Kingpins Quarterly Summer 2024

MOUNTING PRESSURE

How pending ESG policies are already straining budgets, relationships and workers

6 founder's letter

8 Blue's Clues

Crack the code on how people are shopping for denim now with insights from the latest consumer survey from Coresight Research.

10 A Stitch in Time

Sanjeev Bahl, founder and CEO of Saitex, talks happiness, disruption and the limitations of the current sustainability conversations.

17 All Hands on Deck

How the raft of proposed ESG legislation is already putting a strain on budgets, relationships and the rank-and-file workers tasked with overhauling operations.

22 Dual Perspectives

Experts share the leading influences ushering in the next wave of denim designs in the U.S. and Latin America.

25 Too Much of a Good Thing

How Britannia Sportswear rode the wave of wide leg jeans untiltheir popularity crested, leaving the now-vintage store darling high and dry.

28 Connect the Dots

Karla Magruder of Accelerating Circularity explains why the demands of creating a circular economy mean everyone has to pull in the same direction.

30 On the Show Floor

Your first look at the latest news from Kingpins NYC 2024 exhibitors. VOLUME

ANDREW OLAH Founder

CALETHA CRAWFORD Editorial Director

COLIN BEAUCHEMIN Creative Director

VIVIAN WANG Managing Director/ Global Sales Manager

GORDON HEFFNER Director, Media & Retail

FOR ADVERTISING INQUIRIES

Contact Vivian Wang at vivian@kingpinsshow.com

KINGPINS QUARTERLY.COM

FOUNDER'S LETTER

Impact!

“On 23 February 2022, the European Commission adopted a proposal for a Directive on corporate sustainability due diligence.

On 24 May 2024 the Council of the European Union approved the political agreement, thereby completing the adoption process. The aim of this Directive is to foster sustainable and responsible corporate behaviour in companies’ operations and across their global value chains. The new rules will ensure that companies in scope identify and address adverse human rights and environmental impacts of their actions inside and outside Europe.”

—From the European Union website

Now this is impact. Of course, they spent years talking about it but here we are, finally with a result. Maybe not a perfect result but the best things get refined and improved over time and with use. Thank you, European Union. I am sure five years from now this Directive will be much better than it is today.

As we all know, there is a lot (too much?) of talking about sustainability and little to show for all that conversation. Sometimes I feel like I am watching a different television show than everyone else. One conference after another with speakers that sometimes pay to talk (we never really know which ones) and lots of fees to attend and no real relationships with outcomes.

The week of Kingpins Amsterdam, Innovation Forum was conducted. I spoke to many people who attended it only to hear the networking was priceless, being part of a group with similar missions was wonderful but also (once again) the same old, same old talking was delivered—smart people sharing ideas or selling stuff wrapped in being sustainable. With ticket prices for attendance being €1500 a pop (more than to see Beyoncé in concert) besides the networking, what is the point?

If these “presentations” or “conversations” were available for free online, would anyone listen? How many downloads would there be and would any decision-makers in our industry read or hear anything?

Between the celebrity Global Fashion Agenda and other events sprinkled everywhere, we can honestly say there are too many, they cost too much and the impact is dubious.

But Networking! YES. Probably good things come out of the networking, which these events ignite, but a lot of experts in our industry don’t attend any of them nor are key decision-makers from brands and retailers going.

What if there was just one event and all these entities that apparently “care” about our industry got together and in a transparent, non-profit way put on one show in each hemisphere a year—and I mean including Asia, Africa, South America and North America. What if the message and speakers were coordinated and the basis of the event was impact and law makers had to attend? If your company has no consistent year to year impact on ESG, no speaking. No selling. Speakers have to be connected to their goals and annual results. And of course, a very high-tech networking element created so that you could, in principle, talk to anyone.

From an environmental point of view, we have a fire, and everyone has to pitch in to get it out but it can’t be groups trying to make money from it. It has to be all of us working to get what is needed done. No marketing! No selling hoses at the fire.

A very wise person once told me that our movement towards a sustainable society occurs at glacial speed but that does not mean it’s not moving. We know exactly what the glaciers do and how they have changed year to year.

Of course this would involve brands, retailers and garment importers to attend and report not goals but results with audited proof.

Let’s celebrate the executive suites of brands, retailers and importers whose executives financially benefit from results because they will absolutely have results every year. And let’s not ignore those that don’t, which is the majority.

It’s useless to have goals if the deciding people in a company face no consequences for not delivering their result.

I’m a big sports fan and there are at each event, players and audience. The fans always have opinions on what should be done with the teams or how their team should have played but their voice, while many and often wildly loud, are useless. What matters are the players, those in the game. Let’s have events like that, with players and their stat sheet or performance.

The European Union shows us there is hope in government, hope in decency. Hopefully sustainable conferences will boast about impact one day. I am sure it’s possible.

Best,

Andrew Olah Founder, Kingpins

Blue's Clues

Crack the code on how people are shopping for denim now with insights from the latest consumer survey from Coresight Research.

JEANS PURCHASES BY TYPE IN THE PAST 12 MONTHS

%

The anticipated growth rate for the U.S. jeans market in dollars in 2024

PERCENTAGE OF RESPONDENTS WHO PURCHASED DENIM IN THE PAST 12 MONTHS

45.7 %

Percentage of denim purchasers who shopped Levi’s in the last 12 months, making it the most shopped brand

DESPITE THE PROCLAIMED “DEATH OF SKINNY,” IT REMAINS THE SECOND-MOST-SHOPPED STYLE OF JEAN (BY NUMBER

OF SURVEYED SHOPPERS).

TOP RETAILERS SHOPPED IN THE LAST 12 MONTHS†

THE TOP FACTORS DRIVING DENIM BUYING DECISIONS

Percentage of denim purchasers who place fit, comfort or price in their top three factors—more than 10x that for environmental friendliness 50%

18.4%

Percentage of denim purchasers who indicated a desire to keep up with the latest fashion as a top reason to buy new denim products*

A STITCH IN TIME

Sanjeev Bahl, founder and CEO of Saitex, talks happiness, disruption and the limitations of the current sustainability conversations

Sanjeev Bahl is tired of talking about sustainability.

As the founder and CEO of Saitex, a fully vertical textile company that spins and weaves denim from yarns they have dyed with sewing factories in Ho Chi Minh City and Los Angeles, he has received

numerous recognitions for the company’s socially and environmentally conscious stance. But he said, the goal from the outset was just to do the right thing. And today, Bahl is still waiting for apparel to commit to making the necessary investments to stop the “race to the bottom” that’s impeding advancements and adoption of available climate solutions. In the meantime, he’s committed to taking a holistic

approach to environmental and social stewardship.

Here, Kingpins founder Andrew Olah and Bahl, let us in on one of many insightful conversations the two have shared over the years as they’ve grown and evolved their businesses. The two old friends discuss their similar outlooks on life, why measuring success based on a country’s GDP is insufficient and how AI will really transform the denim business.

AO: You’re getting older. I just turned 70. The years are passing. As a human being, tell me about your development, like happiness for instance. How is your happiness factor today?

SB: I’ve always equated happiness with an emotion. It’s the stark opposite of being sad. And in the quest of happiness, I think all humans, we tend to go after superficial things that kind of make us momentarily happy. Over a period in time if you ask me what my evolution has been, it’s been to find contentment. And I’m learning different facets of contentment. And I’m kind of learning consistently and evolving into a better human being once I’ve satisfied my basic needs, and I don’t have a tremendous amount of expectations, which in my opinion leads to a lot of disappointment if it’s not realistic. But again, contentment seems to be a little bit more powerful for me now than that word happiness.

AO: What was it like 30 years ago?

SB: Survival. It graduated to the next level, I guess.

AO: One of the reasons I really love knowing you is that you take me, and take others who listen, to places that they might have never know of. And that includes GNH and GPI. Please share what those are. I find it fascinating.

SB: I think we live in a very interesting point in time in our lives. Humans have always preferred to create their own utopia. But with everything else that’s going on in this world, I just feel that we are transforming into a dystopian society. And just to be clear, dystopia is turning out to be real totalitarianism and government control along with social and economic inequality, surveillance and loss of privacy, environmental disaster and

KPQ DENIM MASTERS

WHEN CARING MATTERS

Clean chemistry. Clean production. Clean bluesign® Denim.

depletion, loss of individuality and freedom, and the consequences of technological and scientific advancements seem to be larger than life right now. These combined with the tremendous amount of debt that we all carry— countries and individuals—it’s becoming really clear that we are all shifting into unchartered territory. And we seem to be continuously governed by this statistical norm called GDP, which is nothing but consumption and production. It’s a vicious cycle of monitoring the country’s net worth through a single faceted pattern. And it does not extend itself to social and environmental parts of life and governance.

