From the Sector

Messe Frankfurt Trade Fairs India Pvt Ltd and Concept N Strategies has announced partnership to introduce ‘Sporttech pavilion’ – a dedicated area showcasing sports and activewear textiles and accessories under Techtextil India 2025. It is a premier platform dedicated to the rapidly expanding sports and fitness textiles at Techtextil India 2025. This strategic alliance aims to provide a major boost to the segment aiming to showcase innovations in speciality fabrics, yarns, sportswear and gear, high-performance textiles and sustainable materials, generating remarkable opportunities for the entire textile universe, especially, for sportswear brands.

The Indian sports and fitness textiles sector are transforming remarkably, driven by the evolving consumer lifestyles, advanced material innovations and growing government support. Amidst this backdrop, this partnership marks a significant leap of growth for the specialised textiles segment, which is envisioned as a game-changer in the Indian sports and activewear market.

The demand for cutting-edge moisture-wicking fabrics, compression wear, breathable textiles and sustainable sports and fitness fabrics are at an all-time high. Rising health consciousness consumers and increasing appetite for high-performance sportswear, are also contributing to the growing demand. This makes Techtextil India 2025 the perfect launchpad for this specialised segment. This collaboration seamlessly aligns with the growing push for self-reliance in textile manufacturing, bundled with the Indian government’s focus on technical textile innovations and expanding domestic production capabilities. Industry leaders are recognising this as the perfect time to showcase national innovations in fitness textiles on the global stage of Techtextil India.

Industry figures highlight growth of this segment:

• The Indian sportswear market: valued at USD 10.2 million in 2024
• Expected to reach USD 16.6 million by 2033 at a CAGR of 5.1% during 2025-2033*1 according to a recent report by IMARC Group.
• Global sportswear market size was valued at USD 206.64 billion in 2024.
• Expected to reach USD 350.45 billion by 2032, exhibiting a CAGR of 7.84% during the forecast period.

This segment will see an expansion of the exhibitor profile with inclusion of:

• Sports textile material producers including compression fabrics, breathable textiles, suppliers of sustainable and recycled textiles suitable for sports equipment and gear manufacturers
• Producers of sports and fitness equipment with an emphasis on textile-based products like: yoga mats, fitness bands, straps, & etc
• Accessories and footwear manufacturers for products like gloves, bands headgear and socks using innovative materials; manufacturers and brands showcasing new textile technologies in sports footwear and performance shoes
• Smart textile manufacturers producing materials embedded with sensors for fitness tracking; chemical suppliers for sports textiles
• Producers of finishing chemicals that enhance performance e.g. anti-odour, UV protection, water-repellent coatings
• Manufacturers of various fitness textiles and activewear materials and textile machinery manufacturers, equipment suppliers, suppliers of technology for fabric testing, dyeing, and finishing for sportswear and more.

With such an extensive product showcase, the expo aims to attract visitors from major sportswear retailers and distributors, product developers, fitness enthusiasts, fashion designers, research and development professionals, textile institutes, sourcing specialists and other professionals from the textile spectrum looking for the next big breakthrough in the segment. The dedicated space for Sporttech Pavilion will serve as a powerful business catalyst connecting material innovators, sportswear brands and textile manufacturers with national and international sourcing leaders.

eVent® Fabrics, a global leader in waterproof/breathable and windproof fabric laminates, introduces their newest, high performance laminate offering, stormburstLT.

Designed to offer best-in-class breathability, the ultralight and ultra-breathable stormburstLT joins existing laminates, including alpineST for extreme applications; stormST for outdoor and lifestyle applications; and windstormST for breathable windproof and softshell applications. This complete line rounds out eVent’s collection of laminates, providing brand partners with custom solutions for apparel, footwear, and gloves.

“With a focus on aerobic use, the stormburstLT ultralight technology platform fills a necessary category space for us,” said Chad Kelly, President of eVent Fabrics. “We designed stormburstLT with a super thin, 5-micron PFAS-free membrane, and will offer it with either lightweight woven or knitted face and interior fabrics, to create a versatile windproof laminate with very high moisture vapor transport and breathability. We’ve listened to our brand partners and are confident we now have a high-performance solution for the fast and light category, as well as a much-requested breathable fabric for insulated jackets.”

eVent will market the new stormburstLT to brands specializing in running, cycling, Nordic skiing, hiking, skiing, and activewear. Light, packable and versatile, stormburstLT is also ideal for adventure travel.  
eVent® Fabrics invites designers, product developers, and industry professionals to visit them at Performance Days Munich.

eVent® Fabrics, a global leader in waterproof/breathable and windproof fabric laminates, is continuing a brand evolution with the recent renaming their plant-based, ePTFE-free “BIO Waterproof” and “BIO Windproof” laminates to the new “stormST” and “windstormST” for the SS 2026 product season.

