Consumers today are pursuing more personalized and sustainable textile
products. It is an opportunity for those businesses that are ready to tap into
the demands, as consumers are prepared to pay more for these products.
Nowadays, the ongoing impact of the ever increasing
demand from consumers for personalized textile products, that are more sustainable
in their footprint, was evident in the market.
Consumers
expect personalization
According to Bloomberg, Generation Z consumers want
products that are tailor made for them. This confirms the findings of a
Customer Review Report from Deloitte. The report shows that in some categories,
more than 50% of consumers expressed interest in purchasing customized products
or services. Moreover, not only would the majority of consumers be willing to
pay more for a customized product or service, they would also like to be
actively involved in the process.
In the future, businesses that do not incorporate
an element of personalization into their offering risk losing revenue and
customer loyalty. Therefore, businesses have not only developed the capabilities
to measure specifically what each individual consumer wants, they are now also
in a position to link their processes and resources to provide it. This has
been made possible by advances in manufacturing technologies.
For example, Kornit Digital, one of the lead players in the
digital printing revolution, has been providing advanced printing solutions for
the garment, apparel and textile industries.
Kornit has launched Kornit Allegro, a roll-to-roll
printer that fulfills today’s market demand for customization and micro-runs.
Designed for end-to-end garment manufacturers,
Kornit Allegro is a single-step solution which offers one of the quickest
file-to-finished goods process.
Kornit Allegro eliminates the need for pre- and
post-treatment for multiple fabrics, all within a seven meters integrated
production line. Besides, it eliminates the entry barrier to digital fabric
printing, making it a solution of choice for businesses relying on multiple
short runs and extremely short turn time.
Through its simple operation, the 1.8m wide system
enables the development of new business models that cater for the strong trends
of mass customization and personalization of textile in fashion and home décor.
It offers amazing print quality, a vivid and wide color gamut, excellent color
fastness and hand feel, a fully sustainable and safe process, and is OekoTex 100
certified and GOTS pre-approved.
Ronen Samuel, CEO of Kornit Digital, pointed out
that “self-expression and personalization”, as well as “textile printing
environmental impact” are among the mega trends that drive adoption of digital
printing technologies.
Ronen Samuel said how consumers desire for a unique
personal look is influencing purchasing decisions that enable them to show
their individual expression on the garments they wear.
In addition, he said, textile printing has long
been considered resource intensive and recent regulations, especially in Asia
Pacific, require suppliers to meet new strict environmental regulations. These
coincide with an ongoing push by many international organizations to align and
support a range of environmental standards for textiles – from raw materials to
finished garments or décor products.
Meanwhile, 3D knitting is another tool that can
eventually be used to bring personalized garments to the masses.
The on-demand production capability of WHOLEGARMENT
knitting technology from SHIMA SEIKI that can knit an entire garment in one
piece on the machine without the need for sewing is naturally suited to
production that is customized to the individual.
At ITMA 2019, SHIMA SEIKI showcased
mass-customization as it is applied with WHOLEGARMENT knitting, called MADE2FIT
by WHOLEGARMENT. There was an entire area dedicated to presenting the concept,
beginning with scanning a body using a smartphone app, then sending that data
to a server that automatically adjusts preloaded data categories such as size,
length, sleeve length, color, etc., and knitting on the MACH2XS103 WHOLEGARMENT
knitting machine.
A short-needle bed version of SHIMA SEIKI's
flagship WHOLEGARMENT machine, MACH2XS103 features the company's original
SlideNeedle on four needle beds of 40-inch (100cm) knitting width.
High-quality WHOLEGARMENT production in all needles
is possible, at high speeds thanks to quick carriage returns with the
R2CARRIAGE combined with a maximum speed of 1.6m/sec for high productivity.
i-DSCS+DTC Digital Stitch Control System with
Intelligence and Dynamic Tension Control allows consistent, high-quality
production with a variety of yarns. Equipped with a spring-type moveable sinker
system, dimensional fabrics and flechage can be knit with ease, expanding the
range of knitting. It is also equipped with the Air Splicer option for
supporting multi-color knitting by splicing together yarns at high-speed.
Sustainability
pledge for textile products
Now consumers are becoming more conscientious shoppers
and they are impressed by brands that embrace sustainability.
