DENIM HAD FADED TO BECOME BETTER Denim never died, non-denim took time but finally caught up with

denims so much that there was a 40-45 % hike in the sales of non-denims, which completely out shadowed the sloe and consistent rise of non-denims. on-denims casuals finally got a worldwide acceptance. !eport says, there is a growth in the demand in the "-## ounces, medium weight denim. $ver the past si% months, the international price of "-ounce denim has climbed by #5-#"% per meter

THE REASON FOR THE LOST GLORY

& consumer tries everything in vogue, drops old style and patterns to fancy new style. 'eople got so much denim that they were willing to try more than everything that gave them different look and feel .the heavy ounce denim was not the preference for summers. (ith no e%pansion in innovation and designing, people reali)ed that they wanted more than *ust blues, colors that could fill in their other days and moods. Denim had to face the days when not even a single manufacturer was in a position to predict its lifespan. +he only ,uestion in the minds was had denim reached its final destination-

THE PRICE FACTOR &nother ma*or hurdle faced by denim was the pricing factor. & good pair of *eans on an average would cost anywhere in the range of rs .00. rs "00 a reason good enough to make it a once a year purchasing product. &lso limiting its target customer. +he peak was when prices had almost doubled. /witching over obviously was the only option left for the consumer and manufacturers. 0verybody reali)ed the potential market for non-denims. 0verybody was ready to e%periment.

COTTON THE NEW KING ON THE BLOCK &ll the positives were probed, no stone left unturned for the survival of denim but cotton won its way and became the sole snatcher of denims lost glory. on-denim became a part of the fashion hype. 1ottons suited the hot summer, #00% cotton fabrics were found to be literally breathable. (ith non-denims one could play with the fabrics, colors, fits, te%tures, styles. +he scope the range and turnover doubled. +he impact was so huge that international leaders of *eans manufacturers had to alter their product portfolio to fill in the non-denim wear. 1otton trousers raced much ahead and disturbed the denim market. +he sales of denim dwindled worldwide. 1otton trousers won over customers who wanted a lightweight, colored range of bottom wear. +here were ample options to woo the customers now. 1hinos, gabardines and polynosic got the favored push with khakis from Dockers, an e%tension of 2evis as the pioneer. COMFORT TOOK OVER DURABILITY FACTOR Denim is not *ust a basic stuff today3 it is making a fashion statement today with the combination of different weaves, yarns and blends. +he fabric is also much lighter today. 4n the readymade garment segment fabric and garment manufacturers innovate and produce new products ,uite fre,uently to meet e%pectations of the customer. &round five years back particularly in the bottom weight product category owing to the sustained and continuous innovation in khakis pushed the denim products out of the shelves. 1onse,uently no other product segment suffered the setback in the last decade as denim for the shift in the customer preference. Despite denim being considered as a universal product all the big and small garment manufacturers scrambled to replace denims to khakis in accordance to the consumer demand. 5rom the glorious years in the last decade denim was down for three years. Denim moved out of the shelves of the retailers as ,uickly as it moved in. but a few always had a hope that no product can replace denim according to the denim aficionados it is such a versatile fabric that even in spite of giving a rela%ed look it is still very mature practical product. 4t is such an interesting fabric that people love to wear it. +heir hopes are not belied, denim is again on roll from last # year, the product segment is not only increasing in the absolute term it is also trying to move into the khaki segment.

+he fabric strength of the khaki was the choice offered in form of different constructions, weaves, colors, and finishes. +hese different choices offered to the customer pushed back denim segment, as it did not offer much variety to the customer in its product range. (hat innovation and new product development did to khaki segment it similarly changed the outlook of denim industry. +oday denim is as customi)ed product as of khaki range. Denim has come back in a new avatar and now it is not the basic#4.5 o) open end product. +oday with different dying styles, different yarn characteristics, new blends and finishes the range of this product category is almost at par with the khakis. 5urther denim also has distinct advantage of offering different washes owing to these different new variants. Denim today also has a fashion appeal in addition to the basic functional advantage. +he psyche of the customer today is also changing. +he customer today is more comfortable with #6-#4 o) weights of khakis instead of #4.5 o) heavy weights. /o the brands are also shifting from #4.5 to #6 o) as the developments are happening in the same. (ith the combination of different yarns, weaves, dyes, blends finishes and final weight fabrics now a days offer a range that is helping the premier brands to distinguish themselves from the mass brand. +oday all premium brands in 4ndia are working hard to personify themselves on the basis of these new products. +he men7s bottom weight segment in the premium category has largely shifted from the basic open-ended heavy weights to the mid weight ring denims with either softer even ring or with slub effect for rain denim or crossfire. +hey are also using merceri)ed and tinted fabrics for the premium niche segment. TRADE IN DENIM 4n the first seven months of 6006 denim imports were up #"..% over the same period last year , climbing up to 89.# million s,uare meter e,uivalents :/;0s< and continuing to witness the e%pansion since last year. +he year to date growth in denim fabrics imports was evident for ;e%ico and +aiwan, which en*oyed increase of #8.#% and .".6% respectively. &t this time ;e%ico saw its position slip from that of =./7s biggest supplier of denim to second place behind >ong ?ong. +his year ;e%ico has e%panded its shipment and maintains its market share of about 6.% of total =/ denim fabric imports. +aiwan benefiting from the lower cost per unit than the average world price every year since #884 has seen its volume of shipments to the united states

rise faster than total world imports over the last few years, e%panding its market share from *ust ".#% in 6000 to a record 6#.8% this year. 4mports of denim apparels into the =nited /tates in the first seven months of 6006 were up 8..% over the same period in 600# and are on a pace to reach the record level by years end. &sia, which accounted for 68.5% of world7s shipments to the =nited /tates, has en*oyed the largest volume gains its shipments were up 5..@% over the same period last year. +he gains appear strong across most of the region, with Aangladesh, 4ndonesia and >ong ?ong each seeing shipments destined for =/ ports grow over 50%. &s the volume of denim apparel imports from &sia has climbed, those from ;e%ico =/7s largest foreign supplier have fallen 9.8% from the first seven months of 600#. /hould this trend continue, the volume of denim apparel shipped from ;e%ico might reach only about 699 million /;0s, the lowest level since #888. Denim fabric e%ports during the first seven months of 6006 were off #.% from the same period last year and presently stand *ust over 694 million 5&/ dollars, compared with @6. million dollar #6 months ago. 0%ports to ;e%ico, which account for 9@% of =/ denim fabric shipment, were off #@% from last year, to less than 600 million dollars. 0%ports tot the 6 other main d@estination for =/ denim fabrics 1anada and Aelgium declined 6".@% and @#.8% respectively. =s e%ports of denim were down 6."% compared withy the first seven months of 600# to 606 million 5&/ dollars. ;e%ico, which receives @9% of =/ denim apparel e%ports, saw its volume decline ".#% from the same period last year to 95 million. 1onversely, e%ports to the 1aribbean basin were up 8.@% over the first seven months of 600#, to over 94 million. 4n particular denim e%ports to 1osta rice and 0l /alvador climbed @.8 and @ million and shipments to 0l /alvador are poised to reached a record level.