California Apparel News

Sourcing, held at the Las Vegas Convention Center Feb. 17–19, fostered global supply-chain connections, uniting manufacturers, suppliers and fashion brands from Bangladesh, China, India, Egypt, Southeast Asia, Turkey and more.

Colombia’s fashion industry demonstrated its innovation and sourcing capabilities with leading apparel suppliers displaying activewear with high-performance fabrics, swimwear, intimates, lifestyle garments and uniforms. “People talk about nearshoring, but friendshoring is actually the new word that refers not only to cost associated with logistic advantage and proximity but also finding suppliers that are reliable and countries that have longtime strong relationships with the importing country in terms of diplomatic relations and trade agreements,” said Sebastian Echavarria, senior textile and sourcing representative at ProColombia, the nonprofit promotion agency of Colombia.

Sourcing’s specially designated areas included Fabric, Trim & Packaging; Nearshoring & USA, and a Sustainability Gallery with a Fashion by Informa Sustainability Assessment Program powered by Hey Social Good.

Returning tech exhibitors included AIMS360, CBF Labels and QIMA. Several new exhibitors joined the fashion tech and service providers area:

With U.S. headquarters in San Mateo, Calif., Glance helps consumers shop on the spot with a personalized feed based on their selfies. “We’re driving traffic to brand websites, the app is already embedded into Direct TV and soon Samsung,” said Aashish Takkala, head of product marketing. “We want to bring brands on board so they can showcase their product catalogs in our experiences.”

J&L Brand Solutions in Pasadena, Calif., offered one-stop shopping for a wide array of factory-direct labels, hangtags, patches and heat transfers, all produced in-house.

China-based Lightchain AI is an AI-powered platform that provides a service to replace the typical photo shoot for brands and designers. “The AI generates product in a fashion-model image ready to post on the brand’s website and saves money and time for designers and manufacturers,” said Selina Jing, sales development representative. “We can also design a product based on a line sketch, fabric, style, recent trend or brand preference.”

100-year-old Memphis, Tenn.–based Connectiv is a third-party logistics company with more than eight facilities across North America and Europe. “We act as the back end for apparel companies shipping direct to consumers, direct to retail, B2B; we can bundle, kit, handle logistics from Mexico and even transport containers from the ports,” said John Raisola, regional sales director.

Los Angeles–based fabric textile-printing company United Printex offers a completely waterless process. “Since we’re in Los Angeles, we can airship extremely fast in the United States with a lead time of five to seven business days,” said CEO Albert Huh.

“Sourcing emphasized sustainable practices and innovative solutions, driving collaboration and growth in the fashion industry,” said Pinar van der Vegt, head of sales and events, Sourcing by Informa.