California Apparel News

Artistic Milliners’ Cotton Projects team has been selected as a winner of the Textile Exchange’s Ryan Young Climate+ Award 2022 in the Climate Leader Team category. The team’s collaborative, farm-centric and forward-thinking approach was highlighted as an example in the industry. The late Ryan Young (Textile Exchange COO from 2017 to 2020) was the inspiration behind Textile Exchange’s Climate+ strategy, which is for the organization to serve as a driving force for climate action, with a goal of 45 percent reduced CO₂ emissions from textile fiber and material production by 2030. Climate Leader awards are dedicated to individuals, teams or departments within an organization displaying an overall commitment to meeting the Climate+ strategy goals. “They demonstrate progressive thinking ahead of their time,” said La Rhea Pepper, CEO of Textile Exchange.

Lenzing has announced a suite of new features on its E-Branding Service platform, which is available across textile brands Tencel, Ecovero plus the nonwovens brand Veocel. Users will be able to use the new features to enjoy a smoother experience and greater convenience as well as enhanced transparency across the value chain. The new features also complement existing services such as fiber certification, application for product licenses and branding materials. “Since the introduction of the Lenzing E-Branding Service in 2018, we have been on a mission to pioneer the digitalization of value-chain management,” said Vice President of Global Marketing and Branding at Lenzing AG Harold Weghorst. “While we remain committed to providing unprecedented traceability across the industry value chain, ensuring better user experience remains the key foundation of the Lenzing E-Branding Service.”

New research reveals that stock inefficiencies and inventory “black holes” are exacerbating the supply-chain crisis in the apparel industry. Some 6 percent of stock is lost through 2 percent, which is damaged or has perished, plus 4 percent, which is overproduced. The loss is the equivalent of 3 percent of annual profits and is estimated at $15.3 billion in terms of the sale value of lost stock. The data come from a new global report released by Avery Dennison, a leader in materials-science and digital-identifications solutions. The data analyzed 65 global apparel firms, including manufacturers, wholesale and distribution firms, and retailers and found that the biggest contributor to supply-chain waste is faults with packaging, closely followed by inefficient transport and delivery and damage to products when handled.

The Rosetta AI Up & Cross Sells app has been released on the Shopify app store, providing unique recommendations and promotional tools optimized for SMB merchants in the apparel, cosmetics and accessories industries. The app was hailed as a “moonshot” by TechCrunch at this year’s 500 Global fund-raising event, and the company’s solutions are at work in over 2,500 online retail stores across Asia. Taiwan-based Rosetta AI is already seeing annual revenue of $3.4 million with a 200 percent growth rate. “Our mission is to level the playing field for SMB brands on Shopify by providing the same awesome data insights that big brands use so they can understand their customers better and create better shopping experiences,” said Alice Li, co-founder and COO of Rosetta AI.

Aptean, a global provider of mission-critical enterprise-software solutions, has announced the acquisition of ImPuls AG, a provider of enterprise-resource-planning solutions to apparel, footwear, accessories and textile brands and manufacturers. Founded in 1975 and based in Krefeld, Germany, ImPuls is used by over 150 apparel companies to better connect business-critical activities such as production planning, scheduling, order management, accounting and retail support. ImPuls’s modular platform was designed especially for the fashion and apparel industry and helps customers simplify inventory management and streamline mission-critical workflows. “Aptean is pleased to expand our ERP presence in the DACH region with offerings for apparel companies,” said President, Americas and DACH, at Aptean Bob Kocis. ImPuls AG’s expert team of fashion and apparel-software professionals has built creative solutions to address the unique requirements of the industry, and we are excited to welcome them to Aptean.”

After its debut show during London Fashion Week, Prof. Jimmy Choo’s JCA I London Fashion Academy has announced the opening of a new campus in Brentford, West London, centered on artisan design and craftsmanship. The new academy will focus on artisan crafts, design and accessory-making as well as grooming a new wave of creative talent. The historic building will house atelier workshops and design studios with specialist fabrication tools plus event spaces open to the public that will act as a venue for arts-and-crafts markets. Moreover, the academy aims to create a long-term progressive socioeconomic impact on the local community of Brentford. Based on a simple subscription model and following in the footsteps of the JCA I London Fashion Academy’s incubator approach, the co-working studio spaces are designed to help the next generation of designers not only create products but also market them under the guidance of industry specialists.

HeiQ has launched HeiQ Mint, a new proprietary plant-based odor-control technology designed to make textiles smell fresh even when used repeatedly. Avoiding the need for frequent washing helps save both water and energy. HeiQ Fresh MNT-01, under the HeiQ Mint product family and jointly developed with Patagonia, addresses body odors on textiles and regenerates with every wash the superior efficiency and durability that meet most end-use performance requirements while keeping all the fabric properties such as breathability, hand feel and wicking. According to Patagonia Materials Innovation Engineer Laura Hoch, “Out of all the anti-odor technologies we tested, HeiQ Mint provided the highest odor-control performance with the added benefit of being plant-based. This innovation enables Patagonia to deliver our customers high-performing products made with the best available chemistry.”