one store; there

are millions of stores facing the same

problem. As per Statista, unorganised

retail stands at 88 per cent (2019), and

the explosion of e-commerce have been

the toughest for small mom-and-pop

stores or small retailers.

To overcome these concerns, an initial

idea by Piyush Goyal and led by 9

members of the advisory board, a new



network model named Open Network for

Digital Commerce (ONDC) was curated

that promises to break through these

constraints and gradually unleash the

transformative power of digital commerce

in India. Some key stakeholders such as

SBI, HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, BSEI &

NSEI, Quality Council of India have

shown faith in the system, which would

help by plugging in small traders and

retailers and providing them wide reach

with set protocol for cataloguing, vendor

match and price discovery on an opensource

basis.

“The seriousness and commitment by

GoI to push Digital India and take it to a

bigger and larger canvas is commendable.

The arrival of ONDC is going to be the

defining moment in the times to come.

It’s going to open floodgates for MSMEs

to generate more employment and deeper

penetration in the untapped areas of this

vast market,” said Vikram Singh, Sr. VP

Sourcing, DBS Lifestyle.

ONDC is expected to digitise the entire

value chain, help standardise operations,

drive logistical efficiency, and, most

importantly, curb the monopolies of the

platform-centric model that leads to

market concentration. It can be beneficial

to new entrants because ONDC is not

controlled or owned by a single identity

and also helps improve the discoverability

and accessibility of products across the

platform, provides equal opportunities

Transaction data

will reside only with

the buyer and seller

applications and will

not be visible to ONDC.

ONDC will not be storing/

viewing transaction data.

for small retailers, follows transparent

practices and offers lower order

acquisition costs.

Complete e-commerce

solution will accelerate

growth for new apparel

retailers

Retailers and product manufacturers need

not worry about segments like logistics

and warehousing. Once their catalogue

is available digitally, there will be many

opportunities open to every single

segment in this large ecosystem with a

nationwide market such as enterprise

resource planners, e-commerce store

hosting service providers, etc. Retailers

will no longer have to pay commissions

to the enabling platform, unlike today’s

proprietary systems.

ONDC will ensure that buyers and

sellers use the same platform for all online

business transactions, basically moving

from a platform-centric to a networkcentric

model.

Basically, it is a network of buyers, sellers

and gateways that uses open APIs to

exchange information. The network is

designed to allow for the discoverability

of all sellers by multicasting the search

request received from buyer applications

to all seller applications based on criteria

such as location, availability and other

customer preferences. Initially, it starts

with a single gateway to kick-start the

operations, but this can later be expanded

to more gateways.

To be precise, companies such as Dunzo,

Load share and Ship rocket offer logistics

services. Protean eGov Technologies Ltd

(formerly NSDL e-Gov) is behind the

gateway services. NowFloats and Plotch

are technology service providers, Kiko

Live is the industry’s live video shopping

platform and the e-commerce platform

Snapdeal, which offers fashion and other

services, will encourage buyers and sellers

to join the ONDC network. Craftsvilla,

CSC Grameen eStore, Ekart, Shopalyst,

etc., are already onboard, and around 500

companies, including small start-ups, are

in the advanced stage of integration and

are expected to come online soon.



With lower costs, higher flexibility and

simplified operations, this merger will

accelerate growth. A variety of payment

options, lower transaction fees and no

registration fee make ONDC affordable

for new retailers, making it easy to start

selling on the platform.

“Small retailers are delighted that there’s

going to be a way for them to participate

in the global digital e-commerce world. It

is going to give a big boost to hyper-local

commerce, quick commerce,” said Nandan

Nilekani, Non-executive Chairman of

Infosys and Member of advisory council

of ONDC.

Consumers will have a

vast variety of choices and

freedom to choose

In the present scenario, the bigger

e-commerce giants only allow customers

to reach those whom the company

wants to endorse. Due to this, customer

choices are restricted. Also, customers

on the specific platform can access that

particular platform but now things are

changing as ONDC acts as a neutral

platform that creates protocols around

price and vendor match.

“We are looking at

ONDC very closely and

are working to build a

seamless integration,

allowing businesses to set

up shops within Whatsapp

connected with ONDC.

It’s still early days, but our

consumers are already

excited by the possibilities

this opens up. No more

website, no apps, no

technology overhead -

just ease of business, one

platform that is already

accessible to users.”

- Himanshu Sukhwani

Sukhwani, Founder, WhatCX

For example, if Vendor X is registered on

Platform A and the consumer is registered

on Platform B, ONDC enables access

to transactions between Vendor X and

Consumer B, eliminating the need to lock

into a specific e-commerce platform. It

also allows consumers to match demand

with the closest available supply.

This would also allow the sellers to

provide the consumer with a vast product

assortment to choose from. Being open

and free, the sellers in ONDC no longer

need to pay commission to the enabling

platform, unlike today’s proprietary

platforms. As per T. Koshy, CEO,

ONDC, a seller can be on Amazon (get

its benefits) and still be on ONDC as well

(to expand their reach and penetration).

Strategy to onboard

buyers and sellers

With ONDC, the GoI aims to restore

the balance of power. By creating a digital

marketplace, commonly accessible to all,

as it should be, ONDC will empower

sellers and buyers to gain the same

visibility and advantages as their larger

counterparts. ONDC does not require

special apps as it is available on major

e-commerce platforms, just like UPI is

as a payment method. Adoption will be

driven through these integrations. The

three main focal points of discoverability,

interoperability and product review

will push both parties to come along

together on the ONGC platform.

E-commerce players can join hands with

ONDC to protect their own user base

and business models.

“As the protocol stabilises, more and more

e-commerce players will be integrating

to bring the benefits of ONDC to their

users. The Government is already working

with Paytm, one of the largest in terms

of reach. I believe that citizens are tired

of the poor customer service from major

e-commerce players and are more likely to

give smaller players a chance. Moreover,

this Government is very good at

spreading knowledge about Government

programmes and I find ONDC using

the same tools to get people to talk about

it. Finally, I feel citizens are also pushing

With efforts to increase

e-commerce penetration

from 8 percent to 25

percent of all consumer

purchases in 2 years and

to sign up 90 crore buyers

and 12 lakh sellers on the

shared network within the

next 5 years, the country’s

open retail network route

seems to be fast-tracked.

for the adoption of it,” said Himanshu

Sukhwani, Founder, WhatCX.

ONDC may not be a

challenger but a facilitator

ONDC does not compete with other

marketplaces. ONDC creates connections

between retailers and buyers so that sellers

can take advantage of both marketplaces

like Amazon, Myntra, Flipkart and

ONDC. The platform does nothing to

impede the growth of others; rather, it

serves as a facilitator for digital commerce,

but the larger retailer giants have a

different say on it. For them, a lot of

monetary investment in technology and

processes is already done, and integrating

into a new platform might be challenging

but the talks are underway.

Everything depends on the adaptability

and grey areas can be changed after seeing

the results post the complete phases are

over but it should always be remembered

that these small retail traders are the

backbone of the Indian retail economy

and if this segment is excluded, it will

directly impact the financial data of the

economy which will shake the pillars of

growth. Though ONDC gives enough

leverage to unbundle the supply chain in

the upcoming five years, the picture will

be clearer as the efforts to push the Indian

e-commerce industry to US $ 200 billion

by 2027 seems strong.



RETAIL RIGHT / NEWS

FREECULTR becomes the official merchandise partner for

FIFA 2022

The sustainable, slow-fashion

brand FREECULTR has inked

a strategic partnership with

FIFA and come on board as

the official merchandise partner

of FIFA 2022. The FIFA

under-17 Women’s World

Cup India 2022 is being held

in India between 11 and 30

October 2022.

And with India celebrating

its 75th year of Independence

this year, this partnership

adds an interesting touch to

the sentiment of Azadi ka

Mahotsav, giving football fans

and all Indians a reason to

be proud of, as it is the first

D2C brand to achieve this.

FREECULTR, as FIFA’s

licensed apparel merchandiser

for India, will manufacture,

sell and distribute apparel

merchandise in India for FIFA

World Cup Qatar 2022.

Shrey Luthra, CEO and Cofounder

of FREECULTR, said

“It is a matter of pride for

FREECULTR to be one

of the first D2C brands

of India to deliver the muchweighted

FIFA World Cup

merchandise. Having received

the FIFA World Cup official

license for manufacturing

premium quality apparel and

accessories, we promise to

uphold our brand’s make and

philosophy with honest pricing

for millions of Indians.” The

D2C brand has lined up a

comprehensive range that

will be exclusively retailed on

the official FREECULTR

website, freecultr.com and

e-commerce giant Amazon.in.

The merchandise will include

T-shirts, active tanks, bandanas,

arm shields, active joggers and

sweatshirts. FREECULTR,

keeping its promise of

premium innerwear brand, has

exclusively planned to launch

FIFA men’s briefs and trunks.

Shrey Luthra has also forged

a strategic relationship with

Amazon.in for FREECULTR

towards the collection’s

promotion and marketing on

the marketplace. Shrey further

adds, “This is a special year

for India in many other ways. It

is the first time that the FIFA

under-17 women’s World Cup

India 2022, an extremely

prestigious event, is being

held in India. FREECULTR

is showing its support for

the event and the game by

introducing a unique range of

products for all women with

its FIFA World Cup 2022

collection.”

United Colors of Benetton India appoints Kaveri Nag as Head of

Marketing and PR

Leading brand United Colors

of Benetton (UCB) India has

appointed Kaveri Nag as the

new Head of Marketing & PR,

India. Kaveri is an alumnus

of Delhi University and holds

a Post Graduate Diploma in

Marketing Communications

from National Institute of

Advertising. Kaveri will lead

marketing strategy and PR

for the brand and work to

strengthen Benetton’s vision

of a global lifestyle project

and revolutionise the canons

of fashion and sales. One

of her key responsibilities

will include engaging with

consumers and reconnecting

in a more contemporary way

to make the brand more

desirable and aspirational in

India. Ramprasad Sridharan,

CEO, UCB India, said,

“Throughout her career,

Kaveri has accumulated vast

marketing leadership experience

and has relentless energy

and curiosity to understand

consumer behaviour, which is

ever so dynamic in the fashion

industry. This is her second

stint with Benetton and we

are confident that Kaveri will

be a driving force in bringing

our new brand vision to life

through world-class creative,

digital and omnichannel

marketing strategies, and play

a leading role in building the

next generation of Benetton

customers.” Kaveri Nag said,

“Benetton has always been a

brand that’s ahead of the curve,

and I’m excited to embark

on this new journey with the

team amidst an ever-evolving

consumer landscape. Together,

we will meet these new realities

head-on, with a digital-first

approach towards creating and

engaging with relevant brand

experiences for customers

across different categories. I

look forward to strengthening

Benetton’s iconic positioning

as a premium casualwear brand

by pushing cultural and creative

boundaries.”


RETAIL RIGHT / NEWS


Reliance Retail partners with NBA to launch its

merchandise

Reliance Retail, a subsidiary of

Reliance Retail Ventures Ltd.,

has partnered with NBA for a

multi-year collaboration to sell

the organisation’s merchandise

at its stores in India. Built

around five professional sports

leagues – the NBA, WNBA,

NBA G League, NBA 2K

League and Basketball Africa

League – NBA has established

a major international presence

with games and programming

available in 214 countries and

merchandise for sale.

The latest products are

available at selected Reliance

Retail stores across India and

on a variety of e-commerce

platforms including Reliance

Retail’s website. Reliance Retail

will also offer interactive NBA

experiences for visitors in stores

such as sweepstakes, Reliance

Nykaa Fashion brings Revolve to Indian

consumers

Nykaa Fashion has partnered

with California-based fashion

retailer Revolve valued at

US $ 1.23 billion to launch

the latter’s brands in the

Indian market.

With this association, Nykaa

Fashion will house over 400

brands across apparel, footwear

and accessories, from the global

powerhouse Revolve on its

online platform.

Adwaita Nayar, Co-founder

of Nykaa, during the launch,

expressed happiness to onboard

an international partner like

Revolve that offers a great

portfolio of brands. She also

Foundation Jr. NBA activations

and game highlights on TVs at

the store.

The collaboration with Reliance

Retail would strengthen its

retail presence in India, said

NBA Senior Vice President

of International Licensing

and Business Development,

Rob Millman. He also added

that, “As the NBA continues

to become more popular in

India, we make sure they

have the same opportunities

as Americans. That’s why we

expanded our availability”.

Reliance Retail President &

CEO (fashion and lifestyle)

Akhilesh Prasad was equally

thrilled and said: “Our goal is

to ensure that Reliance Retail

stores are the go-to destination

for NBA fans across the

country.”

mentioned that Revolve’s

approach to fashion is an ideal

match of diversity and inclusion

along with style, and celebrityloved

offerings with dedicated

sustainable goals.

The partnership with Nykaa

Fashion is a natural fit that

aligns with Revolve’s brand

principles, which aim to deliver

an elevated customer experience

with their wide catalogue of

international styles to the

Indian market, said Kai Li, Vice

President at Revolve. He added

that he is equally excited to

work with Nykaa Fashion.

SNIPS

Reliance Brands

to open its first

Valentino

boutique store in

New Delhi

Premium

menswear

brand Selected

Homme launches

a new digital

campaign

with brand

ambassador Saif

Ali Khan

presenting the

brand’s Autumn/

Winter 2022

collection

Alia Bhatt’s D2C

fashion brand

Ed-a-Mamma

plans to expand

its reach in

international

markets

Raw Mango

launches new

collection

‘Peacock Country’

Luxury kidswear

brand Les Petits

launches exclusive

collection for the

Indian festive

season

Monte Carlo

Fashions records

revenue growth of

5 per cent in Q2 of

FY ’23


RETAIL RIGHT / INTERNATIONAL

THE SECRET SAUCE OF TARGET

DEMOGRAPHICS IN SOCIAL COMMERCE

-BUYING PATTERN OF DIFFERENT GENERATIONS

Global social commerce sales are

estimated at US $ 992 billion

in 2022 with a prediction to

reach nearly US $ 3 trillion by

2026 as per online data shared

by Statista. It’s no secret that

social media has taken the

world by storm. What started

out as a way to connect with

friends and family has quickly

morphed into a powerful

marketing and sales tool for

businesses of all sizes. The

Digital 2022 Global Overview

report found that people

spend an average of 2 hours

and 27 minutes each day on

social media, which is more

than one-third of all the time

people aged between 16 to 64

spend online. And it’s not just

for the same platform. The

report says that each month,

7.5 social media platforms are

visited.

And while many businesses

are still trying to figure out

how to make social media

work for them, there are some

businesses that are really good

at it and use it to drive traffic

to their e-commerce sites,

collect customer data, improve

the customer experience and

sell products by understanding

the different generations of

buyers which are Gen Z (age

18-24), millennials (age 25-

40), Gen X (age 41-56) and

Baby Boomers (age 57-74).

Different

generations,

different social

commerce

interactions

Factors such as staying in

touch with friends and family,

searching for solutions and

information, looking for ideas

and sources of entertainment,

promoting professional and

personal networks, and of

course, buying and selling

are some of the major uses of

social media for people.

Mark Mcintyre, CEO of Max

audience says, “Social media

is driven by the interests of

a specific person, you just

look at the demographics

and each demographic has a

different personality but you

don’t just think about it as the

demographic’s personality.

You have to also layer in the

age of all those people in that

demographic.”

Social media purchasing habits

are largely based on individual

interests, but the age of the

person also has a bearing

on which channels they use.

Baby Boomers or Parents, for

example, may turn to Facebook

to interact with other parents,

while teenagers might turn to

Snapchat. Each generation has

a different way of using social

media, which influences their

purchase patterns.



Another example is Facebook.

As per a study, its popularity

is declining among younger

generations with only 36 per

cent of Generation Z using

Facebook at least once a week,

compared to 87 per cent of

millennials, 90 per cent of

Generation X and 96 per cent

of baby boomers.

Gen Z (aged 18-

24) wants 24/7

customer service

This is one of the generations

that doesn’t keep in touch

with family via social media

but use social media to kick

off their status and buying

64%

of Gen Z consumers

expect a more

personalised

experience on social

media based on

previous interactions

61%

of Gen Z consumers

want companies to

know them better

based on their social

media activity

52%

of Gen Z consumers

expect companies

to read and analyse

their social media

posts

35%

of GenZ reach out to

companies on social

media to express

love for a product or

service

needs. With 43 per cent

having already purchased

natively from a social media

platform, Gen Z consumers

have increased their use of

social media in the last year,

and 45 per cent expect it to

continue to increase over the

next three years. This is and

will continue to be a huge

trend driver across the social

media landscape.

This is a generation that is

all about instant gratification

- what they want, when

they want but they don’t

jump through hoops to get

it. That’s why social selling

is so effective with this

demographic. Generation Z

is the most technologically

savvy and diverse generation

yet. They rely heavily on

social media for reviews and

recommendations and are less

likely to sign up for loyalty

programmes despite looking

for ways to save money.

Instead, they prefer engaging

with brands that use social

selling techniques. Platforms

like Snapchat, Instagram

and Tik Tok are the most

important medium now for

them for buying or selling

any product. With the

generation’s least patience, it’s

very important to grab their

attention span in the 5-second

window.

“If they see something their

friends are using or talking

about, they are much more

likely to take the leap and

buy it themselves. So, if

you’re looking to market

to Generation Z, focus on

your social media presence

and make sure you are using

social selling techniques.

You’ll be able to reach them

where they are already

spending the majority of their

time and you’ll be able to

connect with them on a

level that resonates,” said a

spokesperson of a high-end

brand.

Hence brands are creating

shareable and visually

effective infographics to

appeal to Generation Z, and

so they need to be authentic

and transparent.

Millennials (Aged

25-40) are way too

experimental

The Millennial generation

is the first generation to

come of age of technology.

Being an open-minded and

tolerant generation, they

use social and other digital

technologies to connect

with brands. They are most

likely than other generations

to purchase products and

services through social media

61%

millennials use

social media to

communicate with

family, friends and

acquaintances

51%

millennials use

social media to kill

time

47%

millennials use

social media to learn

about new trends

43%

millennials use

social media to get

breaking news

platforms and even research

the products and services.

Marketing strategies

that work well with this

generation includes social

media marketing, influencer

marketing and content

marketing. They prefer brands

with lower prices rather than

price drops from offers and

deals. They expect authentic

brand messaging and seek

out brands that support social

or environmental causes and

price-to-value ratio. This

hyper-connected generation

relies on user-generated

content, which makes word-ofmouth

advertising more potent

than ever before. Instagram

remains their favourite social

media handles to access

information and interact

and make online purchases

followed by e-commerce

platforms.

Generation X

(Aged 41-56)

stays at one arm’s

distance from social

media transactions

Generation Xers are a unique

bunch who are triggered by

‘Nostalgia’. They’re the ones

who came of age in the wake

of the hippie movement.

One of the most common

misconceptions is that

Generation X do not buy

anything online. The buying

power of this demographic

is often overlooked because

they are not as active on social

media as millennials.

However, this generation is

more cautious and skeptical of

brands and enjoys thorough

research, and prefers to stick

to what they know. Having

various buying habits that

differ from those of millennials

and baby boomers, one thing



remains the same - they tend

to be independent, resourceful

and self-sufficient and are

incredibly adept at using

technology but using social

media for shopping is rare in

their cases.

Social media is a place to

keep in touch with family

and friends and participate

in any community activity

online. They usually share

their opinion online and are

very much influenced by the

compelling user-generated

content in digital marketing

campaigns.

“There’s no question that Gen

Xers are a key demographic

for e-commerce platforms

like Amazon or Alibaba,

and they continue to be a

loyal customer base. In fact,

a recent study found that 80

per cent of Gen Xers say they

trust e-commerce platforms

more because it’s easy for

them to research products,

compare prices and get great

deals without even leaving

their houses.”

