Chapter of the Denims & Jeans show only reiterated the growing importance of the Indian retail market and the increasing focus of companies to establish links with leading domestic brands . This however does not undermine the importance of international brands that have built a strong base in India , both for their global operations and Indian stores . No wonder , the event saw participation from 18 countries like Italy , Turkey , Korea , Singapore , Bangladesh , China and Switzerland , besides India . Representatives of these global participants from companies like Jeanologia , Archroma , Hyosung , Bluesign , and Tonello are quite upbeat about the Indian denim industry and are expecting good business from the country in the coming days .

Apart from latest denim fabrics , yarn , dyes , chemicals , washing technology , software and trims manufacturers also participated in the event . Leading Indian denim mills like Arvind , Raymond , Oswal Denim , LNJ , Mafatlal , KG Denim , Nandan Denim , and companies like Reliance Industries , displayed their latest

offerings at the show which saw visitation from top retailers like M & S , VF Sourcing India , Levi ’ s , Landmark Group , Monte Carlo , Being Human , PVH , Arvind Brands , Inmark Retail and few other brands , besides export houses like Gokaldas Images , Shahi , Texport and many more .

As a denim fair , the major concentration of all participants was on innovation and sustainability – the two growth drivers for the segment today . Whether the exhibitor was a fabric manufacturer , a chemical provider or an accessory company , the focus for all was common – to offer something unique . However , this is easier said than achieved and differentiation was often seen in the ‘ service ’ rather than the actual product . “ While we continue to innovate , the responsiveness of our service from delivering on time to customisation is also a key component of our growth ,” said Ram Srinivasan , Head Apparel Fabric Sales , KG Denim Ltd . The company introduced the ‘ re-fibrea ’ concept for the first time within their sustainable concept , which basically means the use of recycled fibres .

ESSENTIALS

With the theme of gender-free denim , the wellorganised show had interesting seminars on various interesting topics on which the industry experts shared their thoughts and experiences . These seminars discussed issues like 3D printed garments , future of denim sourcing – online , sustainability and few more very relevant topics .

The speciality at LNJ Denim was the fabric made from post-consumer recycled denim which has the GRS ( Global Recycle Standard ) certification . The company is the largest supplier of this concept to H & M , with own factory to recycle old and used jeans . “ Though the production of cotton is not increasing , the demand for garments is on the rise , so sustainable options of producing the same from already existing resources is a need . We have specialised in fabrics from recycled clothes and this has become one of our USPs ,” said Prabir Bandyopadhyay , Chief Executive , LNJ Denim & Fabric Business .

According to many of the exhibitors , knitted denim is really big this season and some Indian companies shared that since all major players have entered the segment , there is a huge oversupply of the product , which is leading to a price war . Reliance Industry , with its R-Elan performance fibres , has gained popularity with many denim suppliers ; and many of the exhibitors were displaying products from the range . RIL has entered into a partnership with VF Corporation of US , owner of the