The Light Side
Lightweight and functional are the key drivers in intimate apparel.
By Lai Colgan & IF Staff
It’s been a slow season for trade fairs and Mode Lingerie was no exception. Held at the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Center (March 30-31) concurrently with AFPL, Fashion Access and Prime Source, the fair still drew fewer buyers and exhibitors reported that footfall in general was down from last year’s session.
Inside Fashion spoke with exhibitors to what, if anything, was selling well in today’s challenging business environment.
Hana Fashion Company, Ltd, a 30-year-old Taiwan-based company which mainly produces lace and mesh, told Inside Fashion that although business is a still a little slow, 2009 was much better than the year before, and they expect business to continue improving in 2010. Boosting sales are best sellers such as “allover lace and jacquard mesh fabrics because more and more clients prefer lightweight fabrics that are soft and comfortable” according to Kenny Hsu, Global Market Sales Representative. “The industry didn't have the technology to make lingerie fabric this lightweight before. Now, we can produce fabric that is lightweight as well as fashionable combining function and design, and that is the trend.”
The company’s largest customer base is their very stable, domestic market (60%) with the rest of the market share gong to China (25%) and Hong Kong (15%). Like many other exhibitors, Hana plans to expand their market share in China. “China is important because whatever happens in China will impact the rest of the world,” stated Mr. Hsu.
Attending Mode Lingerie for the third consecutive year was Invista, renowned for its Lycra brand spandex. Michelle Rice, Global Director, Intimate Apparel and Swimwear, told Inside Fashion that “consumers are becoming much more demanding in what they expect from their garments. Asian consumers particularly are looking for more solutions and diverse choices in the intimate apparel category. We are seeing an increased interest in fabrics and garments which can provide all-day freshness and cool, dry comfort, coupled with a soft, luxurious feel.” Invista is seeing their Lycra FreshFX, which creates a soft wicking, quick dry fabric, gain acceptance in intimate apparel and sports bras.
Heeding consumers' demand for lightweight, soft, and sheer intimate apparel Lycra also is offering Xtra Fine Collection fibers. If used in fabric weights of 120 grams/m2 or less, these fine denier fibers feel ultra light, like a “second-skin.” Yet these fabrics which feel “barely there” still have the stretch and recovery power as well as fit and support to which women have become accustomed.
Along with many other companies, Invista is also looking to China as one of its very important target markets. But according to Ms. Rice, Invista is also committed to the global apparel market beyond China. “Since China continues to be the major manufacturing region in the world, we make a large portion of our sales to Chinese yarn processors and fabric manufacturers. However, other markets like Europe, North America and South America continue to be extremely important due to the very high quality and level of innovation and sophistication textile producers in these regions have. Other areas such as South Asia are fast growing markets where we continue to build our business and sales.”
Thirty-five-year-old Bebe Cotton Knitting Company, Ltd, whose biggest markets are in the United Kingdom and Europe, said their top seller, continues to be single jersey (polyester and spandex or nylon and spandex.) Harch Hong, managing director of the family-owned Taiwan-based company, told Inside Fashion that “This season lots of customers like foil print or embossed print. Our new products are eco friendly, such as organic cotton, cupro fiber, and naturally dyed fabrics using leaves, plants, and fruit.” (Cupro is a type of washable rayon made from cuprammonium salts and cotton cellulose that drapes well, feels like silk, and washes like cotton.)
Bebe’s Sales Executive Ethan Pan added that “our color cotton is also eco friendly because it doesn't need to be dyed, which means it uses less energy, less water, and creates less pollution.” Triumph Hong Kong and Triumph Taiwan are both buyers of Bebe's color cotton. Mr . Pan also noted that the company's Sense product line, an acronym for Sensual, Environment, Nature, Save, and Ecology, “is the focus of the Bebe 's future because it is eco friendly.”
Another exhibitor was Liberty Tex Company, Ltd., an embroidery manufacturer from Taiwan whose largest markets are Europe and the USA (80% market share) with a 20% market share in Asia including China. Executive Vice President and owner, Bobby Chen, whose grandfather started the business 30 years ago, said “Most inquiries at the Mode Lingerie fair were about laser cut-out designs and soutache lace and ribbon embroidery because that's the trend now. A lot of ribbon embroidery is in fashion now.”(Soutache is a narrow braid woven into a herringbone pattern. It is used to create decorative details on garments.)
Although Liberty Tex's main customer base is in Europe and the US, Mr. Chen says the company is “aggressively working at getting into China because that's where the market is. In order to gain more market share, we will have to modify our existing collection which is more European style-- very delicate, detailed but subtle, more natural and simple.” By comparison, the Chinese style is very colorful with big, bold flowers according to Mr. Chen who also sees a promising year ahead financially. “I am positive our business will be better this year because people are shopping now. They are willing to spend now.”
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