Première Vision
A reimagined Première Vision New York took place on January 21 and 22 at a new space, Center 415 on Fifth Avenue near the Garment District. The two-floor show featured 205 exhibitors from 25 countries including 10 local ones that are part of the CFDA’s Fashion Manufacturing Initiative. The national textile associations of Turkey, Korea and Peru were among the international attendees showing at PV.
The event was a stage for new fabrics and trims for s/s 2021 and–no shock here–the focus was on sustainability, which was mentioned in the Immersion Room trend display at the show’s entrance and served as the defining theme of the Smart Creation area upstairs. The latter presented the wares of 30 selected eco-responsible exhibitors along with signage with actionable tips to become more environmentally sensible. One of the show’s three onsite seminars was also dedicated to the sustainability topic while the other two discussed trends and colors for the season.
The Immersion Room also told visitors what’s hot trend- and color-wise for s/s 2021. Some of the top tendencies include tone-on-tones, bluish hues, foamy surfaces, organic cottons and silks, terry-like tweeds, chubby flower prints, light and wavy undertones, iridescent fabrics, rippled surfaces and hybrid textiles made from plant and artificial fibers.
Despite the show’s size, it featured only a handful of companies that serve the active- or casualwear sector and nary a denim brand. Massachusetts-based Polartec was on hand and hawking its Power Air collection, a mid-layer fabric that sheds five times as less microfibers thanks to encapsulated fibers on the inside, which is already being used by Adidas and Houdini. Darren Josey, the brand’s North American marketing manager, said that companies kept acting for “sustainable” options–meaning mostly recycled fabrics in their mind. “But people forget that when they buy something that reducing consumption is the first part of being sustainable,” he said, adding that Polartec’s sturdy fabrics are a good choice as they are constructed to last a long time.
Josey also said he was pleased with PV’s new location versus its former one on the pier. “I really like this,” he said. “It has a more elevated feel.”
Japan Textile Salon
Three was (again) the charm at the third annual Japan Textile Salon sponsored by Jetro, the Japan External Trade Organization, which ran January 21 and 22 at the Altman Building in Chelsea. The tiny but very appealing show featured just 16 Japanese mills as well as a trend area where the key themes were Sustainability and the so-called Hyper Nomad look. Two sustainability-themed seminars with speakers such as Lucie Bringham of the United Nations and Tricia Carey, Lenzing Group’s director of global business development, also took place onsite.
Two denim suppliers showed at the Salon. Japan Blue presented both its denim nondenim offerings. The former included standard cotton selvedges and specialty offerings such as laminated denim and material made from organic cotton and then eco-dyed. The latter encompassed fabrics suitable for workwear and military-style clothing as well as recycled synthetics and a drapey denim-look fabric made from paper yarn. Around the corner, Showa, a vertical mill based in the denim hub of Kojima, displayed its wide range that ran the gamut from denim made with recycled cotton to selvedges and silk/cotton blends.
But arguably the coolest fabric at the show–and the most indicative of Japanese ingenuity–was from Design House Kaze. It has taken the metallic micromesh material that Nintendo uses as a filter inside its devices and is now promoting it for use in fashion. Malleable and similar to tulle, the slightly stiff screen-like product’s surface can also be printed–making its transition from gaming to garment production all the more viable and appealing.
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