JUL

25

ROPE DYEING
Visit Site: Denim

Most denim is yarn-dyed fabric with the warp yarns dyed with indigo dye and
the filling yarns left undyed. There are a number of modifications or
alternatives in the dyeing process that are routinely used to change the
overall look or performance of the fabric. With the advent of denim garment
washing techniques, the consistencies of the indigo dyeing process and its
modifications have become crucially important in determining the quality
and performance of indigo denim products.

The properties of the indigo dye account for the wide variety of color designs
that are available on denim materials. Indigo is unique as a major textile
dye, because it has a very low affinity for the cotton fiber. Because of the
low substantively of the indigo, the ball warps dyeing process ring dyes
cotton. Unlike almost all other commercially successful dye-stuffs, the indigo
dye concentrates in the outer layers of the cotton yarn and fiber during the
dyeing process. This produces an intense ring of color around a white core in
the cotton yarn and the cotton fiber thus the name ring dyeing. When using
most other dyes, if the ring-dyeing effect occurs, it would be considered a
dyeing defect.

This ring diameter depends on pH and ORP or can be adjusted by these two
factors

                                    pH      +     ORP

                    NAOH                                        Na2S2O3

Indigo dye in its normal form is a vibrant blue, it is insoluble in water, and it
will not dye cotton fiber. In order to dye cotton, the indigo must be
converted to a water-soluble “leuco” form and then applied to the cotton.
This process is known as chemical reduction. Reducing agents such as
sodium hydrosulphite with sodium hydroxide chemically convert the indigo
dye to its soluble form. This also temporarily converts the dye from its blue
color to a very pale greenish yellow color. The leuco form of indigo is readily
absorbed by the outer layers of the cotton yarn. Once in the fiber/yarn, the
indigo is made insoluble by oxidizing the yarn by passing the yarn through
the air (skying). In fact, the dye will start to oxidize immediately when
exposed to the air. The oxygen in air converts the dye back to its original
blue and insoluble form. Thus the dye becomes trapped inside the outer
layers of the cotton yarn. This results in a small amount of dye being
deposited on the surface resulting in only light blue dyed yarn. In order to
obtain deep blue indigo dyed yarns, the color must be built in layers.

The dye is layered by using multiple passes of the rope of yarn into the
soluble dye and then exposing it to the air for oxidation. This multiple
passing of yarn into dye is called dips. Normally, this process is repeated
from three to twelve times to build up a deep indigo blue color. The number
of dips is limited to the number of dye boxes on the dye range. If the
concentration of indigo dye in the dye boxes is doubled, this will result in
slightly darker denim. This acts as a multiplier when labeling the denim. A
double concentration of dye in nine dye boxes makes it 18-dip denim.
Tripling the concentration makes it 27-dip denim. When even darker shades
are desired, a sulfur black or blue dye can be applied to the yarn before
indigo dyeing. This is known as a sulfur bottom. If the sulfur dye is applied
after the yarn has been indigo dyed, it is known as sulfur top.

In rope dyeing, ball warps are continuously fed into the rope or chain-dyeing
range for application of the indigo dyeing. Typically, 12-36 individual ropes
of yarn are fed side-by-side simultaneously into the range. The ropes are
kept separate from each other throughout the various parts of the dye
range. For example, if the total number of ends on the loom beam is 3,456,
and each ball would have 288 ends, then the dye set would have a total of
12 ball warps. If there can only be a multiple of 10 balls on the dye range,
then there would be 345 ends on 9 balls and 351 ends on the tenth ball.

The ropes are first fed into one or more scouring baths, which consist of
wetting agents detergents and caustic. The purpose of these baths is to
remove naturally occurring impurities found on the cotton fiber such as dirt,
minerals, ash, pectin, and naturally occurring waxes. It is very important to
remove these materials to guarantee uniform wetting and uniform dyeing.
The ropes are subsequently fed into one or more water rinsing baths.

If a sulfur bottom is required at this point, the ropes of yarn are fed into a
bath of a reduced sulfur dye. Similar to indigo, sulfur dyes are water
insoluble. They must be reduced to a water-soluble form before applying to
cotton. Unlike indigo, the sulfur dye can penetrate into the core of the cotton
fiber/yarn. The purpose of this process is to give the indigo dyed yarns a
much deeper and darker shade or to slightly change the shade of the blue
yarn to make it unique.

Once the reduced sulfur dye is applied to the ropes, they are skied to allow
the dye to oxidize into its normal water insoluble form.

The ropes of yarn are then fed into the indigo dye baths and skied after each
dip. The ropes of yarn are rinsed in several water baths to remove any
unfixed dye. If a variant type of yarn color is desired, sulfur dye can be
added at this point. Similar to the bottom-dyeing process discussed
previously, this process is known as a sulfur top. Although the sulfur dye will
migrate towards the core of the fiber/yarn, the sulfur top gives a different
type of yarn color performance when garment washed than a sulfur bottom.
The sulfur top process is then followed by a water rinse to remove any
unfixed dye.

After either rinsing following indigo dyeing or rinsing following sulfur topping,
the yarn ropes pass through squeeze rolls to mechanically extract water. The
yarns are then dried and coiled into large tubs. The typical type of drying
apparatus is a multiple stack of drying cans. These metal cylinders, which in
most cases are Teflon® covered to prevent the yarn from sticking, are filled
with steam under pressure. Maintaining a consistent pressure of steam
within the cylinder can accurately control the temperature of the surface of
each cylinder. Care must be taken not to attempt to dry the rope of yarn too
quickly, which causes the dye to migrate to the surface of the rope.
Additionally, if the surface of the drying can is too hot, the yarn can be over
stressed producing an undesirable glazed appearance that reduces
absorbency in later processing. Over-drying of the yarns will weaken them
considerably adversely affecting re-beaming, sizing, and weaving.

After drying, the color of the yarn is checked either visually or

instrumentally. With many modern indigo dye ranges, the color of the yarn
is continuously monitored by instruments, which are electronically linked to
the controls of the indigo dye baths. This type of control system can
automatically adjust the dynamics of the process to obtain the most
consistent color from the beginning to the end of the many thousands of
yards of yarn contained within a single dye lot.

In order to minimize the color variability between denim fabric panels after
garment washing, denim manufacturers employ a technique known as
sequential dyeing. Basically, this method is based on the concept that the
color properties of indigo-dyed yarn processed at a specific time, most
closely resemble the color properties of the indigo yarn processed just before
and just after that lot. This method has proven much more effective at
 minimizing color variability in garment washing when compared to the
technique of shade sorting alone.

Visit Site : Denim

Posted 25th July 2013 by Vaibhav
Labels: Ball warping Denim fabric Denim Fabric Manufacturing Denim Jeans Denim Yarn Dyeing
with Indigo DyeIndigo Dye Indigo Dyed Yarn Indigo dyeing Indigo Dyeing Process Rope dyeing
  
3 
View comments

1.

Liu Mark28 June 2015 at 18:30

sulphur black dye manufacturer in China, please contact me at mark121928@gmail.com

Reply

2.

Dilip Mall21 January 2016 at 23:16

Thanks for sharing information.

online recharge 
Existing customers can avail the tariff benefit of ALL LOCAL CALLS at 25P/min for 3 months on Special
Tariff voucher (STV)priced at Rs 38 only in Haryana.
Reply

3.

Apsara Sisodia2 February 2016 at 01:12

Thanks for the post. You can also promote your business by simply taking help from the free advertising
sites as they can help you in making your business promotion easy with ease and in minimum cost.
Reply

Textile World
  

The manufacture and marketing of

garments is one of the most basic and

most competitive industries in the world.

This blog is related to Garment

Marketing, Brand Promotion, Garment

Online Marketing, Current and future

trends, Garment case studies.

 Classic
 

 Flipcard
 

 Magazine
 

 Mosaic
 

 Sidebar
 

 Snapshot
 
 Timeslide
1.
SEP

14

Major denim Manufacturer

Visit Site :  Denim

- 575 Denim (May 75) (USA)