GPI, which is the genuine progress indicator, is nothing but an extension of GDP, which also calculates environmental and social impacts that make a far more holistic balance sheet when it comes to equating the strength of a country’s economy. On the other hand, countries like Bhutan went way beyond the GDP and GPI norms and created a GNH, which is gross national happiness. It’s something to be thought about with the way we measure our success and continuously evolve in this fast-paced world with what is really relevant at the end of the day.

[With GDP,] we continuously keep on barking up the wrong tree. That’s my impression and two cents. We should be focusing much more on a composite genuine progress indicator and across national happiness embedded into the GDP mechanism that governments have created for us.

AO: Let’s discuss a subject that is part of your company’s DNA, which is sustainability. Saitex has been an industry leader, on almost every front for sustainability and progress. If you had to look back and do it again, would you do it again? And would you do it the same way?

SB: First of all, sustainability is a journey. It’s not a fixed asset. Secondly, even though it’s a journey, it’s taken its own twists and turns and it continues to contour and have its own shape and size and form. Because frankly, it has never been defined.

As human beings, we live based on rules

and regulations, rights and wrongs… There is a system that manages our behavior. And on the sustainability side, frankly, there’s been no governance to manage our behavior. There is no real legal infrastructure. There’s no real methodology that has been defined, which again unfortunately allows people to construct it and reconstruct it to the way it suits them. And that’s the madness. So, whenever I look at sustainability, it reminds me of the six blind men of Hindustan who went to see an elephant. All of them were blind so each one has his own perception of what this elephant is all about, and that, unfortunately, is what’s happening on the sustainability front.

TO BE CONSISTENTLY AND CONSTANTLY PROBED, TO BE LOOKED AT UNDER A MAGNIFYING GLASS LIKE YOU’RE A SUSPECT, IT’S NOT A CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT EXERCISE.

But going back to your question, I think what we were trying to do was the right thing: recycle the water and try and be a responsible and conscious organization. One thing led to another, where we were thrown into a framework and constructed symbolically as a sustainable organization. But I think sustainability has moved way far ahead from just being mindful of how much water you use and how much energy you deploy. I think sustainability has got a lot to do with humanity as well. And that’s our current focus. How do we contribute

more effectively to society at large? It’s a massive task and a massive challenge. This journey has been an interesting journey and it continues to evolve. But again, without rules and regulations and controls.

AO: And how do you see the future of this socalled circularity society?

SB: That’s a good question. I think the future of a sustainable society has to come from a different mindset of take, make, waste, but I think it has to start through innovation, which will come over a period in time, and deployment of material into purposeful articles which can be reengineered, reconfigured—something to the extent of what 3D printing is all about.

Part of doing things differently, we’ve got to understand the components of what we have, what we choose every day. For example, we are still very heavily reliant on polyester and plastic. People don’t talk about health and the impact of health through using unethical ingredients. People don’t talk about phthalates. If you look at the amount of phthalates the human body’s absorbing, it’s incredible, and the impact it’s going to have on our endocrine system and our overall well being in a couple of years. It’s ubiquitous. It’s everywhere from food to cosmetics to clothing… The choices that we have to make are probably to go in for biobased poly but [while] our dependence is still on fossil fuelbased poly, we have a problem, which is going to directly impact our health. And that’s part of the narrative which I continue to talk about on the educational front. That we just don’t seem to understand the negative impacts that we’re creating to ourselves on a daily basis, which go way beyond that 1.5 degree heating up on the climate challenges that we have, which are all true and relevant. But at the same time, you’re just not looking at it with a wider lens.

AO: You’ve said you think clients should be audited. I think that’s very, very funny.

SB: I mean we live in a world of demand and supply. There is less demand and more supply. So obviously, it’s an unbalanced relationship, and

DENIM CIRCULARITY IS A NATURAL –FOR CONSUMERS & THE PLANET

How Cotton Incorporated gives ecominded consumers the opportunity to make circularity the next fashion trend

News of the climate crisis is unavoidable—and we all experience its effects every day. It’s a reality that’s not only motivating the fashion industry to become more environmentally responsible, it’s also making a huge impression on consumers who are increasingly looking for ways to shop smarter and lean into sustainable practices and products.

For many, garments made of cotton check all of their boxes—particularly authentic denim jeans, which seamlessly meld fashion and function, while addressing their ecological concerns.

Cotton, a natural fiber beloved for its softness and versatility, is recyclable offering a second lease on life for garments and products that might otherwise end up in landfills. It is also biodegradable2, seamlessly integrating back into the environment when it has reached the end of its useful life. This dual capability of being recyclable and biodegradable3 in a tested environment at the end-of-life positions cotton as an ideal choice for those committed to sustainable living, bridging the gap between fashion and environmental responsibility.

The importance of aligning shopping habits with consumer values is a mindset that’s gaining momentum. Nearly two-fifths of consumers say sustainability or environmental friendliness is important to them when they are looking at what brands to buy, according to the 2022 Cotton Incorporated Lifestyle Monitor™ Survey.

As a result, consumers are reading garment labels and often what they’re looking for is cotton. The 2023 Cotton Incorporated Lifestyle Monitor™ Survey showed

that most shoppers believe clothing primarily made from cotton is the most sustainable/environmentally friendly (78 percent) and highest quality (73 percent) when compared to manmade fiber garments. Nearly 80 percent also identify cotton and cotton-blended apparel as the most durable and long-lasting when measured against other fiber compositions.

This is good news for the denim industry because for many shoppers, denim and cotton go hand in hand.

The 2024 Cotton Incorporated Lifestyle Monitor™ Survey found that the majority of consumers (61 percent) expect jeans to be made from the natural fiber.

When it comes time for shoppers to part with their much lived in and loved jeans, the Cotton Incorporated 2023 Consumer Circularity Survey shows they’re often looking for ways to extend their life or otherwise have them do some good. And cotton denim lends itself to that.

Thanks to Cotton Incorporated’s Blue Jeans Go Green™ denim recycling program, all denim garments containing at least 90 percent cotton can be recycled. The program works with Bonded Logic, Inc. to turn these garments into insulation material for homes, thermal food packaging and even pet beds.

In this way, the program facilitates a core aspect of the move toward circularity, given that recycling helps lower carbon emissions and decrease the volume of waste sent to landfills. Additionally, reusing existing resources results in significant energy savings. When clothing is designed, sourced and manufactured using natural materials, worn for an extended period, and ultimately repurposed or recycled, it closes the loop, keeping resources in use longer.

Since 2006, the Blue Jeans Go Green™ program has recycled over 5,200,000 pieces of denim, equating to 2,630-plus tons of denim diverted from landfills. That number has been fueled by contributions from retailers, universities and school groups, organizations, and individuals looking for ways to give their denim a new life.

The Blue Jeans Go Green™ program leans into consumers’ preferences for cotton denim and provides an easy, effective end-of-life option. Many consumers have become aware of the program

through engagement with the more than 100 brands and retailers that have been active participants since its inception.

“Consumers appreciate that the program allows them to dispose of their denim clothing responsibly, help others and reduce waste,” says Andrea Samber, director of brand partnerships at Cotton Incorporated. “That’s a big win for an industry that sometimes struggles to communicate sustainability principles and practices to the end user.”

Through the initiative, Cotton Incorporated educates consumers who want to make responsible decisions when it comes to their clothes. It’s up to the industry to provide them with options that are friction free and accessible, while ensuring they look good while doing good. When purchasing true denim, consumers interested in superior durability4 and more rapid biodegradability over synthetics will choose the fiber that is as comfortable as it is sustainable. They will choose cotton.

To discover what’s possible with cotton, visit CottonWorks.com.

Cotton products are recyclable only in a few communities that have appropriate recycling facilities.

2 Li, L., Frey, M., & Browning, K. J. (2010). Biodegradability Study on Cotton and Polyester Fabrics Journal of Engineered Fibers and Fabrics, 5(4), 42–53.

3 Zambrano, M. C., Pawlak, J. J., Daystar, J., Ankeny, M., Goller, C. C., & Venditti, R. A. (2020). Aerobic biodegradation in freshwater and marine environments of textile microfibers generated in clothes laundering: Effects of cellulose and polyester-based microfibers on the microbiome. Marine Pollution Bulletin

4 Cotton Incorporated Denim Study (2024). Data showed that 100% cotton fabric was up to 60% stronger in width compared to a non-cotton, synthetic blend after 20 washes, according to ASTM Test Method D5034.

Photo by Steve Makowski.

part of the protocol between all the tiers is that the consumer is interfacing mainly with the brand so the brand has to do whatever they have to do to protect their interest. And the attack so far has been on the practices on where they produce, how they produce etc., so the spotlight is more on the factories. So, the mechanism, and I call it predatory, is based on ensuring that the risk is averted on several fronts, compliance being one of them. If you ask any and every factory, everybody’s got fatigue, right? To be consistently and constantly probed, to be looked at under a magnifying glass like you’re a suspect, it’s not a continuous improvement exercise. It’s not about brands making strategic investments with the factories. And I’m not saying just give them money, but also there has to be a motivational end to that stick, right? Is there no carrot? Just a stick all the time.