These name changes, along with eVent’s recently unveiled “defy the elements” tagline, are intended to strengthen and clarify eVent’s position as leading suppliers of sustainable, high-performance laminates to the outdoor, activewear, fashion, hunt, fish, golf, cycling, and footwear markets.

Starting in February 2025, eVent will cease promoting and supplying BIO branding assets, including for BIO footwear, which will also be stormST, and will work diligently with brand partners to ensure a smooth transition to the new stormST waterproof and windstormST windproof product names. eVent BIO apparel and footwear will be found in the market through the middle of 2026 in order to accommodate selling cycles and transition timelines.

eVent will introduce the stormST and windstormST to the materials sourcing industry at Performance Days in Munich this March.

“We introduced eVent BIO in 2016, pre-COVID, and perhaps before the market was ready for it. With our increased focus in offering a variety of high-performance sustainable laminates, we felt that BIO might, at this point, be a bit confusing,” said Chad Kelly, President of eVent Fabrics. “We’ve noticed the term ‘bio’ showing up in a lot of marketing materials across consumer markets, and we felt its meaning had become diluted. Recognizing that this dilution could cause confusion for both brands and consumers, we opted to update our product names to create further differentiation. The new names, stormST and windstormST, are a more natural fit for our product architecture, better highlight the laminates’ weather protecting performance, and speak more strongly to our new tagline “defy the elements”.”

When PERFORMANCE DAYS opens its doors on October 23 and 24, 2024, in Halls A1 and A2 at the Messe München exhibition grounds, visitors will once again find fabric innovations for Fall/Winter 2026 across the segments of performance wear, footwear, accessories, and, for the first time, bodywear. The jury, composed of renowned industry experts, reviewed the latest fabrics for the 2026 season in the Trend, Footwear, and Bodywear Forum, looking for outstanding innovations. A total of one Performance Award and one Eco Performance Award were presented.

PERFORMANCE DAYS continues to deliver plenty of highlights and innovations in technical fibers and materials in the Trend Forum at the winter exhibition. Since Fall 2023, the event has also focused on the footwear segment, summarizing the latest trends and news in the dedicated Footwear Forum. Starting in October 2024, the organizers will introduce a new Bodywear Collective, complete with a corresponding Trend Forum. In close collaboration with the London Contour Experts and designer and industry expert Nichole de Carle, PERFORMANCE DAYS will feature a Trend Forum dedicated to underwear, shapewear, bras & leggings, yoga in motion, and swimwear.

The expert jury, led by Marco Weichert, CEO of PERFORMANCE DAYS, Jury Head Alexa Dehmel, and guest jurors Regina Goller, a textile expert with experience in sustainable functional fabrics at companies like Odlo, Puma, and Jack Wolfskin, as well as Stephan Prinz, Account Manager Germany at Klopman, praised the quality, sustainability approaches, and high level of innovation in the submissions. The jury awarded one Performance Award (Bodywear) and one Eco Performance Award (Apparel).

The winners are: A. Sampaio & Filhos – Têxteis SA & Penn Textile Solutions GmbH/Penn Italia SRL
For the Fall/Winter 2026 season, the jury selected three awards for outstanding fabrics.

Alongside the Eco Performance Award, which went to A. Sampaio & Filhos – Têxteis SA for the article “69222/Colorful chemistry featuring holistic farming,” one Performance Award
was also presented for the first time in the bodywear segment: Penn Textile Solutions GmbH/Penn Italia SRL made their debut in the Bodywear Forum with "13949.

ECO PERFORMANCE AWARD: A. Sampaio & Filhos – Têxteis SA / Article “69222 - Colorful Chemistry Featuring Holistic Farming”
In collaboration with Good Earth Cotton, this project focuses on sustainable farming practices to reduce the environmental impact of cotton while improving soil health, paving the way for a carbon-neutral future. The supplier is also exploring innovations with organic cotton grown using regenerative farming methods, expanding the scope for future eco-friendly concepts. Additionally, the fabric is dyed using biological dyes—an innovative technique where natural bacteria produce pigments that bond efficiently with the fabric a low temperatures without the use of petrochemicals. The fabric is available in pink and
sand.