It’s clear that Amazon is

doing something right when

it comes to attracting and

retaining Gen Xer customers.

With their combination of

great deals, convenience and

customer reviews, they have

created a shopping experience

that is tailored specifically to

the needs and wants of this

important demographic.

Baby Boomers

(Aged 57-74) are

underrated and

may turn the

trend with impulse

buying

As the world becomes more

and more digital, social media

is increasingly becoming a key

way for businesses to market

40%

of Baby Boomers

view social media as

an essential part of

their lives and

73%

use it to stay

connected with

friends and family.

their products and services. For

example, Baby Boomers were

hesitant to embrace online

shopping when it first became

popular in the late 1990s/early

2000s. According to Forbes,

baby boomers’ control 70 per

cent of the disposable income

in the United States. But

now, seniors are among the

fastest-growing demographic

of online shoppers globally.

In fact, baby boomers account

for US $ 7 trillion in annual

spending despite only 36 per

cent of them using social

media for buying. Facebook

and LinkedIn are the most

important platforms for baby

boomers. They use Facebook

groups for community

building, purchases, and

product discovery.

In addition, baby boomers are

more likely to make impulse

purchases than any other age

group. This is because they are

less likely to do research before

making a purchase and tapping

them surely means reaching

out to a large number of buyers

who are likely to do impulse

purchases.

With customers preferring

the online platform more,

companies have to adapt and

find ways to engage with

them through social media.

This has created a whole

new set of challenges for

businesses, which now need

to consciously address how

they engage with different

demographics on social

media. By understanding

social performance in

relation to key demographics,

companies can figure out

what content resonates with

their customer base and

identify market trends that

can influence how and where

they show up online.

It’s no longer enough to have

a presence on social media;

businesses need to be active

and engage in conversations

that are happening online. By

understanding demographic

data, companies can adjust

their social media strategy

to better reach their target

audiences. This is especially

important as social media

use continues to grow among

the older generation. While

younger people are still the

most active users of social

media, adoption rates among

adults aged 35 and up are

increasing rapidly. In order

to stay ahead of the curve,

businesses need to understand

how different demographics

use social media and what

kind of content resonates

with them. Only then can

they create a strategy that will

ensure they’re reaching the

right people with the right

message and have greater

consumers instead of visitors.

We wonder, what Generation

Alpha will be looking for!!


RETAIL RIGHT / NEWS


LVMH sales jump by 19% in the third quarter, as

a strong dollar boosts Europe demand

LVMH beat market forecasts

in the third quarter, posting a

brisk rise in sales as Americans

in Europe made the most of

Marks & Spencer introduces new digital payment

option ‘Sparks Pay’

To offer a more personalised

and digitally-driven customer

experience and reposition

the business for future

growth, Marks& Spencer

has introduced a new digital

payment option exclusively for

its M&S Sparks membership

customers.

‘Sparks Pay’ consists of a

digital credit account, offering

‘one-click’ purchases and

balance tracking.

It comes as Marks & Spencer

continues to see success

with its M&S Sparks loyalty

programme, which it noted has

grown to 16 million customers

since its launch in 2020.

Customers can apply for

credit online through digital

channels, obtain credit

decisions online for up to 500

pounds, and receive up to 45

days of interest-free credit. Full

the strong dollar along with

improved business in China

due to partial easing of health

restrictions. As per reports,

credit and affordability checks

are also in place.

Retailer’s CEO, Paul Spencer

said in a statement that he

was thrilled to be offering a

new and simple way to pay

for Sparks customers that are

carefully linked with Marks

& Spencer and offer a smooth

The Fashion & Leather

Goods business group recorded

revenue growth of 31 per cent

in the first nine months of 2022

(24 per cent in organic).

With growth continuing at the

same pace, sales reached US $

19.2 billion, up by 19 per cent

as compared to last year.

”Europe, the United States

and Japan, up sharply since

the start of the year, benefited

from the solid demand of local

customers and the recovery in

international travel,” the group

said in its press release.

online shopping and payment

experience, further expanding

options to pay.

‘Sparks Pay’ is initially rolling

out through a phased launch

across the British retailer’s

website and app and later

would expand nationwide

during 2023.

SNIPS

Nike selects JD

Sports and Zalando

as partners for

the Connected

Partnership

programme

Mango launches

collection to

support breast

cancer research

Superdry climbing

steadily towards

profitability; has

announced its

financial results

for the fiscal year

ending 30 April

2022, reporting

an adjusted profit

before tax of £ 21.9

million

Swedish fashion

giant H&M

witnesses fall in

profits owing to

Russia exit

UK’s LK Bennett

sees its gross

profit surge by 55

per cent to £ 21.7

million

UK brand Sweaty

Betty reports a 45

per cent increase in

FY turnover

HanesBrands

teams up with

the University of

California, Berkeley,

as Primary Apparel

Partner



RETAIL RIGHT / NEWS

Levi’s cuts 2022 profit forecast due to weaker demand and a

strong dollar

Levi Strauss & Co., lowered

its full-year profit forecast

owing to declining demand

and a strengthening US

dollar, adding to the concerns,

and sending shares down

by 6 per cent in extended

trading. With decades of

high inflation, consumers are

shifting their focus away from

high-priced products and

apparel to everyday products,

which is also impacting

Levi’s profits. The company

is more cautious about doing

business in Europe and US

as consumers in the region

face much higher inflation

and higher energy costs, as

well as consumers in the US

are also having quite a bit of

trouble with inflation and

thoughts of recession, said

the CEO Charles Bergh

and analyst Jessica Ramirez

respectively. They also added

that people will be more

concerned about where

they spend their money this

holiday season.

Levi’s adjusted gross margin

was 56.9 per cent, down 60

basis points from a year ago,

due to the rapidly rising

dollar and higher

product costs.

The jeans maker, which has

faced supply chain disruptions

since the pandemic began,

now worsened by the Russia-

Ukraine war, has raised prices

on its denim to combat rising

costs.

Levi’s expects full-year net

sales growth of 6.7 per cent

to 7.0 per cent or 11.5 per

cent to 12 per cent at constant

exchange rates. Previously,

the company had forecast net

sales growth of 11 per cent

to 13 per cent. In 2022, the

company now expects adjusted

earnings of US $ 1.44 to US

$ 1.49 per share, compared to

the previous US $ 1.50 to

US $ 1.56.

Victoria’s Secret & Co.’s third quarter results confirm Q3

forecasts

Operating income for Victoria’s

Secret & Co.’s third quarter

is projected to be near the top

of its previously announced

guidance range of US $ 10

million to US $ 40 million,

and earnings are projected

to be towards the previously

communicated guidance

range of US $ 0.00 to US $

0.25 per diluted share. “Led

by our two category-defining

brands and a global business

positioned to increase market

share, our goal is clear – to be

the world’s leading fashion

retailer of intimate apparel,”

said Chief Executive Officer,

Martin Waters. He added,

“Our company’s dominant

market position in the

domestic intimate category

is a crucial asset and area for

expansion. We are inspired by

the response of our consumers

to our brand transformation

and we’re still committed

to building Victoria’s Secret

reputation that both consumers

and our employees deserve.”

Victoria’s Secret outlined

three strategic growth pillars

for better performance ahead

including: Firstly ‘Strengthen

the Core’: expanding market

share in key categories of bras,

intimates and beauty, while

being more inclusive and

drawing in a wider customer

base with more engaging

storytelling in both offline

stores and online. Secondly

‘Ignite Growth’: expanding the

company’s global reach through

international partners, adding

new brands and concentrating

on markets and clientele that

are underrepresented in the

portfolio of the company

Finally, ‘Transform the

Foundation’, by building a

modern, high-performing

organisation to deliver

efficiencies and to invest in

people and culture Martin

Waters also added, “We

have created a solid financial

platform during the last 15

months as a public company.

With our new operating

structure in place, we now have

even greater agility and an

aligned focus on our customers

and our strategic priorities.”


EXPERT SPEAKS

D2C IN INDIA:

OPPORTUNITIES,

CHALLENGES AND

SOLUTIONS

BERRY SINGH

COO, ACE TURTLE

Even though the direct-to-consumer

(D2C) model has been around since

2015, it gained popularity during the

pandemic in 2020. According to Inc42,

more than 800 Indian D2C brands are

already clocking over US $ 2 billion in

sales. However, the real challenge lies

in growing the business in the face of

increasing competition. Many people have

a hard time finding growth drivers and

putting them into action on a large scale.

India’s 700 million internet users and

180-190 million online shoppers make

it the third-largest market for D2C

brands after the US and China. In 2020,

consumer demand for most D2C brands

via website rose by 88 per cent compared

to the years before Covid-19. The Indian

D2C market is currently believed to be

worth US $ 1.9 billion, about 1 per cent

of the domestic market for consumer

goods, home goods and consumer

accessories. By FY ’25, it is expected to

be worth around US $ 22 billion, more

than 10 per cent of the total market.

According to a survey, more than 50

per cent of people prefer to buy directly

from a brand’s maker. Some of the

main reasons for this retail revolution

are Gen Y’s shopping habits, the rise of

consumers in India and the increasing

reliability of e-commerce enablers and

payment gateways. Another factor

contributing to the D2C boom is the

ease of setting up online stores, made

possible by start-ups and new-age

companies that have developed payment

infrastructure, filled in the gaps in

logistics, provided technology to brands,

and made it possible for them to create

online storefronts. So how can brands tap

into these opportunities while battling

the challenges? Read on to find out.

Key challenges faced by

D2C brands

For D2C brands, product and marketing

are the two biggest focus areas. They

should explore outsourcing other

functions to partners who have domain

expertise. The challenges faced by D2C

brands in the early breakthrough periods

can hinder e-commerce growth - from

sales conversion to logistical delays.

Here are three challenges faced by D2C

business models:

Customer Retention

Many D2C brands have relied on customer

loyalty to stay in business, but customer

loyalty is slowly becoming short-lived.

And the basic reason is simple – they

seek simplicity and comfort. For example,

instead of shopping from several D2C

outlets, they may shop at an online

marketplace with all offerings such as

Amazon, Flipkart, Myntra etc.

Even D2C customers may not stay loyal

if their preferred product is sold out or

if other brands provide similar products.

According to a survey by Profitero, during

the pandemic, up to 53 per cent of people

bought something from a different brand

than the one they had planned to buy. To

retain customers, D2C brands need to

stand out by giving customers something

they can’t get anywhere else and do it fast.

Cost of Acquisition

For D2C brands, social media is the

best way to reach to new customers. But

as competition has grown, the cost per

thousand impressions on social media sites

has gone up. More companies are trying

to get people’s attention. Also, because

platforms don’t share data in the same way,

companies may put a lot of money into

one channel without realising it doesn’t

bring in high-value customers.

D2C marketers need advanced

technologies that can collect and merge

user data from a wide range of channels

so that they can figure out where their

customers are coming from. Most

marketers don’t want to gather this

information manually as it’s too hard and

prone to errors, given that customers visit

several channels.

Order Fulfillment

Managing logistics well is another big

problem that needs to be solved, especially

for small or medium-sized D2C players.

As a D2C brand grows, the number of

orders increases and it gets harder to

manage day-to-day business. Keeping

track of inventory levels, picking, packing,

and shipping are all things that get

increasingly challenging as the business

scales significantly.

Working capital

D2C companies often have their markets

divided into various zones with their

own sales teams and demand planners.

These teams come up with their own

sales forecast which may not reflect the


EXPERT SPEAKS

actual demand patterns. They also face the

challenge of inventory visibility over every

point in the supply chain. Moreover, there

is always a possibility of human error or bias

which will result in overstocking and wasted

working capital. Hence there is a need to

optimise inventory to make efficient use of

available working capital.

Opportunities for D2C

brands

As more people go online, it gives D2C

brands the perfect opportunity to meet their

needs. Here are some of the opportunities

that D2C brands can take advantage of:

Inclination towards

Digitisation

Digitisation has given brands access to the

data they did not have earlier. This gives the

brands access to data, which can be used

to tailor the customer experience. For one,

brands can reach out to their customers in

a much more precise and targeted way. Gen

Z customers that rely heavily on digital

media for trends are more inclined to try

new brands and make online purchases

for themselves. This increasing trend

of personal purchasing aligns perfectly

with D2C’s targeted and personalised

shopping proposition.

Push towards sustainability

Most millennials and Gen Z customers

care about more things than just buying

a product. They think about how

their purchase decisions will affect the

environment and their future. This is why

they prefer to shop from environmentallyconscious

brands. Unsurprisingly, in the

next ten years, more D2C companies will

put sustainability at the centre of what

they do. Brands will also use missions

that attract shoppers from different

backgrounds to make a stronger connection

with them based on hope and happiness.

As more D2C start-ups emerge in India,

investors will become more interested

in this industry. It won’t be far-fetched

to say that D2C brands will lead the

current decade’s retail revolution. This

is because digitalisation is moving faster

and consumers’ shopping habits are

changing significantly. The fragmented

customer base will help both small and

major D2C retailers to not only coexist

but also flourish.

Omnichannel Strategy

Customers today opt for retailers which

offer a consistent and seamless experience

across all touchpoints. When a potential

customer goes to a brand’s website,

they can get a complete picture of the

products, their prices and the different

ways they can connect with the brand.

Even so, not all Indian shoppers like to

buy things online. So, if brands want to

be successful in a hybrid ecosystem, they

should use an omnichannel strategy. This

strategy helps to combine online and

offline channels to raise brand awareness,

reach customers online or in person, and

create an amicable relationship between

the brand and its customers. The key to

ensuring that e-commerce store meets the

goal of omnichannel shopping is to use

technology platforms like Rubicon.


COVER STORY

The increasing participation of women in sports activities and the promotion of activewar as

casualwear has led to the expansion of the activewear market in India

INNOVATION IN ACTIVEWEAR

PROPELLING ITS STEADY

GROWTH

In the US, Target’s activewear brand All

in Motion hit US $ 1 billion in sales one

year after launching. In India, the biggest

retail giant, Reliance Retail is expanding

the presence of its high-performance

and technologically advanced activewear

brand ‘Performax’ through exclusive

brand outlets (EBOs) at Reliance Retail’s

fashion and lifestyle stores and digital

platforms as well as in multi-brand outlets.

It already has a presence across over 1000

stores in 330+ cities. Just six months back,

Van Heusen of Aditya Birla Fashion and

Retail Ltd (ABFRL), a premium lifestyle

brand for professionals, entered into the

activewear category and launched a new

sub-brand ‘Flex’. There are many more

such examples that show how across the

globe, brands and retailers have tilted

towards the activewear category. Indeed,

across all levels, be it D2C brands,

celebrity brands, budding start-ups and

Instagram sellers, the activewear product

category is in constant demand from the

last few years.

Compared to various markets across the

globe, India is the fastest-growing market

of this segment growing at the rate of

13.9 per cent CAGR. Combination of

innovations with fashion is the most

significant factor leading to the growth

of this product category which is further

supported by the active lifestyle of

people. Blurring lines with many product

categories like workwear or workout wear

is also an important supporting factor

contributing to the demand. Various

market studies are also bullish about the

growth trajectory in India - from a market

size of US $ 5.83 billion in 2018, the

Indian market for activewear is estimated

to reach US $ 12.47 billion by 2024

(footwear includes approximately 50 per

cent). At the global level, the activewear

market is expected to have an effective


COVER STORY

Shweta Bhatia

Abhay Bahugune

Ujjawal Asthana

CAGR of 6.4 per cent during the period

of 2022-2032 and it is expected to expand

from US $ 421 billion in 2022 to US

$ 779 billion in 2032. Growth is also

enjoyed majorly by the companies that are

dedicated to the combination of fashion

and innovations.

Industry stalwarts are strongly of the

observation that people are incorporating

wellness routine in their lifestyle which

is leading the activewear market to

grow which in turn offers numerous

opportunities for the entire value chain

like apparel manufacturers, textile mills,

finishers and retailers. But this segment

Dollar Industries’ leggings

is now overcrowded as many players

are there. However, irrespective of the

growing number of brands, this segment

will have continuous demand going ahead.

Activewear is connected with an active

lifestyle be it working out in the gym,

office or public place. People especially

millennials have fitness as their top

priority but don’t necessarily always see

themselves as sports-centric, so activewear

is timeless, comfort and design-driven

and with functional aspects. Activewear

products possess strengths like being

water-resistant, 4-way stretch, moisture

wicking, air permeability, easy dry,

NG Apparels

ergonomic design, anti-bacterial and antimicrobial

formulations.

Looking at the opportunities in the

activewear segment, Eight Roads

Ventures, a global venture capital

firm, recently invested in BlissClub,

a D2C women’s activewear brand

which is on track to hit Rs. 100 crore

in annual revenue run-rate. Shweta

Bhatia, Partner, Head of technology

investments, Eight Roads Ventures,

India says, “Activewear has become one

of the fastest-growing apparel categories

globally, including in India, driven by

an increasing interest in fitness and shift

towards comfortable clothing.”

Youth leading the demand

Like fast fashion, youth, especially

millennials and Generation Y, Z are the

flag bearers of the demand for activewear.

And they are the best target audience

for companies geared up to grow in this

product category.

Abhay Bahugune, COO, Van Heusen

says, “With the growing popularity of

sports and home fitness, young consumers

are seeking comfortable and functional

active/sportswear. Our Flex range is

targeted at self-driven, passionate, stylish,

tech-savvy, ambitious and assertive young

professionals who are focused on health

and wellness.”

And interestingly, women have a

significant share in this category with

women-specific products like sports

bra, leggings having good demand. And


COVER STORY

Activewear, sportswear and

performancewear

With the common thread of active lifestyle, these segments

are used interchangeably but there are differences. Indeed,

there is no strong and well-accepted demarcation between

these segments like causalwear and formalwear.

Activewear is where fashion meets performance and

wearing during exercise. Athleisure sits at the intersection of

exercise and leisure.

Brands believe that modern-day professionals seamlessly

shift between work and play. Style, creativity, innovation,

perfection, comfortable and yet fashionable are significant

aspects of this segment.

Clovia believes that extra-fancy activewear is the new

athleisure as it offers activewear products that can be styled

as athleisurewear.

There is a gradual blurring of lines between work attire

and workout attire due to global factors like celebrity

collaborations with D2C and designer activewear brands. In

fact, this is with many product categories.

To differentiate, sportswear is designed specifically for

sports purposes, while activewear is designed to transition

from exercisewear to casualwear. Certain functions

like comfort, specific fabric weight and sport-specific

(Swimming, Cycling etc.) requirements are significant

factors differentiating both categories.

Prasanta Sarkar, an apparel expert believes that activewear

is casual, comfortable clothing suitable for sports or

exercise whereas athleisure is casual, comfortable clothing

designed to be suitable both for exercise and everyday wear.

Athleisure clothes are perfect for travelling and walking.

Plus size activewear by All In Motion (Target)

Zivame and Clovia, which started as

lingerie brands, are now present as leading

brands for women’s activewear. Reliance

Retail has a majority stake in both brands.

Having a specific focus on women’s

activewear, BlissClub was founded in

2020 by Minu Margeret and has raised

a total funding of US $ 20.25 million so

far. Minu Margeret says the company is

on track to hit Rs. 100 crore in annual

revenue run-rate. The company came up

with insanely comfortable activewear after

extensive R&D and surveys. There are

also brands like Spirit Animal, a premium

plus-size activewear brand that focuses on

the curvy woman.

