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There’s no doubt that the current state of the economy and the dollar is dropping by the day, but not all businesses in the apparel industry are suffering. Li & Fung an apparel sourcing giant boosted sales to $11.85 billion with profits soaring to $408.6 million the strongest gain posted in seven years.

Li & Fung is based out Hong Kong where they source apparel, accessories, and footwear throughout Asia and has over 80 offices in more than 40 countries.

There three year plan is to grow profits to $1 billion while increasing sales to $20 billion by year 2010…not a bad goal if achieved.

To me its fascinating seeing the gap between sales and actual profits when dealing with the apparel industry. There is usually such a wide gap, because operating cost are far greater than in most industries. Considering that you can run a site generating $20,000 a month on the internet and operating cost being only $200-$500 depending on the type of site and hosting…notice most of the sales are pure profit.

I’m pretty sure most of you are familiar with the term Flame Retardant, which is the ability of fabric to resist burning. Mostly used on specialty clothing and children’s wear on pajamas and clothing alike.

All fabrics will burn but some are more combustible than others. Untreated natural fibers such as cotton, linen and silk burn more readily than wool, which is more difficult to ignite and burns with a low flame velocity.

Source: Fabric.net

Popularity: 6% [?]

Mercerizing for denim is used to increase luster, by passing the denim through a bath of caustic soda. It’s a process carried out after the denim is woven and vastly different to the more common method of mercerizing yarn. As it significantly increases the cost and lead times of denim production, it is a relatively rare process. To the un-trained eye it would go unnoticed.

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One of my favorite online/offline reads is DNR so I highly recommend our readers to jump at the opportunity to work with them on a more personal level.

DNR is the leading men’s magazine part of the Conde Nast group. DNR is looking for 3 interns to work in the fashion department for the Summer semester. They’re looking or someone who is extremely organized, motivated, and loves clothing.

Some of your duties will include:

• Checking in samples and returning samples
• Answering phones, emails
• Assisting the fashion director at photo shoots

Interns will work directly with the Assistant Fashion Editor and the Fashion Director. Interns will learn and gain insight on how the industry works. The internship will begin at the end of May.

This is an unpaid internship position and must be used in exchange for college credit. If interested forward a resume, cover letter, and availability to dnrinterns@gmail.com.

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First off let me say I’m glad the site didn’t lose all its data, but some was lost mostly from the Industry Sourcing page! (Which you can help out with by submitting sites and fashion industry related businesses to).

If you see any other data missing please email us at fred@dobizo.com.

Thanks

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Don thought a good idea for us to get to know each company that may be interested in the collaborated trade show concept would be for us to meet up for the next Alpha & AAE trade show as just visitors and he would handle the badges. All you would have to do is show up and if your going to stay for all days of the trade show have your hotel arrangements setup, if not then visit for one day.

We would get a good feel of who wis serious and also let first time attendees get an idea of how attending a trade show would affect your apparel business.

The show is in Atlanta, Ga on April 6-7…sorry for the short notice, but for more information visit their websites. AAE Show and Alphamart.

Popularity: 5% [?]

I know that statistics say the top reasons for startup failures is knowledgeable business planning, and capital, but I believe in the fashion industry retailers play a big part of the failure rate. If you think about the above statement it kind of contradicts itself because if your being suckered by retailers then most likely they noticed your lack of knowledge or you didn’t take the necessary time to research the company’s you’re working with (planning), but that’s not always the case.

I found out from talking to many designer entrepreneurs that we all face the same similar problems from retailers just plain wasting your time or stiffing you on the payment. Don from Eklectik and I spoke on this matter in our meeting the other day and how he is still owed over $300,000 from stores that have failed to pay.

I think every up and coming brands should take steps to avoid as many losses as possible especially on the financial or inventory side of the playing field, because your operating on such a small level and budget any significant loss can put you out of business.

Be & D is looking for sales and marketing interns for their New York City luxury handbags and footwear line. Their looking for an ambitious, multi-tasker, who can be productive in a busy environment, is detail-oriented, organized and has a passion for fashion and can also be available multiple days per week.

Not many requirements other than being efficient in Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator. This is an unpaid position.

Some of your task will be:

• Administer and catalogue press pulls with our press offices
• Update press tear sheets, filing, scanning
• Maintain and organize press samples and showroom
• Set up mailings to our stores
• Assist logistics with online store
• Date entry and clerical work

If your interested in being considered for this sales and marketing internship forward your resume and availability to kate@beandd.com.

Popularity: 8% [?]

The Cynthia Rowley is looking for an intern to assist the design team with the Spring/Summer 09 collection of her sophisticated fashion line.

No school or experience requirements were posted. If you would like to know more about the Cynthia Rowley Collection visit them online. Applicants must be available 2-3 full days per week, and must be able to stay through shows in September. Interested applicants should send their resume and portfolio samples to contact@cynthiarowley.com

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A Dye Lot is the quantity of fabric that a given manufacturer can color in a single production process in its factory.

Source: Fabrics

Popularity: 3% [?]

Process in which yarn is run through indigo dye, then the color is fixed by exposing it to air. This allows the fabric to fade gradually.

Source: Jeans Glossary

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I had a meeting yesterday with the founder of Eklectik Genes Don Mahmood an active member on the Dobizo Network and he invited me over to speak with him on the fashion industry, the trade show concept, and what it’s like being in the fashion industry.

Let’s just say the guy knows his stuff. I plan on working with him directly to get a lot of new things going on with Dobizo and his clothing line in the near future after seeing that his mind is in the same place as mine and that’s helping the underdog succeed. He’s very passionate about helping many of our users get overseas, attend trade shows, and work with manufacturers without seeing your company get jerked and hopefully avoid some of the mistakes that we both made when starting out.

I wasn’t able to get to my laptop all weekend…so if you’ve sent me an email or posted a question on Dobizo Answers give me a little time to catch up and I will respond accordingly.

I will have a new Ceo Audio up by the end of the week. A little twist in this release though because it will be from a retail buyers perspective. I thought this would be a good twist because he will provide insight on the thought process of how he goes about picking and choosing the brands for his store. What attracts him to a trade show booth? What he looks for in startup brand? and much more so stay tuned this will definitely be of some interest to many up and coming brands trying to break into their first retail account.

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