01 October 2021, Mumbai:

Flipkart, India's indigenous e-commerce platform, is gearing up for the 8th edition of The Big Billion Days, its flagship festive event, and is actively working with its Flipkart Samarth artisans, weavers, and handicraft producers to allow their lives and business success.

This holiday season, the program's craftsmen and weavers have created a special line of items based on the subject "Artforms of India," in order to appeal to the pan-India consumer base who purchase online throughout the festive season.

Flipkart Samarth has been collaborating with government agencies, livelihood missions, and non-governmental organizations to democratize e-commerce via technology and establish a sustainable and inclusive platform for underserved domestic communities.

Since last year, the initiative has seen a 7x increase in sales, affecting 9,50,000 lives by expanding market options and guiding them as they get more comfortable with internet shopping. In comparison to the non-holiday time, artists who participated in Flipkart's annual festive event witnessed a 2.5x boost in revenue last year. This year,

‘Artforms of India' will offer goods from all around India with a rich cultural history and strong regional importance to customers. “With a bigger number of beneficiaries this holiday season, we're excited to provide them with an inclusive platform where they can display their unique items through a dedicated storefront and collection.

“Our goal is to guarantee that Indian customers can picture their participation in affecting the fortunes of these people when making a purchase,” said Jagjeet Harode, Senior Director and Head - Marketplace, Flipkart.

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28th September 2021, Mumbai:

Ravi Sam, MD of Adwaith Textiles Coimbatore, has been elected as the next Chairman of the Southern India Mills' Association (SIMA) for the years 2021-22.

The 62nd Annual General Meeting (AGM) of SIMA was held in Coimbatore, and the new members of the Committee overwhelmingly chose Ravi as Chairman during their first meeting following the AGM.

Ravi Sam, a commerce graduate and post-graduate in Textile Technology from The University of Manchester Institute of Science & Technology, is the founder Trustee of Siruthuli, a Coimbatore-based organization dedicated to the protection of water bodies.

He also participates in a variety of social welfare initiatives. He was the Chairman of CII Tamil Nadu and is now the Chairman of the CII SR Sub Committee on Sustainability, CSR, and Affirmative Action, which covers all six Southern States and aims to promote inclusivity to the marginalized segments of society.

Dr. SK Sundararaman, MD, of Shiva Texyarn Limited in Coimbatore, was overwhelmingly chosen as Deputy Chairman. He graduated from Cambridge University in the United Kingdom with a bachelor's degree in medicine and a master's degree in business administration.

Dr. Sundararaman is a well-known figure in India's technical textiles industry, as well as in technical education. He is now the Chairman of the Indian Technical Textile Association.

The Vice-Chairman has been unanimously chosen as Durai Palanisamy, ED, Pallava Textiles Erode. He has a Bachelor of Technology in Textile Technology from PSG College of Technology and an MBA in International Business from Southern New Hampshire University.

He is the Erode Zone Vice-President of the CII. He also serves on the Synthetic & Rayon Textiles Export Promotion Council's Administration Committee (SRTEPC).

Ravi Sam, speaking at a press conference, stated that SIMA will work closely with all Export Promotion Councils (EPCs), particularly TEXPROCIL, to maximize the benefits of FTAs for the textile and apparel industries.

“In order for India to gain an edge, the government should make efforts to have a ‘Yarn and Fabric Forward Rule' rather than value addition and Rule of Origin,” he added. He urged the government to impose a 5% GST on the whole MMF value chain as well.

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25th September 2021, Mumbai:

Swedish home furnishing company Ikea has unveiled a new festive collection named Aromatisk in India. The collection is completely sourced and made from local Indian suppliers and has a range of cushion covers, bowls, tea light and lanterns, and décor items.

Aromatisk – which in Swedish means a smell of celebration and togetherness – is inspired by Indian households and have a colorful vibrant pattern that are the highlight of the range.

The collection has a rich feel and focuses on essential design and has a colorful blend of textiles and decorations with a modern Scandinavian expression inspired by Indian folklore.

The collection is collaboration between Ikea’s two in-house designers – Akanksha Sharma and Paulin Machado. It would be available across IKEA stores, online and mobile app from September 2021. The collection will range from lanterns, cushion covers, curtains, décor objects to bed sheets, tea light holders, cake stands,etc.

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30th September 2021, Mumbai:

Reliance acquired e-commerce platform Fynd is converting its registered company into a public company. As per the Inc42 report, Fynd’s registered company Shopsense Retail Technology will be converted into Shopsense Retail Technologies Retail.

The public company will comply with SEBI’s regulations which seek a subsidiary of a listed company to convert into a public company. Harish Madnani, Additional Director, Fynd will also be appointed a director in the startup.