Jury Statement: “This fabric takes this year’s focus topic to the next level! A. Sampaio & Filhos – Têxteis SA’s fabric innovation showcases the future of dyeing with microorganisms. Textile dyeing with living organisms is a sustainable and resource-efficient method that requires no harmful chemicals. Additionally, the fabric, made from 100% organic cotton, excels in performance due to an innovative body-mapping concept that provides optimal support during wear.”

PERFORMANCE AWARD: Penn Textile Solutions GmbH / Penn Italia SRL / Article “13949” This fabric, composed of 68% recycled polyamide and 32% ROICA, with a weight of 290 grams, is perfect for baselayer construction. It can be customized with the brand’s own design, featuring open structures and a 3D effect for added texture. Despite its structure, the fabric has an incredibly soft touch, ensuring maximum comfort during wear. Jury Statement: “Penn Textiles was a popular vote, an award worthy of the jury. The fabric has a combination of high density opaque areas with lighter breathable panels. A superior choice for the Bodywear Category because of its customisable 3D design aesthetic, printable qualities and second skin super soft touch. The fabric blend of Roica yarn and recycled PA has many admirable qualities for next to skin, including anti-odor, quick dry and outstanding stretch and recovery to adapt to the body shape. Fabric, with a perfect fit for body contouring products including leggings, underwear and light support shapewear.”

eVent^®️ Fabrics, a global leader in waterproof and breathable laminates, announced the hiring of three key team members to assist with growing demand for the brand’s expanding line of performance laminates and recent expansion into the South Korean market. Founded in 1999, the company impressed the industry with the first air-permeable 100% waterproof membrane and continues to innovate with sustainable, high-performance textiles. eVent is globally recognized for its breathable waterproof solutions and commitment to reliable, high-performance laminates.

Recent hires include Bartosz Lassak to the US sales team and Xie Yi to engineer the next generation of eVent textiles. For the recent expansion into Korea, Terry Kim will assist as eVent’s Korean Market Consultant.

eVent’s recent expansion into the Korean market includes a new strategic partnership with GEO International Co., LTD, a leading Korean company in the textile industry. This collaboration will introduce eVent’s high-performance waterproof breathable laminate solutions for apparel, footwear, and accessories to the Korean market, catering to the increasing demand for premium outdoor and performance apparel.

eVent’s newest team members include:

Bartosz Lassak – Senior Sales Manager
Based in Washington D.C., Bartosz is a Senior Sales Manager for the Eastern U.S. region and will help expand eVent’s sales footprint as new customers are added to the eVent portfolio. Bartosz brings 20 years of global industry experience and has a deep knowledge of outerwear materials, end use applications, and component brand sales. Most recently, Bartosz was a Territory Sales and Marketing Manager for Primaloft, managing ingredient brand distribution in the UK, Germany, Eastern Europe, Russia, Turkey, and North America.
 
Xie Yi – Textile Engineer
Having recently graduated with a double Master’s Degree in Textile Materials and Product Design from the highly regarded Donghua University, Xie joins the eVent team full time as a Textile Engineer. Xie will be integral as eVent continues to enhance product strategy and new product introductions. Throughout her academic career, Xie worked as a Production Assistant for Oya Jacquard Belt limited and a Research and Development Assistant at Atelier LUMA.

Terry Kim – Senior Consultant in Korea
Terry will support the expansion of eVent’s global footprint into Korean markets and assist with marketing efforts in the Korean market as well. Terry has significant experience in the industry including 20 years working in roles such as Sales Director and New Business Development Director in his time at Gore-Tex. In his most recent role, Terry was the Managing Director of Fabric Division for Gore-Tex.

Freudenberg Performance Materials Apparel (Freudenberg Apparel) introduces the innovative Film Bonding series. This new line of solutions is expertly designed for advanced sew-free bonding applications, enhancing the manufacturing process with modern efficiency and precision. In conjunction with this launch, Freudenberg Apparel is expanding its Net Bonding and Dot Bonding series, further broadening its range of seamless adhesive solutions to cater to the specific demands of the Stretch Active, Intimate, and Athleisure wear segments.

Freudenberg Apparel's Film Bonding series features a film structure with a high-quality adhesive, delivering robust shear bond and recovery. This enables garments to conform to the body's shape while retaining their shape and integrity after stretching, significantly improving durability and wearer comfort. By eliminating bulky seams, the Film Bonding series also provides a clean, smooth finish to fabric surfaces.