A year ago, Radhika Shanker, a

professional footballer and Aditi Kakkar,

a national-level weightlifter and CrossFit

athlete launched Ochre Athletica

focusing on comfortable activewear that

doesn’t cause itching or tear off during

or after the workout. It has been also

observed that the increasing participation

of women and kids in sports activities

and the promotion of activewar as

casualwear has led to the expansion of

the activewear market in India.

Association with

celebrities

Film celebrities and sportspersons have

higher concern for their fitness and in the

Indian market, celebrities have a direct

connection with the activewear segment.

It’s going to be a decade now since actor

Hrithik Roshan launched his (co-owned)

brand HRX and thereafter, cricketer Virat

Kohli came up with Wrogn brand, and

in 2016, another actor Shahid Kapoor

came up with SKULT. Later Tiger Shroff

launched the activewear brand Prowl.

The majority of these brands have

performed well and are continuously

growing. HRX is now a Rs. 500 crore plus

brand, similarly, Wrogn is also doing well

and Porwal was launched on Flipkart in

October 2022. Abhishek Maloo, Senior

Director, Flipkart Fashion says, “Over

the past two years, we at Flipkart have

observed an increase in the demand for

activewear. With this segment becoming

more mainstream, its share of the closet


COVER STORY

as a fashion essential has increased

tremendously. We believe PROWL will

effectively cater to the increasing need for

fashionable and comfortable clothing.”

On the other hand, along with a focus

on innovations and creativity, various

brands are associated with celebrities

for their activewear products. Clovia

has associated with actress Payal Rajput,

Performax of Reliance has signed cricket

star and India’s top bowler, Jasprit

Bumrah as its brand ambassador.

Material is the core

All brands are on their toes for innovation

in activewear and the thrust is on raw

material. Target has highlighted that the

majority of ‘All In Motion’ activewear

incorporates sustainably sourced materials,

primarily including recycled polyester and

sustainably sourced cotton. Van Heusen

also has an innovative ‘reflect technology’

with reflective elements that look normal

during the day but glow in the dark.

Founded by Sanjana Masand, Seeq,

majorly uses a blend of nylon and spandex

(78:28 or 88:12), recycled polyester and

spandex etc., that are built with quickdrying

yarns, provide compression and

allow a four-way stretch with high

recovery. Heat-bonded seams and

ventilation design detail are also strengths

of the brand’s products. Bliss Club’s

leggings have features like deep pockets,

true ankle length and foldable waistbands.

Leading brands

Global:

Nike, Puma, ASICS,

FILA Decathlon,

Columbia Sportswear,

Lululemon, Sweaty

Betty, Alo Yoga

India:

HRX, Alcis, BlissClub,

Tego, Myriad

Activewear, c9,

Silvertraq, Ochre

Athletica, Kica,

SeeqActive

Budding start-ups DaMENSCH, Zymrat

(performance wear brand) have also

created a strong presence in the market

with their innovative products for men.

“At Zymrat, we believe that technology

elevates performance. And by combining

engineered fabrics with industry-first tech,

we’ve managed to launch world-beating

products. Our innovation is structured

and methodical, solving problems through

incremental benefits and tailored for

the Indian audience. All innovations at

Zymrat are led by a solution to a problem.

We made SuperSilva T-shirt to solve the

common problem of odour in products

that are sweat resultant, SuperVent to

add more breathability to the bottoms

and thereby solve the problem of fabric

sticking to the skin during intense

workouts, Centurion has been designed

to solve the problem of weight in running

T-shirts,” says Ujjawal Asthana, Co-

Founder, Zymrat.

Overseas brands have

strength of offering a

complete segment

Activewear includes footwear, apparel

and other few sports accessories (caps)

too. The strong presence of international

brands like Puma, adidas, Nike, Decathlon

etc., across all categories is strongly in

its favour. Puma India’s revenue was Rs.

2,044 crore for FY ’21 ended December.

At the same time, its massive experience

stores and engagements at stores attract

customers more.

Just last month PUMA launched its first

experiential store in Mumbai which is the

largest store in West India. The brand,

in the last one year, has launched two

other experiential stores in Gurugram and

in Bengaluru. Having highest turnover

among its peers, Puma has a total of 490

stores in India.

While few of the Indian brands have the

edge of offering similar apparel products

to these brands but at affordable prices.

The strong presence of Indian brands in

Overseas brands’ massive experience stores and engagements at stores attract customers more


COVER STORY

Arpit Aryan Gupta

smaller cities is also supportive towards

the growth of activewear.

Manufacturers in this segment that

have their own labels have also got the

advantage of their distributors’ reach

in Tier-3 and Tier-4 cities or villages.

E-commerce is also beneficial to the

industry as a whole.

Manufacturers enjoying

growth

The majority of manufacturers in this

segment are enthusiastic about rapid

and steady growth. Few of them are sure

about 15-20 per cent growth at least,

while there are companies that are geared

up to double their business in the next 3

to 4 years. Focus on innovation, quality

and quick turnaround are major factors

making them different from others.

Tirupur-based Techno Sports India, one

of the most respected manufacturers in

this segment, has integrated fashion and

technology to drive innovations in final

products. With a current revenue of Rs.

200 crore, it aims for five times growth

in the next 3 years. Sunil Jhunjhunwala,

Co-Founder & CEO, Techno Sport, an

ex-Microsoft engineer also has plans to

start a fabric unit as his thrust has been

innovation in fabrics.

“We have been collecting data on fabrics

and fibres for 8 years in order to develop

better garments. We have observed that

spandex is not good for activewear because

it decreases air permeability and increases

compression, so we ventured into using

Sunil Jhunjhunwala

polyester instead. We have also produced

mesh clothes with high air permeability.

These kinds of various elements are taken

care of in product manufacturing ensuring

our growth,” says Sunil. The company

spends 2 per cent of its annual revenue on

R&D, in close collaboration with Wool

Research Association (WRA), Thane.

He further adds that brands like Techno

Sports, achieved good growth as they

offered the greatest functional clothing

that gave a transforming experience while

keeping customer psychology in mind.

At the same time, the price range is also

affordable, unlike the globally wellknown

brands that are unaffordable for

the masses.

“Techno Sport is a firm believer in the fact

that Indian consumers do not give much

attention to tags or information; they want

a garment that meets their needs within

their limited budget,” avers Sunil.

Activewear is all about knit base, so

companies from knitting hubs like

Tirupur, Ludhiana are witnessing high

growth in this segment. Arpit Aryan

Gupta, Director, Marketing, NG

Apparels, a leading manufacturer of

activewear in Ludhiana says, “I have

seen almost a 400 per cent jump in

India’s activewear market as more and

more homegrown brands have now

started focusing on quality rather than

quantity and even consumers these days

are willing to pay the extra buck for

an international standard homegrown

product. I can expect the Indian

activewear market to go double in the

next 5 years.”

Overcrowded, not for

quality products

As per industry estimates, there are more

than 1000 brands across India which are

into activewear and with a growing focus

on the same, it will not be wrong to say

that this number is growing, so this space

is now overcrowded.

Although new brands and players

at different levels are coming in this

segment, but the majority of them are

offering regular products which lack

innovation especially functional aspects.

Hence, these kinds of products have

regular demand unlike the high demand

for proper activewear. So this segment

appears to be overcrowded.

Mojostar, a Mumbai-based company,

intending to co-create authentic, highimpact

indigenous brands in lifestyle

space, has launched Prowl brand.

Abhishek Verma, CEO of the company

believes, “There is a gap in the activewear

market for products that are meant for

hyperactive young Indians. Traditional

activewear brands have over-specified the

products, whereas young consumers want

simplified functional products that offer

great style. Products that help you look

amazing, are suited for multi-functional

movement and are easy to maintain, are

the needs of this market.”

Along with quality and innovation,

changing dynamics of the market and

economy are important aspects ensuring

the long-term demand for activewear.

“India is a manufacturing economy,

slowly shifting towards a consumer

economy which means the market is

going to expand further and with more

and more people having higher incomes

and international exposure, I believe

that the market is ‘not’ overcrowded

with ‘quality’ products. There is going

to be a huge demand for homegrown

brands now with a focus on quality and

innovations,” says Arpit.

Due to versatility and flexibility that

activewear offers, it is here to stay but the

market will be mainly for innovators only.



BUYING & SOURCING

DECODING B2B FASHION

MARKETPLACES AS THE

CONCEPT EXPANDS IN INDIA

As per Statista, the global B2B

e-commerce transactions totalled US

$ 12.2 trillion in 2019, and it may

have seen around 25 per cent growth

in last two years! One of the most

prominent trends in B2B e-commerce

is the rise of the B2B Marketplace.

By now, the fashion industry may

have a fair idea about what a B2B

Marketplace is all about! The impact of

this online marketplace model cannot

be understated, as it has redefined

the business relationship between

B2B buyers and sellers and acts as a

networking point.

The concept is seeing strong adoption

level in the global fashion businesses

and India is not behind too! More

B2B Marketplaces are marking their

presence in the Indian industry and

are trying to revamp the ruptured

conventional fashion supply chains by

taking almost all laid-down processes

on to the digital platform.

The advantage being, unlike before,

suppliers and buyers need not invest

time and resources to search each other

and worry about their order status as

well as financial transactions.

The fact of the matter is that a large

part of the traditional supply chain

in textile and apparel industry faced

a significant setback during Covid-19

and stakeholders such as large

manufacturers, SMEs, distributers

as well as retailers underwent severe

efficiency loss in the key procurement

processes, especially where sourcing

decisions were taken in an unorganised

Dr. Stephen Patton

Director of Sourcing (South Asia),

Liverpool Mexico

environment that lacked both

credibility and accountability!

These disruptions pushed forth for the

evolution of B2B Marketplaces that

emerged strongly to offer B2B buying

and sourcing through online platforms

at reasonable prices and shorter

delivery times.

So, how do these platforms work?

These Marketplaces have members

from various segments on buying and

vendor’s sides who can place orders and

cater to these orders. To get associated

with Marketplaces, there are business

models like subscription, listing fees

and commission, and the companies

can choose what works best for them.

Anuj George

Head of SaaS, Zilingo

Why to go for a B2B

Marketplace?

Traditional B2B sales in the fashion

industry have the following complexities

that differentiate them from the B2C

model. All these factors are taken into

consideration by the company building

and managing a B2B Marketplace:

• Long purchase cycle

• Price can vary depending on product

changes and the quantity of items

• Bulk sales usually; samples needed

• Different payment types and

international payment issues

• Logistics and distribution issues

• Document and bureaucratic issues


BUYING & SOURCING

B2B Marketplaces are creating better

online supply chains within the industry

and pondering upon the existing gaps

between buyers and sellers.

“The fashion brands have adopted

technology a little better because endconsumers

are evolving. They are dealing

with millennials and Gen-Z crowd and

these consumers have seen some fashion

statements on social media. Therefore,

brands are obviously adopting things

faster than factories and manufacturers

are still trying to cope with the rapidly

evolving trends. The reason being –

communication gap between brands

and vendors. And this is what a B2B

Marketplace tries to solve. In this effort,

every MP tries to develop a kind of

supply chain that works well for both the

parties,” commented Anuj George, Head

of SaaS, Zilingo.

Following are the two examples of how

B2B Marketplaces are finding solutions

for prolonged issues of the industry and

developing their partners through their

journey:

• ReshaMandi has tied up with

farmers and has given them an IoT

device.

• Zilingo has partnered with factories

to make them cost-effective through

its tech-enabled tools.

For a fashion brand that has its own

manufacturing, there is a valid argument

“B2B marketplaces can

perhaps solve fashion’s

one of the biggest issues -

high rate of online returns!

Returns of apparel items

on e-commerce platforms

is as high as 33% which is

a sheer wastage of time,

money and efforts”

- Nimish Dave

B2B Marketplace – 6 critical functions

1. Multi-vendor capabilities: A key function of a good B2B

Marketplace solution is that it allows you to control your

company page and information. You should have access to

manage your profile, content information, contact details,

pricing pages and your team’s role management.

2. Self-service functions: It’s often the case that individuals

prefer to place orders themselves rather than having to

interact with customer service representatives. Therefore,

a solid B2B e-commerce marketplace has features that

enable this self-service model if companies choose to

do so. B2B Marketplaces need to be highly responsive

and intuitive to create an enjoyable user experience. For

example, when buyers seek out solutions for their business,

they often have to ask for quotes, submit orders, or track

shipments – the B2B Marketplace you choose should

support these functions.

3. Information security functions: Just like with any

digital platform, data and information security and

confidentiality are essential for organisations to feel secure

and comfortable using the platform. Ensure that the B2B

Marketplace you choose places emphasis on protecting

your private information so that you don’t need to worry

about data breaches.

4. Easy-to-use search navigation: A key aspect to a B2B

Marketplace is the ability to filter and search for specific

vendors and businesses. The right marketplace platform

has easy-to-use search functions that enable you to filter

sellers by brand, price range, and product availability

quickly and accurately.

5. Fast, flexible workflows: Flexibility and speed need to be

the cornerstone of your B2B Marketplace. We’ve all seen

how quickly markets and industries can change, and your

e-commerce functions need to be able to adapt alongside

them. Buyers and sellers need to be able to rely on a flexible

and customisable platform that allows them to personalise

onboarding strategies, change order submission and

processing practices, and replenish supplies when

necessary,

6. Integration options: The best technologies can work

alongside your existing apps and tools. Make sure that you

find a B2B e-commerce marketplace with functions that

seamlessly collaborate with any other software solutions

your organisation uses. This leads to a more streamlined

process and a better experience for both buyers and sellers.

Courtesy: Tradeshift


BUYING & SOURCING

Akhil Duggar Jain

Executive Director, MADAME

Vikram Singh

Sr. VP (Global Sourcing),

DBS Lifestyle

Nimish Dave

Founder, The Idea Smith

they have on this entire scenario.

According to Akhil Duggar Jain,

Executive Director of MADAME – a

renowned home-grown fashion brand

that also has Jain Amar Clothing Pvt.

Ltd., by its side as parent company, the

go-to strategy for a brand should be how

to create better and agile supply chain

and see how a B2B Marketplace assists

in that.

“Around 70 per cent of the products

that we sell through our brand is being

“Online marketplace

poses great opportunities

to fashion industry with

around US $ 30 billion

worth of market which is

poised to grow to US $ 300

billion in next 10 years. The

alignment of companies

that are building B2B

marketplaces is important

with this massive value.”

- Vikram Singh

produced from our factory. However,

as we are continuing to grow, there

seems to be an obvious need for a

third-party B2B supply chain which

is becoming significant need for us,”

mentioned Akhil.

Another important aspect while

discussing the functioning and offerings

of a B2B Marketplace is – how does a

company create demand for products/

services on Marketplace before there is

enough supply and vice-versa?

Dr. Stephen Patton, Director of

Sourcing (South Asia), Liverpool

Mexico has his say on this. He

elaborated, “Innovation has outpaced

adoption. By the time companies are

ready to adopt a concept, innovation

reaches to next level! A factory can ask

to explore what the buyers are looking

for and stop selling that they themselves

want to manufacture but start producing

what people (end-consumers) are asking.

It takes a little time to adopt. Modifying

a supply chain takes nine to ten months,

while changing a product line/collection

takes two to three weeks.”

Key expectation of

a buyer from a B2B

Marketplace

Buyers, as they say, are the ones that

drive the growth of manufacturing

factories by placing orders there. Buyers

and factories, thereby, need to be aware

of each other and a Marketplace needs

to be seen from that perspective so

that the experience on a digital B2B

platform can be enhanced for buyers in

terms of ease of finding factories, ease

of order placement and execution etc.

However, the key question here remains

– what is the working experience of

a buyer from a Marketplace? What

features do they believe are of more

value and what more do they expect?

Stephen asserted, “In our case, which

is Liverpool Retail Group, customers

expect a type of product with certain

quality level. They do not go into details

if it is direct sourcing or third-party

sourcing. It’s a series of assumptions

they make that are based on the

historical contacts of what the brand

represents to them. We have to ensure

that whatever we sell, should be aligned

to the company’s values. If it is not

aligned, it’s our name that takes the hit!

In order to manage these expectations,

brands need to align themselves

accordingly with suppliers if both are

associated on a Marketplace, monitor

quality and lead time closely. That’s a

simple but foremost expectation.”


MANUFACTURING

EASTMAN EXPORTS

GLOBAL CLOTHING ON

GROWTH PATH, OPENING

OFFICES OVERSEAS

Despite tough challenges that

apparel exporters are facing, few of the

companies are continuously growing

and one such company is Tirupur-based

Eastman Exports Global Clothing.

The company recently opened its office

in the US and it is also in the process

to have offices in the Middle East and

UK. The knitted garment giant is also

expanding its manufacturing capacity.

The company, completing 40 years,

works with more than 30 top brands

and retailers like Gap, Tommy Hilfiger,

Board Riders Group, Decathlon,

Balmain and Harley Davidson etc., and

it has a turnover of more than US $ 250

million. In the long run, the company

also has a plan to launch its Initial

Public Offering (IPO).

S.Prakash, Whole Time Director, Eastman Exports Global Clothing

Positive about the overall market

conditions, S.Prakash, Whole Time

Director of the company told Apparel

Online (AO), “Our US office is mainly

a subsidiary office working like a

marketing office. The office also

has an American designer and one

representative from India. We feel that

being close to the US, we can convert a

lot of customers.”

He further added that despite ups and

downs in the market, India has a lot

of business opportunities in exports,

especially looking at the opportunities

that are still growing like the

Government’s strong efforts on FTA.

This is why the company will open

offices in the Middle East and UK.

Mainly offering fashion products in

men’s, women’s and kidswear, Eastman

has vertically integrated operations and

its own domestic brand ‘Hue Trap’ is

being synergised in terms of technical

know-how, infrastructure and design

inputs.

‘Eastman Brands’ vertical of the

company, a unique concept to support

emerging brands and start-ups, is also

strongly marking its presence in the

domestic market.

“We are not missing on any front, be

it manufacturing, marketing, export or

domestic or product category. Though we

are a fashion product company catering

to top brands and retailers, 3-4 per cent

of our total business is coming from

underwear exports,” S.Prakash says.

Though many companies of Tirupur,

Coimbatore have their manufacturing

units in overseas as well as in other

Indian states, Eastman strongly believes

that there is a lot of potential still to

be tapped in India itself – many job

opportunities can be created as and

when one can add new facilities.

“Land and labour is an integral part

of our industry and yes there are

few exporters who have moved to

other states, but as far as Eastman is

concerned, we believe that land and

labour are available in our state, we

have to do a thorough study on that

region and erect the facility accordingly,”

confirms S.Prakash.

The company is also strong on the

sustainability and CSR front as it has

taken many steps for its staff as well

as society covering skill development,

education and scholarships for

employees and their children.

“We have a dedicated manufacturing

unit operated by only women and

almost 2000 women are part of this unit.

It is rare in the Indian apparel industry,”

Prakash says proudly.

Founded by N. Chandaran, Eastman

Exports is now a 4-decades-old group

and it has many feathers in its cap like

the company has its first dyeing plant

in the region to achieve Zero Liquid

Discharge (ZLD).


MANUFACTURING

Tailor and Circus: Not in the business of making underwear but in the business of making people love themselves

KOLKATA AND TIRUPUR

ENSURING THEIR GROWTH IN

INNERWEAR WITH DIFFERENT

FOCUS ALTOGETHER

Innerwear market in India has been

sustainably growing for years, the

reason being the unorganised sector

moving towards being organised to

a great extent. The focus of Indian

consumers is rapidly shifting towards

buying right, and inclination towards

healthy lifestyle is also contributing

to the growth of innerwear segment.

Millennials and GenZ consider fashion

underwear a status symbol today as

they tend to change their innerwear

every 6 months on an average, as per

various reports.