Madnani was a chief financial officer of Jio Payment Bank, Marks & Spencer Reliance India, and Reliance Jio Media.

Founded in 2012 by Farooq Adam, Harsh Shah, and Sreeraman MG, Fynd is an omnichannel fashion platform that sells products across various categories – including clothing, footwear, jewellery, and accessories, from prominent brands in the country.

It enables small and medium-sized businesses to go online by helping them list their inventory on multiple e-commerce platforms such as Amazon, Nykaa among others. The startup also helps small businesses with last-mile logistics delivery.

The Mumbai-based startup optimizes delivery time by sourcing products from the outlets nearest to the customer.

The startup employs more than 250 employees spread across design, engineering, data science, operations, and sales. It claims to deliver products from over 600 brands and 10,000 stores.

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4. Maharashtra government honors VIP as 'Best Innerwear Brand' for 2021-22

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28th September 2021, Mumbai:

ShuHaRi software and e-learning solutions have been launched by JUKI America, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Japanese sewing technology firm JUKI Corporation.

The ShuHaRi app, which is available for free download, is meant to assist JUKI sewing machine users with everyday machine maintenance by providing step-by-step instructions directly on their smartphones.

According to JUKI, the app provides a step-by-step learning method and is derived from the Japanese term "Shu Ha Ri," which means "to maintain (Shu), apply (Ha), and develop (Ri) the fundamentals."

Users of the ShuHaRi app may access daily, 3-month, and 6-month inspection modules, each of which records the inspector's identity as well as the inspection findings. Users may also use the app to buy new components for their JUKI equipment, which will be shipped straight to their factory's purchasing department, making maintenance and upkeep as simple as possible.

The e-learning program, on the other hand, is paid and is designed to educate people and organizations in the sewing industry with various modules on training a sewing machine operator or management in sewing machine plants – whether or not they own a JUKI machine.

“The garment and manufacturing industries were among the most impacted during the Covid-19 pandemic, and the scarcity of trained technicians and teachers in these disciplines has been a significant burden,” Sebastian Vasquez, JUKI America Manager, said of the launches.

If there is a silver lining to our current condition, it is that we have entered a new digital era in which equipment maintenance may be as simple as downloading an app, and education can be as simple as taking online courses.

That is why we are excited to make the new ShuHaRi app and e-learning solutions available to sewing machine operators and plant managers across the Americas.”

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4. Maharashtra government honors VIP as 'Best Innerwear Brand' for 2021-22

5. Nike strengthens retail presences with new store at DLF Mall of India,Noida

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25th September 2021, Mumbai:

The method for issuing duty credit for products exported under the tax refund program Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products has been announced by the finance minister (RoDTEP).

In August of this year, the RoDTEP plan issued tariffs for 8,555 items, including marine, agricultural, leather, jewels, and jewelry.

The stated export FOB (Freight On Board) value or up to 1.5 times the market price of that item, whichever is smaller, would be used to calculate duty credit under the program, according to a department of revenue announcement.

It stated that the duty credit would be granted in place of remission of any duty, tax, or levy imposed on any material used in the production or processing of products destined for export, and if such tax is not exempted, remitted, or credited under any other program.

The notice said, "The Central Government now informs the way in which duty credit would be issued for products exported under the Scheme for Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products subject to such criteria and limits as indicated."

For the current fiscal year, the government has set aside Rs 12,454 crore for reimbursements under the program. Various government and state tariffs, taxes, and levies levied on input items, for example, would be reimbursed to exporters under this arrangement.

It also stated that duty credit under the scheme for exports to Nepal, Bhutan, and Myanmar would be granted only after the sale proceeds were realized against irrevocable letters of credit in freely convertible currency established by importers in these countries in favor of Indian exporters for the value of such goods.

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29th September 2021, Mumbai:

“Reducing compliance is about restoring confidence in every businessperson and citizen. It becomes simpler to develop a non-confrontational policy framework after confidence has been built. Simplifying regulations, eliminating compliance requirements, and decriminalizing some laws all contribute to a wider framework for conducting business.

It has the potential to be transformative,” the Minister added. According to Anurag Jain, Secretary, DPIIT, the Centre and states have eliminated over 22,000 compliances. More than 1,200 procedures have been digitized, and about 13,000 compliances have been simplified.

The government has also decriminalized 103 offenses and repealed 327 outdated laws in recent years.

Piyush Goyal, Minister of Commerce, Industry, and Textiles, remarked that Central Ministries and States/UTs are working together to reduce compliance burdens with the objective of simplifying, decriminalizing, and removing redundant legislation.

