Green fashion opens new course at Avantex Paris

"Avantex Paris was one of the highlights of our shows, with sustainable development being an area of strong interest, as demonstrated by our visitors. The trade fair was extremely well attended and enjoyed a vibrant atmosphere that was due to the diversity of visitors – heads of innovation, researchers, academics, engineers, consultants and, obviously, buyers for fashion brands! They came to meet up with start-up businesses, research centres, colleges and, of course, the manufacturers of materials. Exhibitors and visitors like these go to make up an unrivalled network that remains faithful to this event. These excellent results were bolstered by this vehicle for new ideas coming from the lectures and presentations, which all touched on the environment in their discussions," recounts Michael Scherpe, president of Messe Frankfurt France, fair organiser.

Claude Corbière, managing director at Cortex, a specialist for pleating, was very pleased with 'very international visitors who seem to improve with each show'. "As I see it, this is still the consummate exhibition for fabrics and technical textiles," explained Joe Huang, sales director at Liansheng Textile, the Chinese firm for functional fabrics, who was delighted with the contacts he has made from Europe and the United States. The Indian specialist for innovation and sustainable development, Reliance industries, and the Taiwanese firm Wisher Industrial with its fabrics made from recycled polyester have made a special contribution towards satisfying visitor expectations with their approaches for providing more eco-friendly and innovative products.

There was an interesting collective demonstration at the stand of Sustainable French Savoir-faire, jointly created by CETI / ESMOD / TECHTERA. Recycling was highlighted thanks to the European Centre for Innovative Textiles (Centre Européen du Textile Innovant), which displayed some new fibres produced by recycling, and to the ESMOD school with the outfit by Lorena Mazo-French, which was from a material made from wrappings for savoury biscuits and chocolate bars.

In the Avanprint section, the Italian printing firm MS Printing Solutions had set up one of its inkjet printers that do without the need for water by restricting the quantity of ink used.

Both visitors and exhibitors were unanimous in their opinion that the series of lectures and presentations is definitely a huge asset for Avantex Paris, which had initiated this essential event. With a dozen round-table debates and presentations spread over the four days, the Avantex agora stood out with its high-calibre presenters and animated discussions. These represent a real source of inspiration both for the professionals who came to listen, as well as for some exhibitors who arranged their schedules so they could attend these meetings.

The topics focused on the environment and environmentally correct practices (like, Which fibres and which branches should be preferred for fashion that can be recycled? Co-design and other key components for a successful collection in keeping with the era of social media). Further, the catwalk shows by Zero Waste Fashion Designers and by Design & Research in Fashion Technology from by-wire projected spectators into the world of tomorrow’s fashions. (RR)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk – India