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Google unveils smart denim jacket
with Levi Strauss
February this year. The fashion division
of Samsung C&T Corp. is also trying to
expand its presence abroad, opening
branches in New York and Hong Kong,
South Korean media reports said.
TRADE FAIR
Heimtextil to focus on textile
solutions for architects
Pic courtesy: Levis
Ending the months-long wait, Google
has unveiled its smart denim jacket. The
wearable technology is the outcome of
the project between Google’s Advanced
Technology and Products (ATAP) group
and Levi Strauss. The smart denim
jacket developed using Jacquard
technology, is durable and is designed
to be comfortable for cycling as well as
off the bike.
Jacquard is a connected apparel
platform that allows fashion designers
and apparel manufacturers to integrate
connectivity and interactivity into
clothes. The technology enables the
wearer to perform common digital tasks
like starting or stopping music, getting
directions or reading incoming text
messages by simply swiping or tapping
the jacket sleeve.
BRANDS
South Korean fashion brands
expand overseas amid slump at
home
South Korean fashion firms are keen
on tapping into overseas markets
due to a prolonged domestic slump.
The domestic fashion market’s size
is projected to reach 39.3 trillion won
in 2017, which would mark the fourth
consecutive year of single-digit growth
for the industry, causing many industry
watchers to perceive it as a sector
slowdown.
Shinsegae International Inc., the
apparel arm of retail giant Shinsegae,
said it is planning to open three more
stores in China this year. LF, the apparel
affiliate of the LG Group, entered
the European market in August by
launching its brand HAZZYS in Paris-
based concept store Colette. Handsome
Corp., the apparel unit of Hyundai
Department Store Group, opened stores
for its casual brands SYSTEM and
SYSTEM HOMME in Galeries Lafayette
upmarket department store in Paris in
34 | FIBRE 2 FASHION NOVEMBER 2017
Heimtextil 2018, the world’s leading
trade fair for home and contract
textiles, will focus on textile solutions
for architects and interior designers.
Beginning from January 9, the fair
will expand its exhibition space for
furnishing and upholstery fabrics.
The four-day trade fair will present
upholstery and decorative fabrics in five
hall levels (3.0, 3.1, 4.0, 4.1 and 4.2). The
enormous collection of furnishing and
upholstery fabrics at Heimtextil 2018
will range from suppliers of the highest
quality goods to suppliers of functional
textile solutions in this segment and
also manufacturers of high-volume
goods.
SUSTAINABILITY
Swedish scientists make a dress
completely of paper
Pic courtesy: University of Borås
Scientists at the Swedish School of
Textiles in Borås have made a dress
completely of paper from Swedish
forests, as part of the project ‘Establish
locally grown textiles in Sweden’ which
aims at enabling textile production of
raw material from the pulp industry. The
forest raw material is processed into
paper, spun into threads and turned
into fabrics.
This gives new business opportunities
for the domestic industry in Sweden
and creates opportunities for a more
sustainable textile industry through a
range of innovative solutions across
branches.
NSF to certify for organic content,
wool, down
NSF International, a global,
independent organisation that works
to protect the environment and
human health, is now an approved
certification body for three additional
Textile Exchange standards pertaining
to organic content, wool and down.
NSF International’s certifications
help companies show commitment
to sustainability, transparency and
traceability.
As consumers continue to seek
greater transparency in the products
they purchase, NSF International’s
third-party validation of textile content
claims helps support and protect
brands and strengthen customer trust.
H&M invests in Re:newcell
H&M has invested in Re:newcell as a
minority shareholder. This is an initiative
towards making the fashion industry
more sustainable.
Re:newcell’s technology upcycles
used garments with high cellulosic
content – such as cotton, lyocell and
viscose – into a new, biodegradable
material, Re:newcell pulp. It can be
turned into textile fibre and fed into the
textile production cycle.
LOGISTICS
Sri Lanka brings transparency in
freight charges
The island nation of Sri Lanka has
successfully introduced transparency
in fixin g of charges by freight service
providers at ports. The Joint Apparel
Association Forum (JAAF) of Sri Lanka
had lobbied with the government,
which issued a regulation directing
freight forwarders, non-vessel carrier
operators, etc to ensure transparency in
the imposition of charges.
Under ‘The Licensing of Shipping
Agents, Freight Forwarders, Non-
Vessel Operating Common Carriers
and Container Operators Act’, charges
are required to be collected from the
contacting party who is liable to pay the
freight and not from other party.
The main points of the regulation
are it prohibits ‘zero’ freight; identifies
the delivery and destination points as
either container yard or container freight
station; restricts the imposition of any
other charge on exporter other than the
freight if he is bound to pay such as per
the contract; and restricts the imposition
of any other charge on importer other
than the freight if he is bound to pay such
as per the contract but a delivery order
fee may be imposed on importers.