So, when I mentioned this to you, I think it was one of those days when I was totally fatigued and I was totally fed up because we were being probed as though we had skeletons in our closet, which we don’t fortunately, and that prompted me to say this to this client: ‘Can we reciprocate on this?’ And they were speechless. They thought I was crazy. It’s such an unfair world.

THE AGE-OLD METHODOLOGIES THAT WE WORK WITH WHERE YOU DECIDE A CONCEPT TODAY AND ONE YEAR LATER THAT PRODUCT COMES TO LIFE, I DON’T THINK THAT’S GOING TO BE THE NORM IN THE FUTURE.

The amount of skeletons everybody has in the cupboards. Everybody lives in houses of glass. I don’t think anybody’s house is constructed of steel. But it’s just that the way it’s amplified and the way people conduct themselves and behave in the whole process without really making investments but just expecting certain results in a very predatory fashion, it just frustrates the heck out of me. So, I just feel it should be reciprocal. We should live in a world where who you do business with should say, ‘Yeah, well come and audit us as well.’

AO: I totally agree with that. I think one day it’ll happen. I know that this subject is something dear to your heart, but tell us about disruption from your point of view.

SB: I like positive disruption. I think we live in a very exciting point in time in our lives. I still remember that point in time where computers were happening and the age of the internet and, when we walked into that world, who knew that it would expand itself into connecting and making the world a smaller place with social media and whatnot.

So, as we walk into the next era of growth and learning, this AI thing is explosive. I think a lot of positive disruption can come through engineering and having the power of intelligence in nanoseconds. And just the sheer possibilities of what this new technological advancement is going to shape our futures and along with that, I think it’s going to have a direct or indirect impact on our business as well. So as technology progresses over the next 10, 15, 20 years, I think supply chains are not going to operate the way they are operating today. I think that’s going to be the first disruptive factor. The age-old methodologies that we work with where you decide a concept today and one year later that product comes to life, I don’t think that’s going to be the norm in the future. I think the disruption is going to come through just-intime manufacturing. Materials are going to take a completely different shape, size and form. And data and knowledge with the entire ecosystem is also going to be a weapon, and it will rest in the hands of the suppliers because the age-old

theory of vendor managed inventory came because knowledge and intelligence was residential through sales, etc, with the brands. But the way things are transforming into the future, the power of intelligence and knowledge will be residential as well with people who would be in charge of bringing it to life. So, supply chains will definitely change and there’s going to be massive disruption there.

I also feel through technology, through 3D printing and whatnot, the way factories will look in the future will not necessarily be what we have gotten used to today. These big massive structures or monoliths which are built to make huge volumes, 100,000, 200,000 pieces of the same looking thing, that’s going to change over a period in time. We’ve always struggled with the idea of how to scale one-piece-at-a-time manufacturing. I think that’s going to be a single huge, massive disruption, where each piece could be different from the other, and people will have the choice to have a unique identity at scale. Through the advancement of technology and the way the future is shaping itself, it’s going to change the landscape of how we do things. Or how we have done things in the past, so I’m extremely excited about the future.

AO: If you could do everything again, would you do it differently? Would you go into this business?

SB: My answer to that is I’ve loved my ride and I’ve enjoyed every bit of it—good, bad, ugly, indifferent. Life deals you a different deck of cards, you just need to know how to shuffle and play with it and accept it. And considering where I started and where I am today, I’m filled with gratitude and appreciation more than greed like I wish I would have done this differently than I would have got more out of it and blah, blah, blah, blah, right? And that’s the contentment factor that I was talking to you about. So, I would say if I had to do it all over again, I’d do it just like that. And so long as I don’t know what is lurking around the corner, dark or light, I would just enjoy the ride.

BLUESIGN® DENIM GAINS GLOBAL TRACTION

The comprehensive approach represents a unified commitment to responsible and sustainable production methods in denim from fabric to fashion.

Since our founding in 2000, we have led the charge in addressing key issues within the textile industry, including chemical management, impact reduction, worker health and safety, sustainability, and environmental sciences. To address the environmental and worker safety concerns in the denim industry, we introduced bluesign® Denim, a comprehensive approach that ensures both denim fabric production and garment/laundry processing meet the highest levels of sustainability and safety.

What Sets bluesign® Denim Apart?

bluesign® Denim is not just about producing highquality denim; it’s about redefining how denim is made to ensure the utmost safety and sustainability. Our approach minimizes risks through stringent Input Stream Management, removing harmful inputs from the start of the production process. This method ensures that the denim produced by our partners is the cleanest and safest possible, protecting workers, the environment, and consumers.

North America: Leading the Sustainable Fashion Revolution

In North America, our bluesign® Denim partners include prominent brands such as Madewell, Everlane, and Reformation. These companies have integrated bluesign® standards into their denim collections, showcasing their commitment to sustainability and ethical production. By collaborating with these forward-thinking brands, we are setting new benchmarks for environmentally friendly fashion in the region.

Europe: Innovation and Tradition in Harmony

In Europe, our partnerships span innovative manufacturers like PureDenim and ISKO. These companies are renowned for their advanced production techniques and commitment to

sustainability. Additionally, we work with leading European chemical suppliers such as Officina 39, Color Center SA, Rudolf, Zaitex, Soko Chimica, Dystar, Archroma, Nearchimica, Asutex, and CHT. Our European laundry partner, SANKO Tekstil IsletmeleriMartelli Branch, ensures that denim finishing processes adhere to the highest environmental standards. These collaborations exemplify how traditional European craftsmanship can harmonize with cutting-edge sustainable practices.

Asia: Expanding Sustainable Practices

In Asia, our partnerships include bluconnection and Saitex, alongside leading manufacturers such as Advance Denim and Prosperity Textile. We have also extended our reach to Indian manufacturer Anubha Industries. These partnerships are pivotal in promoting sustainable denim production practices in a region known for its significant contribution to the global textile industry.

Key Criteria for bluesign® Denim

Several critical elements define the bluesign® Denim Criteria:

• Approved Production Processes: Both the denim mill and the laundry must be bluesign® System Partner Manufacturers, ensuring the entire production process adheres to bluesign® standards.

• bluesign® Approved Fabric: All fabric used must be bluesign® Approved. If the fabric is indigodyed, only bluesign® Approved indigo is used.

• Prohibition of Harmful Practices: The criteria strictly prohibit chlorine bleaching, potassium permanganate (PP), sandblasting, and powderbased enzymes. Additionally, pumice stone washing is not allowed.

• Third-Party Certification: If the denim includes additional claims such as organic cotton or recycled fibers, valid third-party certificates must be provided. This ensures transparency and authenticity in sustainability claims.

The bluesign® Difference: Clean & Safe

By adhering to these stringent criteria, Denim partners produce denim that is not only high-quality but also environmentally friendly and ethically made. This approach addresses the entire lifecycle of denim production, from raw material sourcing to the finished product, ensuring a comprehensive commitment to sustainability.

Driving Industry-Wide Change

Our Denim Initiative is more than a set of standards— it’s a movement driving industry-wide change. By collaborating with leading brands and manufacturers globally, we are creating a ripple effect that promotes sustainable practices across the fashion industry. The presence of the bluesign® Approved Denim label on products signifies a notable advancement towards sustainable and ethical denim production, marking a pivotal moment in the industry’s shift towards greater sustainability.

Join the Movement

With bluesign® Denim, we’re not just changing how denim is made—we’re transforming the entire industry. Our initiative empowers consumers to make informed choices, supports brands in adopting sustainable practices, and ensures that the entire supply chain operates with the highest standards of environmental and social responsibility. Join us in making a significant impact on fashion’s sustainability journey, one pair of jeans at a time.

Embrace the future of sustainable fashion with bluesign® Denim, where every pair of jeans tells a story of innovation, responsibility, and care for our planet and its people – When caring matters.

Madewell jeans made with bluesign® APPROVED denim fabrics from ISKO photo credit: Madewell

T&C GARMENTS: BUILDING FOR THE FUTURE OF DENIM

T&C

Garments was founded in 2010 as a joint venture between the Egyptian Tolba Group and Turkish Tay Group with the purpose of creating a modern production offering for garments. As one of the largest denim producers in Europe, the firm is a one-stop-shop for men’s and women’s items including jackets, shirts, pants, shorts, skirts and more. While T&C has long worked with large, international brands, it is now expanding its capabilities by also opening up business to new lines and smaller runs.

“We focus on widening the scope of our customers through enhancing our products using modern advanced technology and innovation,” explained the company’s chairman, Magdi Tolba. Machinery is upgraded on a yearly basis and new technology is constantly being added. One current priority is “securing faster shipments to help provide our global customers with highest quality denim products,” said Tolba. Plans are also in the works for a garment dyeing operation in the near future.

