Christmas, coronavirus and fear of no-deal Brexit push Europe’s warehouses to the limit

As well as stocking up for Christmas and any potential coronavirus-related lockdowns, Europe and the UK will soon have Brexit to deal with.British companies are bringing as much as possible into the country before potential disruptions in January, while their European counterparts are piling up goods in pan-European distribution hubs close to ports like Hamburg or Rotterdam.

E-commerce ma…

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Nearly half WTO members agree to talks on new e-commerce rules

The WTO’s 164 members were unable to consolidate some 25 separate e-commerce proposals at the body’s biennial conference at Buenos Aires in December, including a call to set up a central e-commerce negotiating forum.In a gathering on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, ministers from a smaller group of countries including the United States, the European Union and Japan, agreed t…

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Energy crisis dims festive sparkle in Europe’s shops

Across much of Europe, in cities from Madrid to Frankfurt, there will be fewer, more energy efficient lights, switched off earlier at night, while shops will be heated less, in a show of solidarity with households facing soaring utility bills.Even in Paris, known as the City of Lights, they will be dimmer this year.

What the French government calls “sobriety measures” come as retailers ar…

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More problems for Boohoo after accusations of mislabelling clothes

That’s according to the BBC programme Panorama, but it’s a charge that Boohoo has denied.Plain T-shirts and hoodies had their original labels removed at Boohoo’s flagship factory, Thurmaston Lane in Leicester, last year. Boohoo said the incorrect labels were down to a misinterpretation of the labelling rules.

The mislabelling took place at the factory, affecting up to one i…

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Puma is working on a biodegradable version of its ‘Suede’ sneaker

What will tomorrow’s shoes and accessories look like? From 3D printing and turning greenhouse gases into biomaterial, to innovative and sustainable materials, the fashion industry is coming up with all kinds of ways to make the sector greener — or at least less polluting — with innovations designed to reduce environmental impact upstream, during or after product manufacturing. With its new…

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Chinese fashion firm Shein on Singapore hiring spree as it shifts key assets there

Chris Xu, Shein’s founder and CEO, has also become a permanent resident of the city-state, according to a document.Shein, which Xu started in 2008 in Nanjing and has since grown into a global fashion marketplace, last year de-registered its main business, Nanjing Top Plus Information Technology Co Ltd, a Chinese corporate filing shows.

The developments are in line with what other sources …

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Thousands of Bangladeshi garment workers ordered home as factories stay closed

Although official numbers were not available, labor leaders said the majority of the workers they had spoken to had either been temporarily laid off or sent on leave. A smaller section of workers complained of being sacked.Bangladesh, which ranks behind only China as a supplier of clothes to Western countries, relies on the garment industry for more than 80% of its exports, with some 4,000 fact…

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H&M launches B2B Creator Studio, meets growing need for on-demand services

Creator Studio, a new service from H&M Group Business Ventures, is a global platform and service for the merchandise industry that will offer creators on-demand printing.It uses the assets built by the H&M over several years, with a mission “to create a new standard for merchandise through technology”. 

The company said that “thanks to a lean production process, made-to-order digit…

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Canada’s fashion industry hopes for royal boost with arrival of Harry and Meghan

Harry, 35, and Meghan, 38, announced this month they were stepping down from their royal roles to protect their privacy and gain financial independence from the monarchy.Canadian fashion commentators say they expect the “Meghan Effect” – where a brand sees a jump in sales after the Duchess of Sussex sports one of their products – to continue regardless of the couple’s future public roles.

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The male model testing gender norms in a changing Saudi Arabia

Passers-by began sneaking pictures on their mobiles merely minutes after Mesfer emerged from his white luxury car onto the cobbled sidewalks of a high-end cafe district in Riyadh, his stylist and photographer in tow.Such appearances have helped Mesfer, 25, build a massive social media following while blazing a trail for the handful of Saudi male models brave enough to don garments widely seen a…

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