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.

Bangladesh’s reliance on fossil fuels, particularly coal and gas, poses a significant challenge to decarbonising its apparel sector. Shifting this entrenched energy mix requires more than just technology; it demands coordinated action across policy, infrastructure, and finance.

Fibre sorting remains one of the biggest technical and economic hurdles in textile recycling, particularly for mixed-material fabrics. At Re:inventex, we’ve adopted a pragmatic approach that combines manual sorting with basic composition testing and pre-sorting based on visual and tactile assessments.

Downstream recycling facilities may have different requirements in terms of composition, tolerance to the presence of other materials, length of fibres entering their processes, or particle sizes. This applies to both garments and footwear. Automated removal of hard spots can also be considered a preparation step.

Digital Product Passports alone will not revolutionise our industry, the data they contain will. Aware makes Digital Product Passports (DPPs) automatic, accurate, and verifiable. As supply chain data is logged, starting at the fibre level, it’s sealed to a digital token and carried forward with each batch. Our system integrates this data into a DPP.

If a brand waits for ideal conditions before acting, it risks missing one of the most accessible levers for reducing emissions now. The value for a company, both from an attitude approach and from a behaviour approach to integrate the cost of RE (or, renewable electricity) into their product cost cannot be overestimated. By setting renewable electricity as a hygiene factor for suppliers, we can normalise it across our operations.

One underappreciated point about the garment industry is its own variegation, even within a single factory. If you work in an ironing section, or in the warehouse, then your risk of heat stress is far greater than if you work in the sewing section. So, however small the context, we can never ignore labour as a factor in heat stress.

By leveraging Portugal’s strong manufacturing base and strategic location, we offer a unique platform where exhibitors and buyers can build regional and international partnerships. Our focus is on helping participants adapt to today’s sourcing demands, prioritising speed, sustainability, and resilience in their supply networks.