“I think new consumer demands for sustainability
and transparency are definitely forcing brands and retailers to position
themselves differently,” says PSFK’s Penn Whaling, chief strategist for the
business consultancy. “As consumers become more aware of the true environmental
costs of their garments and are attempting to be more deliberate with their
purchases, there’s been a clear shift in the last few years. It’s been
interesting to see fast fashion brands in particular emerge as leaders in
sustainability.”
Consumers overwhelmingly want fashion brands to
address environmental issues. Overall, 86 percent of consumers say companies
should address urgent social and environmental issues, according to the Cone
Generation Z CRS study. That figure significantly increases to 94 percent among
Gen Z shoppers.
Additionally, most consumers (53 percent) say it’s
“very/somewhat important” that apparel brands are transparent about their
manufacturing practices, according to the Cotton Incorporated Lifestyle
Monitor™ Survey. This rates higher among Gen X shoppers (59 percent), many of
whom are in their parenting years. Further, 51 percent of consumers overall,
and 58 percent of Gen X say they are “very/somewhat likely” to shop at a
clothing brand that honestly communicates about its environmental and societal
impacts compared to one that does not.
Many apparel companies, both big and small, are
taking note and trying to do right by the environment, as well as appeal to the
consumer desire to be eco-conscious while being stylish. For example, H&M
is attempting to introduce sustainability in all aspects of their products’
life cycles, from using fabrics made from biodegradable materials to extending
the lifespan of their garments by experimenting with resale platforms.
The textile dyeing and finishing industry is
considered to be the most pollutant and energy-intensive process in the textile
supply chain. To overcome these problems and meet the expectations of
consumers, sustainable technologies are being developed.
Benninger, a provider of advanced,
highly-developed textile finishing and tyre cord solutions for the global
textile, chemical fibre, tyre and conveyor belt manufacturing markets, presented
its Benninger Küsters DyePad, which is the heart of Benninger’s cold pad batch
(CPB) system. The CPB dyeing process allows salt-free dyeing of woven fabrics
and knitwear without the use of energy.
This process is also
becoming increasingly popular in tropical and subtropical regions, which is
reason enough for Benninger-Küsters to adapt the CPB systems even more
effectively to the climatic conditions.
Another resource-efficient
product produced by Benninger is TRIKOFLEX drum
washing machine. The washing compartment is rounded off with the HYDROVAC
vacuum-water extraction system. Since each reaction process is followed by a
washing process in wet finishing, 70% of the energy consumption is incurred
during washing. For this reason, Benninger washing compartments are insulated
so that up to 50% of the radiated energy can be saved here.
According to Marcel Moser,
Area Sales Director, Textile Finishing, Benninger, resources saving is a very
important topic to the dyeing and finishing sector in countries like India,
Pakistan, Bangladesh and China. Water-saving, in particular, in China, is
probably the most important point right now.
Luca Formentini, partner of Loris Bellini, also
shared the same view. “Sustainability is one of the most important trends nowadays.
The eco-friendly solution represents our biggest bet for the entire dyeing
process today, as much as for tomorrow. At Loris Bellini, we believe technological
evolution is the only true driver to move ideas towards a higher level of
efficiency.”
Loris Bellini introduced its yarn dyeing system
Pulsar – a result of over four years of intense research and development
activity. Pulsar is a typical vertical kier system made up of that same upper
quality 316L stainless steel and has the usual pneumatic opening/closing lid on
the top end.
An important feature of the Pulsar machine is its
sustainable advantages. It guarantees an impressive 70% electric saving, as
well as reducing the consumption of water, steam and chemicals between 20% and
30%.
Addressing
consumer demands with new technology
In the coming years, personalization and
sustainability will continue to be strong influences in textile industry.
Personalization makes consumers feel more valued.
If a company is able to engage on a deep, personal level with consumers, the brand
experience is augmented. On the other hand, sustainability has been very
important in the textile industry and consumers are increasing the pressure on
brands to take responsibility and to create more sustainable products.
To remain competitive in the market, textile
manufacturers should re-examine their processes and find ways to become more
agile and remain relevant in a time of ever-changing consumer demands. They
should also invest more in R&D and develop new technology to capture these business
opportunities.