Denimandjeans | Global Trends, News and Reports | Worldwide

Category: Jeans

  • ‘Kato’ – Original Denim from Japan

    I just do not seem to be stopping to write about Japanese denim. There actually is so much to learn from them that it feels great to write about them.
    ‘Kato’ is a brand from Japan which is making special Natural Jeans. Their Jeans are made from Zimbabwe Cotton and are dyed by the ‘Hank System’ in natural indigo . This is the oldest system of dyeing cotton in Indigo in which the yarn spends one day in dyeing to the core and another day is spent hanging in a steam room.. The Denim is then woven on 32″ slow shuttle looms ..The jeans are hand riveted and details hand stitched..
    All these slow processes add up to the cost a lot . However, Connoiseur items are not made easily and by everyone and are also not affordable by everybody (prices in range about USD 300)..
    ANd the looks are COOL…..Kato Denim

    By the way, pertinent to mention that Hiroshi Kato of ‘Kato’ also designed some selvedge denim for Arvind in India..

  • Levi’s ties up with the world’s most expensive artist to create new collection

    Damien Hirst is suppposed to the most expensive artist in the world because of the astounding prices at which his creations sell – whether it is Diamond covered skull, or Sharks in Formaldehyde(!) etc.

    Damien Hirst is lending his talents to Levi’s and helping them develop the collection of Spring 2008 Warhol Factory X Levi’s Label(to be launched at New York Fashion Week in September) . The Warhol Factory X Collection was first launched in 2006 and paid tribute to Andy Warhol’s famous pop-culture art. This collection is priced between USD 190 – USD 250/- for Jeans and USD 80-300 for tops. The full name of the collection will Warhol Factory X Levi’s X Damien Hirst

    Why is Levi’s doing this?

    The answer is very simple. They want to strengthen their image as an important manufacturer of Premium Jeans . Levi’s has been able to grow its profits in 2006 largely because of their increased sales of Premium high-end Jeans. And they want to make more profits by selling more of these jeans.
    Premium Jeans is about 4.3% of the US Jeanswear market and had been growing at a rapid pace of about 40-45% p.a – though last year the growth rate declined to about 23%.
    But still there is a lot of space in this segment to make profits from..

  • Xfit Lycra and Black lycra for denims

    Two new innovations from LYCRA are expected to give a great fillip to the usage of lycra in Denims and add value to the denim garments.

    Xfit Lycra: Xfit lycra is a latest patented technology which allows 360 degree movement in the fabric besides fabric stability and shape retention.All this allows a user to move in any way. How would this help the denim garment manufacturers??
    The manufacturers will be able to produce garments for a wider range of buyers. Currently stretch garments are mainly limited to the Ladieswear and Childrenwear. Xfit may help in increasing the usage of stretch garments by Men also.. Let’s wait and watch how the brands are able to encash this development.

    Black lycra fibre: A very interesting development for the Denim and the Lingerie Industry.. What traditionally happens is that when stretch fibres are used in the garments and they are washed repeatedly, the strech fibre shows up due to discoloration.
    With the Black lycra fibre, the black and dark garments will remain dark even after washes(provided the other fibres in the fabric do not lose color)..
    This fibre would be very useful for the Dark and Natural denim garments and help them to remain darker for a longer period. Some of the ladies Stretch Jeans may even end up looking a little darker(if designed so)..

    On the whole it is a good news for the denim industry …

  • Marketing campaigns by Indian Denim Brands

    The premium denim brands in India are launching niche campaigns to push their them deeper into Indian psyche.

    WHY? : Obvious answer is more sales. But the need for various campaigns has also been accentuated by the fact that various International Brands like Ralph & Lauren, Diesel and GAS have become more aggresive in India . Another positive factor which is motivating the brands to invest more in campaigns is that the usage of high-end jeans in India is set to pick up with more and more offices (particularly in IT & BPO industry) allowing semi-casual wears.

