Textination Newsline

‘High-Tex from Germany’ at Techtextil North America and Texprocess Americas shows again how innovative the German textile industry is.

Back to the USA: ‘High-Tex from Germany’ made a guest appearance at Techtextil North America and Texprocess Americas in Atlanta for the second time from 22 to 24 May 2018. At the special exhibition organised by the Federal Ministry of Economics and Energy (Bundesministerium für Wirtschaft und Energie – BMWi) in cooperation with the Association of the German Trade Fair Industry (Messeausschuss der Deutschen Wirtschaft e.V. – AUMA), a total of 66 companies presented technical textiles, nonwovens, textile-processing machines, smart textiles and textile-research projects to the trade visitors. The textile sector made its first appearance in the USA in 2000. This was followed by highly successful presentations in Shanghai in 2002, in Mumbai in 2007 and in Moscow in 2012.

“Taking ‘High-Tex from Germany’ to Atlanta again was a very good decision. The southeast of the USA has a long tradition of textile manufacturing. It is home to many companies that are always on the lookout for innovative textiles and machines for textile production and processing”, explained Detlev Rünger, German Consul General in Atlanta during the ‘High-Tex from Germany’ press conference. “Fairs bring people together. And this was evident here in Atlanta. With the overseas exhibition programme, we give small to medium-sized companies the chance to show their products in foreign markets”, said Patrick Specht of the Trade Fair Policy and EXPO Participations division of the BMWi.

“‘High-Tex from Germany’ within the framework of Techtextil North America and Texprocess Americas was a very good platform for our small to medium-sized companies. After Techtextil and Texprocess in Frankfurt, these two events are the second-most important editions of the trade-fair duo. ‘High-Tex from Germany’ came fully up to our expectations and anyone who failed to take part missed a great opportunity to be noticed”, said Marc Lorch, Member of the Board of Zwissler Holding, who represented the participating companies as exhibitor president.

Michael Metzler, Sales President of ZSK Stickmaschinen, confirmed this saying, “A German pavilion of this scope makes us extremely visible. Thanks to the excellent organisation, we were also able to concentrate on promoting our company and products.” In addition to the appealing exhibition-stand concept and the excellent organisation, the companies taking part were particularly pleased with the high visitor standard. “We regularly exhibit at Techtextil North America but taking part in ‘High-Tex for Germany’ resulted in our best ever day at a fair here. The pavilion is a real eye-catcher”, said Thomas Wiederer, Area Sales Manager, Brückner Textile Technologies. “The visitors to our exhibition stand were very interested in our products. We gained potential customers and were able to make numerous high-grade contacts. The level of interest shown in our highly innovative e-textile solutions, which are completely new in the sector, was very high. We are looking forward to the follow-up phase”, said Andreas Lanyi, Vice President Digital Unit and Internet of Things of the Hamburg-based start-up, Lunative Laboratories.

Besides gaining new customers, the focus of the companies taking part in ‘High-Tex from Germany’ was on cultivating customer relations. “The German pavilion in Atlanta once again gave us a good opportunity to get to know the US market better. We have had a factory in the vicinity of Atlanta for two years now and aim to expand our network in the long term”, said Ronny Schröder, Associate Sales Director Technical and Comfort Products, Sandler. “We like making presentations within the framework of the German pavilion very much”, added Georg Voggenreiter, Technical Sales, Maschinenfabrik Herbert Meyer. “Once again, ‘High-Tex from Germany’ was a good starting point for cultivating contacts with our customers in the USA.”

The companies taking part in ‘High-Tex from Germany’ made their presentations on around 1,300 square metres of exhibition space with their own exhibition stands, with selected exhibits on a central ‘Plaza’, in guided tours and no less than 35 lectures. Additionally, the German Institutes of Textile and Fibre Research (Deutsche Institute für Textil- und Faserforschung – DITF), the Association of the Finishing, Yarns, Woven Fabrics and Technical Textiles Industry (Industrieverband Veredlung, Garne, Gewebe und Technische Textilien – IVGT), the Tübingen-Reutlingen-Zollernalb location agency and the German American Chamber of Commerce of the Southern U.S. provided insights into current research projects and offered information about the sector.

