Khadi Calling - The Growth of Indian Textile

As they say, “Luck favours the Brave”, and this has been proven right by a Radio Jockey hailing from the city of Nawabs, Lucknow. Meenu Singh, who started her career as a Radio Jockey and reached the zenith of success did not become complacent. Instead she forayed into the world of cinema, where again she conquered with the NOVA film house award for her very first short film. While her career choice kept her going, she knew her heart laid with none other than the quintessential Indian fabric, Khadi! Such was her love for this fabric that she decided to set up a T-shirt Store and forward the earnings from the same towards an NGO partner of the Khadi and Village Industries Lovers Association (KAVILA).

Fibre, Textile & Apparel Exports of USA Reach $28bn In 2015

As per the information divulged by the US International Trade Commission, the fibre, textile and apparel exports of the nation, went up to approximately $28 billion, in the financial year 2015. The major chunk of this substantial total came from fabrics which ranged to $9 billion. The rest of this came from various raw materials apparels with $6.1 billion, yarns with $4.9 billion, cotton and wool fibre with $4 billion and approximately 3.7 billion worth of made-up articles.  At $ 28 billion, USA stands as the fourth largest exporter of fibre and textile products in the world.

In a bid to inform the citizens of the USA, the recent progress that the nation made with respect to investment and innovations, the National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO) made this declaration on 7th of October, The National Manufacturing Day. 

In addition, the textile industry of the United States currently supplies as many as 8,000 distinct textile items to the armed forces. This is evident from the fact that the US military has spent close to $2 billion on textiles, annually for the entire past decade. 

Growing capital expenditures also are a clear sign of the textile industry’s positive outlook. The textile and apparel sector spent $2 billion on capital expenditures in 2014, the latest year for which data is available.

Textile Ministry Supports Free Trade Agreement with EU

The Indian textile ministry sees the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the European Union (EU) as one of the most promising measures to boost exports. It is for this reason that it is in talks with the Commerce Ministry to urge the closing of this agreement. It is speculated that once the FTA is implemented, it will help increase the export of fabrics ,garments as well as Home textiles and will help in dealing with the increasing competition with Bangladesh & China. This, teamed with China’s downtrend in export growth will help India regain or improve its original position in the arena of textile exports.

Textile Stock – Growth Chart of the Company

TextileStock.in is an online inventory of textile stocklots which are ready to be sold. Essentially an Indian portal, it enables the potential buyers with all the possible details regarding the stock, simply at the click of the mouse. It is one of the rare entities within India that deals in the export of textile stocks of every possible product that can be listed under the textile umbrella. Right from kitchen linens to fashion apparels, from home furnishings to technical textiles, the portal has proven to be an efficient marketplace for them all. And this can be easily gauged from the growth chart of the company.

Impact of GST on Textile Sector

The Indian Textile Sector is highly export oriented, with as much as 5% of the world’s export coming from the nation, which accounts to over USD 40 billion. As of the latest news, an impetus through tax exemption on all exports is being offered to the industry. And as far as the GST is concerned, the industry is pressing for a zero rating, at least on exports. In fact, it expects the authorities to put in place a refund system with respect to the input tax paid.

In the current system of taxes, more often than not final or finished products are either not taxed at all, or are taxed at a minimal rate, while the various categories of textiles are taxed anywhere in the range of 4 to 12 percent. Given the low rate, the taxes are shifted back to production which in turn leads to blocked input taxes, thus resulting in a spike in the production costs. While the current system of taxation finds its base on the production side, introduction of GST will transform it to being consumption based.

Currently, the production inputs are entitled to this exemption, which depends on the size of their operation. Given this flaw, no initiative of applying any taxes to the industry is agreed upon. Moreover, owing to the differential taxation for various categories, such as fabrics an garments, cotton and manmade fibre, power looms and composite mills, an uncalled for tension has plagued the industry. Then again, the structure of inputs is also broadly divided in the form of textile inputs as well as non-textile goods and services inputs.

All of this will most likely be taken care of with the implementation of GST, since a unified tax rate is proposed with respect to all goods and services.

