From the Sector

August’s Intertextile Shanghai Home Textiles embraces the revitalised home textile market in China
As China’s economy is getting back on track with the GDP growth rate standing at 6.9% in 2017, the home textile market is also showing strong signs of recovery before Intertextile Shanghai Home Textiles returns this August.

With 23 years’ history, the show is well regarded as the most influential home textile trade fair in Asia. Over 1,000 suppliers from around 30 countries and regions will showcase a wide variety of home textile products ranging from bedding, bath, table & kitchen, curtains & upholstery and textile designs & technology to editors, whole home, sun protection, wallcoverings and carpets & rugs. In turn, over 38,000 trade buyers are expected to source at the fair.

According to Askci Consulting, one of the leading Chinese industry research institutions, China’s home textile market has been growing steadily with an average rate of around 10% between 2010 and 2015. The overall size has increased from USD 18.4 billion in 2010 to USD 29.5 billion in 2015, and is expected to reach USD 38.3 billion in 2020. What’s more, the consumption of home textiles only accounts for about 29% of the total textile consumption of the country. Given the fact that the relevant ratio in developed countries such as the US and Japan is between 33 to 38%, there still lies huge room for the Chinese market to expand. Foreign analysts share this optimism, with Euromonitor expecting an annual increase of 5.3% and 5.9% for China’s entire home textile and bedding product markets respectively.

Thanks to the improving quality and competitive price, there is also growing demand for China’s home textile products from buyers around the world. Customs statistics show that the export value for home textile products increased 2.25% to USD 39.5 billion in 2017. Among all China’s export countries and regions, the US has the largest share, followed by the EU, ASEAN and Japan.
With all these favourable conditions in place, Intertextile Shanghai Home Textiles, to be held from 27 – 30 August, serves as an ideal platform for industry players to capture these business opportunities. “The rapid urbanisation and the consumption upgrade is unleashing unprecedented purchasing power in China. Participants can expect to benefit from this huge potential at our show,” Ms Wendy Wen, Senior General Manager of Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd added.

Contract business sees big potential in Chinese market
The constant growth of Chinese consumers’ disposable income not only results in increased spending on home textile products, but also stimulates the development of tourism. A report from the General Office of the State Council of China stated that the annual number of domestic trips has nearly doubled, from 2.1 billion in 2010 to 4.4 billion in 2016. It is expected that domestic travel-related consumption will reach USD 869 billion in 2020 and contribute to over 5% of GDP.

The hotel industry in particular has benefited from this development, with the number of limited service hotels increasing 30% in the past seven years. This also implies remarkable opportunities for the home textile industry players doing contract business since quality products including furnishing fabrics, bedding & towelling and more will be sought after by the hotels.
Intertextile Shanghai Home Textiles – Autumn Edition is organised by Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd; the Sub-Council of Textile Industry, CCPIT; and the China Home Textile Association (CHTA).

To find out more about this fair, please visit: www.intertextilehome.com.
For more information about Messe Frankfurt textile fairs worldwide, please visit: http://texpertise-network.messefrankfurt.com.

Exhibitor registration is open for Cinte Techtextil China, which will take place with an earlier date of 4 – 6 September this year. Asia’s largest biennial event for the entire technical textiles and nonwovens sector, the fair is held in a region that not only continues to grow strongly but is expected to do so for the foreseeable future, not least due to major government initiatives in China that are injecting billions of dollars of investment into the industry.

“It is due to the increasing opportunities in the Asian market that we are expecting more European exhibitors to feature at Cinte Techtextil China this year,” Ms Wendy Wen, Senior General Manager of Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd outlined. “As the fair attracts a diverse range of trade buyers, including from 12 different application areas such as Buildtech, Clothtech, Geotech, Medtech, Mobiltech and Protech, it is a unique opportunity within Asia for suppliers to meet with the entire industry and maximise the potential of their products across various end-uses and sectors.” While many new European companies are expected this year, some of the returning big brands already confirmed include Trützschler, Dilo and Barnet from Germany, Andritz from France, Stahl from the Netherlands, Itema from Italy and Picanol from Belgium.

Chinese and Asian technical textiles and nonwovens markets continue their upward trajectory
When it comes to technical textiles and nonwovens, the Asian region, and China in particular, is displaying impressive growth, which will remain the case in the coming years.

China overall

•  The total output of technical textiles and nonwoven products is estimated to reach over 22 million tons in 2020, accounting for 30% of global production, and double that of 2013.
•  In 2016, China’s technical textile exports were worth USD 23.61 billion. Nine major products surpassed USD 1.5 billion worth of exports each: medical & hygiene textiles, coated textiles, nonwovens, canvas & tarp textiles, ropes, synthetic leather substrates and package textiles.
• Growth will be seen especially in the following sectors in the coming five years               

                  Filtration & separation textiles
                  Medical & hygiene textiles
                  Geotechnical textil
                  Structural reinforcement textiles
                  Transportation textiles
                  Protective textiles

Nonwovens

• China accounted for 10.5% of global nonwovens imports in 2015.
• China alone will account for around 57% of the Asian consumption of nonwovens from 2016 to 2020.
• According to the China Nonwovens & Industrial Textiles Association (CNITA), the following nonwoven sectors will experience the highest growth in this period:

                 Environmental protection
                 Medical, healthcare and elderly care
                 Emergency services and public security
                 New-energy automotive
                ‘Belt and Road’ supporting industries

Man-made fibres

• China currently accounts for 65% of world market share of man-made fibres, with demand in the wider Asian region expected to remain strong in coming years thanks to growing populations and rising living standards in China and emerging Asian countries.
• The driving force is not only clothing, but also new applications such as the filtration, construction, protection and transportation industries.

