HK Fashion Week S/S:Sustainable fashion garners industry attention

By+Zhao+Zihan

The 23rd Hong Kong Fashion Week for Spring/Summer closed on July 7th， 2016. Organized by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council （HKTDC）， the four-day fair welcomed more than 13，000 buyers from 68 countries and regions. A new “Fashion Tech” zone was launched this year to showcase the industrys latest digital printing technology and award-winning ecofriendly textile technology. A seminar on “Fashion Sustainability - From Product Development to Manufacturing”， co-organized by the HKTDC and The Hong Kong Research Institute of Textiles and Apparel （HKRITA）， offered insights into the latest sustainability measurement tools for the fashion industry and technological innovations.

“Besides raising production efficiency， technology also enables the sustainable development of the industry，” said HKTDC Deputy Executive Director Benjamin Chau. “In recent years， there has been high awareness of sustainable development within the industry. From design and sourcing to prototyping and production， the industry has been dedicated to reducing energy consumption and carbon emission. Responding to this development， this years fair focused on exploring relevant technologies and assessment tools to help raise the industrys efficiency. We believe that the industry is increasingly aware of the importance of sustainable fashion， because it can help the industry achieve healthy growth.”

New sustainability assessment tools for the industry

At the seminar “Fashion Sustainability – From Product Development to Manufacturing”， Kit Li， Project Manager of the Clothing Industry Training Authority （CITA）， noted that pollution is worsening in many parts of the world and air pollution in the Chinese mainland is especially worrying. In particular， large amounts of water and energy are consumed and water sources are contaminated during the garment production process. “To tackle water shortage in the Chinese mainland， the government has launched policies that require reduction in water consumption by the garment industry，” she said.“The problem is that the industry has no relevant expertise.” To help address the problem， CITA has joined forces with the industry by applying for govern- ment funding to develop “Activity-based Carbon Footprint Modelling” （ACFM） and “Activity-based Water Footprint Modelling” （AWFM）. These systems will help to assess accurately the carbon and water footprints of each step of the production process.

Ms Li said more than 30 local companies have adopted ACFM since its introduction in 2015， and that the system has also been promoted in Australia. The project recently received a second round of government funding and will release an updated version soon. New functionalities include a web application， automatic data collection and input， report generation and consultancy services. As for the water consumption management tool AWFM， Ms Li said the system is currently being tested in dyeing factories and is expected to be launched by the end of this year.endprint

Keen interest from Japanese and Korean buyers

Besides exploring eco-friendly technologies， the four-day fair also created business opportunities for the fashion industry. Japanese buyer Satoshi Miyata， a first-time visitor， who was looking for new menswear suppliers， said she met a potential supplier from Hong Kong on the first day， and plans to visit new production facilities in the Chinese mainland and Cambodia later. “Generally speaking， it takes us roughly nine months to finalize contract terms with a new supplier， and we expect to purchase around 5，000 items for our initial order.”

Meanwhile， Korean online fashion retailer TRICYCLE also identified two to three potential Hong Kong suppliers at the fair. TRICYCLEs Team Manager Ju-Mi Hong said that the new suppliers are flexible with order quantities. She was looking to source a large selection of products in small quantities in order to test market demand. She believed the deal would be completed in three to six months， with an initial order of around 1，000 items.

Hong Kong companies stand out with diverse silk products

Despite uncertainties in the global economy， Hong Kong companies continue to stand out by offering a wide selection of products rather than compete on prices. Established in 2002， MsEnvy specializes in silk products and has regularly exhibited at Hong Kong Fashion Week to promote a range of designs， according to its Managing Director Jun Wong. At this edition of Fashion Week， MsEnvy presented silk fabrics that allow customers to build their own product lines. “We met many buyers and more than ten of them came from Spain， Singapore， Thailand， the Philippines and Japan. We have provided samples for their reference. We believe that orders will be confirmed in one to three months.”

Hong Kong companies Acumen Company Ltd. and Sun Kee Woollen Knitting Factory Ltd. also drew great interest from buyers at the fair. Ken Mak， Sales Executive of Acumen， which owns the outdoor clothing brand Re：echo， said the company met buyers from various countries， including from the Chinese mainland enquiring about OEM partnerships. Sun Kee Woollen Knitting Factory Ltd showcased its knitwear and cashmere collections at the fair. A buyer from Belgium placed orders for two types of cotton and rayon cardigans； while a buyer from Russia showed interest in cashmere products. General Manager Patrick Lui said the company plans to establish an ecommerce platform to further explore business opportunities.

Organized by the HKTDC， the 23rd edition of Hong Kong Fashion Week for Spring/Summer featured more than 1，200 exhibitors from 18 countries and regions. The HKTDC will launch a brand new fashion event， CENTRESTAGE， from 7 - 10 September this year， to provide an international marketing platform for brand collections.endprint