Despite its limitations, the Bangladesh Accord (or now International Accord) has shown that brands, factories and workers can collaborate to create a viable governance framework. I would argue that the Cambodian market is easier than Bangladesh in some ways due to its smaller size and more centrally located factories. Also, despite union tensions and dysfunction, the various stakeholders are quite willing to engage.

When a designer can see the footprint of a decision in real time, responsibility becomes a design parameter, just like colour or texture. Transparency doesn’t just inform; it should change behavior, because in the end, we are all responsible. It’s up to us to make the right choices, as producers, designers, and buyers.

The Dutch EPR legislation is relatively new. Hence, we have to involve producers and importers actively to raise awareness. Furthermore, we involve not only them but also collectors, sorters and recyclers to gain a better understanding of what is currently happening in the textile value chain and to get insight about what can be done to further improve things from a circularity perspective.

The overall sentiment is forward-looking: EU trade preferences provide a stable foundation, while Tunisian suppliers are determined to strengthen their own capabilities to ensure long-term competitiveness. This combination of supportive policy frameworks and private-sector initiative is what will secure the industry’s future.

We see opportunities for hemp as a crop that is not related to other agricultural crops. This has a positive impact on breaking the cycle of diseases and pests. Hemp therefore acts as a kind of fallow crop. This means that the crop certainly has its value in the Flemish crop rotation system. Moreover, farmers are looking for alternative crops, and hemp could be a solution here.

We push brands by changing the rules of the game. We are moving the goalposts from a narrow focus on certified materials to a holistic vision of sustainability where a prosperous farmer is the key performance indicator. It’s a slow and deliberate process, but by publicly measuring what truly matters, we make it impossible for brands to ignore the 70% of people who form the foundation of their entire industry.

Many traceability efforts stop before they reach the farming stage, and therefore many retailers and brands are unfamiliar with the specific issues facing their producers. Complex sourcing and buying processes spread across departments working in silos. Companies work with hundreds of suppliers, using cotton grown by perhaps thousands of farmers and workers. They need to bring in significant capacity to create the needed transparency.

It seems evident that a natural fibre produced and processed in Europe may result in a higher price than a standard garment. To be truly “desirable” for a broad audience, these clothes must stand out through their quality, durability, and reduced environmental impact.

Our strength lies in our neutrality and public-interest mission. As a non-profit organisation, Valbiom is not driven by political agendas or private interests, but by the objective of developing a robust bioeconomy in Wallonia. We carefully assess each initiative to ensure that it respects resources, biodiversity, and citizens’ needs, while also enabling local industries and farmers to thrive.

In the Indian context, fashion is inseparable from textiles. India has a very rich textile tradition, deeply rooted in ethnic practices and aesthetics. At the same time, design is also a global language, and globalisation has led to homogenisation. When you visit superstores in Europe or Asia, you often see similar, standardised products. The truly distinctive items usually come from traditional markets. Once a product is converted into a brand, it risks becoming homogenised and losing its uniqueness.

I believe the next decade will redefine what it takes for India to sustain global leadership in apparel manufacturing. The sector will not be judged only on cost competitiveness, but on how smartly, how quickly, and how responsibly it can deliver. In that sense, there are three emerging skills that will be absolutely non-negotiable.

The most critical gap, and often the most ignored, lies at the very top. Unless factory leaders and senior management themselves are upskilled and convinced of the business case for training, skilling will always remain a peripheral agenda. When leadership treats capability-building as a strategic lever for efficiency, compliance, and profitability — and not merely as a support function — it transforms the culture entirely.

Balancing storytelling, design quality, and production viability is always a careful act. I start with the material itself: understanding its strengths, and weaknesses. The narrative guides the concept, what the garment wants to say but design quality ensures it’s timeless and wearable, not just symbolic. Production viability comes last, but it’s crucial: a garment must be made responsibly and with respect for the craft involved, so the story is not lost in compromise.

One of Intertextile Apparel’s key strengths is that it can cater to buyers with very different sourcing goals. In terms of materials, price point, and product use, every zone at the show has its ideal buyer, and as the market changes we recognise the need to occasionally update the offering to suit evolving requirements. By grouping exhibitors accordingly, such as in our various featured zones or by product end-use for domestic exhibitors, visitors can gain a sense of which areas of the show most appeal to their specific needs.

Suppliers are scared of the brands knowing what they think; so, they smile at the brands, invite them for lunch, and then tell us what they think of their behaviour, and we have more than 50 of these kinds of reactions—private concerns, and public smiles out of fear. That itself shows how unethical our industry is. People are frightened to tell the truth.

Historically, Mahlo systems focused on visible defects like fabric distortion. Today, the shift toward invisible deviations—such as thickness variations in battery coatings—requires a new approach. Mahlo is responding by enhancing its sensor logic with real-time analytics, AI-assisted feedback loops, and predictive modelling.

Structural bottlenecks in the technical textiles value chain—especially in processing and testing is an important issue. During this conference we do not have any dedicated session, but, we expect that during the sessions the speakers and delegates may delve on the subject and interact on this as well.

Swiss companies are not trading legacy for digital—they are integrating the two. Precision engineering remains our foundation, but today’s machines embed intelligent systems, advanced sensors, and software for predictive maintenance and process optimisation. Industry 4.0 is no longer a concept—it’s operational reality.

In fashion, they’ve shown the potential to match the flexibility and softness of premium nylon yarns. In industrial contexts—such as automotive or maritime applications—we’re exploring how the materials can meet more stringent performance needs. We’re currently preparing for more extensive validation testing in collaboration with potential partners.

The challenges cotton farmers face varies widely across countries and are influenced by both global and local economies, policies, and infrastructure. In India, for example, smallholder farmers can face debt, limited access to modern technology, and vulnerability to price swings. In all geographies, rising climate challenges—such as unpredictable rainfall and prolonged droughts—are major concerns.