STAMFORD, February 26, 2018 - at JEC World 2018, taking place in Paris March 6-8, Hexcel will display an array of product innovations for customer applications in aerospace, automotive, wind energy and marine markets.
Hexcel’s banner at the exhibit hall entrance features the Airbus H160 helicopter and A350 XWB aircraft, both with carbon fiber livery to acknowledge the high Hexcel composites content in both programs. Hexcel’s reinforcements, prepregs, adhesives and honeycomb materials were selected for the H160’s composite fuselage structures and main rotor blades, contributing to the lightweight fuel-saving design and performance optimization. Airbus has loaned Hexcel an H160 BLUE EDGE blade to display on the booth.

Among the Aerospace promotions at Hexcel’s booth are carbon-reinforced 3D printed parts, made from Hexcel’s HexAM™ additive manufacturing technology that uses PEKK ultra-high performance polymers. Hexcel acquired this technology from Oxford Performance Materials in December 2017 to provide a weight-saving solution for intricate parts in highly demanding aerospace, satellite and defense applications. HexPEKK™ structures offer significant weight, cost and time-to-market reductions, replacing traditional cast or machined metallic parts with a new technology.

Aircraft engines benefit from a number of Hexcel technologies that will be promoted at JEC 2018, including HexShield™ honeycomb that provides high temperature resistance in aircraft engine nacelles. By inserting a thermally resistant material into honeycomb cells, Hexcel provides a core product with unique heat-shielding capabilities that allows for the potential re-use of material after a fire event.
Another honeycomb innovation from Hexcel is Acousti-Cap® broadband noise-reducing honeycomb that significantly improves acoustic absorption in aircraft engine nacelles. The acoustic treatment may be positioned at a consistent depth and resistance within the core, or can be placed in a pattern of varying depths and/or resistances (Multi-Degrees of Freedom and 3 Degrees Of Freedom), offering an acoustic liner that is precisely tuned to the engine operating conditions. These technologies have been tested at NASA on a full engine test rig and meet all 16 design conditions without trade-offs. An example of this technology will be on display at JEC 2018.

Rounding off the aircraft engine exhibits is a CTi fan blade for new generation lightweight turbofan engines from Rolls-Royce, manufactured from Hexcel’s HexPly® M91 high toughness and impact-resistant epoxy prepreg. Hexcel supplies HexPly® M91 as slit tape for the automated lay-up of the complex aerodynamic shape, with a constantly changing thickness across the blade length. The blade which is thinner and lighter than titanium fan blades is currently undergoing flight tests.
Hexcel’s HiTape® and HiMax™ dry carbon reinforcements that were developed for the automated lay-up of preforms for resin-infused aerospace structures will be promoted at the show. Two demonstrator parts, one made with HiMax™ and one with HiTape®, were both infused with HexFlow® RTM6 resin to demonstrate the potential benefits of an integrated design for aircraft skins, spars and stiffeners that meets OEM requirements for production rate increases and cost effectiveness.

Hexcel is also introducing its new range of HiFlow™ advanced liquid resins for aerospace structures manufactured by liquid molding technologies. Based on novel proprietary chemistry, the new resin family will enhance the performance of composites and ease processing when combined with HiTape® and HiMax™ dry carbon reinforcements. HiFlow™ HF610 is the first resin in the range.
Hexcel’s range of high performance adhesives has expanded considerably following the company’s acquisition of Structil last October. Hexcel is relaunching the acquired products under the new HexBond™ brand name at JEC World. This fast-growing range of pastes, liquid shim and film adhesives has a wide spectrum of operating temperatures and is in qualification with a large number of aerospace and industrial OEMs.
In the Planet Aerospace area at JEC, Daher and Hexcel will jointly display an aircraft spar manufactured from HexPly® M56 prepreg. Hexcel’s Neil Parker and Daher R&T Director Dominique Bailly will give a joint presentation focusing on the materials used and the benefits for the finished part. The aircraft spar was designed and manufactured by Daher using Hexcel’s HexPly® M56 prepreg, in slit tape format, that was developed for automated deposition and out-of-autoclave curing. The spar was manufactured using only the vacuum bag process and demonstrates very low porosity levels. It is currently undergoing testing and validation through CORAC funding.