Taking advantage of these demand

drivers, Kolkata and Tirupur – the

Nearly all the leading

brands of Kolkata have

facilities in Tirupur also but

the product focus of these

brands is mainly basic

garments in these units.

two established hubs of innerwear

manufacturing – are on the growth

track but in different ways. Mainly

known for men’s innerwear,

Kolkata’s giant companies and mass

brands Dollar, Lux, Rupa etc., are

continuously adding new product

categories in the knitted segment,

while Tirupur is focusing on innovative

raw material, newer prints, designoriented

innerwear. Especially, Tirupur

is witnessing new players in innerwear

manufacturing like Faso, Carnation

Creations, Cruso, Tailor and Circus

and more.

As far as Kolkata’s companies (mass

brands) are concerned, they are mainly

known for underwear and have natural

growth in the same. Over the years,

they started covering a wide range of

knitted garments which is continuing


MANUFACTURING

“Our latest offering in brassiere

product range has opened

a new gate for the women’s

product segment and has

received good feedback

from the market. We are sure

that it will help us capture a

reasonable share of the market

in the coming years”

Vinod Gupta

MD, Dollar Industries

even now. The main reason for these

companies to add newer product

categories is that by doing so, they

can earn more with less effort as

from manufacturing to retail, they

have an entire system in place. And

in this exercise of expanding product

portfolio, their core strength and

major focus on underwear is not

impacted any way.

Kolkata-based undergarment brands mainly cater to masses with simple products

“Due to complete vertical

operations, we can ensure true

organic products compared to

any other company as we have

a strong hold right from ginning

to despatch of the final product.

It also makes us very costcompetitive

and increases trust in

customers for our products.”

T. Gokulakrishnan

VP, Faso

A few of such products which are

new additions are women’s innerwear,

athleisure, loungewear, gymwear,

sleepwear, warmers, leggings and vests.

Dollar Industries is now also focusing

on womenswear like brassiere.

“Our latest offering in brassiere

product range has opened a new gate

for the women’s product segment and

has received good feedback from the

market. We are sure that it will help

us capture a reasonable share of the

market in the coming years,” says

Vinod Gupta, MD of the company.

Another underwear giant Lux

Industries Ltd., is witnessing growth

in the underwear segment as it is

hopeful of making Lux Cozi a Rs.

1,000 crore brand in the next three

years. The company clocked a turnover

of Rs. 2,300 crore in 2021-22 and is

expecting around 12 per cent growth

and may touch Rs. 2,600 crore in the

current financial.

At the same time, it also has plans

to enter the kids’ segment in a big

way. Saket Todi, ED of the company

believes that there is no national brand

catering to the kids’ innerwear market

and so there is a huge potential to grow

the segment. Last year, the company

had crossed US $ 1 billion market

capitalisation in the fast-growing

innerwear market.

Tirupur’s companies

go for innovative

material and designs

Like Kolkata, Tirupur also used to do

a lot of basic innerwear but in recent

years it has evolved. Along with natural

reasons like overall growing demand

and cluster-specific benefits, the credit

also goes to the companies’ focus on

innovative designs and materials.

Relatively new players in this segment

have done remarkable progress! Not

only budding manufacturer Carnation

Creations, but a dedicated organic

cotton-based innerwear brand Faso (by

vertically integrated textile company

KPR Mills), Tailor and Circus, a startup

having its own manufacturing etc.,

are seeing tremendous success.

Carnation Creations – a manufacturer

of premium underwear and home

textiles – has expertise in fashion

innerwear and is strongly planning

to grow in this category. Akhilesh

Anand, MD of the 4-year-old

company says, “Understanding the

customer psychology, we found that

underwear is more a fashion garment


MANUFACTURING

“Understanding the customer

psychology, we found that

underwear is more a fashion

garment now and different styles

of packaging are there as well, but

things are slightly different when it

is MBO, EBO, e-commerce for the

same brand etc.”

Akhilesh Anand

MD, Carnation Creations

now and also requires additional

infrastructure. So along with

focusing on designs, we have added

anti-microbial finishes or whatever

is required for comfort, at the same

time, we have invested in all the

state-of-the-art machines required

for innerwear technology, so we can

offer the best in innerwear.”

“By giving the experience of

super-premium brands at

affordable prices, we have

successfully filled the vacuum in

the market. Year-on-year, we have

achieved 3x growth, so we have a

plan to increase our capacity and

the overall team as well.”

Vasanth Sampath

Co-founder, Tailor and Circus

Working with many top international

and national brands in India, Akhilesh

also highlights that it is not easy for

any mid-sized manufacturer to make

the fashion innerwear range due

to different styles and large SKUs.

The process gets complex owing to

fashion elements and changes made

by the client. Different channels have

different styles of packaging as well,

and things are slightly different when

it is MBO, EBO, e-commerce for the

same brand etc.

“We provide design inputs to brands

and solve their complexities, be it

packaging and delivery management,”

says Akhilesh.

Faso, a brand launched in 2019, has

recently expanded in Western India

through a dealer network, and is

adding almost one state every month.

Its target is to cover India very soon.

Further, it has massive plans for direct

retailing by opening 100 EBOs.

T. Gokulakrishnan, VP, Faso says,

“Due to complete vertical operations,

we can ensure true organic products

compared to any other company as we

have a strong hold right from ginning

to despatch of the final product. It also

makes us very cost-competitive and

increases trust in customers for our

products.” The company has advanced

infrastructure across the value chain

and the brand started with the vision to

offer pure organic innerwear to Indian

consumers.

“With the growing market, our focus

is to have a strong loyal consumer base

across India so that we can have longterm

sustained growth,” he adds.

Start-ups and D2C brands have

Faso is continuously growing in the market as well as increasing its product basket

Having state-of-the-art manufacturing units, Carnation Creations is making variety of products

and it has the vision to become a one-stop solution for brands and retailers


MANUFACTURING

Enjoying growth in the

innerwear segment,

Tirupur companies are

also expanding their

product basket in intimate

apparel (for women).

Tailor and Circus is also

enhancing its thrust

on lingerie and its plan

is to come up with

the launch of unisex

underwear, sleepwear

and loungewear product

categories in comfortable

fabric. Faso recently

launched women’s

innerwear while Carnation

Creations, which was

already manufacturing a

variety of knitted products,

is entering into lingerie as

it has the vision to become

a one-stop solution for

brands and retailers.

Matching underwear by Tailor and Circus

disrupted the innerwear segment

and Bengaluru is a major hub for

start-ups. It has also created a

growth opportunity for Tirupur as

nearly all major start-ups and D2C

brands of this hub are sourcing

undergarments from Tirupur

which is just 320 km away from

Bengaluru while Kolkata is almost

1600 km away.

“Apart from proximity, Tirupur has

strengths of strong design sense,

catering to low volume orders and

supporting required R&D for startups

or D2C brands. If a brand or

start-up wants to take inspiration

or study the market, Tirupur is the

market where things can be studied

easily,” says Akhilesh.

Bengaluru-based Tailor and Circus, a

leading D2C and profitable innerwear

start-up, started in 2017 with a factory

in Tirupur. The brand is also happy

with its growth and it is soon expected

to get seed funding. It also has plans to

launch its EBOs.

Vasanth Sampath, Co-founder of

the brand who also takes care of

manufacturing says, “By giving the

experience of super-premium brands at

affordable prices, we have successfully

filled the vacuum in the market. Yearon-year,

we have achieved 3x growth,

so we have a plan to increase our

capacity and the overall team as

well.”

The company, having 45 per cent

customer retention rate, uses micromodal

and sustainable materials in

packaging also. It also follows the

concept of body positivity which is

not common in India. Newer prints

are also its focused area.

“Own manufacturing gives us

the strength to incorporate every

small or big feedback of customers

completely and quickly. It also

allows us to keep a lean inventory

and have better control of quality.

Similarly, 95 per cent of the total

sales comes from the company’s

website, 40 per cent of its sales is

organic (without marketing efforts)

which makes it more profitable,” he

adds.


MANUFACTURING / NEWS


Shahi Exports’ Anant Ahuja joins the Board of the BBI

Anant Ahuja of Shahi

Exports, India’s largest apparel

manufacturer, has joined the

Board of Directors of the

Better Buying Institute (BBI).

As the first South Asian

supplier to join the BBI Board,

Anant’s appointment is a

significant step towards the

industry-wide transformation

of buyer purchasing practices.

The move will further

strengthen buyer-supplier

relationships contributing

to the overall well-being of

supply chain workers and

improved environmental

practices. Anant joins fellow

Board members Nina Smith,

founding Chief Executive of

GoodWeave International;

Dr. Peter Cheng, Co-founder

and Chairman of Hanbo

Group; Tom Rausch, Global

Lead, Agrostart – BASF and

Michael Gilson, CEO and

Founder of Cormac Advisors.

BBI was set up in 2015 with a

mission to enable buyers and

suppliers to work together

with responsible purchasing

practices to achieve shared

goals of profitability and

social and environmental

sustainability.

Anant is also the CEO and

Co-founder of the Good

Business Lab, a not-for-profit

labour innovation start-up

that conducts research to find

common ground between

worker well-being and business

interests. He was also a part of

NITI Aayog’s ‘Champions of

Change’ initiative.

Anant Ahuja, Head of

Organizational Development,

Shahi Exports said, “Better

Buying has led the way

in measuring and raising

awareness about the state of

purchasing practices by driving

transparency, and this is an

exciting time to be joining the

Board.” He further added that

there is growing awareness

and acceptance in the industry

that purchasing practices have

a massive impact on workers’

well-being, environmental

sustainability and innovation.

Buyers are significantly more

open to working with suppliers

to understand the pain

points and develop win-win

partnerships, and suppliers

are increasingly aware of the

knowledge and influence they

hold in driving a sustainable

future for the fashion industry.

But there’s still a long way to

go in re-balancing the power

dynamics between buyers and

suppliers. The time for the

industry to come together and

act on purchasing practices

is now. Dr. Marsha Dickson,

President and Co-founder

of the BBI, said, “Anant has

a deep understanding of the

challenges suppliers face in

their business relationships

with brands and retailers.

He also has a track record of

implementing new approaches

to address workplace and

business opportunities. With

this valuable background,

Anant will be helping us

explore how Better Buying’s

work can add even more value

to both buyers and suppliers

as they collaborate around

new practices and ways of

working together.”

Stitching It Right, a book by Rajat Sikka to help budding

entrepreneurs

Rajat Sikka, Managing Director

and Co-founder of Delhibased

premier apparel export

house Saivana Exports, New

Delhi, has come up with a

book Stitching It Right, the

entrepreneurial journey from a

car garage to Harvard.

The book is a sincere effort to

help recognise the potential

pitfalls in what could be an

adventure. It is a therapeutic

look at the romance of

entrepreneurship and looks at

how several factors can impact

a start-up business, It also

gives some thoughtful points

to pivot upon and understands

how some of these challenges

may be seen as obvious but

unavoidable. Apart from getting

inspired by the real-life stories

of Rajat and his company

Saivana, the book also helps

to put entrepreneurial dreams

in perspective, and identify

factories that can impact

one’s business.

The book helps young

entrepreneurs to set up their

own fashion houses and help

them make it big. It talks about

possible hurdles he or she

might face as they grow their

company and also offers tips on

how to handle their people.

Talking about the motivation

behind the book, Rajat has a

spirit to help young aspiring

fashion designers to sustain

in the industry. Apart from

successfully running an export

house, Rajat is an avid angel

investor in numerous start-ups.

One of them is the Indian

Angel Network, which is

Asia’s largest network of

Angel investors keen to invest

in early-stage businesses. All

the learning and efforts of

Rajat to overcome small and

big challenges of business

reflect beautifully in the book.

This book has interesting

detailing of his years and

lessons from founding the

company. He brings on an

exploratory journey as reader

travels across the dusty back

roads of Tughlakabad (Delhi)

in the ’90s to the cobbled

streets of Paris and even the

ivory halls of Harvard.




Draft released for PLI 2.0 for apparel and home

textile sector

Union Textile Ministry has

released the draft for PLI 2.0

scheme for apparel and home

textile sector. The scheme

brings around Rs. 4,300

crore of incentives to the

ecosystem and may generate

Rs. 1 lakh crore worth of new

manufacturing. Investment

criterion is within many of

SME companies’ limits of

Rs. 15 crore, Rs. 30 crore and

Rs. 45 crore in three different

schemes; importantly, all

kinds of textile manufacturing

companies can apply.

This scheme is open for all

products including cotton

(HS codes 61, 62 and 63),

which will create opportunity

for companies to choose their

preferred products. Companies

working with the PLI scheme

New teams for various trade bodies

Recently various trade bodies

of textile and apparel industry

got new office bearers. Major

change was in Tirupur

Exporters’ Association (TEA),

a leading trade body of apparel

trade body. KM Subramanian,

MD, KM Knitwear and a

mechanical engineer has been

elected the unopposed President

and N. Thirukkumaran of

Estee Exports India has been

elected unopposed for General

Secretary, while Rajkumar

Ramasamy of Best Corporation

and Elangovan of SNQS

Internationals have been elected

as VP, R Gopalakrishnan,

Royal Classic Mills has

can get good mileage with

domestic and international

buyers due to their visibility.

Notably, those companies

that take up projects with

PLI scheme can also avail

State Government incentives.

Besides, companies can

combine both to improve the

incentive component. The

incremental sales condition

for 5 years can help SMEs to

build the much-needed scale

and competitiveness.

If 20-plus companies are

executing projects together as

a Group, companies can get

benefits in terms of project

cost due to joint purchases.

Trade bodies are creating

awareness about the scheme

and motivating companies to

come forward and take the

been appointed as Treasurer

and DK Kumar of Eastern

Global Clothing has been

elected as Joint Secretary. KM

Subramanian said to Apparel

Online (AO), “We have a perfect

combination of experienced

and young entrepreneurs in

the new team. There are few

well-deserving representatives

in the EC who have got such

a chance first time, so they are

very enthusiastic to work for

the industry.” The new team

of TEA will work collectively

and more aggressively for the

growth of Tirupur’s apparel

industry. He further added that

as a priority, we are working to

benefit of PLI 2.0. With the

expertise and deep knowledge

of KPMG, Coimbatore-based

Indian Texpreneur Federation

(ITF) conducted an interactive

session with 50 textile

entrepreneurs of the western

region (Coimbatore, Tirupur,

Erode, Karur Namakkal) to

explain the fine details of the

scheme with practical working

models in various formats.

“It’s an opportunity for Tamil

Nadu textile sector to get more

on value addition. Revenue

from both export and domestic

are acceptable in this scheme.

We strongly believe that Tamil

Nadu textile and apparel sector

should use this opportunity

and invest in PLI 2.0 to build

scale and competitiveness,”

said Prabhu Dhamodharan,

Convenor, ITF.

have a hostel of at least 20,000

workers including men and

women. TEA has formed an

export promotion committee

also, which will make sure that

Tirupur can achieve apparel

exports of Rs. 30,000 crore.

Similarly, Zakir Hussain,

Director of Jaipur’s leading

apparel export house Cotfab, is

the new President of Garment

Exporters Association of

Rajasthan (GEAR), while

Ashish Ahuja of Ultimate

Expressions and Lalit Kumar

Arora of Jimmy Mode

International have been elected

VP. Arun Gupta of Kiran

Modes will be the new

General Secretary.

SNIPS

The district

administration in

Dindigul, a leading

textile hub in Tamil

Nadu, is taking up

a feasibility study

along with various

stakeholders for

integrated effluent

treatment plant.

The Uttar Pradesh

(UP) Government

has approved Uttar

Pradesh Textile

and Garmenting

Policy-2022 in the

cabinet meeting.

NIFT Srinagar will

introduce two more

courses next year

and efforts will be to

gradually increase

the number of

courses to 10.

The Communist

Party of India

workers staged a

demonstration at the

district collectorate

as they were seeking

the establishment

of a Textile Park in

Sattur at the earliest

and urged not to set

up a dyeing unit in

Thamaraikulam.

The West Bengal

Hosiery Association

has elected Vinod

Kumar Gupta, MD,

Dollar Industries Ltd,

as its new President

at its AGM.




Coats Digital’s GSDCost helps Vietnamese manufacturer

increase efficiency by 10%; on target to reduce manufacturing

production time by 50%

Coats Digital is delighted

to announce that following

the implementation

of its GSDCost, top

Vietnamese leisure and

sportswear manufacturer,

Son Ha Garment Joint

Stock Company, ( JSC) is

on its way to enhance its

efficiency improvement

goal by more 50 per cent.

‘GSDCost’, a well-known

method-time cost solution

for garment costing and

sustainable manufacturing,

initially helped improve

the core style Standard-

Minute-Values (SMV)

of the company by 10 per

cent. The much-talked

about GSDCost offers

accurately recorded SMVs

through helpful, standard

motion digitised codes so

that manufacturers can

optimise the costing process,

enhance manufacturing

efficiencies, introduce

achievable performance

targets and ultimately

increase sales to optimise

profitability.

It is a method analysis and

pre-determined timing

solution that is frequently

used by manufacturers

throughout the world.

With the help of this

new tool, brands and

manufacturers may easily

determine the fair living

wage allowed for a specific

garment in any factory

worldwide as well.

Notably, Coats Digital’s

updated Globalised Fair

Wage Tool incorporates the

International Standard Time

for each individual style

together with the nation’s

fair living wage, contractual

hours and specialised

production efficiency.

With the usage of

GSDCost, the Vietnamese

manufacturer Son Ha

Garment JSC has enhanced

productivity, order and cost

planning visibility, decreased

overtime costs, upgraded

on-time delivery and fair

wage negotiation in costing

proposals.

It has been progressively

integrated throughout the

organisation. The installation

across the unit also saved

hundreds of work hours.

As data and cost planning

reports were only based

on previously manually

obtained data, Son Ha

Garment JSC regularly

battled with productivity

because it was challenging

for team members to find the

information they needed.

Additionally, the lack of

accurate costing information

made it impossible to reach

a definite agreement with

customers, which wasted

crucial time.

Patrick Chau, Customer

Success Manager at Coats

Digital, said, “We are content

that Son Ha Garment JSC

has achieved such remarkable

efficiency results following

its deployment of GSDCost.

The only way that fashion

manufacturers can stay ahead

of the game is to quickly

digitise their processes, as the

industry is going to be more

competitive with constant

pressure to lower costs and

small orders. Standardising

SMV calculations is a surefire

way to boost production

efficiency, bring fact-based,

stable cost negotiations,

lower overtime costs and cut

down on material waste, all

the while motivating staff

with attainable performance

targets and quickly

responding to orders with

more complex requirements.”


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SUSTAINABILITY

Shahi Exports has done a remarkable job for menstrual hygiene management

EFFORTS TOWARDS WOMEN

WORKERS’ SAFE PERIOD CYCLE

IS A WIN-WIN FOR ALL

Around 6 million women operators

are working in the Indian apparel

manufacturing industry and 60 to 70

per cent of them belong to the age group

of 18+ to 40. Women operators are

more disciplined, are known for better

productivity and also have less turnover

rate but at the same time every month,

they struggle for 3-4 days due to their

menstrual cycle and it impacts them

physically as well as mentally. In the

research conducted by the University

College of London, menstrual cramps

have been described as ‘almost as bad

as having a heart attack’. Looking at

the seriousness of the issue, a few of the

apparel factories have taken note of this

Providing sanitary products

is essential but not a

complete solution. Women

workers’ approach also

needs to change as the

majority of women feel

that menstrual blood is

dirty or impure. Such and

other myths and taboos

need to change as Humjoli

Foundation has a perfect

motto Periods – Sharm

Nahi, Shamta Hai (Periods

are not a matter of shame

but are about potential)

and come up with noble initiatives to

support women. And they have achieved

good results too. These factories have

supported women with proper guidance

and regular availability of sanitary pads

(free/ or on subsidised rates), and period

leave but thousands of factories are there

which are still missing on this front.