Available in tape form, Freudenberg Apparel's Film Bonding solutions accommodate a wide range of weight requirements from 90 to 220 g/m², including thin options under 80µm. The series offers an array of TPE and TPU variants with varying softness levels from medium to very soft, reducing reliance on traditional stitching and making them ideal for various applications, including stitch-free seam bonding on briefs, bras, vests, and leggings.

Complementing the Film Bonding series, Freudenberg has introduced an innovative oval net structure to its TPE polymer adhesive Net Bonding series. This new structure, in addition to the existing Diamond and Hexagon patterns, offers a diverse selection of net structures suitable for a wide array of applications. The expanded weight range of 50-240 g/m² for the Net Bonding solutions provides versatility for creating breathable, elastic, and well-controlled garments in leggings, sports bras, and intimate apparel.

The Paris 2024 Summer Olympic Games are just around the corner and a global sports frenzy is underway. However, intense summer workouts often lead to sportswear absorbing excessive sweat, becoming clingy and cumbersome, causing discomfort and potentially impacting performance. A research team from the School of Fashion and Textiles at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) has developed the iActive™ sportswear range which features a root-like liquid transport system and a skin-like active perspiration dissipater and utilises nature-inspired, anti-heat textile fabrics to expedite sweat removal, effectively reducing the weight and stickiness of activewear caused by sweat accumulation during exercise.

The human body has millions of sweat glands that are vital for regulating body temperature by dissipating sweat for evaporation to cool the skin’s surface. With unabating greenhouse gas emissions, the number of very hot days annually is expected to increase significantly. This will lead to elevated energy consumption and increased sweating during physical activity and outdoor labour. Even when wearing highly breathable clothes with good sweat-wicking properties, individuals may still experience discomfort due to excessive sweat accumulation.

A research team led by Dr SHOU Dahua, Limin Endowed Young Scholar in Advanced Textiles Technologies and Associate Professor of the School of Fashion and Textiles at PolyU, has invented the iActive™, intelligent, electrically activated sportswear with a nature-inspired active perspiration function.

Its nature-inspired technologies, including low-voltage-driven artificial “sweat glands” created by skin-like anti-heat textile fabrics and a root-like branching liquid transport system that aligns with the body’s sweat map, can actively and programmably remove sweat to a perspiration dissipater at the lower region of the sportswear. The all-textile sweat dissipater is compact and operates at a safe output voltage of approximately 5-9V, and its battery is easy to detach from the clothing, making it convenient for users to repeatedly wash the clothing by hand or in a washing machine to maintain hygiene. When the human body’s sweat rate is low, iActive™ can still be used independently without the battery.

Based on the optimised wettability pattern and gradient, the research team utilises a skin-like textile fabric to transport sweat one-way quickly and dissipate it from the inside to the outside. This feature reduces the stickiness and weight of clothing, improves breathability and ensures the garments remain dry and comfortable to wear. Experimental findings indicate that iActive™ creates a breathable and dry skin microclimate by dissipating sweat at a rate that is three times faster than the maximum human sweating rate. This innovation can also prevent discomfort from coldness and moisture after a workout. In comparison to traditional fabrics, the textile materials in iActive™ are 60% lighter and 50% less clingy when soaked, providing the wearer with all-round comfort and enabling sports enthusiasts and athletes to perform at their best.

Furthermore, a mobile app further aids personalised sweat management by wirelessly adjusting the sweat level of iActive™. This innovation is versatile and can be seamlessly integrated into a variety of textile materials to facilitate sustainable mass production. Beyond sportswear, iActive™ is also well-suited to protective clothing and workwear for individuals engaged in prolonged, high-intensity physical labour and outdoor occupations, including healthcare professionals, construction workers, firefighters, law enforcement officers and others, thereby significantly enhancing their work performance.

Dr Shou Dahua stated, “The extreme weather and high temperatures resulting from global warming have elevated the importance of heatstroke prevention and cooling measures on a global scale. Drawing on the vivid phenomena of thermal insulation and directed liquid flow in nature, we aim to foster innovation and sustainable advancement in garment manufacturing by inventing intelligent clothing and materials to address global challenges. We seek to harness the power of technology to infuse fresh perspectives into the traditional clothing industry, thereby enhancing its competitiveness.”