Hexcel’s Automotive promotions at JEC World 2018 include a new prepreg for composite leaf springs, HexPly® M901. In contrast to steel leaf springs used for suspension on vans, trucks and SUVs, newer composite versions offer many advantages including weight savings of up to 70%, high corrosion resistance, optimized system integration and superior performance. Hexcel’s HexPly® M901 prepreg raises the bar further, reducing mold cure time below 15 minutes, a 50% reduction compared to standard industrial prepregs. HexPly® M901 provides 15% higher mechanical performance, with enhanced fatigue properties. It also operates at high temperatures, providing a Tg of up to 200°C following a post cure. Hexcel’s expertise in manufacturing heavy weight glass UD prepregs, with fiber areal weights of up to 1600gsm, allows the company to offer a highly cost-competitive solution for the rapid manufacture of these safety critical components.

Hexcel is constantly seeking ways to ensure that customers obtain the maximum benefit from composites and has recently acquired state-of-the-art simulation technology that accurately predicts how HiMax™ non-crimp fabrics will drape in a mold. Working in collaboration with Nottingham University Hexcel has created a car seat shell, for which the material selection was optimized using this new drape simulation technology. Visitors to Hexcel’s stand at JEC will see an on-screen demonstration that illustrates how the simulation tool operates, predicting process and performance and ensuring that the optimum fabric architecture is quickly identified, reducing the need for expensive trial programs.
Hexcel’s HexMC®-i 2000 carbon fiber/epoxy molding compound has been successfully used by Audi to manufacture a high-performance engine cross brace. HexMC®-i is a fast curing high-performance molding material, suitable for the series production of complex shaped parts and providing excellent mechanical properties. The Audi cross brace covers the engine, providing torsional stiffness for enhanced drive dynamics.

Hexcel’s product offering for customers in the Marine industry has expanded following the acquisition of Formax in 2016 and Structil in 2017. At JEC World, Hexcel will promote its enhanced portfolio of carbon fibers, prepregs, woven reinforcements and multiaxial fabrics for builders of racing catamarans and luxury yachts.
Marine customers have supplied a number of parts for display to illustrate their expertise in manufacturing composite structures from Hexcel materials. These include part of a Diam 24 yacht mast made by ADH Inotec from Hexcel’s HexPly® M79 fast curing, low temperature cure prepreg. ADH Inotec purchased the prepreg from Composites Distribution, a Hexcel Official Distributor that also supplied HexPly® M9.6 prepreg to Lorima for the Outremer 5X catamaran mast section on display. Part of Lorima’s 42m wing mast for a multihull racing boat made with HexPly® prepreg from Vert-Le-Petit (formerly Structil) will complete the marine display.

Hexcel’s innovations for Wind Energy include Polyspeed® pultruded laminates for load-carrying elements in wind blades. These continuous cross-section profiles, made from a polyurethane matrix reinforced with unidirectional carbon fiber, provide consistently high mechanical properties, including high stiffness, fracture toughness and shear strength, combined with low weight and durability. Visitors to Hexcel’s stand will see a 2m diameter coil of pultruded carbon laminate that contains 255m of material in a single roll. This technology offers an economical way of reinforcing large-scale composite structures such as wind turbine blades. Hexcel will also launch its surface finishing prepreg for wind turbine blades and components. This provides a tough, durable and ready-to-paint blade surface without the use of gel coat and results in faster blade manufacture, saving time in production and reducing material costs. The benefits of the new surfacing prepreg will be demonstrated via a wind blade exhibit that has been given four different treatments across the blade surface. These include a section with gel coat, a section of standard prepreg without gel coat, and a section where a fleece has been added to improve surface quality but still requires preparation before painting due to pin holes. The final section made with new HexPly® XF2P surfacing prepreg has a ready-to-paint surface, straight from the mold, without any requirement for gel coat, fleece or finishing operations.

As the global textile industry’s most comprehensive sourcing summit for the spring / summer season, Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics is naturally the ideal place to find the latest developments in product innovation and sustainability. This is especially true in the fair’s Beyond Denim zone, which this edition will feature over 110 exhibitors from China, Japan, Pakistan, Turkey and elsewhere. Adding to a total of some 3,300 exhibitors from around 22 countries and regions, they provide sourcing options for the entire industry, from fabrics for ladieswear, menswear, suiting, shirting, lingerie and swimwear to high-end wool fabrics, original pattern designs, functional & performance fabrics, sustainability products & services, digital printing technologies, garment & fashion accessories and more.

Denim enriched with volcanic ash: the latest innovation from Orta Anadolu
Volcanic ash is not uncommon in beauty products – it is known as Mother Nature’s skin purifier after all, and used as an exfoliator for example – but it is far less common in the textile industry. Orta Anadolu are set to change that with their BIOWARE denim which is enriched with mineralised volcanic ash to create an odour absorbing effect. This technology captures and absorbs odour compounds that would normally pass through the fabric, neutralising bad bacteria while retaining the helpful bacteria that common deodorisers, which contain harsh substances, normally eliminate. This leads to a more environmentally friendly product that is better for the user’s skin.