Looking at the entire scenario and

diversity, the top priority should be to

make menstruation a normal subject,

so that anyone can talk about it from

the board room to the shopfloor

openly without any fear and hesitation.

Menstruation should be accepted as

a routine fact of life, with easy access

to period products and necessary


SUSTAINABILITY

facilities. The issue becomes significant

as women’s dignity, health and in

many cases livelihood is closely tied

to their struggle every month with

menstruation.

Life changing efforts

It will not be wrong to say that Shahi

Exports has done a remarkable job in

this direction. The company is working

in this regard for more than four years

and has conducted many surveys,

discussions and analysis. Its project

‘Pravah’ focuses on menstrual health

and hygiene training and awareness

and easy access to low-cost, highquality

sanitary products for its women

employees. There are biometric-enabled

vending machines in women’s toilets,

stocked with highly subsidised sanitary

napkins. The safe disposal mechanism

has also increased the hygiene level in

the toilets. The company also promotes

access and acceptance of menstrual cups

as safe sanitary products. These and

other such efforts not only help women

during their menstrual cycle but also

change their mindset that menstrual

blood is dirty or impure.

Another leading factory of Delhi-NCR,

Paramount Products is offering free

pads for the last two years and around

1800 women workers of the companies

are benefiting from this. Women are

now very much using these pads and

even guiding their daughters and other

women in the family about proper

hygiene. The company also has in-house

trained staff for creating awareness and

guiding women in this regard.

Not only leading exporters, a few

of medium-level companies are also

coming up with interesting initiatives in

this direction. One year ago Nandani

Creation Limited (JaipurKurti.com),

a Jaipur-based leading domestic player,

announced a period leave policy for its

women employees. As per this policy,

period leave of one day (over and above

the regular leaves and holidays) for

each month is available to the women

workforce. The company took this

step as it is moving towards building

a culture of acknowledgement for

women’s organic necessities.

Gain to the companies

Along with the women workers,

factories which put efforts for menstrual

hygiene also get benefits as in the

baseline survey of the Shahi Exports, it

was observed that 47 per cent of women

strongly agreed that the provision of

cheap pads makes them think that the

company cares about the workers’ health

and well-being; this percentage shot

up to 71 per cent in the endline. The

company also asked the respondents if

providing high-quality and low-cost

pads makes them want to work for more

years in this company. The percentage

of respondents who strongly agreed with

the statement went up from 32 per cent

in the baseline to 61 per cent in the endline

survey.

Rupali Agarwal, Head-CSR,

Paramount Products informed, “There

is a significant reduction in women

absenteeism and their overall health and

confidence have increased a lot. Women

are now more loyal and feel bonding

with the company.” She further added

that the company manages money for

pads from workers’ welfare fund and

doesn’t see it as an added cost.

Anuj Mundhra, CMD, Nandani

Creation Limited shared his experience,

“I was criticised by a few of the fellow

apparel manufacturers when I started

this initiative but I was firm to continue

with this and in one year, we have seen

that motivation of the young female

workers has increased and they are very

happy with this policy.” He also said

50%

of women aged 15-24

years use clothes

during periods, claims

National Family Health

Survey

Vending machines in women’s toilet at Shahi Exports


SUSTAINABILITY

that women are so enthusiastic about

this scheme that they manage their

work effectively so that their period

leave doesn’t impact the factory’s output.

Benchmark in India

Though the labour-oriented, apparel

manufacturing industry cannot be

compared with any other industry, but

there are a few examples that can be

said to be the benchmark. Still, there

are a few good examples as food delivery

service Zomato which has introduced

up to ten days of ‘period leaves’ in a

year for all women employees to build

a more inclusive work culture. Swiggy

also has ‘No Questions Asked’ Period

Time-off for women delivery partners

and a monthly two-day time off

policy during periods for them (with

a minimum earnings guarantee too).

There are also a few more companies

in various industries/sectors having

similar policies.

What more can be done

In Delhi-NCR or any other apparel

manufacturing hub in Tirupur and

nearby other hubs also, only few

factories are putting in efforts for

menstrual hygiene as factory owners

don’t have an interest and thrust on

this. “This issue is not in the factories

owners’ priority list. At our own level,

we do have some initiatives focusing

on awareness and subsidised sanity pad

distribution but the budget constraint

is there,” said A. Aloysius, Founder,

Social Awareness and Voluntary

Education (SAVE) NGO of Tirupur.

He further added that factories should

also have proper focus on the disposal

of used pads as a small chunk of women

workers who are managing pads on their

own, don’t have any options in factories

to dispose of the pads. And it is also

harmful for them.

Few State Governments are

distributing free sanitary napkins in

schools. Similar schemes can be there

for garment factory workers and the

cost can be borne by Government as

well as factories.

Efforts are also required at the policy

level as the Menstruation Benefits

Bill was introduced in 2017 in the

Indian parliament but so far there is no

proposal to grant menstrual leaves and

it is not passed yet. Interestingly Bihar

has had menstrual leave for women

employees since 1992.

Under the bill, women employed by

both public and private establishments

registered with the Central and State

Governments, are entitled to two days

of menstrual leave every month, which

would amount to 24 days of leave

annually.

Few of the buyers are having some

support of the factories for this like

VF Corp., has developed Menstrual

Hygiene Management modules as

part of the HER Project in Chennai

and Bengaluru. It is also improving

access to feminine hygiene products

Birla Cellulose, a part

of Aditya Birla Group,

has recently teamed up

with Bengaluru-based

GoNaturato to produce costeffective

and environmentfriendly

sanitary pads using

the viscose-based Purocel

EcoDry fibre as a top-sheet

in their GoNatura sanitary

pads. Birla Cellulose’

target is to overcome

the environmental

consequences endured due

to the global consumption

of plastic-based single-use

sanitary pads and curb

the ecological damage

through plastic-free natural

sanitary pads available

at an affordable price. Its

team has been working

tirelessly with GoNatura

to successfully integrate

through multiple product

trials in an effort to ensure

smooth integration of their

sanitary pads.

NGOs and platforms that

can support

• Swasti, The Health Catalyst

• Breakthrough

• Beyond Blood

• Goonj

• Humjoli Foundation

• Myna Mahila Foundation

• Project Baala

• Breaking The Silence

• Aara Health

to create an enabling environment

for women workers. The educational

pilot project was launched in 2018

and was expanded in FY 2020. It is

also improving access to feminine

hygiene products to create an enabling

environment for women workers.

To start with

If a particular factory doesn’t have

resources to support women workers

with period products, it can start

with awareness for imparting proper

information and guidance regarding

menstrual hygiene management.

NGOs like Sachhi Saheli have included

the initiative of Menstrual Café.

Soumya Dabriwal, Founder of Delhibased

Project Baala, another leading

organisation has exposure of working in

this direction with companies from few

industries.

She asserted, “We have done some work

with Shahi Exports and if any other

garment manufacturing companies

come forward, we will definitely work

with them.”

Factories can arrange the show of

Padman movie, (based on the true story

of a social entrepreneur who creates

a low-cost pad-making machine).

There are video messages from popular

bollywood actresses encouraging women

to break the silence on menstruation,

and these videos can be shared with

women on Whatsapp.



SUSTAINABILITY / NEWS

Louis Dreyfus Company Project Jagruthi to

support farmers on Sustainable Cotton Farming

Louis Dreyfus Company

(LDC), a French merchant firm

that is involved in agriculture,

food processing, international

shipping and finance launched

‘Project Jagruthi’ in India, to

train and support local cotton

farmers in adopting more

sustainable farming practices,

as part of its commitment

to empowering smallholder

farming communities – in India

and around the world – to

improve their livelihoods for

the long term. In a statement,

the company informed that

as part of the initiative,

LDC conducted a series of

educational workshops to

support cotton farmers in

mitigating threats such as

pink bollworm and white fly

infestations that are affecting

cotton crops in India. During

the workshops, specific methods

were demonstrated alongside

technical advice from experts

to help minimise yield losses

due to pest outbreaks, thereby

increasing production and

income. Field demonstrations

of measures such as pheromone

traps were also conducted.

Sumeet Mittal, LDC’s Head of

Cotton for India, said, “LDC is

committed to working toward

a safe and sustainable future,

helping to feed and clothe a

growing global population

sustainably. Project Jagruthi is

a perfect example of what we

can do in this regard, and we

look forward to ramping up this

and other projects to empower

India’s smallholder farmers for

greater resilience and a more

sustainable future.”

SNIPS

M&S announces to

‘responsibly exit’

from Myanmar

amidst human

right violations

Decathlon,

in October,

undertook a

communication

initiative in

Belgium in which

the retailer has

renamed itself

‘Nolhtaced’

(‘Decathlon’ in

reverse) in order to

raise the public’s

awareness about

the possibility

of retailing in

the ‘opposite

direction’

SIDT and TAS to launch courses on Sustainability & ESG

Mumbai-based prestigious

institute Sasmira’s Institute of

Design & Textiles (SIDT) and

The Academy for Sustainability

(TAS) have announced a

collaboration to launch various

courses on Sustainability &

ESG for the fashion and textile

sector. SIDT is one of the

leading institutes for fashion,

textiles and merchandising

studies in Mumbai. SIDT’s

Centre for Sustainable Studies

(SCSS) was established in

2022 to educate and train

students and professionals

to meet the needs of the

industry and help inspire and

empower the next generation

of designers on sustainable

fashion designs. TAS was

established to empower

individuals, professionals and

organisations in sustainability

by building the capacity of

individuals and organisations,

creating and enabling awareness

of sustainability, and enhancing

sustainability communication

and reporting. This collaboration

aims to educate and train

students and professionals

to meet the needs of the

industry and help inspire and

empower the next generation

of designers on sustainable

fashion designs. The training

programmes will include online

and offline courses on the

basics of sustainability, fashion

sustainability, ESG, circularity,

sustainable design, CSR and

sustainability reporting for the

fashion and textile industry.

Dr. Krishnendu Datta,

Dean, SIDT, said, “Taking

action on climate change and

sustainability is an imperative,

and we all have a role to play.

As knowledge providers,

our goal is to contribute to

the growth of the industry

by empowering leaders,

professionals and students with

the skills they need to navigate

the demand for sustainability.

Our training programmes

will expand sustainability

and climate literacy. In

collaboration with The

Academy for Sustainability, we

will offer a robust curriculum

of sustainability training &

ESG courses.”


SUSTAINABILITY / NEWS


BHRRC highlights worsening human rights

among garment workers

Allegations of human rights

violations against garment

workers at the suppliers of

several major international

fashion retailers have been

brought to light in a new report

by the Business & Human

Rights Resource Centre

(BHRRC). Accusations were

levelled against 13 factories that

supply or have supplied to at

least 15 international fashion

brands, according to the report,

including the likes of adidas,

Bestseller, C&A, H&M, Hugo

Boss, J. Crew, Mango, Next,

Primark and Under Armour.

The organisation polled 124

union members and labour

activists in Bangladesh,

Cambodia, India, Indonesia

and Sri Lanka for the research,

which included interviews with

24 trade union members.

Respondents claimed that they

had continued to experience

discrimination, assault,

threats, false accusations and

arrests; many of the factories

in question appeared to be

utilising Covid-19 as a means

for these alleged attempts to

suppress any organised efforts.

Additionally, there has been

an increase in issues such as

intimidation and harassment of

trade union members. Around

61 per cent of respondents

reported the situation for

freedom of association and

collective bargaining had ‘got

worse’ since the pandemic.

30 per cent of respondents

reported an increase in genderbased

violence.

BHRRC advocated a statutory

framework for human rights

and urged governments,

companies and suppliers to take

measures to ensure freedom

of association. It concluded:

“Brands and suppliers are

encouraged to enter good-faith

dialogue with workers and

their representatives through

collective bargaining and

binding agreements between

key stakeholders.”

SNIPS

Sustainable

Chemistry for the

Textile Industry

(SCTI) appoints

Dr. Isabella Tonaco

as Executive Director

Spanish retailer

Mango is

collaborating with

cancer research

organisation FERO

Foundation for a

solidarity collection.

They’ve collaborated

before, and the

funds from this

campaign will go

towards breast

cancer research.

Ralph Lauren is now member of The US Cotton Trust Protocol

Ralph Lauren Corporation,

an iconic global luxury brand,

is now member of The US

Cotton Trust Protocol (‘Trust

Protocol’). This membership

will support Ralph Lauren in

its efforts to scale sustainable

practices in US cotton

production. Aligned with

timeless by design, Ralph

Lauren is working to improve

soil health through programmes

that support regenerative

agriculture practices and

rigorous impact measurement,

believing that these efforts

are fundamental to building a

resilient cotton industry in the

US and globally. Launched

in 2020, the US Cotton Trust

Protocol is aligned with the

UN Sustainable Development

Goals (SDGs), recognised by

Textile Exchange and Forum

for the Future, and part of the

Sustainable Apparel Coalition,

Cotton 2025 Sustainable

Cotton Challenge, Cotton 2040

and Cotton Up initiatives.

The Trust Protocol drives

continuous improvement

in six key sustainability

areas—land use, soil carbon,

water management, soil loss,

greenhouse gas emissions

and energy efficiency. It

integrates these sustainability

metrics from Field to Market’s

Fieldprint® Platform, enabling

enrolled growers to measure

the environmental impacts of

their operation and identify

opportunities for continuous

improvement. Katie Ioanilli,

Chief Global Impact &

Communications Officer at

Ralph Lauren said, “Cotton

makes up more than threequarters

of our total material

use, and we are committed

to ensuring this critical fibre

is fully sustainably-sourced

in our portfolio by 2025.

Our ambition requires

collaboration and partnership

with organisations like

Trust Protocol as we work

together to make progress

on sustainable cotton goals –

within our business and the

wider industry.” “We are proud

to welcome Ralph Lauren

as a new member and aid in

their efforts to advance better

sustainability practices within

the industry,” said Dr. Gary

Adams, President of the US

Cotton Trust Protocol.


TRENDS IN FOCUS / RUNWAYS

THE MEGATREND

ROUND-UP FROM

THE FASHION

CAPITALS

OF THE WORLD

S/S ’23 EDITION

The fashion weeks this season were filled

with a sort of joyous excitement owing

much to the fact that this season marked

a complete return to in-person physical

shows after the previous two years spent

assuming a hybrid model owing to the

pandemic.

For Spring/Summer 2023, avante-garde

looks and fashion-forward accessories

teamed up with thought-provoking themes

and inspirations marked the calendar

across New York, Milan, Paris and London.

There were also several significant style

trends. Layered looks reigned prevalent,

especially on slip dresses. Many designers

showed monochromatic looks and a

‘space age’ techno white look stood out.

After last year’s preponderance of miniskirts

and short shorts, ’40s style pencil

style skirts and dresses made a refreshing

comeback.

The accessory categories, including

footwear and handbags, are an important

part of any retail assortment, and the

runway season pointed towards boots,

soft plush handbags, metallic material et al.

Read on to discover the top trends set to

dominate the season!

Christian Wijnant

Saint Laurent

ALL

MATCHED UP

This season, several designers presented immaculately

tailoring pieces with coordinated separates. At,

Vetements, Guram Gvasalia presented a series of

tailored looks where everything matched among the

more expected streetwear and denim pieces his brand

has come to be known for.

That included some styles rendered in a checkered

pattern and texture reminiscent of Tati shopping

bags. Standout looks included a wide-lapeled belted

raincoat over a shirt and overlong pants, all in a

striking blue and red plaid.

Saint Laurent presented an oversized blouse with a

neck scarf and overlong pants, all rendered in a bold

black and cream polka dot print, whilst Christian

Wijnants showed three pieces in acid green parachute

silk; an oversized blouse and knee length shorts under

a trench coat.

Vetements



Kenzo

Missoni

Ami

PREP

SCHOOL RE-RUN

MSGN

Max Mara

Prada

The ‘preppy’ look is back once again for S/S ’23

season - but this time around, it’s hyping up the

menswear segment.

For men, the trend is being presented with a new

twist: less Ivy League, more ‘sport & street’.

A wide range of colourways grace the trend - from

pale pastels at Rhude, and neons at MSGM to

burgundy and black at Dries Van Noten. Key items

and accents included cable knit sweaters, bermuda

shorts and collegiate lettering.

At Kenzo, Nigo used the concept of a ‘passing out

ceremony,’ inspired by one of Kenzo Takada’s 1980’s

shows which was based on the idea of a school’s

sports day. Staying true to their signature, Thom

Browne presented an array of looks, including tweed

coats, blazers, pants and long pleated skirts.

MIDI

LENGTHS

A ‘grown up’ approach to fashion, courtesy Miuccia

Prada and her design partner, Raf Simons, the midilength

silhouette made waves on the runways this

season. A mid-calf pencil silhouette was prevalent on

the Prada runway, whilst Missoni presented a bodycon

silhouette in various lengths.

At Philosophy di Lorenzo Serafini, the designer was

inspired by two iconic designers of the past, Giorgio

di Sant’Angelo and Romeo Gigli. The result was a

collection of slender silhouettes, enhancing the body.

Look 11 was a mid-length dress in a stretch fabric

with a Toile de Jouy print.



Ahluwalia

Marissa Wilson

PRINT

MASHUP

Snow Xue Ga

Puma

Tom Ford

Tom Ford

Mix-and-match prints are making an impact this

season as consumers look to express themselves with

bold fashion choices.

Snow Xue Gao presented an interesting take with a

slip dress that featured an asymmetric hem. It was

rendered in two prints - a re-coloured camouflage and

a geometric flat floral.

For this season, Marrisa Wilson found inspiration

in the colours and culture of Guyana, from which

country her parents had emigrated to the US. Look

10 consisted of a mid-length dress rendered in three

distinct abstract prints.

Studio 189 is designed by Abrima Erwiah and actor

Rosario Dawson presented a multi-tiered style of five

prints including a stencilled floral, a large dot and a

variegated stripe, all in a medley of orange, pink, red,

yellow and white shades.

BOOT

CAMP

Carrying over from its winter reign, boots are making

a big impact for the S/S ’23 season.

The incredible success of over-the-knee boots in

recent seasons encouraged designers to continue

showing them for next spring. Tom Ford’s version

was rendered in high shine leather with a crocodile

pressed pattern and a strap and buckle detail, while

in Puma, the boot was heavier and featured their

signature white stripe and logo.

Metallics were all over New York Fashion Week

where Christian Cowans and Tom Ford both showed

metallic boots.



Luisa Beccaria

Michael Kors

Prabal Gurung

Miaou

BEATING THE

MONDAY BLUES

The colour blue is in the limelight for the

approaching season with designers across the fashion

capitals including the hue within their Spring/

Summer 2023 offerings.

At Prabal Gurung, the focus was on individuality

and several designs displayed a state of dishabille

reminiscent of ‘nineties night clubbing attire’. Look

16 included a sky blue slip dress with a royal blue

overskirt. Meanwhile, design duo Proenza Schouler

showed a turquoise blue fitted lace shirt with a satin

collar and cuffs teamed with flared royal blue lace

pants on model Achenrin Madit.

Michael Kors showed a sensual collection reminiscent

of the 1970s. Look 50 included a sequined belowthe-knee

turquoise wrap skirt teamed with a deep vee

sweater in sky blue.

Koché

LEATHER

WEATHER

Head-to-toe black leather and ‘pleather’ looks

are in for the upcoming season, especially when

delivered as separates.

Christelle Kocher at Koché presented a black

leather cropped zip-up jacket and matching

pants with a western style belt, while Miaou

showed a black leather halter neck zip up top

with cropped moto pants. Monot showed one

of this season’s key items, the bralette, in black

leather matched to a black leather pencil skirt.

