DENIM SUMMIT NATIONAL
AHMEDABAD, GUJARAT, INDIA
By IFAB MEDIA - NEWS BUREAU - June 5, 2023 | 33 5 minutes read
Where do denims, technology, and strategic consulting converge? Look no further than the upcoming Innovision Summit slated for 2023. Leading consulting firm Diagonal Consulting, founded by the Father of Denims in India Dr. P. R. Roy, is set to bring together denim industry experts from around the globe at IIM Ahmedabad this coming October.
Denims - “The Jewel of Fabrics” as described by a leading Denim historian has been around for over two centuries now and shows no signs of going out of style anytime soon. From its humble beginnings as workwear for miners and cowboys in the 19th century to its current status as a global fashion phenomenon, Denims have come a long way. In its evolutions, Denims had several stages of development from its inception till the end of world War 2. In the mid- 19th century, Levi Strauss, a German immigrant to the United States, began producing denim work pants. The pants were reinforced with copper rivets at the stress points to make them more durable. These pants, which came to be known as Jeans, were an instant hit in the American west. Hollywood’s remarkable prominence influencing the fashion world led by the then celebrities brought Denims and in turn Jeans to an enviable position. Eventually, washing of Denims & jeans spearheaded by Levi’s – Wrangler – Lee’s of the world and of course its liking by women led to a multi fold growth in denim consumption.
By the mid 60’s, USA had the outstanding lead in the Denims and Jeans followed by Europe and eventually Japan. This part of the world had no concept of Denims till mid 80’s wherein Arvind Mills made a breakthrough by importing world class technology and building up a strong R&D team to support the development and introduction of Denims to the Indian subcontinent. This major change in Arvind renovating its vision placed India on a global map of Denim manufacturing.
Denims today are available in a wide variety of styles and colours, from classic blue to multi stretch brightly coloured skinny pair of jeans. It has democratised fashion, being worn by everyone from farmers and factory workers to Millennials, Gen Z celebrities and fashion icons. Denim production used to be notoriously resource-intensive & polluting in those days. Thanks to the Sustainability drive & technology developments by some of the German leaders, we are able to see a significantly reduced carbon footprints in today’s denims. Leading denim brands since the beginning of 21st century have been experimenting with new ways to reduce their environmental impact by using recycled / reused materials across the value chain with Innovative dyeing / printing techniques, thereby embracing “Circularity” in fashion.
A major blow given to the world by COVID-19 pandemic caused enormous economic & supply chain uncertainty, with key markets facing recession and reduced consumer spending. The curtailing demand for Denims forced companies to adjust their production & resources to stay afloat. The fluctuations in cost of raw materials & our dependence on China for the same added fuel to the fire. In addition, rising labour costs, tariffs, and geopolitical uncertainty impacted our exports in a big way in the last 12-18 months. It has been a challenging period not only for denims but across the textile Industry in India and many other Asian countries. Having studied the pattern in Denim markets globally for last few years, we at Diagonal Consulting (India) see the rise of customization and personalization through increasing technology adoption paving the way for growth in demand of Sustainable Denims. Athleisure and Knitted Casual wear segments may also positively impact its demand amongst both new age as well as traditional consumers.
Diagonal Consulting (India), a leading Strategic and Management Consulting firm in Textiles spearheaded by Dr. P. R. Roy ( Father of Denims in India ) proposes to organize a two day Global Denim Summit at IIM Ahmedabad on 3rd and 4th October 2023.
With over 50% of the Denim capacity concentrated in the Gujarat, Ahmedabad is an Ideal choice for organizing such a Global Summit of eminent speakers from Industry, Academia, Research and Policy making to come together and carve out opportunities for India to become the “Denim Capital of the World”.