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Champion Athleticwear opens second retail store in US
Champion Athleticwear is continuing to expand its retail footprint with a second US retail specialty store opening in New York City, US. Since 1919, Champion Athleticwear, a brand of Hanesbrands, has offered a full line of innovative athletic apparel for men and women including activewear, sweats, tees, sports bras, team uniforms, and accessories.
At the store’s grand opening on August 25, 2018, the first 500 customers to shop will receive a limited-edition canvas tote bag with exclusive art designed by Andre Trenier, a local Bronx artist. The 4,900 square feet store will feature onsite customisation, which now includes embroidery and patches, allowing shoppers to design one-of-a-kind Champion garments made on-demand and tailored to their specific preferences, according to a company press release.
In addition to customisation, there will be specialised product assortments available only in the SoHo store, including the ongoing collaboration with designer Todd Snyder and both the European and Japanese collections. Regional collections, inspired by the New York City area in which the store resides, and exclusive styles, colours, and partnerships with local artists such as Andre Trenier will be available.
With Champion’s step back into footwear this year, a dedicated wall of sneakers will feature items from its new fall 2018 product-line. Ranging in materials from suede, leather and knit, the retro-inspired joggers are perfect for consumers looking to shop classic footwear pieces.
In conjunction with the launch, the store will celebrate the 80th anniversary of the brand’s iconic Reverse Weave sweatshirts and hoodie. Five vintage Reverse Weave items, the brand’s signature franchise, will be displayed throughout the store. To continue the celebrations, a limited-edition anniversary style will be available exclusively at the store in fall 2018. The retail space will display archived pieces of historical significance for the very first time in a permanent vault, allowing Champion fans to better experience the brand’s rich history while in store. Archived pieces include a football jersey, Dream Team jersey, collegiate jacket, an early sweater, and a t-shirt.
Through a combination of new and vintage imagery, product displays and merchandising, the store’s design provides a perfect backdrop to bring its heritage to life. Key materials used throughout the store provide a sports-inspired arena for customers to utilise, including actual bleachers for a functional seating option and recycled basketball courts reimagined as display fixtures. (GK)|Fibre2Fashion News Desk.
New Tech to Affect Textile Technology landscape
The textile technology landscape will be affected by new technologies such as IoT, AI, Bitcoin, Blockchains and more as they become immersed in the overall supply chain practices. As the amount of data that can be captured and processed increases, they further emphasise the importance of a digital supply chain, said the founder of GT Nexus, an Infor company.
“If companies are still emailing purchase orders and using spreadsheets to run their operations, they will not be in position to take advantage of these new technologies as they evolve. The supply chain has become a strategic advantage and those that don't stay in front of technological innovation will find themselves being disrupted before many of these technologies become reality,” said Kurt Cavano, founder & president, GT Nexus, while speaking to Fibre2Fashion.
GT Nexus is a cloud-based global supply chain management platform. It provides the industry-wide collaboration platform to automate trade and logistics operations across their global partner networks.
Cavano added that connecting with trading partners on a common network sheds light on to what is actually happening in the supply chain and enables visibility, collaboration, and transaction automation between trading partners. He also stated that textile and garment manufacturers must continue to evolve, or they will lose out to more IT-fortified competitors.
As for the challenges faced by today’s manufacturing supply chains, he said, “There's a lot of pressure on supply chains to perform at a high level. Technology is evolving so quickly in the supply chain, which puts pressure on manufacturers to evolve rapidly. As new innovations hit the market, there's always pressure deciding what is real, what is hype and what is going to make a difference. One thing is clear, the future is a digital.” (KD) | Fibre2Fashion News Desk.