Orta will also be presenting BIOCHARGE at Intertextile, which, according to the company, is the world’s first denim fabric for muscle wellness. Infused with minerals, Orta state that BIOCHARGE is medically proven to refresh muscles, relieve muscle tension and optimise body balance. They will also present their BOUNCE stretch range, with high elasticity and a ‘street’ style, while CHRONICLE, another in their S/S 19 range, is a blend of heritage and future styles.

US Denim Mills blend tomorrow’s technology with yesterday’s style
Another innovative denim firm exhibiting at Intertextile Shanghai, and another blending old and new, is US Denim Mills. According to the company, their collection at the fair will “harness tomorrow’s textile advances to revitalise the great style visions of the past by adding fashion, comfort, performance and sustainability advantages to authentic denim looks.” This collection includes:

• Selvedge: using the company’s legacy selvedge looms to produce bi-stretch ‘SelvedgeX’ while experimenting with blends of natural yarns and high-tech fibre blends in its ‘HeritEdge+’ range
• Stretch: including ‘Flex 360’ bi-stretch denim with a slight cross-bias freedom, and ‘Modern Stretches’ with a higher stretch range for intense comfort
• SoftWear: advanced finishing treatments for superior soft touch from natural fibre blended yarns and softness-selected weaves
• Sustainable: new additions to the range of recycled and natural ‘GreenEgo’ denims

Kipas Denim step up their sustainability efforts
Well aware of the effect denim production has on the environment, Kipas Denim’s multi-faceted programme to address this is one of the most comprehensive in the denim sector. Their recycled yarn initiative includes recycling waste yarn from the production process, while it also takes waste cotton yarn and blends it with REPREVE® fibres to create an eco-friendly denim fabric. Kipas also uses BCI cotton and organic cotton, and targets each to be 15% and 5% of total consumption, respectively. Furthermore, their Conservablue technology aims to reduce the environmental impact of the dyeing process by eliminating the use of rinsing overflow boxes before and after the indigo dye boxes, as well as ensuring 100% of applied dyestuff remains on the yarn in the rinsing bath.

As well as the overseas offerings, a wide range of domestic denim exhibitors covering all price and quality points will also feature in Beyond Denim. Some of the more notable brands participating include Advance Denim, Black Peony, Guangzhou Foison and Prosperity Textile.

Denim’s ‘next move’ to be debated in INVISTA panel discussion
The market is changing and so must apparel and textile manufacturers. Low prices and discounts are no longer driving sales the way they used to. Today’s consumer wants better quality, appreciates new technology and is evolving their casualwear style. This is the premise behind the INVISTA-sponsored panel discussion which will take place on day 1 of the fair. Titled ‘Denim’s Next Move – New Opportunities to Keep Growing Sales of Jeans and Casualwear at Retail’, participants will learn what consumers really want in jeans and casualwear, the return of chinos and new fabric technologies that are energising casualwear.

The panel will be moderated by Jane Singer, Director and Head of Market Development at Inside Fashion. Panellists will include representatives from Advance Denim, Guangzhou Conshing Clothing Group, Prosperity Textile and Texhong who will share their latest innovations that will help brands and retailers drive sales and profits.

In addition to Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics, four other textile fairs also take place at the National Exhibition and Convention Center: Yarn Expo Spring, Intertextile Shanghai Home Textiles – Spring Edition, fashion garment fair CHIC and knitting fair PH Value.

Première Vision has once again been chosen by Archroma to present its developments combining creativity, technology, and sustainable approach. Color Atlas - Archroma's innovative color system dedicated to designers, brands, retailers, and the whole industry - confirms itself as the ideal tool to bring fashion inspiration to life, enhancing functionality in all stages of the process

Archroma, a global leader in color and specialty chemicals, will showcase the latest in its advanced color-management solutions at Première Vision Paris, Hall 6 Booth 6U2. The Color Atlas system will also be featured in MintModa’s SS19 seasonal inspirations, presented on February 14, 2018 at Hall 5, Room 504, at 3pm and 4pm.

Color Atlas: a game-changing system for fashion design

How many shades can creativity have? The Color Atlas by Archroma®, through no less than 4,320 hues and color swatches, truly gives shape to any imagination. This is Archroma Color Management’s groundbreaking platform specially devised to address the needs of designers, brands, retailers, and manufacturers, enhancing creative possibilities for the industry as well as manageability and time to market through key complementary tools:

• The Color Atlas Library is the six-volume physical reference to the 4,320 color swatches and cotton poplin samples, secured yet easily removable and absolutely intuitive to be browsed thanks to the accordion-fold design of the catalogues. A compact edition of the Color Atlas is also available, including the very same color variety while being slimmed down from six to two volumes for increased portability.
• Color Atlas Online is the mobile-friendly designer’s companion to find the perfect color matching while on-the-go or in the office. Through this feature, it’s possible to capture an inspiring image using a smartphone and immediately identify the closest Color Atlas shade palette, with the possibility to purchase a color sample instantly. A new patent-pending technology powered by NFC, exclusively introduced by Archroma, also adds swatch-specific information to each Engineered Color Standard, giving retailers, brands, and mills instant access to dye recipes and more color information than ever. The online system also allows to create personal special collections of colors or products that can also be shared, both internally and with suppliers.

