Disruption is the new norm. Innovation and creativity are necessary ingredients when it comes to creating brands that hit off with consumers. The International Apparel Federation’s President Han Bekke recently emphasized the need for Pakistan exporters and manufacturers to start investing in their brands or risk becoming uncompetitive in an increasingly evolving international landscape.

The comment should resonate with players across all sectors. However, the lack of innovation and designing is an especially problematic issue in textile sector as the country relies on textile exports for the majority of its foreign exchange earnings. Decision time is here. Either the country can remain in low value added products or develop strong brands that can compete on a global level.

This choice has been made by many countries over the years including Turkey and Hong Kong that have invested in their fashion industry’s designing capabilities and encouraged their brands penetrate international markets. Both of these countries were previously popular destinations for outsourced manufacturing from global brands such as Marks & Spencer and Tommy Hilfiger due to low cost labour.

Ijaz Khokhar, Chairman of the Pakistan Readymade Garments Manufacturers & Exporters Association (PRGMEA) is credited for having convinced the IAF to open its first ever regional office in Sialkot. He believes the organisation can help the local garment industry to improve its fashion and designing knowledge.

There are plans to set up exchange programs with leading fashion academies such as the Amsterdam Fashion Institute to bring about knowledge and skill transfer to the local fashion industry. The eventual aim will give insights to manufacturers about global consumer needs and trends when it comes to garments and other value added textile products.

However, there are other constraints as well which include the lack of quality fabric to be processed into high value garments. There is a strong consensus amongst garment exporters that a shift from 100 percent cotton to technical fabric needs to be undertaken if the sector is to remain a supplier of choice for foreign buyers. For paucity of space this column will analyse the hurdles to moving onto functional and technical fabrics in the coming weeks.

The presence of IAF in Pakistan is a good omen for the local apparel industry and will help it to establish market linkages with new buyers in untapped markets. Manufacturers can bank on the organisation’s global insights and research to enable future value addition to be done in a manner aligned with a rapidly disruptive global fashion culture.