He was presenting at the National Workshop on Reducing Compliance Burden hosted by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT). According to the Minister, measures to reduce the compliance burden by simplifying and decriminalizing certain rules can have a multiplier effect on ease of doing business.

To alleviate these constraints, each ministry, department, and state was requested to do a full assessment of compliances under their purview to determine their relevance and logic, as well as complete a complete process re-engineering to eliminate burdensome compliances.

46 penal provisions of the Companies Act, 2013 and 12 offenses under the Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) Act, 2008 have been decriminalized by the Centre, and States/UTs have reduced time for granting approvals/licenses, eliminated physical touch-points, and brought transparency to citizens and businesses through business process re-engineering.

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28th September 2021, Mumbai:

In the post-COVID age, sustainability mixed with quality appears to be the way ahead in business, and Jodhpur (India)-based handicraft start-up Furnweave Handicrafts Pvt. Ltd. is hoping to expand its turnover to Rs.4 crore in FY '22.

Despite a short-term setback caused by the COVID-19 epidemic in 2020, Furnweave met its objective in FY '21, which concluded in March, with a revenue of over Rs. 1 crore.

The ecstatic Furnweave and its team have decided to increase their production capacity in a systemic manner in the manufacturing facility located in Jodhpur – a city known for its beautiful handicraft history – as consumer demand for home textile and furnishing products grows in today's time when people are looking for products with longevity and durability that remain as core requisites.

The firm, which was formed in the second part of FY '20 by two young entrepreneurs Himanshu Agrawal and Mayank Maloo, is a premium maker of specialized handcraft goods such as Charpai, Bench, Stools, Tables, Storage Box, Basket, Chairs, Night Lamp, and Step Stool.

Charpai/WoodenKhaat is the most memorable bespoke memento that comes out of the company's production plant, according to Apparel Resources. Charpai/WoodenKhaat is essentially an Indian bed that is portable, extremely environmentally friendly and a part of the historical culture and tradition.

To make its high-end items, the firm employs all sustainable materials, such as recycled plastic, polyester textiles, PET bottles, and waste saree fabric. Furnweave has worked with craftsmen skilled in weaving who live in the surrounding villages and outskirts of Jodhpur to achieve this.

“As part of our efforts to make manufacturing more environmentally friendly, we utilize cotton, jute, recycled Saree ropes, and recycled plastic to manufacture our goods, and we believe this is the way ahead in present times,”

Himanshu Agarwal, Co-founder, Furnweave, told Apparel Resources. Himanshu also revealed that his firm has recycled over 10,000 kg of saree trash to date, with the amount expected to rise to around 50,000 kg in FY '22 due to the growth scheduled for FY '22.

Mayank Maloo, the co-founder of Furnweave, said of the development, "We are in no way in rivalry with other firms." We aren't in the business of selling low-cost, low-quality goods.

The only reason we have such a narrow product basket with an ‘average' beginning price of roughly Rs. 7,000 is because we know quality works well with quality consumers.

Today's client is no longer seeking low-cost things made of non-renewable resources, and the consumer industry, whether it's clothes or handicrafts, is being pushed by such conscious shoppers.

There is a major shift in the industry, and we understand what clients want from a responsible firm like ours.” It's worth mentioning that Furnweave's declaration of tripling its turnover also opens up a lot of job opportunities in the handicrafts and weaving industries in Jodhpur and its environs.

“We are aware of our social responsibilities as well. Our development plans seek to enhance this industry and the livelihood of the craftsmen who have been involved in it for a long time, as we have ties with weavers in and around the city,” Himanshu said.

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24th September 2021, Mumbai:

E-commerce firms Amazon, Flipkart, and others are expected to witness blockbuster festive season sales this year as an increasing number of consumers are shopping online at a higher frequency than last year, as per consulting firm RedSeer’s e-commerce festive season report.

As per this report, the gross merchandize value of festive sales is expected to grow 30 percent year-over-year to $4.8 billion during the first week of the festive season and potentially clock over $9 billion GMV during the whole festive month This is a 23 percent increase from last year wherein the e-commerce players clocked a GMV of $7.4 billion.

The overall online GMV is expected to increase 37 percent over last year to touch $49-52 billion. Growth will be mostly driven by the accelerated online adoption which has been witnessed as an effect of COVID. Secondly, Tier-II-plus cities and towns will continue to drive growth as they are 55-60 percent of the total shopper base this year, similar or higher than 57 percent in 2020 festive days.

The RedSeer report finds the sellers are bullish on this year’s sales and are looking to recover the losses suffered due to COVID. Flipkart plans to kick off the country’s festive season with the 8th edition of its biggest flagship event, The Big Billion Days (TBBD), from October 7-12.