- 7 For All Mankind (USA)
- Aarvee Denims and Exports Ltd. (India)
- ABC Exports Company (India)
- Adriano Goldschmied (AG Jeans) (USA)
- Alpha Garment, Inc. (USA)
- Alpinestars SpA (Italy)
- American Apparel, Inc. (USA)
- American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (USA)
- Annapurna Apparels Ltd. (India)
- Anoname Jeans (USA)
- Ariat International, Inc. (USA)
- Arora Group (USA)
- Arvind Ltd. (India)
- Ashburn Hill Corporation (USA)
- Balloon Marketing Co., Ltd. (Thailand)
- Black Peony (Group) Co., Ltd. (China)
- Blessed & Cursed GmbH (Germany)
- Blue Notch (USA)
- Bond SP. z.o.o. (Poland)
- BOSSA (Turkey)
- Brand Jeans SA (Greece)
- C.P.F. Srl (Italy)
- Caitac International, Inc. (Japan)
- Calvin Klein, Inc. (USA)
- Carrare (France)
- Carrera SpA (Italy)
- Century Textiles & Industries Ltd. (India)
- Christopher Blue (USA)
- Cone Denim (USA)
- Cowest S.L. (Spain)
- Denimatrix (Guatemala)
- Diesel SpA (Italy)
- Dish Jeans Ltd. (Canada)
- DL1961 Premium Denim (USA)
- Dolce & Gabbana Srl (Italy)
- Domenico Vacca (Italy)
- Dr Denim Jeanmakers (Sweden)
- Earnest Sewn (USA)
- Easey Garment Factory Ltd. (Hong Kong)
- Edwin Company (Japan)
- Ego Jeans Ltd. (Philippines)
- EL Vaaz SNC (Algeria)
- Energiers SA (Greece)
- Esprit Holdings Ltd. (Hong Kong)
- F. Engel Konfektionsselskab A/S (Denmark)
- Façonnable (France)
- Fidelity Denim (USA)
- Fifth & Pacific Companies, Inc. (USA)
- Frankie B. Jeans (USA)
- Gap, Inc. (USA)
- Gap, Inc. - Banana Republic (USA)
- Garmex International (Pvt) Ltd. (Sri Lanka)
- Genetic Denim (USA)
- Gesture Jeans (India)
- G-III Apparel Group Ltd. (USA)
- Gokaldas Exports Ltd. (India)
- GoldSign Jeans (USA)
- Grasim Industries Ltd. (India)
- Gridlock Denim (USA)
- G-Star Raw CV (Belgium)
- Guangdong Changrun Garment Co., Ltd. (China)
- Guararapes Confeccoes SA (Brazil)
- Guess, Inc. (USA)
- Henri-Lloyd (UK)
- Hipsis (USA)
- Hirdaramani Industries Ltd. (Sri Lanka)
- Hoi Meng Group (Hong Kong)
- Hudson Jeans (USA)
- Hugo Boss AG (Germany)
- Iman Global Chic (USA)
- Indus – League Clothing Ltd. (India)
- Inter-Asia Sourcing Ltd. (Hong Kong)
- International Textile Group, Inc. (USA)
- Invista (Cordura) (USA)
- IT Jeans, Inc. (USA)
- Italia Independent (Italy)
- Itochu Corporation (Japan)
- J Brand (USA)
- J&Company Jeans, LLC (USA)
- James Jeans Dry Age Denim LLC (USA)
- JeansPilot (USA)
- JFour Denim (Italy)
- Joe's Jeans, Inc. (USA)
- Jordache Enterprises, Inc. (USA)
- JustFabulous (USA)
- Katarína Váleková - Katval Mode (Slovakia)
- Kewal Kiran Clothing Ltd. (India)
- Key Industries, Inc. (USA)
- KG Denim Ltd. (India)
- Kill City (USA)
- Koos Manufacturing, Inc. (USA)
- Kuca Stilin, doo (Croatia)
- Lane Bryant, Inc. (USA)
- Lee Cooper International Ltd. (UK)
- Levi Strauss & Co. (USA)
- Little in the Middle (USA)
- LNJ Bhilwara Group (India)
- LNJ-Denim (India)
- London Denim (UK)
- Lucky Brand (USA)
- Mac Mode GmbH & Co., KgAG. (Germany)
- Magiconf, Srl (Italy)
- Magnet Tekstil Sanayi ve Ticaret AS (Turkey)
- Manifatture Lord, Srl (Italy)
- Mavi Jeans (Turkey)
- Misr Garment Company (Egypt)
- Morrisons of Euroa (Australia)
- The Mulitex Group (Hong Kong)
- Muskan Exporters (India)
- Mustang Bekleidungswerke GmbH + Co., KG. (Germany)
- New Look Retail Group Ltd. (UK)
- Nien Hsing Textile Co., Ltd. (Taiwan)
- Nisshinbo Holdings, Inc. (Japan)
- NRK Overseas (India)
- Nudie Jeans Company (Sweden)
- Numero Uno Clothing Ltd. (India)
- NYDJ Apparel LLC (USA)
- Odyn Jeans (USA)
- Orta Anadolu (Turkey)
- Paige Denim (USA)
- Pepe Jeans London Ltd. (UK)
- Pioneer Impex, Inc. (India)
- Ponte & Mellini Manifatture SpA (San Marino)
- Pretty Green Ltd. (UK)
- Primex Clothings Pvt., Ltd. (India)
- PUMA SE (Germany)
- Ralph Lauren Corporation (USA)
- Rapha Racing Ltd. (UK)
- Raymond Ltd. (India)
- Raymond UCO Denim Pvt., Ltd. (India)
- Red Engine, Inc. (USA)
- Rivet De Cru Jeans (USA)
- Rock Revival Jeans (USA)
- Romano SpA (Italy)
- Roo Hsing Co., Ltd. (Taiwan)
- Roots Canada Ltd. (Canada)
- RVCA (USA)
- Santana Textiles (Brazil)
- Shanghai Zhongbo Fashion Co., Ltd. (China)
- Silver Jeans (USA)
- Siwy Denim, Inc. (USA)
- Spykar Lifestyles Pvt., Ltd. (India)
- Suryalakshmi Cotton Mills Ltd. (India)
- Swinger International SpA (Italy)
- Tak Sing Alliance Ltd. (Hong Kong)
- Target Brands, Inc. (USA)