Modern Efficiencies

T&C’s facility is based in El Obour City, just outside of Cairo, Egypt. Obour City is close to the airport and government entities; as well as being a modern city with highly-developed utilities and infrastructure. The company employs 6,500 workers producing 60,000 pieces a day. T&C offers cutting, sewing, laundry, finishing and design; with an accredited lab existing on-site to save time and money. The firm strives to be reliable, flexible and efficient; while also being innovative by setting trends and introducing new ideas to the denim and apparel industry.

T&C has its own research and development department with 14 designers and experts on-staff brainstorming denim finishes and washes for the future. Its marketing and sales team is highly responsive and fluent in several languages. This department receives orders, communicated pricing, oversees production

and post-production, as well as delivery and additional after-sale support. Orders are organized and planned in the pre-production department to ensure a smooth and efficient manufacturing process for every product created in the facility. Production lines are organized to meet specific needs.

Manufacturing processes are overseen by a quality assurance department ensuring the highest standards at each step of the production cycle. The facility has the capacity to cut and sew 65,000 pieces per day. Tolba takes pride in the company’s wet and dry processes, including hand-made finishes and finishes done in a state-of-the-art laser department which boasts 20 hi-tech Jeanologia twin laser machines. T&C ships to more than 30 different countries six continents.

Sustainable Vision

According to Tolba, T&C’s values lie in sustainability and being environmentally responsible. “Our target is long-term, strategic partnering with our customers,” he said, adding, “we are keen to work in compliance with global environmental standards.”

Company certifications include ISO 9001, OCS (Organic Content Standard), GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard), RCS (Recycled Claim Standard), GRS (Global Recycle Standard), regenagri (regenerative agriculture), WRAP (Worldwide Responsible Accredited Production), GSV (Global Security Verification) and an Accredited Lab certificate.

T&C is heavily investing in sustainable initiatives. A recent project recycles 80 percent of its water used each day. A new solar energy project will allow the firm to product 50 percent of its electricity locally. A fabric waste recycling initiative is also in the works. 90 percent of chemicals used in the facility are environmentally friendly. For the remaining 10 percent, T&C is currently collaborating and assisting our suppliers in becoming more sustainable. The firm follows rigid chemical management systems encouraged by multinational customers, ensuring the health and safety of its people, as well as the environment. Staff is the core of the company and is key to its success. It provides all workers with health benefits and offers a worker well-being program. Employees and their families also receive extensive social benefits, participate in recreational activities and are presented career development opportunities. Almost half of T&C’s employees are female and many are the sole breadwinners for their families. Nursery spaces are provided for children as an added benefit and women are encouraged to seek leadership roles.

T&C is an active participant in Roadmap to Zero and CleanChain, which aim to monitor and control the use of chemicals across the value chain, reducing the industry’s chemical footprint. “By adhering to The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), launched by the United Nations in 2015, we have been able to create a plan to optimize our operation processes, improve the livelihood of our employees and community, follow international standards of compliance, and essentially help our planet progress,” commented Tolba.

The firm is a member of the Sustainable Apparel Coalition and adheres to the HIGG Index to measure environmental impact transparently to clients. A Customer Social Compliance audit is available for all its clients. T&C has integrated Environmental Impact Measuring (EIM) software to determine future improvement points in hopes of continuing to improve environmental impact. SDG goals are addressed in relation to poverty, gender equality, clean water, responsible consumption and production, reduced inequalities, climate action, good health and well-being, and economic growth. “We hope to influence other brands and companies to follow suit,” the exec said.

T&C Garments chairman Magdi Tolba

FEATURE

ALL HANDS ON DECK

How the raft of proposed ESG legislation is already putting a strain on budgets, relationships and the rank-and-file workers tasked with overhauling operations.

BY CALETHA CRAWFORD AND DOROTHY CROUCH

Environmental, social and governance (ESG) regulations are in development in the U.S. and EU. If enacted, more than 12 policies could directly impact the denim industry, including the recently passed EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) as well as the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), New York Fashion Sustainability and Social Accountability Act, and the EU Ecodesign for Sustainable Product Regulation (including the EU Digital Product Passport).

Taken together, these regulations are far-reaching, affecting everything from product longevity and recycled material usage to emissions and human rights due diligence, and require a new level of transparency and reporting. Although most of the policies are still being drafted—or rewritten—denim production companies and suppliers have moved from planning mode to execution in an attempt to ensure they will not be left behind. Already, teams across these organizations are feeling the weight of the added demands and seeing the first indications of how these new rules will test bonds both up and down the supply chain.

“The regulations will apply paradigmatic change in the way in which industries have to produce their products,” said Alessandra Moser, who is focused on textile strategy as an EU accredited parliamentary assistant to Alessandra Moretti, member of the European Parliament. “There will be a set of requirements they have to expect, for example there will probably be an increase in the content of recyclable materials that are required to be present in a specific product and clothes could be more repairable or reusable.”

Progress in Procurement

Different players within the denim industry— whether manufacturers, brands or retailers—will need to adhere to different regulations depending on the specific legislation. While responsibility varies, there are common areas of scrutiny for which companies must comply, such as the environmental and social integrity of the materials provided by their partners along the supply chain.

At the Singapore-headquartered chemicals company DyStar, Eric Hopmann, chief commercial officer, noted that the company already follows an audit system to ensure its vendors engage in responsible materials procurement. He anticipates stepping up that process.

“DyStar maintains a healthy pool of audited suppliers and vendors. We will continue to monitor their compliances,” Hopmann said. “[We’ll] enhance supply chain transparency by conducting thorough assessments of new and existing suppliers’ ESG practices.”

Additionally, changes to daily operational structure could include shifting to more energy efficient features at offices and manufacturing sites, according to Hopmann, who also noted moves toward more sustainable waste management and resource use could be on the horizon.

“We can also expect increased accountability, where the team would be more vigilant in tracking environmental impact metrics,” said Hopmann.

Accelerating Circularity founder Karla Magruder views pending regulations as an opportunity to expedite the organization’s goals of growing textile-to-textile recycling (T2T) resources. The New York-based nonprofit’s team will leverage extended producer responsibility (EPR) to cultivate T2T to commercial scale, which supports a circular economy in apparel manufacturing.

“Our priorities have always been to work with the industry to establish a T2T system,” Magruder explained. “This will not change but EPRs could help accelerate the transition. The change for us will be to help identify additional pathways for more outputs, confirm their technical feasibility and be sure the systems necessary are in place.”

Demands for traceable textile sourcing will increase as ecologically minded legislation for clothing manufacturers spreads, thereby necessitating the creation of processes that rely on reuse, upcycling and recycling.

“As the textile collection becomes mandatory and is supported by EPR schemes, the industry will have to get ready for more textiles available for sortation and recycling,” said Magruder.

“These industries will be looking for downstream demand for their outputs.”

THERE USED TO BE AN AUDIT FATIGUE, BUT NOW DATA FATIGUE IS COMING IN BECAUSE OF THE INCREASED TRANSPARENCY AND MONITORING.

The Data Deluge

Shifting the denim industry toward a less impactful business requires groundbreaking changes and the ability to verify the sustainable claims of supply chain partners.

Imran Tanveer, assistant vice president of research and development with Pakistan’s Crescent Bahümán Ltd. (CBL), revealed the company has begun working with FibreTrace, the cloud-based fiber verification platform, and PaperTale, a blockchain technology that facilitates transparency in the fashion industry.

“Compliance is associated with transparency reporting,” Tanveer noted. “We need to understand how the regulations impact our material choices, production processes and

waste management, and ensure our research and development activities are compliant, too.”

A common point of interest among companies in the denim industry as they prepare to work under these regulations is investing in data collection.

“Data will play a bigger role in our decision making. We will need to collect and analyze all the data that is available for the materials,” said Tanveer. “Once we get the data, we have to transfer it to all the stakeholders inside and outside our company.”

Investing in learning how to leverage data to align with new regulations is crucial now. Dr. Vidhura Ralapanawe, executive vice president of innovation and sustainability for the Hong Kong-headquartered Epic Group, revealed that customers are requesting “huge amounts of data” pulled frequently and touching nearly every aspect of the business.

The day-to-day responsibilities of Ralapanawe’s role will shift to include more reporting to organizations to maintain the company’s reputation as a contributor to sustainable progress.

“The reporting side is something we have to focus on. That’s a significant additional piece that changes how I work. I have to spend a lot more time reporting to organizations moving forward,” Ralapanawe said, noting the granularity of the requests. “There is urgency in this work to be fast tracked, especially the environmental area due to climate change. Part of my job is to fast track it.”

And it’s not just reporting, it’s redundant reporting. As with certifications, which require a lot of the same information sliced, diced and delivered differently, brands and retailers are now requesting ESG-related data in formats specific to their business models.

“There used to be an audit fatigue, but now data fatigue is coming in because of the increased transparency and monitoring,” said Raffay Bin Rauf, sustainability, HSE and compliance senior manager for Pakistan-based Sapphire Mills. He’s tasked with educating his teams on why they’re being asked for the same data in various formats and helping them overcome their initial resistance to the duplicative duties.

