Hot summers push sales of functional fabric innerwear

26 Jul '10

2 min read

With Japan's Meteorological Agency expecting the hottest summer in a century, owing to the heat wave that had entered Tokyo last week through North America and Europe, temperatures are likely to cross 36 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit).

But such high temperatures are proving to be a boon for Japanese firms such as brewery industries, Kirin Holdings Company, apparel producers and air conditioner manufacturers.

Retailers in apparels will also profit from soaring temperatures, as consumers are now more inclined towards purchasing casual wear including their innerwear, to face the hot weather, informed industry experts.

Goldwin Incorporation, marketer of Speedo swimsuits in Japan, designed its MXP innerwear for astronauts with the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency. This innerwear is made with eucalyptus fibre and nanotechnology and has the ability to neutralize sources of odours such as acetic acid and ammonia.

Sales of these goods are already crossing the company's projected targets, informed Hiroshi Katsuno, Manager of Goldwin's Maxifresh innerwear group. He further added that, as per data extracted from various experiments, one shirt can absorb odour released from four litres of sweat.

Fast Retailing Company's Uniqlo Chain, has already raised its sales of sweat-absorbing, quick drying innerwear, even as their net sales declined during the three months till May.

However, this innerwear has been developed with the help of Toray Industries Incorporation, a Tokyo-based synthetic fibre manufacturer. Wacoal Holdings Corporation will be marketing a new type of brassiere which is made of mesh material, especially designed to keep the body cool and dry.

Till May, sales of summer innerwear at Wacoal were slow, owing to cool weather. But the figures are likely to go up if the weather turns hot, informed Yoshimi Kamata, analyst from Nomura Holdings Incorporation.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk - India

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