The colors of SS19 trends by MintModa, in collaboration with Archroma

During Première Vision, SS19 seasonal inspirations by MintModa will also highlight the main trends for the new collections, with color ranges referenced using Color Atlas by Archroma®.
On February 14, both at 3pm and 4pm at Hall 5, Room 504, Sharon Graubard (Founder/Creative Director of MintModa) will introduce a highly visual and emotive presentation that captures the zeitgeist with four compelling SS19 color and style narratives. Each design story is told with evocative, style-centric imagery from global runway and street, consumer profiles, beauty and wellness, art, architecture, and other culturally impactful touchpoints. This presentation identifies emerging influences relevant to all design industries.
A limited-edition MintModa x Archroma SS19 color card will be distributed to all attendees.

At the upcoming ISPO exhibition, SITIP are pleased to introduce BEHOT, a SITIP Heat Generating Technology for fabrics that has been licensed from the unique ROICA™ StretchEnergy™ System by Asahi Kasei and is already adopted by Santini that is offering Premium cycle wear Made in Italy since 1965.

SITIP is a leading Italian textile company specialized in high-tech and function-rich innovations for sport, technical underwear, shapewear, beachwear, footwear components, protective helmets, and in particular Velcro-receptive fabrics for mechanical fastening systems and a number of innovative technical fabrics for other industrial end-uses, all made through key manufacture technologies that include weft & warp knit fabric innovations.

Further, SITIP has more recently launched 16 unique trade brands, each one specialized in highly advanced innovation solutions designed to fit both market and the discerning needs of the contemporary consumer.

Santini is offering to the market a multi-panel thermal bib tight for the coldest winter training. Made with the special BeHot fabric by Sitip, constructed with the ROICA™ StretchEnergy™ active performance material, it not only insulates, but generates up to 2 degrees of heat as you workout as certified by CeRism, Outdoor Sport Research Centre at Verona University. Complete comfort and protection thanks to the Acquazero by Sitip treatment that ensures you stay dry even in the most challenging conditions.

The design is completed with breathable mesh braces for added comfort and a reflective pixel detail on the leg to improve visibility in low light conditions. BeHOT represents a special combination of a highly refined type of knitted construction combined with this unique ROICA™ Premium Stretch yarn function, and has been especially developed for this new high-function concept.

At this year's Heimtextil, which took place from 9-12 January in Frankfurt, Trevira impressed visitors with a brand new fair concept. The company worked together with sixteen of its biggest customers to create a joint booth covering 1,305 square metres of Hall 4.2, drawing a large crowd.

Head of Marketing, Anke Vollenbröker, explained, "Thanks to our new approach and booth concept, we were able to present our brand Trevira CS in an open and welcoming manner plus highlight the good relationship we have with our customers."

Trevira CEO Klaus Holz added, "We are really pleased with the very positive feedback we have had from all sides in response to our grand Trevira CS joint booth. We would like to thank everyone who has contributed to the booth's success. The extremely positive market reaction has reassured us that this is a concept we can build on in the future."

A Trevira exhibition formed the centrepiece of the joint booth, showcasing the winning fabrics from the 2018 Trevira CS Creativity Competition, which this year featured "Colour" as its major theme. At the heart of the display, visitors could find out more about Trevira with the help of twelve tablets providing information in a variety of formats, including a staff presentation and a flyer about the new Trevira Sinfineco® brand.

Encircling this core and thereby completing the joint booth concept, sixteen major customers grouped their individual stands around this centrepiece to display their own new Trevira CS collections for residential and contract usage. The customers joining Trevira to create the booth were Baumann Dekor Ges.m.b.H., Engelbert E. Stieger AG, FIDIVI Tessitura Vergnano S.p.A., Georg + Otto Friedrich, Jenny Fabrics AG, Johan van den Acker Textielfabriek B.V., Mattes & Ammann GmbH & Co. KG, Pugi R.G. S.R.L., Spandauer Velours GmbH & Co. KG, SR Webatex GmbH / Getzner Textil AG, Swisstulle AG, Tessitura Mario Ghioldi & C. srl, Torcitura Fibre Sintetiche S.p.A., Torcitura Lei Tsu S.r.l. / Ilcat S.p.A., Vlnap a.s. / Wagenfelder Spinning Group and Wintex S.r.l..

Another major section of the Trevira booth was dedicated to the world of acoustics. Increasingly, customers are (re)discovering textiles as a way to significantly improve the quality of room acoustics, and this part of the booth also attracted numerous visitors.

A special highlight at the joint booth were the Trevira CS sports shoes, worn by Trevira staff as a key element of the brand's trade fair outfit. The shoes are an Adidas Originals Special Edition of the iconic Stan Smith Silhouette, which Adidas manufactured in cooperation with Kvadrat.

