Specials

The founder of outdoor clothing brand Patagonia, Yvon Chouinard, has given away his company in an effort to do  more for the planet. The Chouinard family has transferred ownership to two new entities: Patagonia Purpose Trust and the Holdfast Collective. Every dollar not reinvested back into Patagonia will be distributed as dividends to protect the planet.

Clothing retail chain H&M and sporting goods retail chain Decathlon have made commitments to the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM) promising to adjust or no longer use sustainability claims on their clothes and/or websites. The two chains have committed to informing consumers more clearly in order to minimise the risk of misleading practices involving sustainability claims.

The Taiwanese leather sector dates back to more than 70 years and it was in the 1990s that the tanneries began to relocate and set up factories in Thailand, Vietnam, Mainland China and other Southeast Asian countries. Today it produces about 45-60 million square feet of leather per month, exporting almost 98% to some of the best-known footwear makers. Thomas CJ Yu, President of the Taiwanese International Leather Association (TILA) in conversation with texfash.com.

Munich Fabric Start is a big event, packed with diverse and distinct verticals within the event ecosystem. See this in the backdrop of the array of exhibitors and the diversity of visitors, and, presto, it becomes an indubitable place to gauge the pulse of the industry and palpable elements that will become trends in the near future. The best person to throw light on all this is Sebastian Klinder, Managing Director of Munich Fabric Start Exhibitions GmbH. A conversation with texfash.com.

The urge to gift an enduring piece of Punjab’s legacy, and the lack of it, led to the setting up of Aab Label, a contemporary brand that draws inspiration from the hand-embroidered heritage craft of phulkari. Founder Shreya Mehra shares her story.

Dutch design studio Raw Color has created a collection called 'Temperature Textiles', which is embedded with climate-change data. The collection features blankets, scarves and socks knitted with infographics about either temperate change, sea-level rise or greenhouse gas emissions. Raw Color Co-Founder Christoph Brach talks about the idea.

Brexit in the UK has caused major issues with sourcing labour, added regulatory and import/export burdens, increased input costs and reduced customer confidence. Dr Kerry Senior, Director, Leather UK, a membership-based trade organisation with the remit to represent, promote and protect the leather industry, elaborates.

It was in 1997 that a young girl in war-ravaged Somalia began to train women and girls in income-generating tye-and-dye programmes. By 2012 Qaal Designs was started in Los Angeles with the sole idea of reuse, recycle and repurpose products using digitisation. This ‘global movement’ in sustainable fashion is now moving from LA to the streets of Nairobi, Mogadishu, Arusha, Kigali and expanding to the rest of Africa. texfash.com in conversation with Founder Nimco Adam.

Stephen Mayfield is a distinguished professor of Biology at UC San Diego. Tom Cooke came with decades of experience in product development. Together, they created at Bluewear Footwear the world's first biodegradable pair of shoes made from plant-based fabrics and oils that decompose fully. A riveting interview with texfash.com.

The Amphitex project of Amphibio is the first 100% recyclable chemical-free waterproof breathable textile made for the outdoor and sportswear apparel industry. In April this year, Amphitex by  Amphibio was announced as one of four Terra Carta Design Lab winners. CEO & Founder Jun Kamei talks about ideas and how he sees things shaping up in the near future.