Bangladesh is rapidly becoming a major sourcing hub for denim products.
Nearly twice as many companies as last year are taking part in this week’s Denim Expo, which has attracted hundreds of fashion designers, denim fabric makers, and retailers.
It follows closely after last month’s two day Denims and jeans expo that brought together 28 companies from Asia, Europe, South America and the US, to showcase the growing involvement of Bangladesh’s denim producers in design and innovation.
It is encouraging to see the rapid growth of such fairs, reflecting the growing impact and scale of denim producers within Bangladesh’s RMG sector.
Bangladesh is the largest supplier of jeans to EU and denim accounts for over $6bn of the country’s $30bn RMG sector.
Analysts estimate the global market for denim to be worth $60bn and expected to grow at over 8%. There is good cause to believe then that Bangladeshis denim producers can achieve their goal of doubling sales to over $13bn in the next five years.
With this target in mind, it is welcome to see more denim manufacturers actively investing in the design and development of new products. This is helping them to add value and attract new orders by offering more of their own new designs. It also benefits their customers by spreading research and development costs and providing new pathways to innovation.
It is also encouraging to see more Bangladeshi manufacturers investing in eco-friendly technology to produce sustainable denim. Textile experts estimate that new green systems can not only use fewer chemicals, but can cut use of water by 92% and decrease energy and carbon emissions by over a third.
As sustainability and environmental issues become ever more integral requirements and concerns for global consumers, it is good to see Bangladesh’s manufacturers planning for the future and investing in sustainable growth.
We hope the attention being drawn by these types of trade fairs will attract further new investment to support the design and innovation needed to grow the country’s denim sector and take the industry higher up the value chain.