His research team has also developed a premium fabric named Omni-Cool-Dry™, drawing inspiration from volcano dwelling beetles. This fabric not only provides ultra-fast sweat dissipation and ensures all-day comfort with its dry and breathable features under dynamic thermal conditions, but also reflects solar radiation and emits body heat into the cold universe, enabling passive cooling. The team is working hard to leverage the benefits of both inventions to further enhance the sweat-dissipating and cooling capability of iActive™ sportswear.

Dr Shou Dahua, a core member of the PolyU Research Institute for Intelligent Wearable Systems and the Research Centre of Textiles for Future Fashion, has recently been bestowed with the 2023 Distinguished Achievement Award by The Fiber Society for his outstanding contributions to the fields of personal thermal and moisture management, intelligent wearables and soft robotics. The accolade is presented annually to an individual researcher worldwide. He has also received international innovation awards, including consecutive TechConnect Global Innovation Awards in 2021 and 2022. Moreover, his research papers have been published in various internationally renowned academic journals including Science Advances, PNAS, Advanced Functional Materials, and Advanced Energy Materials. Dr Shou will be chairing The Fiber Society Spring 2025 Conference at PolyU.

adidas introduces its 15-piece SS24 Paris Collection ahead of the 2024 clay season. Built to help players adapt to clay court conditions, the collection includes a core 8-piece range of apparel and footwear to help raise awareness of adidas’ annual Move For The Planet activation.

Designed to be played in seasonably warm Parisian temperatures, the collection features HEAT.RDY technology – breathable and lightweight fabrics that maximize airflow, to help keep players feel comfortable on court. Meanwhile increased mobility is unlocked thanks to adidas’ FreeLift Construction – a paneled fabric structure under the armpits – that enables greater freedom of arm movement during play while preventing the hems from riding up.

The pieces have been intentionally paired back, using zero prints to allow other bolder design features to make maximum impact, through striking color blocking, engineered paneling and textured fabrics. White and black panels on the garments emulate classic tennis court lines, highlighted by black bonding seams, meanwhile a stimulating Orange ‘Spark’ is used throughout to foster a sense of joyful energy for players during high-pressure games.

The collection will be worn by athletes including Caroline Wozniacki , Elina Svitolina, Xinyu Wang, Dana Mathewson, Jessica Pegula, Maria Sakkari, Stefanos Tsitsipas , Felix Auger Aliassime, Jason Wu and Martin de la Puente.

The exhibition “Acquired! Shaping the National Design Collection” at Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum, which opened on 16 March, features a STOLL work that has been part of the museum’s permanent collection since 2017.

Visitors can expect more than 150 works that have been compiled from the museum’s collection and new acquisitions since 2017. The selection, which includes works by design pioneers of the recent past, also includes a highly functional balaclava from STOLL.

Blend of design and functionality.
The flat knitted balaclava from STOLL is part of an exhibition area that visualises the defining themes of our time. Alongside a hijab, it stands for considering inclusivity in design. The balaclava offers protection from extreme cold, is stylish and is the result of a combination of creativity and technology.

The balaclava integrates an NFC chip for near-field communication, a heater to warm breathable air, a positive and negative power connector and reflective strips for passive visibility, all knitted directly into the fabric. STOLL’s state-of-the-art flat knitting technology is the basis for straightforward integration. Circuits and conductive yarns can also be incorporated in a fully automated process exactly where they are needed.

Other performance features do not require additional components. A knitted-to-shape 3D design – made possible by the goring technique – offers a perfect fit by following anatomy and eliminating the need for complex tailoring.

In a celebration of Innovation and Swiss identity the three brands Nespresso, Mammut, and HeiQ have joined forces to create the "Extraordinary Jacket".

The Extraordinary Jacket is a testament to Swiss design and innovation. Mammut's super-light Ajungilak® insulation now incorporates HeiQ XReflex technology powered by Xefco, which contains part of the aluminum from recycled Nespresso capsules.

Being up in the mountains comes with significant temperature drops. Mammut, HeiQ and Nespresso have cocreated this high-performance insulation jacket that delivers great heat retention while being breathable, so one can enjoy more time above the tree line.

What makes the Extraordinary Jacket genuinely extraordinary is its ability to retain 20% more heat than a conventional insulation jacket of similar thickness. The innovative HeiQ XReflex 3D aluminized scrim layer reflects the body's heat radiation within the insulation layers, so the wearer doesn’t have to produce more energy to stay warm, resulting in effortless comfort even in harsh and demanding conditions.