Monot



Altuzarra

Coach

Michael Kors

SOFT

HANDBAGS

Michael Kors

Jason Wu

FLORALS

Studio 189

In terms of fashion accessories for the season,

large soft shapes for handbags are trending

this season.

At Coach, Stuart Vevers showed a crossbody

bag in soft camel-coloured leather with the

C logo as a clasp, while Michael Kors used

a soft hobo shape in bright red as part of a

total look. At Altuzarra, a soft tote bag in a

monotone tie dye print looked fresh.

Placement prints and flat florals emerged as

total winners on this season’s runways.

At Jason Wu, a black silk slip dress was

embellished with a large placed print of a

yellow orchid. Monses presented a bright

green long-sleeved shirt dress with a large

flat white flower design, whilst Michael

Kors, presented a fun take on the trend by

introducing a shirt dress, with a sarong wrap

tie front featuring a fringe. The print was a

large white flat floral on a black background.



Batsheva

Studio 189

STRIPES

SEASON

Bold stripes were used in many collections to

give emphasis to a variety of designs. Studio 189

showed a duo of looks that included a buttondown

maxi dress in a mix of stripes in peach and

white with a candy striped two-piece pant suit in

a medley of lilac, peach and olive shades.

Bibhu Mohapatra showed a mid-calf length

belted dress in a navy and white awning stripe

with emphasis at the waist with a band of solid

colour, whilst Batsheva Hay admitted to being

influenced by Gunne Sax, a brand made popular

in the ’70s and known for its ultra-feminine

details. For look ’23, she showed a blouse with

ruffles and balloon sleeves rendered in a banker’s

stripe of blue and white and accessorised with a

red pussy bow over blue denim jorts.

Studio 189

Beautiful People

Isabel Marant

UTILITARIAN

MOTIVES

Para-military, utilitarian style has been shown

on high fashion runways for the past two

decades and this season was no exception.

At Givenchy, Matthew Williams showed

loose-fitting khaki knee-length cargo shorts,

with a grey hoodie and a contrasting sparkly

gold jacket, whilst Beautiful People showed a

collection filled with military references. Look

8 was a tawny-coloured ribbed tank top and an

olive khaki full-length skirt with several utility

pockets.

Isabel Marant’s look 17, modelled by Gigi

Hadid, was an oversized jacket in a camo print

that looked sun-bleached.

Miu Miu


FASHION BUSINESS

RIDING THE

METAVERSE WAVE -

WHAT BRANDS NEED TO KNOW AND DO

When it comes to ‘metaverse’, few business

leaders consider themselves experts. Some

may wonder if it even matters to their

companies. The short answer: Yes, it does.

At present, many companies are investing in

the space, aiming to deepen customer loyalty,

engage in new ways with their communities

and grow revenue. Yet there’s reason for

wariness too. The metaverse is suddenly hot,

even though the underlying technology trends

have been underway for years.

As in the internet’s early days, this innovation

likely contains pockets of speculation,

overvaluation and unwise investment —

especially since a true metaverse, as tech

visionaries imagine it, is still years away. The

good news is that it’s possible to separate

the reality from hype: understand what the

metaverse is really about and take practical,

affordable steps to meet your company’s

needs.

In its latest report, PwC has tried to demystify

the assumptions surrounding the space. We

aim to elaborate on them in this section.


FASHION BUSINESS

What is ‘metaverse’?

The ‘metaverse’ promises a

stunningly realistic 3D digital

world where you can purchase

and sell goods and services,

sign and enforce contracts,

recruit and train talent, and

interact with customers

and communities. As some

technology visionaries imagine

the metaverse, this world won’t

primarily run on platforms

whose owners control data,

governance and transactions.

Instead, customers (and

businesses) will be able to take

their identities, currencies,

experiences and assets

anywhere they wish.

Also unlike today’s web

experiences, much of this

digital world will persist even

when no one is in it.

With the metaverse you could,

for example, put on a virtual

reality (VR) headset and visit a

factory on the other side of the

world. It will allow you to see

and touch its machines, shake

hands with the local supervisor,

and inspect its operations

without leaving your desk. You

could even send one digital

version of yourself to that

factory, while another meets

with your board of directors.

Today, many younger

consumers already try on

virtual clothes at virtual

retail stores or buy virtual

merchandise for their virtual

gaming environment.

Already, companies are looking

to the metaverse to:

• Enrich the consumer

experience

• Introduce virtual products,

only available in the

metaverse

• Collect new data on

customers

• Market physical and digital

products and services

• Support metaverse

payments and finance

• Offer hardware and

applications that support

metaverse activities

The metaverse is an

evolution, not a revolution

The metaverse was first

described and named almost

30 years ago — but we’re still

in its early days. Computing

power, headsets, software

protocols and networking

capacity just aren’t ready yet

to support a truly immersive

and shared metaverse. But

this future is coming, as the

culmination of a long-running

trend: for innovative new

technologies to blend into a

greater whole.

Today, cloud technology is

addressing the processing

power and storage to

support extended reality

and immersive interfaces.

Hyperconnected networks

that leverage 5G are nearing

maturity. AI is helping to

create digital reflections that

combine computer vision,

speech and deep learning to

offer users experiences that

feel real.

The decentralisation of finance

and the economy, as supported

by blockchain, is making partly

automated financial systems

possible. Finally, digital-native

consumers and the pandemic’s

impact on consumption

habits are igniting demand

for the virtual products and

experiences that metaverse

offers.

Still what is largely missing

is the metaverse’s promised

interoperability: a digital world

where you and your customers

can transition seamlessly

among multiple experiences

offered by various providers.

This connectivity will require

a new architecture for the

internet, often called web 3.0.

Web 3.0, which internet

innovators and investors

are currently working

on, is supposed to be a

decentralised structure with

countless interoperable

platforms. Whether or not

this vision ever arrives,

enough components of the

metaverse already exist to

offer opportunities, along with

risks, today.


FASHION BUSINESS

What makes a metaverse: key concepts to master

One way to think of the

metaverse is as a set of

opportunities from which

your company can select

a few to focus on. Based

on PwC’s years of work

with the technology trends

that are now converging

to form the metaverse,

they have identified six

concepts that we believe

will be its foundation. Most

are not yet fully mature

and hence the actual value

of true convergence is

still unrealised by most

organisations.

Yet some of these concepts

are already concrete enough,

so that they can grow on

the existing lines of business

and create new ones.

Companies in retail, real

estate, and entertainment

are already investing and

earning profits. For others,

less mature metaverse

components, getting in

at the start will help your

company be ready for

however the metaverse may

evolve into. Either way,

these components require

an attention to trust and

values — without care, this

new digital world could

exacerbate socioeconomic

disparities.

1. Economy

Cryptocurrencies, nonfungible

tokens (NFTs)

and other blockchain-based

digital currencies, assets

and exchanges will likely

underpin value exchange

across the metaverse.

Further innovation will be

needed as governments,

companies and new, digital-

only organisations work

to build trusted digital

monetary systems, offer

new data monetisation

propositions and conduct

lending, payments, real

estate investment and

more in the metaverse.

Decentralised autonomous

organisations (DAOs) —

with voluntarily agreedupon

rules enforced by a

computer program that

runs on a blockchain — will

likely play important roles.

2. Interoperability

A true metaverse requires

seamless interoperability

among users and platforms,

based on web 3.0 and stillto-be-determined

standards.

While this interoperability

will offer new possibilities

to reach and understand

customers, it will also raise

new challenges for gathering

and protecting data, and for

cybersecurity and privacy.

It may also undermine

business strategies built

around keeping users

and their data in a given

platform. Competitive

advantage may shift to

those companies that offer

(through hardware or

software) trusted ways for

users to enter the metaverse.

3. Governance

The metaverse will need

rules of engagement for

users, rules for how the

metaverse itself can change

over time and enforcement

mechanisms, including

for tax collection, data

governance and regulatory

compliance. Early movers

may be able to help set

these rules. Security will

be paramount, as a new,

decentralised digital world

may offer malicious actors

a new world of entry points

for attack. Authenticity

— and trust more broadly

— should also be front

and centre to reduce the

disinformation that has

often plagued the internet.

4. Identity

In the internet today,

identity is often linked

to platforms. It may be

true, pseudonymous

or anonymous. The

metaverse, decentralised and

interconnected, will need

trusted digital identities

— for people, assets and

organisations — that port

across platforms. Companies

active in digital identity

When assets, transactions and identities

simultaneously exist in physical and

digital worlds that billions of people

and organisations share, the old ways

of building and sustaining trust may no

longer apply.

now may both help set the

metaverse’s standards and

be able to offer a necessary

service. Digital identities may

also be central to permitted

data collection and data

governance in a decentralised

environment.

5. Experience

A shared, persistent and

immersive 3D digital world

will offer unique experiences,

based on its own aesthetics

— beliefs, ideals and tastes

as expressed in individual

choices. Some trends for

user experience are already

becoming clear in games

and VR / AR environments.

Companies that create trusted

metaverse experiences and

protect privacy rights may win

consumer loyalty, while those

that stay on top of metaverse

trends may be well placed to

forecast consumer preferences

and behaviour.

6. Persistence

A true metaverse should

reflect in real time the

changes made in it by

different participants, entering

and leaving it in different

ways, in different places, at

different times. When you

take your metaverse headset

off, the metaverse and other

participants will continue their

activities uninterrupted, with

(for example) smart contracts

enforcing agreements and

trading assets. This persistence

will likely require a new

approach to digital assets

and activities, including

services and applications that

are portable, dynamically

configurable and extensible.


FASHION BUSINESS

6 ways to start preparing for the metaverse era

so that no matter where

your asset goes, security

is maintained. To foster

trust among consumers,

shareholders, regulators

and other stakeholders,

communicate early what to

expect from your metaverse

initiatives and how you

will mitigate the potential

risks. Blockchain and

AI, for example, can in

some cases automate the

authentication of identity,

assets, transactions and

contracts.

Since no true metaverse exists

yet, but many of its concepts

are already business-relevant,

many companies would benefit

from taking six measured

actions. The first three focus

on opportunities and use cases

available today. The next three

will help build the capabilities

that will help support

metaverse success tomorrow.

Near-term actions

Get up to speed Most

companies — even many

technology companies

— lack institutional

familiarity with the

metaverse’s concepts,

which are evolving quickly.

Many may also lack the

skills and processes to

truly understand and trust

their digital transactions

and investments. Assign

at least one resource or

source of knowledge (such

as a group) to understand

key concepts such as

cryptocurrencies and

decentralised autonomous

organisations and their

relevance to your company,

and to follow the metaverse

as it evolves.

Develop a strategy Identify

gaps to close and longterm

opportunities to build

from the metaverse and its

key concepts, then work

on foundational measures.

Many companies, for

example, will likely benefit

from recruiting digital

native employees already at

home with the metaverse’s

key concepts, as well as

technical measures such as

making services extensible,

developing plans for

security and identity, and

publishing application

programming interfaces

(APIs) to core systems so

that others can connect.

Test the waters Select a few

opportunities available

within the metaverse’s

underlying trends today.

Lower-risk use cases

include selling digital

versions of physical goods,

offering virtual tours

of virtual products or

facilities, and launching

NFTs to enhance brand

awareness and connections

to customers. Companies

may also wish to consider

buying or leasing digital

real estate for sales,

advertising and customer

support. Digital real estate

is likely a higher-risk

option, since no individual

digital worlds have yet

proved that they will have

lasting relevance, but it

may be a reasonable choice

for some companies to

consider.

Long-term

foundations

Focus on trust The metaverse

and its currently existing

components offer new

challenges for cybersecurity,

privacy rights, regulatory

compliance, brand

reputation and anti-fraud

efforts. Companies should,

for example, consider

security at the services level,

Rethink core competencies

What offers competitive

advantage in a shared,

decentralised digital

environment may be

different from what you

have today. You may need

upskilling and recruiting

to close skills gaps, as well

as new approaches to data

and business relationships.

If, for example, your digital

strategy is based on owning

a digital platform, you will

likely need to accelerate

your services and security

infrastructure. If you are

working with a platform,

assess how ready they are

— and make sure that you

can take your data with you

if you switch providers.

Align physical and digital If

you have added or plan on

adding digital services and/

or assets to your portfolio,

drive for a consistent brand

experience across both

the physical and digital

constructs. Just as your web

presence needs to match

your physical location

experience — so must your

metaverse experience.


DESIGNERS & LABELS

Gauri & Nainika -

Painting Reality

IN CONVERSATION WITH THE

CONNOISSEURS OF GLAMOROUS

EVENINGWEAR IN INDIA

Synonymous with an aesthetic that is

distinctly feminine and European, Gauri

& Nainika Karan’s eponymous label has

come to be regarded as the connoisseur

for eveningwear styles ranging from

glamorous cocktail dresses to elaborate

bespoke gowns.

Founded in New Delhi in January 2004,

the label quickly rose to fame owing

to its sensuous take on elegant and

chic clothing for the women of today.

Inspired by European fashion history,

art, music, books, personalities, theatre,

old Hollywood, red carpet glamour and

pictures of the Founder’s mother from

the ’70s, the brand pivots a romantic

design philosophy with styles that are

luxurious yet understated.

Over the years, the brand has undergone

quite a few changes, but yet, the

essence has remained. At the outset, the

designer duo used to cater to a younger

cohort of women but as the designers

themselves evolved, so did their business

- having expanded to embrace a wider

demographic and audience.

Commenting on the same, Nainika

Karan, Founder and Designer of Gauri

& Nainika, told Apparel Online India

(AOI) in an exclusive interview, “We

have always had a weakness for old

world glamour and for creating clothes

that are extremely feminine. Gauri and

I understand the female form and we

have always designed silhouettes that

flatter them. The essence of our brand

has always been to create timeless clothes

of excellent quality in luxurious fabrics.

The embroidery is minimal and the

emphasis is more on the cut, fabrics and

bold colours.”

THE FORMATION

Both Gauri and Nainika being

bureaucrats, their parents were keen

on them finishing their education in

Economics prior to pursuing fashion

as a career choice. Gauri completed her

MBA, post which both sisters went to

NIFT, Delhi together, to familiarise

themselves with the workings of design.

“We opened up our label immediately

after completing our education. At


DESIGNERS & LABELS

the time we started, we did not work

under any fashion label or designer as

all of them mostly created Indianwear,

and we were keen to create glamorous

westernwear which was not available in

Delhi or around India at that point of

time,” Nainika explained.

The label has operated as a small team

with Gauri and Nainika being the only

designers and not having a ‘design

team’ per say. The main manufacturing

unit is located in New Delhi with both

the production and manufacturing

being entirely done in-house under the

watchful eyes of the enigmatic sister duo.

USP, PRICING AND

PRODUCT ASSORTMENT

With a strong emphasis on fabric, cut

and colour, Gauri & Nainika’s designs

focus on shape, form and flattering

silhouettes. By combining tailoring with

Femininity forms the

essence of the label

where the paradoxical

combination of drama

and subtlety can be

seen in the event’s

simplest styles.

drapery, the garments are meticulously

crafted and have a timeless appeal where

old world charm, fantasy and elegance

are brought bang up to date to suit the

sensibilities of today’s customers.

Essentially a cocktailwear and

eveningwear brand, the prices at Gauri &

Nainika label range from Rs.15,000 for

tops to Rs.5,00,000 for bespoke gowns,

depending upon the material and level of

craftsmanship involved.

The product categories consist of tops,

jumpsuits, midis, dresses, rompers and

gowns for women, with the pricing for

dresses, midis and jumpsuits usually

range between Rs.40,000 to Rs. 80,000.

For the more dramatic high lows and

gowns, the prices are higher.

MANUFACTURING AND

SOURCING

“We have always worked with a wide

range of fabrics. Amongst pure silk,

we have worked with silk chiffon, silk

georgette, silk crepe, duchess satin and

taffeta sourced from either China or

Bengaluru. We also have worked with

polyester fabrics which are sourced from

Surat in India or imported from China

and South Korea,” Nainika corroborated.


DESIGNERS & LABELS

When it comes to sourcing for raw

materials and fabrics, India is famous

globally, for its local markets and hubs.

A few areas that Gauri & Nainika

usually source their raw materials and

fabrics from are Chandni Chowk and

Lajpat Nagar in New Delhi or Surat and

Bengaluru.

The label comes out with four seasonbased

collections within a year namely,

Spring/Summer, Fall/Winter, Resort

and Pre-Fall. Each season features three

drops. In addition to this, their online

stock is order-based and in-store stock is

replenished with new arrivals every new

season with different drops.

Coveted both locally and domestically,

the label stocks its products at

multiple platforms both in India and

internationally, including - AZA,

Ensemble, Collage, ETA, Elahe,

Atosa, PSL, Evoluzione, Darusha and

S Style Group. The products are also

available to shop online at AZA, PSL

and Carmaonlie and the brand hopes to

expand into the international market in

the coming future.

SUSTAINABLE PRACTICES

Sustainability can be incorporated into

any company from the smallest to the

biggest way. Even the tiniest initiative

taken can go a long way.

Elaborating on the same, Nainika goes

on to say, “From going paperless to

banning single-use plastics, these are

measures every brand/company should

undertake. One of the biggest initiatives

one can take in the fashion industry

is to upcycle the use of all old fabrics

and hence avoid wastage. Bringing

back older collections and reviving your

dead stock is another great measure

to integrate ethical practices. Another

most important factor is choosing the

kind of fabrics we use as a fashion label

responsibly and trying to incorporate

fabrics that are made from recycled

materials and are biodegradable. For

instance, recently we collaborated with

R-elan for the FDCI x Lakme Fashion

Week 2022, where our collection

proudly uses a wide variety of

sustainable offerings from the brand’s

now sought-after fabric collections.”

The designer duo presented an ecofriendly

collection titled ‘Midnight

Botanica’ in partnership with Reliance

Industries Limited’s (RIL) new

biodegradable R|Elan EcoGold

offering at FDCI x Lakme Fashion

Week 2022.

For their latest collection, Gauri and

Nainika chose R|Elan GreenGold,

R|Elan EcoGold and R|Elan

Freeflow. R|Elan GreenGold

fabric is made using 100 per cent

post-consumer used PET bottles

while using efficient and certified

manufacturing practices. Owing to this

breakthrough innovation, PET bottles

can be reduced from ending up in

landfills and oceans making R|Elan

GreenGold one of the most soughtafter

fabrics among leading brands,


DESIGNERS & LABELS

retailers, fashion designers and style

enthusiasts.

The collection features a rich, dark,

dreamy look with stark contrasting hues

of the night and botanical inspirations.

Lightweight dresses, jumpsuits and

red-carpet worthy floor-grazing Grecian

gowns in luxurious chiffons, crepes and

organzas form the crux of the offering.

Commenting on the partnership, Mr.

Hemant D. Sharma, Sector Head –

Polyester, RIL, said, “At Reliance, it has

been always our endeavour to enhance

the sustainability and circularity

quotient in R|Elan offerings. This

time we have achieved a breakthrough

in developing biodegradable

technologies - R|Elan EcoGold.

We are thrilled to have witnessed

the matchless fusion of sustainability

and style in the Midnight Botanica

collection of Gauri and Nanika.”

Florals have always been the mainstay of

Gauri and Nainika’s design sensibility,

which was once again visible via botanical

inspirations throughout the collection.

When it came to silhouettes, classic

corsetry was in focus with Greco-Roman

inspired fluted bodices over fluid, flowing

drapes. Key details included halters, offshoulder

accents, dramatic one-shoulder

visions along with techniques such as

ruching to lend that ultra-glam style well

suited for diverse body shapes and sizes.