To date, it’s put a strain on the existing workforce, and the expectation is that additional manpower will be needed—which of course translates into additional costs.

Already the increased scrutiny on the supply chain has had a marked effect on Sapphire. In 2018, the company had no more than seven employees in its compliance and safety team. Today, that number is almost 35, and growing.

“Previously there weren’t any subject matter experts at our facility. Now, I have 12 environmental engineers. I myself am an industrial engineer. I have an economics expert. I’m also looking to hire a statistician for the data analytics part. I need someone from the agricultural side as well to look at farming projects, some experts on traceability,” Bin Rauf said.

The Cost of Compliance

Headcount is one very tangible way to illustrate the costs associated with compliance. And it also spotlights the degree to which the industry’s pivot falls squarely on the shoulders of manufacturers and upstream partners.

AGI Denim recently collaborated with sustainability analytics firm Green Story to debut QR codes on products at the April Kingpins show designed to provide insights into critical factors like fiber content, C02 emissions and water consumption. The move was the company’s attempt to prepare for the digital product passport requirements and lifecycle assessments outlined in upcoming legislation. Hasan Javed, executive director of AGI, credits his team with putting in the extra hours to make the pilot possible but he acknowledges that once the program scales, it’ll be a different story.

“Going further if this is going to be a mandatory requirement for a lot of the brands that we work

with and across the board for all of the different articles that we have, then we’ll definitely need a dedicated team,” he said.

It’s just one example of the expenses that lay ahead—expenses Javed would ideally share with his supply chain partners. While Javed recognizes the challenging macro-economic climate brands and retailers are operating in, he wants

Matters in Turkey, is also braced for a staff up. Where the money will come from though, is a mystery.

To date, the company has funded all of its own sustainability initiatives, and Narcy said leveling up further to meet incoming regulations will be Ereks’ sole responsibility as well. “There is no financial support from brands for transition. And I’m afraid we’ll have the same in this case [if] the regulation at the EU level is going to be put into practice,” he said, adding that with the cost of everything from energy to raw materials increasing, the timing couldn’t be worse. “[Brands] should support the supply chain in the transition.”

Instead, Ereks is facing more and more requirements, related to sustainability, security— you name it—and they come with a kind of take-itor-leave it attitude from their clients.

Narcy said Turkish companies aren’t in a position to rely on financial support from the federal level either. The economy there is already just too strained. And it’s the same for many key production destinations. But that doesn’t mean the government can’t play a role.

Dario Minutella, partner and Italy lead for fashion, luxury and sustainability at consulting firm Kearney, said it’s not enough for legislatures to simply create environmental and social policies. From his perspective, suppliers have to put pressure on these regulators to figure out ways of making the transition economically feasible for all involved.

“Recycled materials or recycled fibers are very expensive. It is difficult for the brands to increase the use of such materials if those materials are not promoted actively in the market. For example, there should be subsidies for the use of such materials,” he said. “If you are the European Union or the U.S. and you really want to promote the products, maybe you should think about duties or the highest duties on products that are less eco-friendly.”

For the time being, support like this isn’t on the table.

In the short term, Minutella envisions a situation in which prices increase all along the supply chain. “Imagine it happens all the way through starting from upstream, everybody increasing his own

price because they need to implement something that you didn’t have before … In the end, it might end up into the pockets of the consumer,” he said, adding maybe it’s time for shoppers to start paying more for the sustainable products they claim to care about. Playing out that scenario, Minutella said increased prices could also lead to lower volumes, ultimately resulting in fewer garments in landfills. “Maybe it’s not a bad scenario.”

The Impact on Downstream Relationships

Manufacturers are mostly on their own for now when it comes to funding compliance. For some, it’s a struggle. For others, it could irreparably alter their businesses.

“One of my buyers is saying that ‘We have a roadmap. You will need to comply with these things. If not, then sorry after 2025, I won’t be able to work with you,’” Bin Rauf said.

While others maybe haven’t said as much as bluntly, Bin Rauf said he’s increasingly seeing environmental metrics appearing in contracts. For a company like Sapphire that’s been able to stay ahead of ESG demands, the eventual shake out could be beneficial. “But for the small to medium enterprises, I don’t think that is the same situation for them,” he said.

On the positive side, the regulation pressure could spell the end of transactional relationships in the mainstream sector of the denim market, Minutella said.

“What I think is happening and will be happening more and more is that it will have to evolve more into a partnership role, because sustainability and everything that goes around time to market, circularity, traceability is much easier if you shorten the value chain—either in reality [Think: M&A] or whether you have different players but they are so well interconnected and they act in such a partnership set up that they can actually meet all the requirements that sustainability will trigger going forward,” he said.

That type of partnership is currently few and far between but it does exist.

For example, Sapphire is working with a client out of Denmark that has committed to a mutually beneficial arrangement. “They signed a contract with us. And within that two-year program, they would not be taking an auditing approach. They are taking an assessment approach, and they will be setting their benchmarks [accordingly],” Bin Rauf said. This contract comes with CapEx investments, software for better data management, training and a commitment to increase business, alleviating Sapphire’s capacity concerns.

Minutella said brands can further reduce friction with their suppliers and signal their sustainability commitment by implementing an overhaul of targets and incentives.

Currently, manufacturers report there’s often a disconnect between the requests the sustainability teams for brands and retailers are making, and the cost targets from their colleagues in the buying department. Minutella said that has to change. Buying team cost targets must increase, he said, to cover the overhead associated with more responsible processes and inputs. Further, improvement must be tied to compensation. “The other thing is to add other KPIs that are specific to sustainability, linked to remuneration to those specific targets,” he said, giving the example of higher bonuses as more suppliers become fully compliant.

ONE OF MY BUYERS IS SAYING THAT “WE HAVE A ROADMAP. YOU WILL NEED TO COMPLY WITH THESE THINGS. IF NOT, THEN SORRY AFTER 2025, I WON’T BE ABLE TO WORK WITH YOU.”

The Impact on Upstream Relationships

As partners midway along the supply chain, manufacturers are not only learning alongside their customers, they’re often also stewarding their suppliers on this journey. How much help they need varies.

“[Some] only have a very surface level understanding also depending on where in the world they are, and then some are very advanced and very proactive,” Javed said.

As a B-Corp, AGI is used to working closely with suppliers but even for them, they’re trying to gently introduce this new auditing and reporting dynamic to their upstream partners. The first step is educating them on what the needs are before instituting site visits, Javed said.

Bin Rauf said the need to now track the ESG performance of his company’s suppliers is a potential reporting nightmare. “This is a big hassle for me within my facility, on the places that I have control on, so you can imagine the places that I don’t have control on,” he said.

Bin Rauf said Sapphire has noticed a need to fill what he calls a “knowledge gap” for smaller suppliers that are unable to keep up with the pace of change. “That is a very big challenge due to illiteracy No. 1, [and] due to the required investment,” he said, adding that lack of manpower also factors in. “We emailed around 200 suppliers of ours when we were working on SBTis [and] 10 percent responded. And out of those 10 percent, only 3 to 4 percent of the data was workable for us.”

Sapphire is committed to working with these suppliers to help them evolve, but Bin Rauf said they’ll need to demonstrate the necessary improvement or be phased out.

Ultimately, the financial pressures and learning curve related to ESG policies will likely trigger a change in the supplier landscape as some players fail to comply.

“They won’t be able to work with good clientele. Eventually what will happen is maybe the big

players in the market will absorb the small players,” Bin Rauf said. “Direct procurement from them would not be possible for a group of our size.”

Consolidation could be the answer for suppliers to mainstream brands unable to bear the burden of modernization, Minutella said. But this solution will reshuffle the balance of power between brands and suppliers. “It changes the bargaining power quite substantially so brands won’t be happy about this,” Minutella said. “On one hand, it might make their life easier, because they speak with one guy and the guy is well equipped. On the other hand, economically they have less acquisition power.”

As the industry waits to see what’s required under the pending legislation, changes are already taking place, many of which are altering how people do their jobs and putting the fate of some players in question. Ultimately survival, and a more responsible denim industry, will require everyone to pull in the same direction. “We need to work on these things in a collaborative manner because, honestly, with these upcoming regulations, we won’t be able to achieve those things if we just keep ourselves within our silos,” Bin Rauf said.

DUAL PERSPECTIVES

Experts share the leading influences ushering in the next wave of denim designs in the U.S. and Latin America

Near: The United States

By Amy Leverton, owner, Denim Dudes

The latest trends impacting buying in the U.S. are heavily influenced by how consumers live—and how they feel about what’s happening in their lives. This time calls for brands to be genuine in their intentions, communications and actions because shoppers are voting with their wallets and throwing their support behind authentic companies. From a fashion perspective, designers are starting to shake things up, ushering in a new louder aesthetic.