The textile industry at large, has expressed that a GST rate of about 12% would be in line with the current rate of taxation and hence prove to be rather effective. The Clothing Manufacturers Association of India (CMAI) has even roped in Price Waterhouse Coopers and Wazir Advisors in order to prepare their representation to the GoI in order to push for the inclusion of the ready-made garments under the ‘Merit List’ which will help entail a relatively lower tax rate on these garments. In case this doesn’t happen, it is feared that the brunt of the higher rate on the end of consumers will adversely impact the growth and profitability of the sector. The industry has been advocating the fact that textiles and garments are essential items, and hence deserve a special treatment, as far as the GST is concerned.

While, a large majority of the problems will seemingly be resolved with the implementation of the GST, the final output rate is yet to unfold. It is only after the rate is out in the open, will the industry be able to gauge the actual impact of this tax.

Technical Textiles - Safest Investment Option in Indian Textiles?

Investors are always on the lookout for profitable option, however, considering the present day scenario of volatility, especially with the GST coming in anytime now, it might be a little easier  to speculate and invest in a textile product which is not only safe but profitable as well. In fact for what it’s worth, most businessmen and traders wish to put in their money on something that assures them of the following factors:

•          Higher Margins of Profit
•          Sustainability
•          Lower Periods of Gestation
•          Assured Returns
•          Ease in Debt Repayment

While it is the conventional textiles which enjoy the better part of the market’s capital, businesses are now looking forward to diversifying, in order to avert the expenditures incurred in this capital and labour incentive segment.

While carpets, handloom and other textiles involving man-made fabrics show promise, the market for these is rather saturated and thus leaves little or no scope for new entrants. Moreover, some of these products, especially rugs and carpets that require fine craftsmanship, take up a lot of resources in terms of money as well as skilled labour for manufacturing, which makes them a non-viable alternative.

On the other hand, the technical textiles is one segment that is showing a great promise, without too may strings attached. Given that products of this segment are only in their introductory phase, at least in India, the speculated growth rate of technical textiles is rather impressive. With a substantial growth of over 16% in the decade of 2001 to 2010, this segment is expected to register a consistent growth of 20% per year. Pertaining to this growth, the market size for technical textiles by the year 2017, will be close to $36 billion! Moreover, since technical textile products are highly engineered and manufactured for very specific purposes on the basis of their functional properties, thus making them high value products and ensuring higher returns and eventually better profit margins. 

As of the current scenario, the disposable income with Indian consumers is growing at a steady level, which in turn will enable them to make greater purchases on products related to sport textiles, home textiles, medical textile etc.  Moreover, in the coming five years, the middle income group which comprises of over 300 million people will increase to approx. 520 million, thus creating an unparalleled opportunity for growth for the technical textile sector. Here the demographic hold high importance, especially because the middle class is:

•          Fairly educated
•          Receptive to disposable products
•          On the lookout for more and more products pertaining to technical textiles
•          Contributing to the growth of organised retail sector in the nation

Furthermore, a large chunk of the nation’s population is currently below the age of 25, which ensures an even better growth prospect for this segment, and in fact, for any other segment as well.

Technical textiles make for a great investment option, especially because of their immense range of applications. With the increasingly growing demands from the consumers as well as other industries, the pool of opportunities that lie ahead seem never ending. At present the contribution of India towards global technical textiles is a meagre 9 percent. Given that there aren’t many players in the market, there is a good chance that India can make its own mark in the segment, sooner rather than later.

This can be deduced from the fact that India has certain advantages over the developed nations including but not limited to inexpensive labour, and abundance of raw material, a steadily increasing population, a promising infrastructure development as well as sky-rocketing industrial growth. All of these combined will surely make investment in technical textiles worth the time effort and resources of businessmen and traders alike.

Apparel Is Leading the Online Retail Category in the Asia-Pacific Region

Apparel Is Leading the Online Retail Category in the Asia Pacific Region

Recently, a market research firm based out of Germany, named Ystats.com unveiled a detailed report on the subject of 'Asia-Pacific Clothing B2C E-Commerce Market 2016'. As per the inferences of this report, apparel seems to be the pioneer when it comes to the online retail category across the Asia-Pacific Region. In fact, a whopping 40-50% of the online shopping enthusiasts within the region have made online purchases pertaining to the fashion segment in the year 2015.

