After its debut in 2006, Prime Source Forum (PSF) will celebrate its 10th anniversary from 24-25 March this year in Hong Kong, emphasising its role as a prime source of information and a meeting point for leaders and decision makers in the textiles, apparel and fashion industry.

The Forum will again cover trends in textile material technology and sustainability, through apparel sourcing decisions and cost reduction efforts and their implications on fashion and retailing.

This year, the main focus will be on Africa and opportunities for apparel production in emerging countries like Kenya. The Forum will also follow up on Bangladesh and what has been achieved since last year’s discussion, as well as an overview of PSF’s satellite event held in China in autumn 2014.

Changing landscape

In the past, suppliers hung on American and European markets, but prevailing economic regulations in the US and the anxiety in the Euro Zone make them look for new opportunities in emerging countries despite potential risks.  Solutions to apparel sourcing in view of the changing global retailing landscape in the industry will be discussed in the afternoon of the first day of the Forum.

“The sourcing zone moved from West to East, from Far East to South East Asia, and potentially from here to Africa. What’s next? It is time for the West to look at the cost of selling instead of just focusing on cost of purchase,” said Rahul Mehta, President of the Clothing Manufacturers Association of India (CMAI).

2020 Vision

After hearing about the macro issues for the whole day on 24 March, the Global Apparel, Footwear and Textile Initiative (GAFTI) will continue to drive the audience to their 2020 Vision in the last session of the day.

“Our ultimate goal is to bring together stakeholders of the textiles, apparel, footwear, and fashion supply chain industries to improve efficiency and set standards globally. We want to reduce complexity, remove costs from common industry practices and drive transparency,” explained GAFTI’s Chairman, Robert Sinclair who is also Chief Operating Officer of Li & Fung Trading.

“Collaboration among the industry will hopefully lead to a more focused approach to setting standards that create a win-win situation for everyone engaged in the supply chain.”

Sourcing and offshore production in Africa

On the morning of the second day, the Forum will delve into sourcing and offshore production in Africa.  William Marshall, the trade agreement specialist from Baker & McKenzie will examine the financial benefits and deficiencies of offshore production, in view of worldwide geo-political instability and outbreak of infectious diseases.

The panel will follow with a debate on the role of Africa becoming the future global sourcing hub.  Executives from PVH and VF buying offices will share their experiences of exploring the production opportunities in southern Africa and areas the executives must pay attention to.

Responsible sourcing

On the afternoon of 25 March, the Forum will be engaged in responsible sourcing.  Dr Gong Yan from the Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology, involved in policy formulation, will interpret the new measures about the Chinese government’s plans to inspect all garments before importing to and exporting from their country.

“The only country where I am aware of such regulations existing is Japan with their JIS Mark, which exporters apply for in order to prove their product quality. Are such regulations followed in a voluntary or mandatory way?” challenged Hans Buehr, former purchasing head of Triumph and now Executive Director of the Hong Kong Intimate Apparel Industries Association.

www.primesourceforum.com