Values First

An overarching shift that we see influencing everything from design, to brand strategy, marketing and beyond is that of depth and meaning. The new generation of consumers are no longer happy being spoon-fed shallow marketing ploys from big-box brands. Instead they’re graduating towards smaller, fledgling labels with deeper meaning behind their products, more inspirational design and of course values that match their own.

If you’re not seen to be acting with integrity (be that social responsibility, political alignment, business practices or cultural positioning), expect a backlash. No brand is sustainable, no brand is perfect and every brand’s audience has its own set of values, but understanding those values and acting responsibly within that framework is imperative.

Labels who embody this deeper brand story include GMBH, a multicultural brand vocal on Gaza; Jeanne Friot, focuses on gender and equality; Found, inspired by their south Asian heritage; and Suay, a no-waste label.

Creativity Movement

Denim is continuing in its more experimental, creative era and we’re here for it! As the attention economy makes everything an even playing field, brands like Doublet, House of Errors and Who Decides War and creatives like Israel Yanir and Jaffa Sabba push the boundaries of denim design through their use of experimental surfaces, silhouettes and design details. Just like 2000-2010 was ruled by a more showy

looks and a more playful approach than the previous Normcore and Heritage aesthetic. Think less Taylor, more Doja.

Dueling Silhouettes

The big news in fit is the fact that the skinny (or at least the slim) jean is maybe, possibly, potentially back! Word from older Gen Alpha and younger gen Z’s is that the skinny is actually being referred to as a ‘Mom Jean’, a title that makes sense seeing as their mums are mostly millennials. But are we ready?! And will it hit the same way? We personally don’t think anyone needs to panic yet.

We’re definitely firmly in the era of the wide leg now, and as with most trends, we’re seeing more extreme rave pant or JNCO-inspired silhouettes on the younger generations and more refined wide legs coming from more mainstream or older brands. The barrel leg is definitely continuing in the contemporary women’s market, for instance. The skinny is a long way off but we do get excited seeing this trend emerge on the periphery of culture.

U.S. KEY FINDINGS

We’re seeing people stand up for their values more than ever before. Just look at the celebrity #Blockout2024 movement emerge when Met Gala pics populated our feeds alongside images from Palestine.

Brands must approach marketing with a deeper and more wholesome approach and stop casting for image only.

Brands must have a point of view, on and off the racks, and be willing to allow consumers to express themselves through clothing that pushes boundaries.

Afar: Latin America

By Tais Kopsch, Denim Expert, and Milena Garcez, Trends Expert, for Orange.152

The denim market in Latin America is rapidly evolving to meet the demands of increasingly conscious and discerning consumers. Textile professionals must remain agile and adaptable, constantly seeking innovation and excellence to stand out in a competitive and ever-changing landscape.

Sustainability in Focus

Sustainability remains a central concern for Latin American consumers. Brands adopting environmentally responsible practices, such as the use of organic materials, eco-friendly washing techniques, and transparent production processes, are gaining prominence in the market.

Beyond concerns about cotton irrigation (which is the process that uses the most water in denim production), the sustainability debate is growing regarding chemical processes in laundries, which are typically the focus of water usage debates, even though they’re not the main culprit in the process. Waterless stone washes, clean and ecological chemicals, advancements in laser usage, among other measures, are increasingly being implemented in the denim industry, providing brands with the option to offer eco-friendly product lines to their customers.

Diversity of Styles and Silhouettes

Latin American consumers value diversity and inclusion, expecting brands to offer a wide variety of styles, cuts, and sizes to accommodate all body shapes and preferences.

Innovation in Fabrics and Technology

The quest for high-quality fabrics and technology is driving innovation in the denim industry. Fabrics offering comfort, elasticity and durability are highly valued by consumers. Technologies such as fabrics with 360-degree elasticity and those regulating properties are gaining traction, providing a sensation of comfort and freshness.

Customization and Personalization

Consumers desire unique pieces that express their individuality. Brands offering customization options such as patches, embroideries, and exclusive washes are standing out in the market.

Brand Identification

Consumers value brands that embody their essence in their products, which can be recognized by the aesthetics of their creations even before seeing the label, fostering a real connection with consumers who live the brand’s lifestyle.

Creative Collaborations

LATAM KEY FINDINGS

While classic and timeless denim remains valued, there’s a growing demand for denim pieces that offer comfort, technology, versatility and sustainability.

The influence of streetwear culture and urban style is shaping consumers’ fashion choices, leading to greater adoption of contemporary designs and relaxed cuts.

Denim is popping up in a variety of pieces beyond traditional jeans (think: dresses, tailored pieces, shirts and accessories) to meet the demands of a modern and multifaceted lifestyle.

TOO MUCH OF A GOOD THING

How Britannia Sportswear rode the wave of wide leg jeans until their popularity crested, leaving the now-vintage store darling high and dry.

BY ALDEN WICKER

It was called the “quintessential 1970s designer jeans company,” and at one point it was the top-selling jeans brand in America. It burned bright for exactly a decade before fading into obscurity. But in that short time, Britannia Sportswear made an indelible mark on Seattle, the denim industry, and, arguably the entire fashion industry.

The son of German immigrants, Walter Shoenfeld was born in Seattle in 1930. His father, Max Schoenfeld, co-founded a clothing manufacturing empire in Seattle. The younger Schoenfeld worked with his father for more than 15 years until 1971, when he moved his family to London to build a necktie factory in Scotland.

With many of the key people now gone, what comes next in Britannia’s founding story is a little hard to pin down.

“He first started seeing this idea for fashionable denim on Carnaby Street,” his son, Jeff Schoenfeld, told The Seattle Times. “People were wearing fashionable jeans and my dad thought here was this kind of this cool new trend, and he ran with it.”

Another similar founding myth is that a sales rep for the tie company, Bill Green, was in the south of France, and saw patchwork jeans. “The story was that he brought that idea to the Schoenfelds because ties were dying,” says former employee Jeff Hoelter.

Still another version in Green’s obituary goes like this: Schoenfeld approached Green about starting a denim brand. So Green, Schoenfeld, and his business partner Dick Lentz flew off to Europe to research denim trends. While in London, Bill noticed jeans with a new wash in a men’s store, and the manager said a guy in London was washing jeans in his basement. “They asked for his number and later that day they were in that basement realizing the direction this new denim company was going to take. Shortly after stonewashed jeans were introduced to the United States by Brittania,” Green’s obituary says.

What is not disputed is that in 1973, Walter Schoenfeld returned to Seattle and launched Brittania Sportswear with Bill Green and Dick Lentz.

Where Designers Could Play

At the time, three brands dominated the market: Levi Strauss, Lee and Wrangler, which all sold classic workman’s jeans. Before Calvin Klein, before Diesel, before all the rest, Britannia came up quickly by offering fashionable, experimental denim with bell bottoms and pocket art. It was fashion, but for the masses.

“When I first started, it was totally design-driven,” Pat Gough says. “We could really play.” Originally from Seattle, Gough graduated from Drexel in 1978 with a Bachelor of Science in design. She had interned with the designer Mai Lee the summer before at an outerwear company, and Lee invited her to join her at Britannia.

Britannia was the most exciting brand in Seattle at the time, stocked with bright young employees, and Gough was grateful not to have to try to make it in NYC as a designer. She started by taping swatch samples for Lee.

Joyce Nadig started working at Britannia’s new sample room in 1976, having just graduated from the University of Washington’s now-defunct apparel program. A former sorority sister brought her on. She didn’t know how to sew, so she had to learn from the community college graduates. But it barely mattered—Britannia was in its heady first years of growth.

“It was more than a sample factory, it was a design lab,” Nadig says. “You were allowed to be so experimental. There were no reigns on anybody. I spent one day driving around looking for feathers to enclose in plastic and put in a back pocket. We would go to the Goodwill and that is how we built our design presentations.”

One time they designed white jeans and put a typical brown leather patch on them. When the jeans were washed, they ended up with stains. Nadig was put in charge of ripping the labels off and then sewing them back on after the jeans had been bleached. She eventually moved to the design room on the strength of her fashion sketches. She hired a young intern named Trina Turk, who would go on to found her own wildly successful fashion brand.

Hoelter joined Britannia almost by accident. He graduated with a degree in broadcast communications and traveled west to Seattle with his friends, where their truck broke down. A temp agency placed him at Britannia, helping to set up samples at the famous Pre-line event, where Britannia flew in buyers to look at the upcoming collection before the trade show Magic.

“We had two fashion shows daily,” says Nadig, who worked at Britannia until 1986. “Big boating parties at night. We rented out a club that had been a disco on the water. I’m telling you, we spent money like crazy.”

“We were all really young, just out of college. We were hourly and working 80 hours a week,” Nadig says. “We lived together, went out together.” On weekends, flush with cash, they would hit up New Wave concerts around Seattle. “We all had so much love and respect for each other. We were so passionate about the product, and our jobs.”