Apparels Received Their Special Package… Raises Hopes For Home Textile Segment

It was only last month, that a special package was announced by the Ministry Of Textiles, pertaining to the Apparels exports. Following the suit, even the stakeholders of the Home Textile Segment are lobbying for something on the similar lines. It was at a recent event held by The Cotton Textiles Export Promotion Council or Texprocil in Mumbai, when the council along with Ernst & Young released a report on ‘Textile Industry as a vehicle of job creation for inclusive growth’.

Excessive Surge in Pricing in Cotton Affecting the Indian Textile Exports

In the year 2015-2016, the prices of cotton have risen unexpectedly and this has caught the Cotton Spinning Industry, completely off guard. So much so, that the cotton stocks with the manufacturers and suppliers were fairly low, which in turn, will lead to the overall decline in domestic output by double digits. As of now, the industry is expecting a heavy crush of profit margins, due to the increasing imbalance between the supply and demand. To make things worse, the new arrival of the crop will also be delayed this year due to the late sowing of cotton. 

Transport Cycle of TextileStock.in

As you may already know, TextileStock.in is a one-of-its-kind online inventory of textile stocklots which are ready to be sold. Essentially an Indian portal, the website avails all the requisite information to potential buyers at the click of the mouse. This information is inclusive of:

• Product Specification
• Available Quantity 
• An Approximate Estimate Of Price
• Product Photographs

TextileStock.in was incepted with the idea of creating a dedicated online marketplace for textile stocklot that helps various manufacturers come on a single platform to sell their goods. The portal efficiently consolidates and markets a substantial chunk of the stock available with suppliers from all across the nation. Not only does the portal helps in increasing the overall visibility of the sellers and the product but also avails them with the opportunity to earn competitive pricing for the same - and all of this, completely free of cost.

Guide To Increase Profit Margins in Textile Industry

All businesses, whether big or small, are always on the lookout for ways to increase their profit margins. This especially holds true in case of manufacturers, for the simple reason that when the magnitude of the stock is greater, even a slight increase in the margins can prove to be substantially profitable. This holds true for the textile industry as well.

Amazon to Invest $3 Bn in India - How Will This Benefit The Textile Industry?

The Founder and CEO of the e-commerce giant Amazon, Mr. Jeff Bezos recently announced the company’s plan to increase their investment in India by a whopping 3 million. This will bring the overall investment capital of the e-portal in India to over $5 Billion.

Government Brings in Labour Reforms via 6,000cr Textile Package

In a recent turn of events, the Union Cabinet has introduced certain changes in the labour laws of the nation, and has approved a significantly humongous package of Rs. 6,000 crore for the textile and apparel segment, in this effect.

Future of Indian Textile Industry

Future of Indian Textile Industry

One of the oldest sector in India, textile sector also happens to be the largest in the country. However, in the decade gone by, the industry has been plagued with a plethora of issues ranging from government regulations to economic slowdown and many others. In fact, there even came a time where small players like Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, which any considerable strength in the sector raced ahead of India in many sectors. Nonetheless, Indian textile sector bounced back with full strength and even managed to achieve an exemplary GDP of over 6%. Moreover, it was only during the decade gone by, that the Indian textile and clothing industry was officially integrated with the World Trade Organisation.

Iran- A Huge Potential Market for Indian Textiles

In the recent past, the import duties with respect to textile fabrics and ready-made garments in Iran have been reduced drastically, as a measure to curb illicit imports. This has also helped the Iranian Government to clear its way towards becoming a part of the World Trade Organisation. On the other hand, India is on the lookout to tap Iran’s markets which seems to have a great potential for apparel & Home textile products.

Turning a Business Crisis into an Opportunity!

The very definition of business essentially comprises an overlooking risk factor. And at a place where risk is inevitably involved, crisis ought to follow, more often than not. However, the strength of an entrepreneur always lies in his ability to turn this crisis into an opportunity! Former CEO of Intel, Andy Grove, once pointed out, “Bad companies are destroyed by crisis. Good companies survive them. Great companies are improved by them.”

Mills Online - Selling Stocklot Wasn’t So Simpler Earlier

It has been quite some time now that technology has taken over in our lives. Connectivity whether it is through the internet or the mobile platform has taken a huge leap, and boundaries seem to wither with each passing day. 