In keeping with annual tradition, the new Trevira CS Gold and Silver Club members were announced during the Heimtextil fair. The new members were presented with their awards at a formal ceremony on Tuesday evening (9 January).

• Unique ROICA™ Premium Stretch Innovations for the Active Wardrobe Debuts @ ISPO Brandnew Village
• Hall B4, Booth No. B4.430 BN 02 Munich 28th-31th January 2018

Come and enjoy a real dedication to Responsible Innovation and Wellbeing in our new ROICA™  booth experience for Fabric Innovation inspiring the ROICA™ Active Wardrobe and the international ROICA™ Closet. Together, they will guide you to new hi-tech performance solutions in our partners unique stretch ideas, designed to meet both contemporary business and astute consumer desires. These latest ROICA™ innovations will be presented within the special ISPO BrandNew arena, a new high visibility concept of creativity revealed inside ISPO that truly matches the core DNA and values of the ROICA™ premium stretch brand.

ROICA™ will present The Modern Wardrobe concept in 3 distinct dimensions.

Together they bring to life our new stretch solutions that fit the supply chain for our target consumer confirming a clear brand identity that redefines performance creativity.

1 ROICA™ ACTIVE WARDROBE: Come and see leading commercial fashion ranges ready for the Summer 2018, that include the ROICA™ Eco Smart family and the ROICA™ Feel Good family of unique premium stretch yarn solutions.

2 ROICA™ INNOVATION: Here you can find the latest textile performance innovations from our partner mills to inspire even more brand creativity.

The ROICA™ Fabric Gallery is a rich and varied fabric offer that focuses on:
•    The revolutionary ROICA™ Eco Smart family of sustainably designed stretch yarns. These yarns are either GRS certified, or have the Cradle-to-Cradle Innovation Institute GOLD LEVEL certificate for material health, plus the Hohenstein Environment Certificate, where at its end-of-life, it smartly breaks down releasing less harmful materials. These unique commercialized solutions suites for intimates, athleisure, sportswear, and more.
•    The unique ROICA™ Feel Good family promises a new level of performance with ‘feel-good comfort’ and freshness. The ROICA™ CF yarn delivers an odor-neutralizing durable function in wash and wear because its active ingredient is locked inside the yarn and only requires a modest % to perform in most fabric structures.
•    A new ROICA™ Stretch Energy™ is a truly verified heat-generating system that combines a customised ROICA™ polymer with special fabric structures where a stretch and recovery action produces real warmth, maintaining support during exercise.

3 ROICA™ CLOSET: In this zone you can explore new ROICA™ garment designs from our experimental laboratory, using innovative Japanese fabric creativity.

Also at our ROICA™ booth, you will be able to explore sister brand Cupro innovations, designed responsibly for a new, luxe view of athleisure sportswear.

Today, the ROICA™ premium stretch brand sets the highest quality standards that are uniquely specialized and certificated perfectly focused on responsible performance for the active sportswear, swimwear and athliesure wear categories, making it the ‘smart-fit’ for the ISPO BrandNew Village presentation.

• 'Cotton Insights' Looks to the Future
• Register now!
• Save the Date! The countdown has started for the renowned International Cotton Conference, which will take place from 21st to 23rd March 2018 in Bremen.

As its theme 'Cotton Insights' illustrates, the Cotton Conference will provide a deep insight into the world of cotton, determine future challenges and offer solutions. Solutions that are not only important for the specialised cotton world, but also for the entire cotton supply chain from processing to textile retailing, because they focus on the needs of the end consumer.

The conference traditionally takes place in the historic Town Hall of the Hanseatic City of Bremen, in the immediate vicinity of the Cotton Exchange. Once again, more than 450 participants from around the world are expected. The Bremen Cotton Exchange and the Fibre Institute Bremen are the joint hosts of the Conference.

"We used the time after the end of our Cotton Conference in March 2016 to carefully analyse market developments and determine current topics and areas of activity that are of intense concern to the industry. They are of great benefit to the participants, so it's worth the visit", emphasise Elke Hortmeyer, Director of Communications and International Relations at the Cotton Exchange and Axel Drieling, Senior Manager Cotton at the Fibre Institute Bremen.

The subjects range from traceability and authenticity testing of cotton, to new requirements for cotton quality, process optimisation through digitalisation, future trends and production and, last but not least, the status of the sustainability debate. In all segments, the Conference offers informative lectures and panel discussions which appeal to a wide audience and are of overriding interest. Separate forums are offered for experts in the fields of science and research.

On Tuesday, March 20th, prior to the International Cotton Conference, the publisher and editors of the leading national daily newspaper “Weser Kurier” invite participants to their economic summit 'Sustain', in cooperation with the Bremen Cotton Exchange. Here, an expert forum will discuss development prospects on the African continent. As is well-known, almost 55 million people in Africa live from cotton cultivation which will be one of the focal points.