Hoelter was then placed in Britannia’s design department, doing clerical work for designers. “I would follow them around and write down what they were saying, and build these line sheets,” he says. The head designer Kathy Brown, who had been hired to develop the women’s line, hired him away from the temp agency to work full-time. “She was wacky and difficult at times,” Hoelter says.

“The second year I fell under the wings of Bill Green and Kathy Brown. That was stressful,” Gough agrees.

Hong Kong or Bust

Though all the designers were in Seattle, Britannia’s other innovation was outsourcing denim production to Asia, specifically Hong Kong, where it had a large, beautiful office.

“They were making huge amounts of volume. HUGE volume,” Nadig says. “They were getting people to open factories because they just couldn’t get enough production.”

Sales were reportedly already $300 million a year. The jeans sold for $14 to $32 ($76 to $176 in today’s dollars) in Fred Segal’s, Nordstrom, Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s, and Dillard’s.

[THE TREND OF SKINNIER JEANS] WAS A REAL THREAT TO THAT STATUS QUO. BRITANNIA MISSED IT. IT WAS CLASSIC HUBRIS: WE KNOW WHAT WE’RE DOING AND YOU DESIGN PEOPLE ARE FLIGHTY.

“Price wasn’t even an issue. This product sold out constantly,” Nadig says.

At that time, the U.S. had a quota on how many men’s jeans — or any type of apparel — could be imported from certain countries. Brands could buy and sell quota credits for import to the U.S. and Britannia’s Hong Kong office became a major holder of denim quotas.

Gough’s first international trip was to Hong Kong to do sampling, along with a dozen other employees. There was no FedEx or even fax machines. “You would put your line together, make a presentation, finalize the items, and they would send you to put it into work. Six weeks later you would go look at samples. It was super exciting.”

“I didn’t even have a hotel room,” Nadig said of her first trips to Hong Kong. “It was like, oh you’ll figure it out. It was such a super creative time. We would stop in Tokyo on the way there to shop and get ideas.”

Unlike U.S. denim mills, Hong Kong factories were willing to experiment with washes, color and patterns.

“There were a lot of plaids and checks going on [in general apparel],” Nadig says. “One of the mills I went to, called Chiptak, he and I worked and worked on it, finally he got something that was a mistake. And I was like, no this will completely work!

He wove up 500 yards for me. We started making jeans out of it and it was a huge success. The volume of it was insane. We did it in four different denim washes. We converted it into colors: pink-checked denim, and teal-checked denim. That lasted for three years.”

But all of this freewheeling design and travel and ordering was bleeding the company of money. “There were a lot of people at the top going to Asia and placing production. They ended up with all kinds of inventory that the company didn’t even know we had,” Nadig says.

The company also launched a successful ad campaign in 1980. It was called “My home is in ___ but I live in Britannia!” It’s credited with popularizing versions of Britannia as girls’ names, including the name Brittany.

Bruce Walker was hired in the late 70s to wrangle the designers, and he was successful. (Walker did not respond to our requests for an interview.)

By 1982, Brittania had 50 designers and 400 employees in Seattle, and was selling 30 million pairs of jeans annually.

Skinnier Jeans and the End Kathy Brown started to notice that women’s wideleg jeans were starting to invert, to skinnier jeans with room at the top. She advocated for new designs, but the sales team resisted, wanting to stick with what had been successful: wide-leg pants.

“It was a real threat to that status quo,” Hoelter says. “Britannia missed it. It was classic hubris: we know what we’re doing and you design people are flighty.”

“They decided that they needed to compete in the Levi, Wrangler straight-leg world,” Hoelter says. A state-of-the-art factory in El Paso was built from scratch, with a special vacuum system that sucked away fabric scraps from beside each garment sewer, depositing them all in a dumpster outside.

The first snafu was when they had a set of samples in the stone washing machines with bleach, and the power went out. “They ended up with blue muck and zippers at the bottom of the machines,” Hoelter says.

But production started, and El Paso started shipping men’s straight-leg denim to stores. “Stores were having a terrible time with the fit. The problem was in the crotch area, it was way too restrictive. I got sent out to the warehouse with a clipboard and I measured maybe 1,000 pants,” Hoelter says.

It turns out that some of the sewers, who were being judged by speed, were cheating by trimming the pointy edge of the triangles of fabric that come together at the crotch. “You couldn’t tell which sewer was doing it, because that vacuum system was automatically sucking all that fabric to the dumpster,” Hoelter says. “The whole El Paso thing collapsed.”

Hoelter was laid off from the merchandising department in 1981 or ‘82. “Sales were collapsing. Suddenly there was a lot of inventory that wasn’t moving.” He says Britannia was making more money by selling its Hong Kong quotas to other brands than by selling denim.

“Britannia became like, “Oh god, you’re still buying Britannia?” Gough says.

In 1983, it declared bankruptcy.

The Aftermath

The lead designers left. Bill Green left Britannia in 1981 and went on to start an apparel company called Riva, then Greenline, a successful brand in the late 1980s and ‘90s. Mike Alesco started International News in 1983.

“A sense of fun and lightness is strong in the Seattle fashion scene,” the Christian Science Monitor gushed in March of 1985. “Nearly all the firms making [leisurewear] are two or three years old, and their presidents and export men and designers have invariably sprung from an older firm, Britannia Jeans.”

These new brands continued to manufacture abroad. “Nearly 80 percent of Seattle fashion is, I would reckon, made in Asia,” Lentz told CSM at the time.

Schoenfeld went on to revive the skater-grunge brand Vans, leading it to success over 13 years from the mid-1990s to 2004, when it was sold to VF Corp for $12 billion. He passed away in 2015.

Kathy Brown wanted to start a new store and contacted Hoelter to work for her, but funding fell through, so she went to work for another brand. On September 1, 1983, she was on a commercial flight on Korean Air on its way to Seoul when it accidentally drifted into Soviet air space and was shot down. Coincidentally, it was the night of Bruce Walker’s going-away party. “We all got the news at the same time,” Nadig says. “Shocking.”

Levi Strauss bought Britannia in 1987, and by the mid-90s, Britannia was considered a “low-end” subbrand of Levi Strauss, fit for discount retailers only. Walmart stopped buying Britannia in 1994 during a dispute with Levi’s. In 1997, Lee bought the brand and laid off the remaining 120 employees.

Now it’s hard to find any information about Britannia Sportswear on the internet. Memories of it have passed away with its core founders. “Amazon has taken over all of the buildings where we were,” Nadig says.

But people who stumble across the jeans while thrifting rave about the fit. “i have a pair!” one Redditor crows. “i thrifted them because they were so perfect on my body type, didn’t know they might be vintage. the fit is soooooo good!”

CONNECT THE DOTS

Karla Magruder of Accelerating Circularity explains why the demands of creating a circular economy mean everyone has to pull in the same direction.

As the climate crisis worsens and new legislation looms, circularity is on everyone’s lips. But taking it from a talking point to reality is proving to be daunting—but it’s not impossible. Accelerating Circularity has successfully executed trials, replacing virgin fibers in yarns and fabrics with 40 percent recycled cotton or recycled polyester. The organization has entered a new phase toward its goal of building commercial circular textile-to-textile systems. Going forward Accelerating Circularity is focused on building markets in the U.S. and the EU, creating a textile hierarchy tool and providing education on what it means to create circular textile to textile systems.

Kingpins Quarterly caught up with founder and president Karla Magruder to get her take on the challenges and opportunities related to circularity.

Here, she makes the case for a holistic approach, addresses the double-edged sword that sometimes comes with legislation and explains the reason the industry’s “why” on circularity must change.

KPQ: What’s a common misconception about circularity that people even within apparel hold?

KM: That a recycled fiber is circular. Circularity is about the entire system. People seem to have a hard time recognizing and understanding all the pieces that need to work together for a circular system.

KPQ: What are the biggest stumbling blocks toward change?

KM: The inability to cover the costs of all the steps in the system.

I THINK MORE AND MORE ABOUT THE NEED FOR OUR INCENTIVES TO CHANGE FROM NOT ONLY FINANCIAL BUT TO THE WELLBEING OF PEOPLE AND PLANET.

KPQ: Where is this funding likely to come from?

Good question and one I don’t think we really know. There are VC firms and direct industry investments. Government regulation is going to require organizations to change. As they do, industry will have to accept some of the costs that will be incurred from making these changes. I heard someone saying the other day that the costs will be passed to the consumer in the end. I think we’ll see pushback if that happens and don’t think that is the answer.

How do you think the slate of proposed ESG legislation will impact progress? As proposed, are the policies going far enough?

They will help move the industry forward. It’s probably not a matter of going far enough but of going in the right direction. We don’t always understand all the ramifications of our behaviors. I’m concerned about the idea that the EU will determine which materials are appropriate for rewear vs recycling and all sorting needs to be done in the EU.

To what degree is the industry leaning into precompetitive collaboration? What more can be done in this regard?

