#Textiles & Apparel / Garment

2024-02-29

The VF Foundation is bridging the gender gap in garment sector automation

Garment workers globally face potential widespread displacement due to the increase in automation. According to the International Labour Organization, sewing automation alone could displace 65 million workers globally.

With women making up 75 percent of the global garment workforce, the bulk of the loss of jobs will be roles held by women. Additionally, women in the garment industry often work in lower-tier roles, such as helpers and sewing machine operators, making them particularly vulnerable to displacement. When looking to find new jobs, women face challenges due to traditional gender roles and limited access to higher education acting as barriers for entry to higher-paying jobs within the garment sector and beyond.

To address this challenge, Shimmy Technologies, a women-owned social enterprise, was founded in 2016 to prepare women working in apparel supply chains for the future of work through upskilling and reskilling via digital, mobile and tablet-based trainings. Shimmy’s mobile-first training approach is more flexible than traditional, paper-based training curriculum, the latter which inadequately addresses the rapid changes in the market.

Shimmy’s focus on this technical training component acts as a key unlock to assist workers in developing skills and gradually increasing their income. The majority female-led Shimmy team serves as role models to empower female workers to enter advanced operator roles. Their approach aims to reshape the workforce from the ground up, challenging the current status quo.

In 2022, The VF Foundation supported Shimmy’s pilot program across Bangladesh to reach unemployed women and assess the effectiveness of new training solutions to upskill and reskill women to provide them with the opportunity to enter the ready-made garment (RMG) industry. The program identified technical training centers in different cities across Bangladesh, including Dhaka, and located near garment factories in the area.

In addition, Shimmy carried out its research project called the Apparel Automation Pulse to identify current and future machines used in factories. This information helped Shimmy create a demand curve for machine-based skills, which in turn, informed the content of the training programs to align with the specific needs of employers.

The pilot yielded positive results. Of the 500 people who went through the training, 452 were women, and over 55% were employed in the RMG supply chain within six months. Of those without jobs in the RMG industry, only 23.19% were looking for work after six months. The remaining trainees opted to stay home as homemakers, continue with other studies, or enter another industry.

As a result of the success of the pilot, The VF Foundation recently announced Shimmy as a 2024 grantee to expand the upskilling of 500 more workers through mobile phone-based training and an additional 800 within physical training centers. This growing partnership with Shimmy exemplifies the power of collaboration, that complements VF’s work to empower women in its supply chain, and drives forward a shared vision to ensure a more sustainable and equitable future for women in the apparel industry.

“Production is a product”

From technical textiles and AI-driven robotics to the limitations of textile circularity: Professor Dr Thomas Gries looks back on more than two decades of development at ITA Aachen. In the interview, he explains why production technology remains a decisive success factor, discusses international collaborations and innovation ecosystems, and shares his views on the transformation of production landscapes and the challenges facing an increasingly regulated industry.

“We need to move away from the price trap and return to a value-driven mindset.”

With its new Textile Innovation Center, KARL MAYER is sending a strong signal for innovation, collaboration, and the future of textile applications. In this interview, Karl Josef Mayer discusses new opportunities in warp knitting, the processing of staple fibres, recycling, the changing role of machinery manufacturers, and why the textile industry must once again focus more strongly on the value of textiles. by Oliver Schmidt

“Innovation, resilience and international experience remain the great strengths of the Swiss textile machinery industry”

Geopolitical uncertainty, growing competitive pressure from China, new free trade agreements and the shift towards a circular economy are currently reshaping the global textile industry. In this interview, Cornelia Buchwalder discusses the current mood within the Swiss textile machinery sector, the industry’s distinctive innovative strength, new market opportunities in India and Asia, and the technological trends that could shape the upcoming trade fair cycle leading up to ITMA 2027.

Mario Jorge Machado re-elected President of EURATEX

The EURATEX General Assembly has re-elected Mario Jorge Machado as President of EURATEX, renewing its confidence in his leadership at a crucial moment for the European textile and clothing industry. The sector is facing rising costs, global competitive pressure and an increasingly challenging transition towards sustainability and digitalisation.

Next week’s focus: Intertextile Shenzhen & Yarn Expo Shenzhen fuse textile tradition with sustainable, digital trends

Fashion will not be left behind in one of the world’s undisputed tech and manufacturing capitals. Which is why next week, at Intertextile Shenzhen Apparel Fabrics and Yarn Expo Shenzhen 2026, the organisers have made special efforts to integrate textile topics such as materials innovation, holistic sustainability, digitalisation and AI. Yet, from 9 – 11 June at the Shenzhen Convention and Exhibition Center, the platform also includes timeless tradition and heritage-inspired evolution in equal measure. Across both shows, over 600 exhibitors from 11 countries and regions are set to showcase everything from Peruvian alpaca wool fabrics to tea-derived fibres, while their fringe programmes will explore diverse solutions along the entire value chain.

2026 general meeting of the Friends and Supporters of RWTH Aachen at ITA

The Friends and Supporters of RWTH Aachen e. V. (proRWTH) looked back on a successful year of support at their 2026 general meeting. The meeting took place at Institut für Textiltechnik (ITA) of RWTH Aachen and was combined with a joint session of the Executive Board and the Administrative Board. Before the general meeting began, participants were given a guided tour of ITA, providing them with fascinating insights into current research and development topics in textile engineering.

Cotton ConneXions Insight to Impact brings supply chain leaders together around cotton innovation

Cotton Incorporated’s Cotton ConneXions Insight to Impact brought together more than 300 industry leaders from 140 companies across 10 countries, including more than 45 top global brands and sourcing organizations, underscoring strong global interest in cotton-rich product development, sourcing and supply chain collaboration.

Footwear innovation enabled by warp knitting technology– insights from New Balance

The future of the athletic shoe is increasingly being shaped on warp knitting machines. For KARL MAYER, the footwear industry is one of the most important growth markets – and one of the sectors where innovative textiles can realize their full potential. In his keynote address at the opening of KARL MAYER’s TEXTILE INNOVATION CENTER in Obertshausen in April, Vishnu Prakash Muthusamy, Senior Textile and Materials Engineer at New Balance, explained the opportunities that warp knitting technology opens up for performance, sustainability, and faster development processes, and why textile manufacturers are transitioning from suppliers to development partners.