The Hindu : Front Page : Let fashion decide fabric design

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Dec 04, 2005

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Let fashion decide fabric design

M. Soundariya Preetha

WHAT'S LATEST? A Korean fabrics exhibition held in Coimbatore on Thursday. - Photo: K. Ananthan

COIMBATORE: Fabrics made of bamboo fibre and soya fibre, yarn that glows in the dark and intricate laces from Korea were part of the exhibits at a non-cotton fabric show here this week. These are some of the products that give value to the textile products exported from this region, especially garments. It attracted a number of textile players.

The average unit value realisation of garments exported from Tirupur is just two U.S. dollars, says an official of the Textiles Committee. A large number of exporters in Tirupur make garments according to the specifications given by the buyer rather than innovating and designing new products. Focus should be on value addition, apart from volume, he says.

In countries such as Italy, fashion houses determine the supply chain, including the fabric variety and colour. Garment houses here need to improve their sample collection and have designers.

Pressure on prices

The Textiles Committee has identified the need to increase unit value realisation as one of the gaps in the Tirupur knitwear cluster.

With the phasing out of textile quotas, the units here are increasingly feeling the pressure on prices in the international market and the unit value realisation may decline, says G. Venugopal, Cluster Development Agent of the Committee. The committee wants to double the unit value realisation in Tirupur.

The exhibition here was part of its initiatives to bridge this gap. It was held in association with the Korean Trade Centre, South India Hosiery Manufacturers Association, Coimbatore District Small Industries Association and Hi-Tech International.

"It has to start from choosing the right yarn and fabric," says Mr. Venugopal. For instance, he points out that apart from a range of clothes, the finish also helps realise a higher price.

Special finishes such as fragrance finish and anti-microbial finishes are possible now. These programmes help exporters know products available in other countries. More than 40 Korean companies had displayed a range of non-cotton fabrics, yarn and accessories here.

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