KM: The industry is leaning into precompetitive collaboration to some degree. Organizations that are running pre-competitive projects need to collaborate more strategically so that we work towards the same goals.

I have to give kudos to the Accelerating Circularity team and participants…..we have everyone involved from collection, sorting, preprocessing, recycling, yarn spinning, fabric formation through to finished garments. It hasn’t been easy; it’s required investment in time, patience and financial support. It’s important to highlight that it hasn’t been one single supply chain but multiple overlapping systems. This is how it will work in the real world.

KPQ: How can some of the innovations related to circularity scale?

KM: We have to think of not only the innovations but the systems that are going to allow the innovations to work. We also have to embrace commercial systems that have the potential to be circular. It’s not all about innovation.

KPQ: Beyond funding, what does it take?

KM: Connecting all the actors in the system, each actor must do their part.

KPQ: What are the supply chain infrastructure changes/innovations that need to take place?

KM: Sorting, preprocessing, understanding chemical inputs, traceability to avoid things like forced labor….

KPQ: From this list, it sounds like we’re far off from circularity. Is that how you’d characterize it? Any good news?

KM: The good news is that there are a lot of smart people working on the transition. There is a lot to do, changing a system isn’t easy and we’re changing a big system. We do have (not the good news part) the environment pushing us. We can see daily the need which is giving

us the push to make these important changes. We can move fast with the right incentives. I think more and more about the need for our incentives to change from not only financial but to the wellbeing of people and planet. That’s no longer a slogan (for many it never was) but something we can feel in our daily life that needs to happen.

KPQ: What do you consider to be low hanging fruit in regards to circularity?

KM: Using and scaling the systems in place e.g. mechanical recycling and thermal mechanical recycling along with a few of the commercial chemical recyclers.

KPQ: Has the industry already exploited those opportunities?

KM: No, there are often reasons why a certain process doesn’t work or fit a current direction. So much comes down to the need for education. We ran what we dubbed the ACP [Accelerating Circularity Project] blend of 50 percent post-consumer textiles/50 percent post-industrial textiles. We took this fiber blend and then included 60 percent virgin fiber for a resulting yarn of 60 percent virgin cotton/20 percent post-industrial waste/20 percent post-consumer waste. Prior to this work, the companies we worked with had not used post-consumer waste and were concerned with the quality and performance. In the end, we meet required specs and will have commercial product in the market.

KPQ: From your perspective, is denim more or less conducive to the circular model? And what can this industry specifically be doing to make it a reality?

KM: It’s a great material for circular systems. I think the supply chain is doing a great job of coming up with circular solutions. We need to get all actors to buy into the system. It’s not just about one segment.

Karla Magruder of Accelerating Circularity

AGI DENIM'S BOOTH HOSTS DPPS, AN ADAPTIVE COLLECTION & THEIR LATEST FABRIC INNOVATIONS

The Agency by AGI Denim

The Agency is AGI Denim’s in-house creative solution. Its transformative approach fuses instinctdriven creativity with market intelligence to surpass traditional design norms. Clients can now utilize the denim producer’s expertise in research, design, development, and marketing services.

Explore a suite of tools including trend decks, fit catalogs, wash stacks and specialized insights as well as rapid prototyping in digital (3D designs and AIgenerated visuals) and physical formats. The Agency extends its innovation to include dry process laser artwork development, further expanding the breadth of design possibilities.

AGI Denim x Green Story

AGI Denim has partnered with Green Story to make environmental footprint data and product life cycle assessment (LCA) more accessible and transparent to

anyone looking at their jeans. Visitors of AGI Denim’s booth can easily access digital product passports with environmental impact data, including water, energy and greenhouse gas emissions.

The Agency x Stephanie Thomas – Human-Centric Adaptive Collection

AGI Denim is excited to announce that its in-house creative arm, The Agency, has collaborated with Stephanie Thomas, Disability Fashion Stylist and founder of Cur8able, to launch a groundbreaking inclusive adaptive apparel collection for people with disabilities. The collection seeks to address solutions for individuals with disabilities, various seated body types, dexterity challenges, amputees, and people who wear Ankle Foot Orthosis (AFO). It includes the use of sensory-friendly materials, modular garments with easy closures, and styles accommodating prosthetics and braces. Stephanie Thomas, known for her expertise in

RESPONSIBLE MATERIALS

DRIVE TUONG

disability styling, brought her invaluable insights to the collaboration, ensuring that every design element is both functional and fashionable using her award-winning Disability Fashion Styling System: Accessible, Smart, Fashionable®

Authentic Soft

Experience the luxury of authentic, soft denim. These fabrics feature a luscious and luxurious feel while retaining denim’s classic durability and rugged texture. AGI Denim’s yarn and fiber technologies enable a new generation of sumptuously soft jeans.

BOOTH: GREEN 10

LONG'S SUSTAINABILITY MANDATE

The Vietnam-based denim mill focuses on verifiable, low-impact fibers to lower its environmental impact.

As denim steps up its efforts to head off the climate crisis, the industry is taking a holistic approach to reducing the environmental impact of garments throughout their lifecycle. For Vietnam-based Tuong Long that means developing sustainable materials that are easier on the planet, while maintaining consumers’ high-performance expectations.

The 24-year-old denim mill currently produces 2.5 million yards per month, and has set a goal of ramping up to 4 million. Responsible production is at the heart of Tuong Long’s ethos, which is evident by the slew of certifications the company maintains, including the Higg Index, Oeko-Tex, CottonLeads, GRS and GOTS, to name a few. To answer the call for less impactful products and processes, the mill is leaning into renewable and biodegradable materials like organic cotton, linen and hemp from recognizable

names like BCI, Lenzing Tencel and Repreve. Not only are these fibers more sustainable, they also enhance the company’s denim offerings with benefits like the softness of Tencel, the luster of linen and the antibacterial nature of bamboo.

“Customers nowadays are no longer just looking for luxurious or hot trend styles, but comfortable and sustainable clothes,” noted Hao Dieu, president of Tuong Long. “Sustainable yarns are free from harmful chemicals and pesticides, which may cause skin irritation and other health-related problems. They’re also often softer and more breathable, making them ideal for warm weather and sensitive skin.”

Tuong Long invests heavily in material innovation to create new yarn blends featuring pineapple, bamboo, coffee, etc. that deliver quality and

durability at a price that represents value to the end consumer. To provide its partners with the verifiable product data they need, Tuong Long is a member of the HAP supply chain compliance network and leverages TextileGenesis transparency technology.

“Tuong Long’s goal has always been to strive toward being eco-friendly. By utilizing these special yarns, we are able to move closer to our goal of minimizing more harm to the environment, while still creating a high-quality product,” said Dieu.

BOOTH: YELLOW 4

Artistic Milliners @KPNY

Reinventing Denim Nostalgia with Eco-Conscious Flair

Artistic Milliners, a leading denim innovator, is bringing back its best fabric collections at Kingpins New York, showcasing a captivating blend of nostalgia, cultural influences, and cutting-edge techniques.

Baber Sultan, Director of Product Development & Research, expressed the company's commitment to sustainability and innovation, stating, "Our commitment to eco-friendly processes and innovative technologies resonates with conscientious consumers seeking garments that align with their values."

90210 Collection: A Nostalgic Revival

The 90210 collection pays homage to the early 2000s, featuring relaxed silhouettes, tinted washes, and exaggerated slub e ects. This collection reimagines the Y2K aesthetic with a

modern twist, utilizing sustainable washing techniques and intricate crosshatching.

Shogun Collection: A Fusion of Tradition and Innovation

The Shogun collection draws inspiration from Japanese heritage, combining traditional denim textures with modern stretch and comfort. This collection features hickory stripe patterns, herringbone weaves, and intricate dyeing techniques, resulting in a unique blend of classic and contemporary styles.

Glitz Collection: A Dazzling Display of Denim Artistry

The Glitz collection pushes the boundaries of denim design, incorporating dobby weaves, leather-like coatings, and unorthodox fading

e ects. Embellishments and textural elements add a touch of opulence, creating bold statement pieces that are sure to turn heads.

Commitment to Sustainability

Artistic Milliners prioritizes eco-conscious practices throughout its production processes. By utilizing sustainable materials and innovative technologies, the company aims to minimize its environmental impact while delivering high-quality denim products. These collections demonstrate the company's dedication to creativity, sustainability, and pushing the boundaries of denim design. With its diverse range of styles and commitment to eco-friendly practices, Artistic Milliners continues to be a force in the denim industry.

BOOTH: YELLOW 7

NEW LYCRA FITSENSE® DENIM TECHNOLOGY

An innovation which o ers targeted support, comfortable shaping and invisible control.

So you can fine-tune every pair of jeans to whoever puts them on.

It’s customization that takes your craft to another level.

Shaded areas merely illustrative of where technology is applied.

2024 The LYCRA Company. LYCRA FitSense® is a trademark of The LYCRA Company.