This year, 40 exhibitors came from nine different countries to Avantex Paris, the biannual event for the creative and technical source of tomorrow’s fashion industry, which took place last month. On the occasion of its seventh session, the show assembled around 40 prominent firms and organisations from eight countries that design, make and distribute technological products and solutions for fashion with high added value.

“Avantex Paris is not just a meeting place for business. It is a real hub for trading ideas that focus on research, investigation and marketing of solutions to address the challenges facing the clothing industry, both today and tomorrow,” commented Michael Scherpe, President of Messe Frankfurt France.

“Incidentally, I am delighted with the European response to the call from the exhibition, which was the first to combine fashion and technology in the textile industry, regarding major issues such as durability, sustainability, traceability and all expectations of the active consumer in the digital era.”

From straightforward prime contractors or the heads of fashion and luxury brands through to consultants, research engineers and even investors – everyone eagerly awaited the trends compiled by Avantex Paris, organisers report.

Successful participation

“We saw huge numbers of high-calibre visitors,” commented Magnus Hellström, Marketing and Business Director at Coloreel, demonstrating its new colouring unit for embroidery machines. “We are delighted, we met our target group, distributors. Certain visitors came from China, Japan, Taiwan and India but also from Eastern Europe, which seems to be the trend at the moment.”

Success was also encountered by other start-up businesses, who came to promote their expertise, such as the French firm INDUO with its water-repellent fabric, which is of interest to the luxury sector, or the Belgian firm Retviews with its algorithms for market surveys in real-time.

New types of clothing distribution, very close to consumer wishes, were unveiled, in particular by the European Centre for Innovative Textiles and its Future Apparel Experience by CETI, a place for encouraging experiments with IoT tools. Great work has also been done in this area by Tô & Guy, a French firm that combines co-design, printing and augmented reality to achieve greater customisation. CETI also reported considerable demand at its stand for alternative solutions for leather. A project for tomorrow.

Technical materials on display

Avantex Paris included a huge variety of technical materials invented by South Korean, Chinese and Taiwanese manufacturers, which are always very popular, mainly with buyers for outdoor and sports brands.

The Finnish Alvar Aalto University attended the fair for the first time. “We held a number of interesting discussions with European and Asian companies about future collaboration. We don't sell finished products, but we can provide support in creating new materials. Overall, we made a large number of contacts, who are concerned with the future of recycling and environmental responsibility in fashion,” commented Pirjo Kääriäine, professor and head of the CHEMARTS programme.

Avantex Fashion Pitch

The third Avantex Fashion Pitch competition took place during the event. The first prize at this September's session went to a young American start-up called Nineteenth Amendment, which intends to revolutionise the retail business for fashion products. A package of tools and services for fashion designers and companies aims to simplify development of garments, from design to sales by way of production. The firm will benefit from individual guidance, a presentation at Avantex Paris next February and support from WiRATE and Moovjee in furthering its goals, while CETI will provide advice.

Three other competition entrants deserved a special mention: Wonda Kammer and his men's shirts manufactured in Ghana finished in second place. It was followed by Gorfoo, a brand for clothing, accessories and shoes made of plant-based materials, and the collection of precise curves from Simone Simon. All three will have an outfit exhibited at the next show in addition to coaching sessions provided by Hall Couture.

www.avantex-paris.com