• FOCUS ON DIGITIZATION AND SUSTAINABILITY

Mailand (GTAI) - The Italian fashion industry is changing. The digitalization of production and the growth in online trading are forcing a rethinking in the traditional sector. The topic of sustainability is becoming increasingly important. Against this background, Italian fashion houses are increasingly investing in their future strategies. German companies see good business opportunities as technology partners.

The Italian fashion industry is one of the core sectors of the Italian economy. In 2017, the sector increased its sales by 2.4 percent to EUR 54.1 billion, as reported the industry association Confindustria Moda. For 2018, the association expects a further increase of 2.6 percent to EUR 55.4 billion. The goal is to exceed the EUR 60 billion by 2020.

But the sector is developing inconsistently. Sales of intermediate products such as fabrics have been stagnating for years, while sales of end products such as clothing, shoes and bags are increasing. Both areas grew in 2017. End products (+2.9 percent) continue to be more successful than primary products (+2.2 percent). The main reason for the positive development of the fashion industry in recent years is the strong export demand for Italian products. In 2017 exports rose by a total of 3.5 percent and exceeded the EUR 30 billion mark for the first time.

The main export hits are clothing (one third of fashion exports), leather goods (around 20 percent) and shoes (around 18 percent), followed by fabrics (9 percent) and home textiles (9 percent). Sector representatives are concerned about developments in some important sales markets. Exports to the USA and Japan declined in 2017, the rising demand from China and Russia could not compensate these losses.

Significant rise in fashion imports
Domestic demand for fashion stagnated in 2017, while significantly more preproducts from the Far East and end products from industrialized countries were imported. Overall, imports increased by 2.2 percent to EUR 21.1 billion in 2017, Confindustria is expecting a further increase of 2.4 percent in 2018.

Germany is one of the most important markets for Italian fashion manufacturers; Italian shoes and bags are particularly popular with German customers. In return, Germany, with imports worth EUR 1.3 billion (plus 4.1 percent), ranked fourth as a supplier country in 2017, behind China, France and Spain. Clothing accounts for about half of German fashion imports and textiles for the other half. Germany is an important supplier of technical textiles, including sports goods and for the automotive industry.

Many companies strengthen their online presence  
The digitalization of the Italian industry does not stop at the fashion industry either. Thanks to the new technologies, traditional manufacturers can increasingly reach their customers directly without intermediaries.

How well this works was demonstrated by the Italian start-up company Yoox, an online luxury fashion retailer. Founded in 2000, the company merged with the French online fashion company and strong competitor Net-a-Porter in 2015. The Group is now active in 180 countries and generated sales of EUR 2.1 billion in 2017.
Many companies are strengthening their online presence and using their stores primarily as showcases to promote brands or new collections. The company Beste with the still new brand for men Monobi is an actual example. The traditional fashion houses Loro Piana and Zegna have been active in this direction already for several years.

Industry 4.0 sets impulses
Digitalization also makes new production processes possible for fashion houses. The networking of machines reduces production times, increases efficiency and reduces electricity and water consumption. In addition, manufacturers get the opportunity to offer tailormade solutions. Digitalization also ensures through just-in-time concepts that inventories and sales areas can be reduced, which leads to falling costs.

Well-known Italian fashion houses are investing heavily into the future. The luxury company Gucci has invested around EUR 100 million in a new innovation center, the so called ArtLab, in the greater Florence area. The company Beste has started two research projects in the field of Industry 4.0. The intensive research focuses on the development of new, environmentally friendly materials and the development of a digital platform for the planning, production and distribution of garments.

Sustainability is increasingly becoming a sales argument
The topic of sustainability is becoming increasingly important. The National Chamber of Italian Fashion (CNMI), for example, organizes discussion rounds on the subject. The fashion house Ferragamo has presented a sustainability plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumption. A new development by Ferragamo is also a sustainable fabric made from orange peels.

Gucci, Armani, Bulgari, the list of the world-famous Italian fashion companies is long. At the same time, Italy also has a large number of small and very small companies in the fashion sector. In 2017, the average number of employees in the companies was 9. Small and medium-sized com-panies also rely on sustainability.

The major Italian bank Unicredit, together with the European Investment Bank, is providing low interest loans for small and medium-sized fashion companies (up to 250 employees) for relevant investments. Similar programs are provided by the major bank Intesa Sanpaolo.