“This has been one of the most exciting

collaborations – to be part of a global

sustainable movement. We’ve created

glamorous eveningwear with a diverse

variety of stunning eco-friendly fabrics,

most importantly R|Elans latest

biodegradable R|Elan Eco Gold, that we

are sure our customers will love,” Gauri

said about the partnership.

Here are some more excerpts from the

interview.

AOI: What is the one valuable lesson /

skill you learnt while running a successful

westernwear dominant fashion business in

the Indian landscape that you wish you’d

known prior to starting the label?

Nainika Karan (NK): One of the most

important things that we have

learnt over the years is that one has

to design for all women body types

whether apple, pear, glass figure or

a plus-size body type, as designers

Gauri and I understand what women

want. Over the years, experiences

have taught us what women want to

actually wear and that will suit them.

This is something that can only come

with experience and interaction with

the clients. We are very glad that

we include today a wide variety of

silhouettes in every shape and size

and that is a skill that we have learnt

over the years in business.

AOI: What is one thing that the Indian

consumer desires that western brands are

able to provide but Indian homegrown

brands struggle with?

NK: A lot of bigger western brands

are able to provide really good

pret and casual wear ranging from

athleisure, shoes to accessories etc. In

comparison, it’s difficult for Indian

homegrown brands to manage

production of high quality because of

the lack of economies in their favour

and infrastructure. This is one factor

that Indian brands struggle with - to

create a range of products that go

with their clothes and complement

their brand philosophy. We do not

have the quantity to be able to make

this in the best possible way.

AOI: What, according to you, is driving

consumption in fashion categories in the

Indian market?

NK: The bridal market is the biggest

driving consumption for the Indian

market followed by the number of

festivities we have in our country.


START-UPS

START-UPS LEVERAGING

TECHNOLOGIES IN

SMART TEXTILES

While fitness trackers and

smartwatches are getting all the

attention when it comes to wearable

technology, there’s another area that’s

rapidly advancing: clothing made up of

smart textiles. Smart fabrics embark on

a journey that will completely change

the concept of ‘clothing for the future’,

both globally and across the country.

According to Global Data forecast, the

global smart clothing market worth US

$ 668 million in 2020 will see growth

of CAGR of 21 per cent and expand

to over US $ 4 billion. Therefore, it

looks like the segment has the potential

to even cross the bill mark of US $

30 billion by 2040 with the help of

technologies such as embedded sensors

that track vitals, actuators that control

fabric properties like stiffness and

transparency, or the use of conductive

fibres for communication or power

transfer medium. The possibilities for

smart clothing are truly vast and endless.

Indian start-ups in smart

textiles are thinking

outside the box

India is becoming a great potential

market for wearable tech companies as

more of the population is now putting

health first on priority. As consumers

increasingly look for methods to monitor

their health and well-being, demand for

smart clothing such as shirts, jackets,

vests, socks and other categories seems to

be on the rise. The large conglomerates

may not be putting a lot of money into

the concept of wearable tech, but Indian

start-ups are taking it to the next level.

With advances in technology and the

slowly growing demand from consumers,

India is providing market participants

with growth opportunities.

Broadcast wearables’ fastestgrowing

brand SYNGAL

There are a number of Indian start-ups

working to develop smart clothing, and

some have already achieved success in

overcoming the phase of initial adaptions.

One such company leading the way is

Broadcast Wearables Pvt. Ltd.

“Yes, the adoption of smart clothing has

been very limited as compared to other

kinds of wearables. The earlier versions

of smart clothing had bulkier electronics.

But if you compare offerings of today,

technology has evolved by leaps and

bounds; most of the quality smart clothing

products today offer touch, feel and use

factors, extremely similar to our regular

clothing, so much so that at times, the

user does not even realise that he/she may

be wearing smart clothing and not the

regular one. Although the earlier notion

has yet lingered on, this may just be a

contributing factor and not the primary

reason,” Saumil Shah, Co-founder,

Broadcast Wearables stated.

The company offers SYNGAL, a

whole range of smart garments, such

as Fitness T-Shirt with Navigation,

that connects to a mobile app. Its other


START-UPS

Brainchild of Ayyappa and Mahalakshmi Nagubandi, the start-up aims to disrupt the wearable

gadgets market with its innovative products

Textile-based wearable monitoring T-shirt that analyses physiological and biomechanical data

in real-time remotely

offering is the programmable T-shirt

that can be controlled via a mobile app,

allowing users to tap, draw or animate

on the T-shirt in real-time. The Motion

Capture Safety Cycling Jersey is the most

popular choice for cyclists who want to

be visible and safe on the road. The LED

hazard lights are activated by the motion

capture technology when the riders raise

their arms, making them highly visible

to drivers.

Nyokas Technologies serves both

the civilian and defence sectors

NYOKAS is into technical textile-based

wearables that have developed product

lines that can be used in both defence and

civilian applications.

The company has developed the ‘ZEAL’

wearable jacket, a textile-based wearable

that remotely analyses physiological

and biomechanical data in real-time.

It is designed to protect the wearer

from attacks or other life-threatening

situations. The sensors detect any force

applied to the wearer’s body and send

data to a removable piece of hardware

that analyses the data to determine if the

situation is dangerous. If the situation

is deemed dangerous, the jacket sends

SOS messages with the wearer’s location

to various numbers and emergency

numbers, thus saving lives.

Also in collaboration with iDEX , it is

working on a project for Indian Army ,

building a wearable monitoring T-shirt

that analyses physiological and biomechanical

data in real-time remotely

to judge the health status with the help

of ECHO or Bluetooth low energy and

which can be displayed and analysed on

Nykoas softwares.

Its R&D team is also developing an L1

& L5 bulletproof jacket for defence that

can be useful to protect an individual

from pistol bullets and AK47 bullets

respectively. Moreover, it is also working

on jackets for motorcyclists and forest

rangers as protective gear. Despite the less

acceptance on the consumer front, Cofounder

Ajay Sangwan is quite hopeful for

the market in next 5-8 years.

“Although there is still a long way to go,

consumer acceptance of smart textiles is

starting to pick up steam. Regarding the

The companies have very well

understood the pain points when it

comes to design and utility; adopting

new technology is the only way

to move forward to make it more

commercially viable.

defence application, however, we have

signed a few contracts with the National

Disaster Management Authority to cover

a few zones and are also in discussion

with the Andhra Pradesh Police force

for the trial runs. As there are more

conversations and prototypes are created,

awareness is gradually catching up.

The civilian segment will also see an

adaptation of this and implementation

of it. We have a great deal of faith that in

the coming years, high-tech, utilitarian

apparel will take precedence over

everything else,” said Ajay Sangwan, Cofounder,

Nyokas Technologies.

Digital Fashion Factory’s

intersection of software and softwear

One study found that women exposed to

higher levels of magnetic fields and nonionising

radiation had 2.72 times higher

miscarriage rate. In addition, children

exposed to mobile phones both before and

after birth had a 50 per cent higher risk of

behavioural problems.

To address such a serious problem,

DFF and AiQ collaborated with itie

Knowledge Solutions to provide Anti-

Radiation Wear Solutions.

DFF is a platform that combines smart

textile technology with world-class

digital expertise to provide solutions for


START-UPS

Swatric’s collaboration with the Flag Foundation of India to develop advanced textile solutions for National Flag

TURMS’s intelligent apparel and performance-wear

health and wellness, high-performance

sportswear, industrial apparel and

edgy fashion.

One of its products is a smart garment

that uses conductive yarn to protect the

expectant mother and newborn from nonionising

radiation. This includes products

such as office wear, blankets and baby

wraps. The fabric is a blend of regular

textiles and special yarn-level 8-micron

anti-rad fibres whose effectiveness has

been certified by Indian and international

testing laboratories.

Swatric, the brainchild of the IIT

Delhi incubator

Launched by IIT Delhi, this start-up

is founded by researchers from IIT

Delhi’s Department of Textile and Fibre

Engineering, and is working to develop

cutting-edge technologies to help the

Indian textile and apparel industry

commercialise new and competitive

categories of smart and functional

products.

Products include textiles with

nanocoating, functional yarns and smart

fabrics that can change their properties

such as colour, opacity or even stiffness in

response to external stimuli.

Applications of this technology include

antibacterial fabrics, self-cleaning fabrics,

UV-protective fabrics, fire-retardant

fabrics, etc. Swatric is currently working

to develop commercial prototypes of

these products that can be used in all

industries, including apparel. A more

recent development involves aramid

fibres, a class of heat-resistant and

strong synthetic fibres. They have also

collaborated with the Flag Foundation

of India to develop advanced textile

solutions for National Flag.

‘TURMS’ by BigPhi Technologies

revolves around functional

finishes

BigPhi Technologies is an angel-funded

start-up that owns the smart menswear

brand Turms. It is one of India’s first

technologically advanced apparel and

wearables companies and was awarded

with the ‘Intelligent apparels &

performance’ fashion brand.

It offers smart clothing with functional

surfaces for the various needs of the

common man in everyday life. It has

anti-stain, anti-odour, anti-fungal and

cool-tech properties and can be worn

3-4 times without washing.

Considering the increasing immune

deficiency, it has refined technology to

add an anti-germ agent that is capable

of protecting against gram-positive

and gram-negative bacteria and a wide

fungal spectrum. It can also protect

against enveloped viruses like SARS-

COV and non-enveloped viruses as well.

“The active components in the anti-germ

formulation contain fatty oil and esters

that are natural and safe,” said Rameswar

Misra, Co-founder and CEO of BigPhi.

There are a number of reasons why the

above start-ups are foraying into the smart

fabric and smart clothing segment, but

all ideas revolve around one main idea of

‘why not hi-tech clothes, which solve some

purpose’.

The first motive is that it can help an

individual stay connected even if they

do not have their phone with them. For

example, if they go running and want to

track their distance and time, they can wear

a smart T-shirt that does all that for them.

Secondly, smart clothing can help one stay

safe. For example, if somebody gets lost

while hiking, a jacket with GPS could help

rescuers find them. Thirdly, smart clothing

can help them be more productive. For

example, if a doctor needs to access medical

records quickly, an intelligent shirt could

provide the data and speed up the process.

Technology enabling

greater experiments for

Indian Market

Integrating technology into textiles is not

a new concept, but only in recent years


START-UPS

has it become apparent that technology

in apparel is maturing year by year and

playing a larger role in ubiquity.

As technology advances, so do the

clothing we wear, and smart fabrics

and smart clothing are at the forefront

of this technological revolution. There

are a variety of different technologies

being used in smart fabrics and smart

clothing, each with its own benefits

and applications. Among the most

popular are Conductive Fibres, which

are specially designed-fibres that can

conduct electricity and are often used

for heatable clothing or garments with

built-in sensors. Electronic Yarns, which

embed small electronic components, can

be used to add functions such as lighting

or sound to a garment. Memory Metals

can change shape with heat or electricity

and are often used in smart garments to

create adjustable waist cuffs or hemlines.

Pressure-sensitive fabrics are used to

create garments that provide targeted

compression or support. Thermochromic

Fabrics, which change colour depending

on temperature, are ideal for sports

and everyday wear. Elastic Electronic’s

cutting-edge technology allows for the

incorporation of electronic components

into stretchy, flexible materials and some

smart fabrics can be equipped with

various types of wireless communication

devices, allowing them to send and

receive data.

Commercialisation is

a tough nut to crack,

however

The ultimate goal for apparel companies

presently is to create clothing that is so

seamlessly integrated with technology

that it becomes an extension of the

body. This allows people to expand their

physical capabilities and interact with the

world in entirely new ways.

However, a few concerns do rise which

results in little hiccups. Rashmi Thakur,

Professor, NIFT, Mumbai (India)

discusses that consumers aren’t very

keen on accepting a bulkier design and

they expect it to be extremely userfriendly

and sleek. She stated, “The

earlier commercial success had minimal

integration of e-textile into it and also

had the hardware, an electromechanical

device which had to be adjusted in the

shirt, so that seemed like a pain point

in terms of designs and agility for

consumers.”

Nowadays, businesses looking to

commercialise smart clothing are

studying the usage of flexible printed

circuit boards as well as increasing the

integration of conductive textiles, which

offers a dependable way to include

the electrical component into a textile

structure instead of that external bulky

hardware. In addition, the companies are

looking into ways to reduce the size of

the power source by using a small battery

with a voltage of 3.3V rather than 12V

and have begun to investigate conductive

yarn, which they use to construct woven

and knitted fabric before developing

a garment. Currently, many labs in

collaboration are working to create a

“Businesses looking to commercialise

smart clothing are studying the usage of

flexible printed circuit boards as well as

increasing the integration of conductive

textiles, which offers a dependable way

to include the electrical component

into a textile structure instead of that

external bulky hardware. In addition,

the companies are looking into ways to

reduce the size of the power source by

using a small battery with a voltage of

3.3V rather than 12V and have begun

to investigate conductive yarn, which

they use to construct woven and knitted

fabric before developing a garment.

Currently, many labs in collaboration

are working to create a self-sufficient

power source that might be included

in textiles. As the property of circuits

changes with washability, they are also

considering how to integrate a robust

system and design.”

Rashmi Thakur

Professor, NIFT, Mumbai

self-sufficient power source that might

be included in textiles. As the property

of circuits changes with washability, they

are also considering how to integrate a

robust system and design.”

Given the complex affordability of the

price tag of Indian consumers and the

extremely complex supply chain for smart

textiles, the goal of commercialisation

however seems to be far off.

Similarly there is lack of a one-stop

solution provider for all raw material

needs. The fragmented availability of raw

materials is also a concern.

On top of that, different application

categories of smart wearables have

varying requirements for mechanical

and electrical properties in their raw

materials, which makes it difficult to find

a need-based offering from these raw

material providers.

And the most important perspective is

the manufacturing side, where there is a

massive disconnect between traditional

textile manufacturers and traditional

electronics manufacturers. The design

process and business cycles are very

different, which is exacerbated by the lack

of integration of standards, certifications

and quality assurance measures.

Despite these challenges, there are a

few companies that have built their own

infrastructure for developing conductive

textiles. The companies are focusing on

greater R&D and developing products

while solving the pain points of the

prior-released smart clothing and focusing

on how it would be more and more

user-friendly with better integrations

and functionality. Thanks to these

breakthrough developments, it is possible

that companies will manufacture these

products on a much larger scale than they

do today.

Overcoming the challenges and

aggressively adopting technologies,

combined with a stronger supply chain

and customer demand, can truly transform

the simple piece of clothing into an

interactive piece that could be further

explored and enjoyed by Generation

Alpha and Beta.



START-UPS / NEWS

DaMENSCH will have 100

retail stores by next year

DaMENSCH, India’s fastestgrowing

D2C men’s apparel

brand, will soon expand to 100

retail stores in metropolitan

cities by next year. The

company also expects its offline

business to contribute Rs. 500

crore in the overall revenue by

2027. The brand has opened its

first-ever exclusive store. This

1200 sq. ft. experience store

in Bengaluru is thematically

designed with set-ups and

fixtures in the brands’ signature

colours. This initiative of the

company is in line with its

commitment to expand its

omnichannel presence. The

store offers comfortable fitting

zones, spacious changing

rooms, an uncluttered shopping

experience and an extensive

range of premium intimate

clothing across various

categories. The brand also aims

to be available at 10,000 points

of sale avenues across various

formats, in the next 2 years.

With this initiative, customers

can better understand the

innovative and conscious

practices that go into creating

fabric from plastic PET bottles,

thermoregulation to 4-way

stretch and more. Elaborating

on DaMENSCH’s brand ethos

of ‘Fashion that thinks’ and

its compelling omnichannel

go-to-market strategy,

Gaurav Pushkar, Co-founder

DaMENSCH, said, “ In a

highly dynamic industry like

fashion – it’s critical we adapt

and redefine strategies from

time to time. This foray into

offline stores is a part of our

omnichannel-channel strategy.

We think that our whole

phygital approach is strictly

consumer-centric and will

soon synchronise with more

processes to create a unified

consumer journey. Our sole

aim to go offline is to serve the

larger fashion-conscious men in

the country. We will continue to

offer premium, earth-friendly

fashion at affordable prices.”

Ashmeer Sayyed, Chief Retail

Officer at DaMENSCH, said,

“At the offline stores, we have

well-trained staff who will

assist customers in facilitating

convenient shopping and ensure

that our offerings align with our

consumers’ needs and wants.”

DaMENSCH is on a journey

to create products for modern

men that are distinct in features

and most desirable in their feel.


TRADE STATISTICS

US APPAREL IMPORTS (January-August 2022)

Value of US apparel import crosses US $ 10 billion in August ’22

USA has imported US $ 69.27 billion worth of garments

in January to August period of 2022, noting 37.34 per

cent yearly increase. Particularly in August ’22, the USA

sourced garments worth US $ 10.36 billion – making it the

best month of the year in terms of value-wise import. The

import values in August were 11 per cent higher than the

imports done in July ’22. It was reported that most of the

big retailers in the US are holding back new inventories and

are not placing fresh orders in their partner factories located

worldwide. However, the data is contrary to the what the

global fashion industry has been discussing for a while now.

Reason may be the fast-approaching holiday season in the

USA as buyers don’t want to see bottlenecks in supplies due

to logistics issue closer to the festive season.

Global Apparel Imports by the US

(January-August 2022)

Change in Quantity

Change in Value

Change in UVR

20.58%

37.34%

13.90%

(Average UVR in the review period was US $ 3.07 as

against US $ 2.70 in the same period last year)

Change in Quantity

Cotton

Wool

MMF

Silk & Veg

13.57% 34.90%

62.76%

24.93%

48.09%

Change in Value

Cotton

Wool

MMF

Silk & Veg

61.61%

37.76%

61.54%

Percentage change in top 3 product

categories imported by USA

T-SHIRTS

Volume

(16.68%)

Value

(36.09%)

TROUSERS

Volume

(14.73%)

Value

(32.28%)

LADIES DRESSES

Volume

(27.50%)

Value

(55.09%)

UVR change in apparel imported

by USA (2-year comparison)

Jan.-Aug. 2022

Jan.-Aug. 2021

US $ 3.07

US $ 2.70

Month-wise USA

apparel import trend

Sep. 21 8.15

Oct. 21 8.33

Nov. 21 7.38

Dec. 21 7.30

Jan. 22 7.54

Feb. 22 7.48

Mar. 22 9.29

Apr. 22 8.12

May 22 8.51

Jun. 22 8.64

Jul. 22 9.33

Aug. 22 10.36

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

(Value in US billion $)

Percentage change in India’s top product

category export (T-Shirts) to USA

48.38%

Value rises

27.74%

Volume rises

Value-wise share to USA by

top 5 apparel exporters

6.01%

5.66%

9.59%

22.45%

18.49%

China

Vietnam

Bangladesh

India

Indonesia

USA has witnessed 15.63 per cent Y-o-Y

surge in its brassiere’s imports that

valued US $ 2.12 billion in Jan.-Aug. ’22

as compared to US $ 1.84 billion in the

same period of prior year.

US $ 1.84

billion

2021 2022

US $ 2.12

billion

(The information has been extracted from US custom site and further analysed.)


