Clothes are well sold on the global stage with tags ‘Made in Korea’ . But, unfortunately, there are few textile and sewing companies in Korea since most of them have moved their factories to China and Vietnam. This impelled Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency’s (KOTRA) to come up with the concept of fashion fund.
Han Ki-won, commissioner of the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency’s (KOTRA) foreign investment promotion division, Invest Korea, is working on introducing a related fashion fund.
The fund is a collaboration that combines the expertise of Korean designers and that of Chinese sewing factories. It is a financial product, but at the same time it makes products by investing in small and medium-sized companies in both countries. It is a win-win solution for both countries.
According to industry watchers, the fund will be a success, given the trend over the past two years. During that time, many Chinese firms either merged with Korean fashion companies or, turned into a the largest shareholders by purchasing local companies’ controlling shares.
Suhyang Networks, that has children’s clothes brands including Blue Dog and Min0kmui, merged with LI & Fung group in 2013; while Chinese private fund Unitas Capital invested 180 billion won in local outdoor wear maker Nepa in 2012. Yeonseung Apparel, which has GGPX and Top Girl brands, merged with Chinese fashion brand, and the largest shareholder for Avista, which owns BNX, is also a Chinese group.
Han’s team has been working on the project for almost six months and prior to the visit by Chinese President Xi Jin-ping.
The new fund will be launched later this year. The products developed through the fund can be sold under the "Made in Korea, Made with China" slogan.
Oysho, the sportswear and leisurewear brand, has collaborated with Fulgar to introduce a new eco-friendly activewear collection made with Q-Cycle…
Autoneum has developed E-Fiber flame shields for electric vehicles, which stand out for their high-temperature resistance, lightweight structure and durability.
McLaren has introduced a world-first innovation in supercar engineering, Automated Rapid Tape (ART) carbon fibre redefining performance while reducing waste.
Delius, a renowned textile manufacturer based in Bielefeld, Germany, is setting new benchmarks in sustainable contract fabrics with its EcoSafe…
Bank & Vogue, the parent company of Beyond Retro, is redefining sustainability in the fashion industry through groundbreaking upcycling projects.
Ravel, a recycling startup, has successfully closed its pre-seed funding round, marking a major milestone in its mission to revolutionize…