The six-day event will see millions of consumers, sellers, small businesses, artisans, Kiranas, brands, and e-commerce ecosystem partners come together for the upcoming festive season.

Amazon has also announced this year’s ‘Great Indian Festival sale. The event will go live around the festive season in India this year.

The event would allow hundreds of thousands of small and medium businesses (SMBs) to offer a unique selection to customers.

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29th September 2021, Mumbai:

The Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) has created a web called easeoflogistics.com to bring Indian exporters and logistics service providers together on a single platform for improved pricing discovery.

The site provides value to all stakeholders by providing real-time information on container availability. Exporters can directly publish their container requirements for service providers to offer their best estimates, allowing service providers to engage the concerned exporters directly, negotiate container costs, and make future business decisions.

Piyush Goyal, Minister of Commerce, Industry, and Textiles, just launched this webpage. This program is intended to assist exporters because container supply is a big concern. The platform, which was created to help Indian exporters, provides real-time container availability information.

This implies that if containers aren't easily available on this platform right now, registered exporters may obtain a schedule for when and how many containers will be available, as well as the names and addresses of providers.

Exporters will be able to organize their shipment schedules and confirm business transactions more easily as a result of this.

More than 1,800 exporters and over 300 service providers have already signed up for the platform. FIEO has also received cooperation from all major logistics associations, including Container Shipping Lines (CSLA), Freight Forwarders (FFFAI), and the Association of Multimodal Transport Operators of India, to ensure an effective response rate to exporters' demand (AMTOI).

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4. Maharashtra government honors VIP as 'Best Innerwear Brand' for 2021-22

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25th September 2021, Mumbai:

Almost A year after the Maharashtra government received the report from the special investigation team (SIT) created to look into the problem of unlicensed transgenic cotton seed sales, no action has been done.

The SIT, led by IPS officer Krishna Prakash, delivered its findings in October after conducting an extensive investigation into the matter, which has turned into a significant policy concern in the country.

60-65 lakh packets of unapproved herbicide-tolerant (Ht) Bt cotton were distributed among the 4-4.5 crore packets of cotton seeds sold in the country this season. In India, cotton is the only genetically modified crop that may be grown commercially.

Only BT cotton (obtained by introducing the foreign genes Cry1Ab and Cry2Bc) is allowed. Aside from that, farmers prefer the second generation of BT cotton or herbicide-tolerant HT Bt cotton (which includes another foreign gene, Cp4Epsps). This transgenic version permits farmers to employ the broad-spectrum weedicide Glyphosate, which Bt cotton cannot tolerate.

Given this benefit, weed management accounts for more than 40% of the total cost of production. Farmers are increasingly putting their faith in Ht Bt cotton since agricultural labor is both scarce and expensive.

This transgenic variant's seed is frequently obtained illegally for a high price. The agriculture department of the state government has filed many FIRs, but no permanent solution to the matter has been discovered.

The SIT was established by the state government in 2018 with the mission of delving into the issue and making suggestions for future steps. Officials who spoke to The Indian Express on the condition of anonymity claimed the study included a number of recommendations for regulating the sale of illicit Ht Bt cotton seeds.

One of the proposals is to create indigenous and cost-effective weed-control technologies. Weed control accounts for almost 40% of production costs, according to the research, and is a key issue for farmers.

The research proposed that weed management methods, such as mechanical and other equipment, be created to aid farmers to avoid choosing this option.

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23rd September 2021, Mumbai:

Consumer spending in India is shifting towards discretionary items, reveals the Global State of Consumer Tracker by consultancy and advisory firm Deloitte. Consumers are ready to spend more on discretionary items as they feels safe about returning to work and travel, the report adds.

They are also less hesitant about in-person events and activities. The report states, with robust vaccination initiatives by the government, Indians have gained confidence and are slowly returning to the workplace.

Moreover, with festive season around the corner and lower COVID-19 cases, Indian consumers are showing lower levels of anxiety, resulting in their willingness to increase spending on more discretionary items. The report shows, consumers are spending 36 per cent on clothing and footwear, 33 per cent on electronics, 25 per cent on home furnishings and 22 per cent on restaurants.

The survey is based on a 30-day analysis of consumer spending behaviour of 1,000 persons in India, in July-August. Besides, consumers are all set for international travel as several countries are lifting travel restrictions for India. Almost 57 per cent Indians surveyed are planning international travel for leisure in the next three months.

Consumer have also transformed to being socially conscious shoppers with 68 per cent respondents opting for more locally sourced items and 74 per cent purchasing from brands that responded well to the crisis.

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5. GOVERNOR OF MAHARASHTRA HONOURS KAPIL PATHARE WITH BUSINESS EXCELLENCE AND VIP INNERWEAR AS BEST BRAND 2021-22

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