TRADE STATISTICS

Total apparel exports to the US by 5 major manufacturing destinations

(January-August 2022)

Volume-wise export to USA

( Qty in mn SME)

Value-wise export to USA

( Value in US mn $ )

19.29%

7973.11

China 15554.84

37.16%

18.09%

3569.65

Vietnam 12808.60

33.62%

36.35%

2232.27

Bangladesh 6640.83

53.54%

35.52%

1121.03

India 4161.87

56.88%

40.74%

986.19

Indonesia 3918.46

56.47%

Overall apparel imported by USA was worth US $ 69.27 billion in the said period with 37.34% increased (Y-o-Y)

Item-wise quantity increase/decrease in apparel imports by the US: Jan.-Aug. 2022

(Qty in doz, legwear in dpr, babieswear in kg)

APPAREL TYPE

Total Imports by USA

Exports to USA

China India Bangladesh Vietnam Indonesia

2021 2022 % Change 2021 2022 % Change 2021 2022 % Change 2021 2022 % Change 2021 2022 % Change 2021 2022 % Change

Babies Wear 85,595,722 98,689,886 15.30 28,392,922 34,005,086 19.77 9,758,062 12,929,282 32.50 10,572,653 11,755,775 11.19 11,041,803 11,973,048 8.43 1,401,768 2,102,467 49.99

Foundation

Garments

42,413,066 44,627,007 5.22 21,115,203 21,050,543 -0.31 510,038 600,331 17.70 4,291,598 3,988,926 -7.05 5,251,696 6,375,042 21.39 1,850,515 4,361,961 135.72

Jackets & Blazers 23,862,461 34,965,943 46.53 9,906,136 14,459,877 45.97 374,979 663,807 77.03 2,335,829 3,305,429 41.51 5,002,148 7,920,679 58.35 1,338,876 1,503,422 12.29

Ladies Blouses 23,635,456 31,800,389 34.55 7,792,945 9,914,411 27.22 4,107,288 5,887,341 43.34 1,616,050 2,893,350 79.04 4,727,711 6,074,173 28.48 2,944,677 3,305,667 12.26

Ladies Dresses 35,713,765 45,535,739 27.50 14,668,203 18,133,607 23.63 3,827,125 6,142,556 60.50 1,542,110 2,097,079 35.99 7,536,958 8,933,164 18.52 2,402,796 3,414,007 42.08

Ladies Skirts 7,970,300 11,074,243 38.94 3,349,287 4,616,865 37.85 477,361 888,586 86.15 912,248 1,055,442 15.70 1,558,184 2,049,321 31.52 480,754 755,017 57.05

Legwear 270,796,989 279,164,175 3.09 190,914,247 199,856,604 4.68 1,841,169 2,298,870 24.86 485,486 198,429 -59.13 11,625,210 7,604,831 -34.58 483,246 488,244 1.03

Men's Shirts 15,975,969 24,330,764 52.30 1,963,163 3,811,614 94.16 1,495,894 2,811,403 87.94 4,620,793 7,338,872 58.82 2,490,740 3,610,895 44.97 1,518,300 1,288,720 -15.12

Nightwear 37,809,605 44,392,479 17.41 11,723,763 13,100,613 11.74 2,920,637 3,365,721 15.24 2,527,550 2,660,634 5.27 5,746,170 7,803,781 35.81 533,989 1,562,721 192.65

Suits / Ensembles 4,170,448 7,116,300 70.64 2,343,752 4,094,697 74.71 145,022 297,054 104.83 126,172 256,195 103.05 680,733 790,132 16.07 160,556 193,044 20.23

Sweaters 8,152,378 7,636,097 -6.33 5,707,523 5,069,920 -11.17 34,102 56,575 65.90 686,873 572,891 -16.59 385,862 461,368 19.57 139,094 388,994 179.66

Trousers 219,780,870 252,155,609 14.73 50,535,533 49,389,010 -2.27 4,784,189 6,821,925 42.59 35,280,432 48,063,539 36.23 46,087,132 49,463,118 7.33 10,171,047 17,186,666 68.98

T-Shirts 393,006,474 458,541,948 16.68 57,324,981 62,562,735 9.14 18,469,454 23,592,726 27.74 25,872,860 36,553,569 41.28 56,561,623 60,567,060 7.08 13,812,106 21,496,139 55.63

Undergarments 194,184,441 202,812,121 4.44 39,461,717 41,498,073 5.16 13,801,128 14,720,755 6.66 21,856,298 25,463,104 16.50 44,549,681 45,225,543 1.52 1,104,862 2,050,704 85.61

Item-wise value increase/decrease in apparel imports by the US: Jan.-Aug. 2022 (Value in US mn $)

APPAREL TYPE

Total Imports by USA

Exports to USA

China India Bangladesh Vietnam Indonesia

2021 2022 % Change 2021 2022 % Change 2021 2022 % Change 2021 2022 % Change 2021 2022 % Change 2021 2022 % Change

Babies Wear 1,755.15 2,028.28 15.56 599.25 628.79 4.93 27.30 38.80 42.13 68.39 78.21 14.36 352.16 460.76 30.84 160.21 248.27 54.97

Foundation Garments 1,838.11 2,125.48 15.63 607.10 638.56 5.18 28.68 41.44 44.48 103.72 112.42 8.40 357.73 470.67 31.57 166.94 254.12 52.22

Jackets & Blazers 3,220.90 5,090.39 58.04 977.06 1610.29 64.81 70.90 139.56 96.85 259.41 404.72 56.01 860.78 1414.57 64.34 154.85 249.73 61.27

Ladies Blouses 1,471.95 2,151.14 46.14 350.31 486.81 38.97 326.00 503.89 54.57 83.24 154.49 85.60 264.01 353.11 33.75 163.68 257.93 57.58

Ladies Dresses 2,558.56 3,967.32 55.06 827.06 1281.67 54.97 374.54 700.77 87.10 66.87 109.91 64.37 490.65 657.06 33.92 209.70 306.59 46.21

Ladies Skirts 437.44 707.40 61.71 128.71 204.84 59.15 40.29 73.53 82.48 32.36 48.59 50.17 91.31 147.88 61.95 26.65 55.14 106.92

Legwear 1,383.03 1,770.29 28.00 817.83 1051.10 28.52 28.00 42.83 52.96 0.29 0.42 47.02 56.30 59.30 5.33 2.59 4.87 87.90

Men's Shirts 1,310.35 2,093.62 59.78 114.59 231.95 102.42 117.47 220.97 88.12 267.96 474.29 77.00 228.57 366.08 60.16 85.41 124.17 45.38

Nightwear 1,669.04 1,833.37 9.85 721.13 486.93 -32.48 114.85 160.44 39.70 84.52 105.03 24.26 266.36 429.66 61.31 37.83 88.30 133.42

Suits / Ensembles 363.55 770.70 112.00 68.05 180.79 165.67 16.89 37.64 122.81 8.07 21.12 161.78 42.43 102.04 140.50 14.86 44.62 200.33

Sweaters 714.29 1,077.10 50.79 438.22 687.00 56.77 4.34 6.09 40.09 39.72 46.45 16.95 33.82 59.62 76.29 16.02 32.22 101.17

Trousers 12,654.63 16,739.09 32.28 1809.33 2168.38 19.84 294.01 456.55 55.28 1,931.62 2,955.09 52.98 2872.91 3511.54 22.23 682.59 1036.58 51.86

T-Shirts 13,915.99 18,938.46 36.09 1774.76 2382.67 34.25 658.36 976.89 48.38 680.27 1,116.83 64.18 2440.69 3177.16 30.17 656.21 1023.79 56.01

Undergarments 2,733.47 3,243.80 18.67 573.37 662.09 15.47 221.60 296.97 34.01 243.41 319.08 31.09 550.49 677.31 23.04 47.90 63.66 32.91


TRADE STATISTICS

APPAREL ONLINE

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Our Editions

AO INDIA

AO VIETNAM

AO BANGLADESH

Canada Apparel Imports (Jan.-Aug. ’22)

August continues to be the best month for

Canadian apparel buyers

August has always been a great month for Canada in terms of apparel

imports as the buyers source huge number of apparels in this month

for their holiday season. August ’22 has continued to be the best

month of the year for the apparel manufacturing destinations as the

imports of Canada has crossed US $ 1.47 billion in the month, growing

by a significant 34.90 per cent on monthly basis and 41.08 per cent

on yearly basis. All major Asian countries improved their shipments to

Canada in August as compared to July. Cumulatively, from Jan.-Aug.

’22, Canada imported apparels worth US $ 7.96 billion, noting 32.19

per cent yearly growth.

32.19%

Canada Imports

40.54%

Vietnam Exports

38.66%

B’Desh Exports

60.95%

India Exports

The knitted apparel reported 31.77% surge

during the review period, whereas the woven

segment upped by 32.77% in value terms.

Knitted garment exports from Vietnam to Canada

surged by 33.73%, while export of woven garments

increased by 49.73%.

Bangladesh’s shipment to Canada upped by 41.05%

in knitted segment, while woven garment exports

increased by 36.32%.

The value of Indian knitted apparel exports upped

by 50.97%; while export value of woven segment

grew by 74.33% on Y-o-Y basis.

Japan Apparel Imports (Jan.-Aug. ’22)

Japan’s apparel imports continue to remain high

value-wise due to stronger yen

Japan’s apparel imports valued US $ 13.43 billion in January to August

2022 period, growing by 23.10 per cent on yearly basis. Though

values have increased, weight-wise apparel imports of Japan haven’t

seen significant rise. This is because of stronger yen that’s not letting

unit prices down. China, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Vietnam

remained positive in their apparel shipments to Japan both weightwise

and value-wise, while Indonesia and Pakistan declined in weightwise

exports.

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23.09%

Japan Imports

28.21%

Vietnam Exports

33.17%

B’Desh Exports

19.92%

India Exports

Japanese apparel imports increased by 3.69%

in weight, while values increased by 23.09%

in the review period.

Vietnam got a boost of 7.21% in weight-wise

exports to Japan, while values increased by

28.21% on Y-o-Y basis.

Bangladesh’s garment exports to Japan saw

growth by 33.17% in value-wise exports and

weight increased by 8.21%.

Indian RMG exports to the Japan upped

by 3.25% in weights and 19.92% in

values.




EVENT / NEWS


Hyosung launches new Fall/Winter 23/24 Textile Trends at

ISPO Munich

Hyosung’s Fashion Design

Center (FDC) – an

interactive fashion studio –

has released its forecasted

Fall/Winter 2023-24

Textile Trend report, which

provides a vision of what

major apparel brands will

be incorporating into their

collection next year.

FDC’s textile mega-trend

for Fall/Winter 2023-24 is

called Interconnected Future

which is broken into four

sub-trends and subsequent

themes called Sport Smart,

Exploration of Outdoors,

Practical Aesthetics and

Science of Comfort.

Within each theme, the

FDC team recommends

a number of Hyosung’s

multi-functional and

sustainable yarns and

apparel applications- most

notably the company’s

new third party certified

creora® bio-based spandex

made with bio-based

materials derived from

industrial corn, along with

its MIPAN regen ocean

recycled nylon made from

discarded fishing nets.

Concept garments made

with recommended yarns

from the FDC Fall/Winter

23/24 Textile Trends will

be featured in the Hyosung

stand at ISPO Munich this

28-30 November.

“As the Covid-19 pandemic

has passed, we foresee an

enhanced interconnection

among social, environmental

and economic systems

triggering a mindset shift

from individualism to

interconnectedness shaping

new customer attitudes and

behaviour,” commented

Lewis Hong, Team/General

Manager, Hyosung Fashion

Design Center.

Lewis further added, “For

F/W 23-24, we foresee

textile trends focusing on

materials that are kind to

our environment and provide

multi-function and comfort.

Practical aesthetics and

interesting surface details are

also important now that we

are able to personally engage

in the community once

again.”

Elaborating on four subtrends,

Hyosung further

reports that the Sport Smart

sub-trend touches upon

essential base layers, winter

performance leisure hybrids,

core fabrics using smart

technology for in-home and

IRL gyms, year-round water

sports and futuristic meta

streetwear where physical

and digital worlds collide

through fantasy-inspired

aesthetics.

Exploration of Outdoors

sub-trend addresses the

ongoing rise in the

outdoorsy lifestyle trend.

Key themes include textiles

incorporating new levels of

protection taking extreme

weather patterns into

consideration, comfy knit

mid-layers in functional

fabrics, textiles that can

transition between winter

recreation and all-day wear

and functional outerwear

for urban nomads.

As consumers adjust to

the new work/life hybrid

lifestyle, the Practical

Aesthetics sub-trend

focuses on textiles suited

for comfortable officeready

apparel, loungewear

with fashionable detail

and textural interest, cozy

tactile teddy-looking fleece

fabrics for indoor and

outdoor wear, and practical

performance wear that

meets comfort for home

activewear.

And finally, the Science

of Comfort sub-trend

reveals that more diverse,

sustainable fibres are

leading the trend in new

next-to-skin layers, and soft

compression with additional

technical properties will

be key to basic underwear

and loungewear for all-day

performance comfort.

Additionally, playful digital

brights push classic lingerie

into fashion limelight.

“As a textile solutions

provider, we are grateful to

work and collaborate with

the entire value chain to

help our brand partners

continually innovate and

deliver products even before

their customers know they

want them,” said Hong.


RESOURCE CENTRE

RESOURCE CENTRE

“Self-awareness is an

important ingredient for

success but most leaders in

today’s time lack this requisite.

IQ and EQ both contribute

substantially in making a

person a successful leader.”

André Lacroix

ANDRÉ LACROIX,

INTERTEK GROUP

CEO AND AUTHOR OF

‘LEADERSHIP WITH SOUL’

SHARES INSIGHTS WITH

APPAREL RESOURCES

“Around 3.3 billion people across the

world work every day. We, corporate

leaders, have a huge responsibility to make

the workplace a better, safer and more

sustainable environment for each and

every one of them,” reads the preface of

the new book Leadership with Soul, written

by industry stalwart André Lacroix, who is

currently the CEO of Intertek Group.

André was recently present in an event

organised by Intertek at The Oberoi,

“When I was a kid, I wanted

to be a surgeon. There is a

strong humanist character

in me which is what led me

to put human approach at

the heart of business too.”

André Lacroix

Gurgaon that gathered the company’s

key customers, CHROs and HR thought

leaders, and a few top media houses from

India including Apparel Resources, who

interacted with André about his book

Leadership with Soul and his leadership

approach of putting people at the heart of

companies’ growth strategy.

In Leadership with Soul, André Lacroix

reveals his model for business success,

built over more than three decades with

world-leading organisations such as Ernst

& Young, Colgate Palmolive, Burger

King, PepsiCo, Euro Disney, Reckitt

Benckiser, Inchcape, and now, Intertek.

Lacroix attributes his success to taking

an empathetic, human approach to

drive sustainable value for all: customers,

employees, shareholders, communities and

society as a whole. He has consistently

applied this thinking to address the

different challenges he has faced wherever

he has worked.

When asked about the message he

wants to give to the apparel and textile

industry, André said, “This is the time

when collaboration between brands and

vendors should be strengthened. Working

together in real-time using the right

independent data on how to satisfy the

demands of anxious consumers is what

the need of the hour is. This collaboration

helps in achieving the right quality and

right sustainability approach to design,

production and supply chain, which is

super-important.”

André is known as an authority on

sustainability in the corporate world, and

he talked about what sustainability is in

the true sense and how today’s leaders can

ensure success in businesses by ensuring

sustainable processes throughout their

organisations.

“Many people think ensuring only ESG is

sustainability but the implementation of ESG

alone is not sufficient. For any company in the

supply chain, true sustainability starts with

the right processes and control in the value

chain. On the other hand, a company needs

to have end-to-end processes throughout the

organisation to drive sustainability excellence

and make sure they have all the required

processes in place. These right measures can

include chemical management, health and

safety well-being, net zero, fabric content

and recyclability among other aspects. This

is where sustainability begins,” commented

André, further adding, “There is one chapter

on sustainability in my book that states how

leaders can focus on this concept to succeed in

business.”

Stay connected to read the entire

conversation between André Lacroix and

Apparel Resources!


RESOURCE CENTRE

ANJU MODI’S ‘DAMAYANTI’ COLLECTION

PRESENTED BY TENCEL FIBRE BRAND

Ace Designer Anju Modi’s

‘Damayanti’ collection presented

by TENCEL fibre brand at Lakmé

Fashion Week in partnership with

FDCI was a poetic fashion showcase

that created nostalgic romance on

the ramp.

Inspired by the ethereal paintings

of top Indian artist Raja Ravi Varma

whose muse was Damayanti, Anju’s

look for the show reflected the

western techniques and styles that

were pioneered by the artist as the

collection unfolded on the runway.

The graceful saris were organic while

the hand-crafted silhouettes spoke a

design language all of their own.

Anju’s design philosophy has always

resonated beautifully to empower

the craftsmen of the country and this

season too, it balanced perfectly with

TENCEL lyocell and modal fibres for

the new collection. The TENCEL fibre

brand’s dedication to eco-friendly

and impeccable quality products

was aligned with Anju Modi’s brand

throughout the line presented

during this show. The presence of

TENCEL fibres not only enhances the

aesthetics of the collection but is also

highly comfortable and breathable

for the wearer.

The luxurious TENCEL lyocell and

modal fibres added to the grace

and elegance of the collection, as

Anju visualised a look that was sheer

poetry on the ramp.

Actress Sanjana Sanghi created

dramatic magic on the ramp, when

she closed the show, wearing a

black/gold draped dhoti, maroon

bralette, topped with a black, velvet,

embroidered bolero and a royal

purple dupatta with gold motifs.

S Jayaraman, Senior Commercial

Director, Lenzing Group, said, “We

are highly pleased to collaborate

with a respected designer like Anju

Modi and see her exquisite collection

made from TENCEL fibres that was

presented at this season’s Lakmé

Fashion Week in partnership with

FDCI. It was an honour to co-present

this multi-faceted collection inspired

by the unique artist Raja Ravi Varma,

who is known to exquisitely breathe

life into every mythical character

in his creations. The multi-faceted

collection ‘Damayanti’ and its

timelessness will appeal to audiences

across genres. With this collection,

we seek to inspire and create more

traditional wear trends powered by

modern age fibres like TENCEL.”

He further added that their

collaboration with Anju Modi was

particularly significant as TENCEL

fibres celebrate 30 years of

sustainable fibre innovation along

with the designer who has completed

three decades in the industry. “We

are looking forward to driving

continuous innovation and building

stronger partnerships within India

over the next 30 years and beyond,”

Jayaraman added.

Designer Anju Modi said, “The

Lenzing Group’s dedication to being

the industry’s innovation leader by

offering eco-friendly, innovative and

impeccable quality products proves to

be in alignment with the brand values

at Anju Modi. The collection made

from TENCEL lyocell and modal

fibre gracefully captures the essence

of Raja Ravi Varma’s painting style

and aesthetics and will bring forth

romantic nostalgia on the runway.”




More than 500 sustainable products for any applications

Global availability with unrivalled quality and consistency

Leading edge innovations in sustainable materials

Certified quality to minimize footprint and maximize handprint

Recycled

General

Interlinings

Recyclable

Energy

Saving

Biodegradable

Sustainable Cotton

Nature-based

Recycled Thermal

Insulations and

Linings

TECHNOLOGY

Harvesting energy, zero liquid

discharge, energy efficiency audit,

monitoring system

RAW MATERIALS

Hazardous free materials

(E.g. Azo & APEO free, PFC free), recycled,

nature-based or biodegradable materials

CARBON FOOTPRINT

By 2025, 25% of Freudenberg

sales in the apparel industry will be

from sustainable products

GRS, C2C Gold, HIGG Index, BCI, REACH,

ECO-CHECK, STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX®,

RSL, TQP, ISO 9001, ISO 14001

For more information about our House of Sustainability, please visit our website:

https://apparel.freudenberg-pm.com/benefits/house-of-sustainability

Freudenberg Performance Materials India Pvt. Ltd.

BANGALORE

Indiranagar, Tel: +91 080 25262061

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Ashok Nagar, Tel: +91 044 42165421

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Gurgaon, Tel: +91 0124 4018623

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innovation in Activewear propelling its steady growth

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