The Online Solution To Stop Fraud In Textile Market

With more monetary freedom at one’s disposal, global consumerism is on an upswing. For the consumer fraternity, the textile market and apparel industry have been amongst the favorite sectors to shell out the bucks. The shift in demographic preferences can be easily figured out from the emerging market trends highlighting the global demand for apparels and the corresponding market competitions in place. The textile industry is representative of a variegated spectrum of activities ranging from cottage spinning and weaving sector at one end and capital intensive mills at the other.

Is The Internet The Right Stimulus For Indian Textile Industry?

India, the second-largest producer of textiles and garments, has been eyeing to be a sourcing hub, riding on the back of a skilled labor force and opulence of cheap raw materials. With Indian Textile Industry accounting for a quarter of the global spindle capacity, its potential size is speculated to reach US$23 billion by the end of this decade.

Being the second largest employment generating sector in the country after agriculture, Textile Industry has got a huge bearing on the country’s economy. Hence, a holistic development of this sector is imperative for GDP expansion. Infusing the right kind of technology with this industry is definitely the roadmap to tap the entire market potential.

Globe to Present Wearable Advanced Sensor Platform at the Smart Fabrics Summit

The US Department of Commerce in collaboration with the Industrial Fabrics Association International has invited the well-known Globe Manufacturing Company to share their thoughts at what can be called as the first of its kind, Smart Fabrics Summit planned to be conducted in Washington DC. It is known that Penny Pritzker, the US Secretary of Commerce will take the onus of moderating the selected panel of business leaders. 

Digital Textile Summit 2016 to be Held On Dec 7

As per a press release from the Inkjet Forum India, the 2016 Digital Textile Summit will be held on the 7^th of December, in concurrence with the ITME 2016, the largest trade show of textile technology in India! Organised by the Inkjet Forum India, this will be the 6^th conference pertaining to digital textile printing in India. According to the release, this year the conference will be held at Mumbai’s Courtyard Marriott Hotel.

Beyond Globalisation - A Changing Apparel Industry

Fashion, to say the least, is one of the most dramatic domains where changes can be seen with each passing day and thanks to the new found globalization, these changes affect the apparel industry across the globe.

How Simple Is It to Buy and Sell Goods from TextileStock.In!

For those who are unaware of what exactly TextileStock.in is, it is an online inventory of textile stock in India that is ready to be sold. This portal works on the simple principle of availing all the requisite information regarding a stocklot on sale so that the buyer can make an informed choice, and the seller can get a fair price for the material. And all of this with a few simple clicks of the mouse.

Make in India Week - New Textile Policy Likely to be Out by April

As per Mr. Santosh Gangwar, the Union Textiles Minister, it is highly likely that the government may introduce a new textile policy in April. This policy will plausibly target the growth of the industry for the coming 10 years and will look forward to achieving a whopping target of over $300 billion in textile exports and lead to the creation of over 35 million employment opportunities, thus strengthening the industry even further. Mr.Gangwar, present at the Make in India Week, quoted “The long-awaited National Textile Policy is nearing finalisation and is likely to be issued before the end of April 2016”. He said that talks and consultations with the stakeholders are going on and was quite confident about the policy to be released in the budget session. According to him, the policy will embrace all concerns pertaining to various aspects including labour reforms, investments in the sector, and provision of a road map for further developments in the same. The policy is also slated to look into the concerns raised by the skilled workforce of the industry.

Around Two-Fifths of the Readymade Garment Industry to Face 2% Excise Levy

The financial year 2016-17 is knocking, and Finance Minister, Mr.Arun Jaitley has announced the budget. The budget hold quite a few changes for the textile industry on the whole, but the most glaring of them all is the proposal to levy excise duty of 2% on all readymade garments as well as made up textile articles, the retail price of which are Rs. 1000 and above.

What lies in the budget for the textile industry?

The budget for the financial year 2016-2017 is now out, and as expected it envelops various avenues for the textile industry as well. In the budget, Mr.Arun Jaitley, the finance Minister made numerous announcements, the most imperative of which was that the basic custom duty for raw materials that are used in technical textiles would be reduced to 2.5%. These raw materials would include fibres such as aramid flame retardant, para-aramid, nylon staple, nylon anti-static staple and modacrylic as well as yarns such as nylon 66 filament, flame retardant viscose rayon andpolyester anti-static filament. This is a welcome move, as it will ensure that the input cost for manufacturers of technical textiles is substantially reduced.

