WEEKLY WISDOM
“Every day is a second chance.”
Knitwear Steps Onto the Road to Recovery
After nearly a year without physical trade fairs, the knitwear industry enthusiastically came to Spinexpo Hong Kong (January 27-28).
This boutique version of the Spinexpo’s Shanghai fair offered the same well edited selection of high quality yarns and knitwear, but on a smaller scale.
However, as we’ve found in a growing number of instances, size no longer matters. Bigger is not necessarily better. And ‘more’ can end up being ‘less’ beneficial.
“Spinexpo has been really good. We’ve had non-stop visitors to our booth. It’s been very busy,” said Nicole Mak at Xinao.
“It’s been really busy between the meetings we pre-booked and many unexpected customers as well,” said Julie Wilkens, head of sales and marketing, at Novetex. “This has been very worthwhile.”
Outlook for SS’22 and AW’21; What buyers were looking for
A growing number of companies are telling us that they’ve shifted their focus from coping with the pandemic to rebuilding for the long term.
TRADE AGREEMENTS
The U.K. will apply to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) today, in a major push to expand and deepen the country’s trade links with the Asia-Pacific region after leaving the European Union. READ MORE
PODCAST
Future Sourcing: Collaboration, Data & New Technology
In this podcast episode Christophe Roussel, EVP Sourcing and Production for Gap, Inc., shares his bold vision for the evolution of sourcing – where top suppliers are no longer simply ‘order takers’ but become strategic partners. And where better data analysis supports both sustainability and profitability.
MARKETS
UK consumer spending has fallen to 35% below its pre-crisis level under the strain of the third nationwide lockdown, according to the Office for National Statistics.
Hong Kong’s retail sales for the first six months of 2021 could fall to 20-30 percent below 2019 levels, according to the Hong Kong Retail Management Association. Retail sales fell 25.3 percent year-on-year during the first 11 months of 2020.
The global sporting goods market contracted last year for the first time since the financial crisis, with market value falling by around 7% to around $346 billion, although it still outperformed the apparel market as a whole, according to a report by McKinsey and the World Federation of the Sporting Goods Industry.
- The biggest challenges this year are seen in supply chain and COVID-related issues, while the biggest opportunities are big events like the postponed 2020 Olympics and the UEFA European Football Championships.
BRAND EXPANSION
Levi Strauss & Co. (USA) is launching its first home collection with Target (USA). The limited time only 100-item collection of denim-inspired tableware, quilts, pillows and other items will be available on Target’s website and most Target stores starting Feb. 28.
Mango (Spain) will also be rolling out its first homewares collection in April. The collection will be made from sustainable materials with about 80% of the products sourced locally.
Marks and Spencer (UK) is adding apparel from brands Joules, Phase Eight, Hobbs and Seasalt, both in-store and online, to compliment its own brands, according to The Times.
RETAIL PROPERTY
Ginza Six, one of the largest commercial complexes in Tokyo’s Ginza district, is shifting its tenant mix from international brands that cater to tourists to retailers aimed at serving wealthy Japanese consumers.
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IN CASE YOU MISSED THESE ARTICLES
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- Why Stores Could Become Your Most Valuable Asset
- 5 Benefits of Using 3P Services – and 3 Potential Pitfalls
- Why ‘Local’ is the Next Big Thing
- Supply Chains: The Need for Change vs Making that Change
- How Smaller Brands are Leading a Retail Revival
- Menswear, Get Ready for a Rebound