    SOME CAMPAIGNS….

    WRANGLER – Go Clean – ‘Clean Skin,Clean Bikes,Clean Jeans’ : Clean jeans is obviously the ‘Clean Look denim ‘ – an effect which is achieved through mercerising the denims . But why ‘Clean Bikes’ and ‘CLean Skin’ ? Well, Wrangler has tied up with Castrol and Kaya Skin clinic to together take on the young and hep newly employed crowd of India who are very concious about their looks..Also Wrangler feels that distressed look is out and raw rinse look is in..
    LEE: The tagline for the campaign ‘HISTORY ROCKS’ AND ‘LEE SKINNY‘ is ‘Not for the masses” sends a clear message. These jeans are for upwardly mobile only who want to look apart from the crowd..
    LEVIS” ‘SAY NO TO PLASTICS’ – This campaign of Levi’s is targeted to bring the attention of the consumers on the Red Loop of Levi’s. Also, it means that they are looking at consumers with some attitude who want to be seen as proactive in environmental conciousness.. Though Levi’s claims to have a good response after the campaign, I have my doubts over the efficacy of such campaigns in India..

    Others in the line include Flying Machine’s ‘CREATIVE CULT‘ campaign . As I mentioned before, ‘Flying Machine’ has been relaunched as a high end brand with prices of Rs 1800 & up.

    IT & BPO workers have become a formidable (somewhat homogeneous) group of cash rich young people which various industries are targetting to tap in their own way. So Denim Industry was not expected to remain behind such ideas come to even our politicians(CPM) who want to unionise this group!!!!!

  • Victoria Beckham launches her own dvb line of denims

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    Victoria Beckham launched her debut denim collection this week in New York to a multitude of photographers, television cameras and journalists.

    Beckham has boosted her profile by unveiling her dVb collection of denim jeans, skirts and shorts at Saks department store on Fifth Avenue.

    Wearing her own white jeans, silver heels, and a sparkly, silver vest, Victoria posed for photographers before heading upstairs to sign autographs for fans waiting in line.

    The dvb jeans will have large star stitched on the back pockets and will cost around USD 250/- (dark denims). The dVb range also includes retro style sunglasses.

    I think its a lot easy for these celebs to launch their own labels which ride comfortably on the strength of their popularity. However, the real test comes within a year of the launch when the publicity dies down a little and the Jeans has to perform.. Lets wait and watch how dvb performs.

  • Can Stretch Denim Become A Trend For Men In India

    We have seen various kinds of denims being worn by Men/Boys in India. These started from 14.5oz heavy denims initially to Multi-Counts and Slub denims in the 12-13oz range currently. The Denim fabrics have undergone a great metamorphosis in terms of their structures ,looks, feels and washes..

    Though all these changes have been readily accepted by the Indian male, I am still waiting for the next BIG TREND in MEN’s Jeans to pick up and that is the STRETCH FOR MEN. This trend has not yet picked up and we are yet to see men in India conciously asking for Stretch Denim.

    Stretch Jeans have been typically associated with the women since they look for skin tight jeans enhancing their figures. Even this segment has been slow to pick in India due to conservativeness. But there is another feature of the Stretch that has not been fully exploited and that is COMFORT.

    Men look for comfort – esp the office goers.. However, they are not vocal in their demand for the same. But I personally think that there is a great potential of MEN’s STRETCH JEANS in India. Though there have been attempts by some brands to bring out Stretch Collections, but they have been more of an effort to fill the gaps rather than create a large new NICHE segment for sale..

    So, if the Jeans producers in India are listening , please do your research and market Stretch Jeans as a BUSINESS CASUAL with Comfort fits . Such jeans are not expected to have the visual effects of a Stretch Jeans but only the comfort effects of the same…Stretch Denim for Men has a potential LATENT DEMAND.

    Lets wait and watch who catches this oppurtunity in the best way

    Related Post: Xfit Lycra and Black Lycra