Delinking subsidy from bank loans a great boon for Indian textiles

Powerloom Machine

The Maharashtra Government, led by the Bhartiya Janata Party or the BJP has recently announced the provision of subsidy to owners of textile mills that wouldn’t be linked to bank loans. In what can be denoted a first-time move by the government, the textile industry on the whole would gain immense benefits. This has come to be of major relief to the large majority of Muslim powerloom owners, who had been demanding this delinking for a long time now. These Muslim powerloom owners, along with a large number of workers had always felt that the usury as well as the bank loans were against their religion, considering the fact that Islam does not allow the practise of taking or giving loans.

Union Minister Gangwar Up for Changes in Labour Laws

Mr  Santosh Kumar Gangwar, Union Minister, Textile Ministry is of the opinion, that the government is required to initiate changes in the existing policies, especially those pertaining to the labour laws in order for the Indian Textile industry to lead the world, and gaining the number one position, thus beating China.

The Impact Of Use Of Intellect On American Textile

The history of American textiles can be traced right from the development of spinning jenny by James Hargreaves, wherein eight hand spinners were conveniently replaced by one operation. It was then that Samuel Slater assembled all such processes, and set up the first textile mill in the United States, in the year 1793, and hence came to be known as the father of the Industrial Revolution of America.

Textile Hub Proposed in Bengal

Eastern India, especially West Bengal is now looking at expanding its textile industries, and in fact becoming a textile hub for all we know. As a major step towards this goal, the state government has launched an initiative, with the objective of opening up somewhere over a dozen textile parks.

Textile Exporters and Importers Will Gain from Renewal of GSP

It took a long wait of more than 18 months, but eventually the US Government did renew the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) thereby enabling the duty-free entry of close to a whopping 3,500 product lines from Indian Exporters. These product lines are slated to include merchandise from numerous verticals including textiles, gems and jewellery, engineering and chemical products. This renewal has been given a retrospective extension ranging from the bygone August 2013 to December 2017.

Indian textile and apparel exports to USA have risen by 7 percent

It seems that at least for the Indian Textile and Garment Industry, the central government’s ‘Make In India’ is working quite perfectly. A record surge of the country’s export, to its largest market, the United States, stands testimony to its success.

Substantial Increase Of Textile Export Expected From Africa To USA Due To Duty Free Trade Treaty

As per the statement of an official from the US, the textile and apparel exports from Africa to the USA might quadruple to a whopping $4 billion in the coming decade owing to the extension of the duty-free trade treaty. The African Growth and Opportunities Act (AGOA), is a trade program which avails certain sub-Saharan nations duty free access to USA, the world’s largest apparel market, thus giving Africa a great competitive edge over other nations Asian such as Bangladesh and Vietnam. The AGOA was established back in the year 2000, and was renewed past its stipulated expiration date in 2008.

Facilitation in exchanges on technical textile sector between India and US

In yet another welcome move, India and the United States, have agreed upon in facilitation in exchanges with respect to technical textiles between the centers of excellence of the universities of the two nations. This came as a joint announcement issued right after the India-US Strategic and Commercial Dialogue.

Effects Of Chennai Flood On Indian Textile Industry

The recent flooding in the city of Chennai has had an adverse impact on a large number of both residential as well as commercial projects in and around the city. And the humongous loss of functionality as well as property also enveloped the textile industry of the area. Pertaining to the rains, even the festive sales for Christmas have taken a hit, thus worsening the already grim situation.

The Centre Is Planning To Make It More Attractive For Exporters To Tap New Markets.

Given that the textile and clothing sector is the largest provider of employment, second only to agriculture, creating a whopping 4.5 crore jobs across the nation, both the textile as well as the commerce ministries are on the lookout for new strategies in an attempt to boost the exports..

Currently the Indian textile exports are heavily dependent on the developed nations i.e. the US & EU nations. However, the center is planning to attract the exporters to new markets, which have a great potential in store, such as Africa. This will subsequently help in expanding the geographical spread of the Indian textile and garment supplies.  While this move may not show instant results, it will definitely help the Indian markets in the long run.