As of now, potential interested parties will receive up to date and detailed information about the Conference content and its subjects on the Conference homepage, as well as in regular newsletters and, moreover, by active press work. It is already possible to register for the Conference online and to make hotel bookings via the Bremen Tourist Office. Please, find further information here: http://cotton-conference-bremen.de/
 

Intertextile Shanghai concluded its 2017 Autumn Edition on 13 October as the strong business results and praise from the worldwide participants once again affirmed its reputation as the world’s most effective apparel fabrics and accessories trade event in terms of boosting sales and product sourcing. Knowing the fair covered an all-encompassing range of products that cater to all sourcing needs, 77,883 buyers travelled from 102 countries and regions (2016: 73,927, 90 countries and regions) to Shanghai to source. This year, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Korea, Russia, Taiwan, the UK and the US were the top 10 visitor countries and regions after Mainland China.

Meanwhile, a total of 4,538 exhibitors from 32 countries and regions (2016: 4,553, 29 countries and regions) also enjoyed the surge of business potential brought by this large number of high-quality trade buyers. The strong line-up of exhibitors, including 10 country and region pavilions – France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Korea, Milano Unica (Italy), Pakistan, Taiwan and Thailand – as well as 10 Group Pavilions organised by foremost industry leaders like DuPont, Hyosung, INVISTA and Lenzing, presented a full-spectrum of innovative and fashion offerings in 11 halls across 276,000 sqm (gross) exhibition area, an increase of nearly 6% compared to 2016.

While the nature of textile trade fairs has evolved over recent years, exhibitors’ successful results at this year’s Intertextile Shanghai shows that it is still the industry’s most effective order-writing and business development trade show because it remains the event where the global industry gathers to make purchasing decisions. As a result, many exhibitors see the fair as their business growth engine, and reported positive outlooks for sales after the fair.

Exhibitor opinions
 Ms Erika Jimenez, Development and Purchasing Department, Luca Cuccolini, Spain (SalonEurope)
“A few years ago we decided to explore the Chinese market. Knowing that Intertextile Shanghai is the most comprehensive fair of its kind in Asia, there was no doubt that this would be the fair to expose our brand. Throughout the years we have been satisfied with the visitor flow and business opportunities, especially this year. There has been a good flow of a diverse range of buyers visiting our booth, and we’ve already met with abundant potential buyers on the first day. Our objective is still to get our brand known to local buyers, and by looking at the progress in the first two days, we are even expecting to get orders later on.”

Mr Jean Denerolle, General Manager, Dormeuil, France (Premium Wool Zone)
“There has been lots of visitors coming to our booth on the first two days. Joining Intertextile Shanghai is an effective ways for us to develop the Chinese market. We are happy that the organiser referred a VIP buyer to us. Overall, we succeeded in receiving orders and promoting our brands, so I am pleased with the result this year.”
Mr Max Deery, Global Director, Print Stories Ltd, (for Amanda Kelly Ltd), UK (Verve for Design)
“We are satisfied with the results this year. The Verve for Design zone is well organised, and it’s a busier year compared to last. After day one, we’ve already found more than 10 potential buyers, both old and new customers. We’ve participated in other fairs in Europe as well, and I would say Intertextile Shanghai is in line with these shows, and busier than we expected.”

Mr Luca Maderna, New Age srl, Italy (Verve for Design)
“It’s our 10th year exhibiting in Intertextile. Given the large scale, we can always find new contacts here, and it’s also a great opportunity for us to present our new collection to our regular customers.”
Mr Ederhard Ganns, Managing Director, Union Knopf (HK) Ltd, Germany
“Our target clients are mainly brand owners and resellers. I have successfully met with them and have some promising contacts. We have also developed some new connections with both domestic and overseas customers. Intertextile Shanghai is no doubt the world’s number one show.”

Ms Kang Nan Hee, Assistant Manager, R&D Textile Co Ltd, Korea (Korea Pavilion)
“This is our 10th year at Intertextile Shanghai. Every year, we participate in both the spring and autumn fairs and they have never let us down. Not only can we meet numerous new buyers in each edition, we can also keep pace with the ever-changing market trends in the fabric industry. Besides that, in terms of visitor flow, this fair has always been the strongest. Take this year’s fair as an example. In our estimation, we have already received enquiries from almost 300 buyers and agents on the first two days, which has exceeded our expectations. Therefore, we are expecting some 400 orders in total by end of the fair.”

Mr Taku Ito, Manager, Sojitz Vancet (Shanghai) Trading Co Ltd, Japan (Japan Pavilion)
“We exhibit at this show to find new customers and sales channels in China. We’ve been joining the show for a while now, and we continued this edition as we can always meet new customers – I mean, really ‘new’. This year, there were about 400 companies that visited our booth. It’s also interesting that we are getting more online apparel shops visiting us lately.”

Ms Susan Hon, B2B Marketing Communication Director, North Asia, INVISTA Co Ltd, Hong Kong (Functional Lab & Group Pavilion organiser)
“With the help of Intertextile Shanghai – the most well-known platform in the industry – we can promote our newly launched products more efficiently and enhance the influence of our brand. Our booths were packed with visitors over the three days, with many of them high-quality buyers. Intertextile has always been one of the most important trade fairs for us because of its strength in attracting a wide range of buyers, including an unrivalled number of market-leading brands that no other fairs can offer.”

Mr Martin Yang, Marketing Manager, Nilit Nylon Technologies (Suzhou) Co Ltd, Israel (Functional Lab)
“Our management is satisfied with the results as this is where we can boost our business and sales. On the first day, we’ve already met with nearly 20 potential buyers that are very likely to develop into new orders after the fair. The most attractive trait of Intertextile Shanghai is its ability in gathering large numbers of trade buyers. More importantly, the majority of them are quality buyers who aren’t only our target customers but also keen to place orders. This fair is seen by the industry as the major platform to source as it includes more industry leading suppliers, raw material providers, fabric mills and garment manufacturers compared to other similar fairs, and this is why we are here.”

Mr Syed Kamran Shah, Marketing Manager, Soorty Enterprises (Pvt) Ltd, Pakistan (Beyond Denim)
“Our objectives are to establish connections with Chinese brands and manufacturers, as well as to learn buyers’ expectations in this market. We are happy with the visitor numbers, and Intertextile Shanghai is where buyers really come to make purchasing decisions. Buyers came to talk to us and run tests on our fabrics afterwards, and usually within 2-3 months’ time, we will receive orders. We also like the idea of the Beyond Denim hall as it ensures the effectiveness of gathering and getting in touch with our target buyers.”

Mr Štěpán Kučera, Managing Director, Preciosa Components, China (Accessories Vision)
“This has been Preciosa’s third consecutive appearance at the autumn edition of Intertextile Shanghai, where we continue to see an increase in attendance by our target customers, namely high-end fashion brands from both the Chinese and international markets. Among the 200-plus buyers we met on the first two days of the fair were domestic fashion brands, sourcing managers of overseas brands, garment producers, as well as OEMs & ODMs, and we are more than satisfied with the results. Compared to similar fairs in which we have participated, Intertextile has a stronger focus on sourcing and manufacturing. International brands tend to send their sourcing teams, while local manufacturers and vendors also source here.”

Ms Shanshan Lu, Client Manger, Beijing Ecocert Certification Centre Co Ltd, China (All About Sustainability)
“As Intertextile Shanghai is the largest fair of its kind, we can always find our target customers here which are manufacturers from the Greater China area and the Asia Pacific region. The All About Sustainability zone has enhanced the exhibiting effectiveness as it creates a strong theme that attracts the right visitors to our booth. I think the visitor flow is stronger than last year. On day 1 alone, we received enquiries from over 10 potential customers which included old and new accounts. Moreover, by sharing our certifications in the seminar, our brand got further promoted in the fair. All in all, we are very pleased with this year’s outcome and very likely will return again next year.”
Worldwide buyers impressed with the unparalleled range of sourcing options on offer
While the exhibitors highly valued the fair’s ability in attracting quality, genuine buyers from around the world, these buyers were pleased to find all categories of apparel fabrics and accessories products from the entire industry under one roof.

Buyer opinions
Mr Johnny Lau, Head of Material Management, Quiksilver Asia Sourcing Ltd, Hong Kong
“The strongest trait of Intertextile Shanghai is its scale and aptitude in gathering the entire industry in one place. I believe no matter which sector of the industry or market you belong to – suiting, casual wear or ladieswear; high-end or fast fashion – you are ensured to find the right suppliers here. The fair houses a full-spectrum of suppliers which ease the sourcing process for purchasing departments like us. To maintain brand competitiveness, it is getting more important for us nowadays to know about suppliers and manufacturers from around the world, so we were also impressed with the fair’s internationalism and had unexpected returns from this trip.”

Mr Luis Alfonso Yepes Londono, Manager, Yetex SAS, Columbia
“Among all trade shows, Intertextile Shanghai is the most influential one for my business, even compared to the European shows. Not only can I find local suppliers, but the fair literally puts brands from around the globe under one roof. This morning I discussed with three local companies that match my interest. Their fabrics were of good quality and competitive pricing, so I will soon make a decision and place orders.”

Ms Zhou Jie, General Manager, Shenzhen New Look Fashion Co Ltd, China
“Intertextile Shanghai is a comprehensive trade fair, and what’s unique about this fair is its unparalleled ability in gathering both domestic and premium international apparel fabrics and accessories suppliers. Therefore, the sourcing options in this fair cater to all market demands. I can say Intertextile is a fair that all fashion brands can’t miss as one can definitely find all kids of materials here. We sent over 10 colleagues from the sourcing and design departments to this year’s fair and sourced around 80% of the fabrics we need for the next season’s collection from about eight exhibitors.”

The next Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics is the Spring Edition, held from 14 – 16 March 2018.
Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics is co-organised by Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd; the Sub-Council of Textile Industry, CCPIT; and the China Textile Information Centre. For more details on this fair, please visit: www.intertextileapparel.com. To find out more about all Messe Frankfurt textile fairs worldwide, please visit: www.texpertise-network.com.