Visit Site :  Denim

Posted 14th September 2013 by Vaibhav
 Labels: Denim Brand Denim fabric Denim Fabric Manufacturing Denim Jeans Denim
Sourcing Denim YarnFashion Marketing Garment Brand Garment industry Indian denim fabric
manufacturer
  
7 
View comments
2.
JUL

25

ROPE DYEING
Visit Site: Denim

Most denim is yarn-dyed fabric with the warp yarns dyed with indigo dye and
the filling yarns left undyed. There are a number of modifications or
alternatives in the dyeing process that are routinely used to change the
overall look or performance of the fabric. With the advent of denim garment
washing techniques, the consistencies of the indigo dyeing process and its
modifications have become crucially important in determining the quality
and performance of indigo denim products.

The properties of the indigo dye account for the wide variety of color designs
that are available on denim materials. Indigo is unique as a major textile
dye, because it has a very low affinity for the cotton fiber. Because of the
low substantively of the indigo, the ball warps dyeing process ring dyes
cotton. Unlike almost all other commercially successful dye-stuffs, the indigo
dye concentrates in the outer layers of the cotton yarn and fiber during the
dyeing process. This produces an intense ring of color around a white core in
the cotton yarn and the cotton fiber thus the name ring dyeing. When using
most other dyes, if the ring-dyeing effect occurs, it would be considered a
dyeing defect.

This ring diameter depends on pH and ORP or can be adjusted by these two
factors

                                    pH      +     ORP

                    NAOH                                        Na2S2O3

Indigo dye in its normal form is a vibrant blue, it is insoluble in water, and it
will not dye cotton fiber. In order to dye cotton, the indigo must be
converted to a water-soluble “leuco” form and then applied to the cotton.
This process is known as chemical reduction. Reducing agents such as
sodium hydrosulphite with sodium hydroxide chemically convert the indigo
dye to its soluble form. This also temporarily converts the dye from its blue
color to a very pale greenish yellow color. The leuco form of indigo is readily
absorbed by the outer layers of the cotton yarn. Once in the fiber/yarn, the
indigo is made insoluble by oxidizing the yarn by passing the yarn through
the air (skying). In fact, the dye will start to oxidize immediately when
exposed to the air. The oxygen in air converts the dye back to its original
blue and insoluble form. Thus the dye becomes trapped inside the outer
layers of the cotton yarn. This results in a small amount of dye being
deposited on the surface resulting in only light blue dyed yarn. In order to
obtain deep blue indigo dyed yarns, the color must be built in layers.

The dye is layered by using multiple passes of the rope of yarn into the
soluble dye and then exposing it to the air for oxidation. This multiple
passing of yarn into dye is called dips. Normally, this process is repeated
from three to twelve times to build up a deep indigo blue color. The number
of dips is limited to the number of dye boxes on the dye range. If the
concentration of indigo dye in the dye boxes is doubled, this will result in
slightly darker denim. This acts as a multiplier when labeling the denim. A
double concentration of dye in nine dye boxes makes it 18-dip denim.
Tripling the concentration makes it 27-dip denim. When even darker shades
are desired, a sulfur black or blue dye can be applied to the yarn before
indigo dyeing. This is known as a sulfur bottom. If the sulfur dye is applied
after the yarn has been indigo dyed, it is known as sulfur top.

In rope dyeing, ball warps are continuously fed into the rope or chain-dyeing
range for application of the indigo dyeing. Typically, 12-36 individual ropes
of yarn are fed side-by-side simultaneously into the range. The ropes are
kept separate from each other throughout the various parts of the dye
range. For example, if the total number of ends on the loom beam is 3,456,
and each ball would have 288 ends, then the dye set would have a total of
12 ball warps. If there can only be a multiple of 10 balls on the dye range,
then there would be 345 ends on 9 balls and 351 ends on the tenth ball.

The ropes are first fed into one or more scouring baths, which consist of
wetting agents detergents and caustic. The purpose of these baths is to
remove naturally occurring impurities found on the cotton fiber such as dirt,
minerals, ash, pectin, and naturally occurring waxes. It is very important to
remove these materials to guarantee uniform wetting and uniform dyeing.
The ropes are subsequently fed into one or more water rinsing baths.

If a sulfur bottom is required at this point, the ropes of yarn are fed into a
bath of a reduced sulfur dye. Similar to indigo, sulfur dyes are water
insoluble. They must be reduced to a water-soluble form before applying to
cotton. Unlike indigo, the sulfur dye can penetrate into the core of the cotton
fiber/yarn. The purpose of this process is to give the indigo dyed yarns a
much deeper and darker shade or to slightly change the shade of the blue
yarn to make it unique.

Once the reduced sulfur dye is applied to the ropes, they are skied to allow
the dye to oxidize into its normal water insoluble form.

The ropes of yarn are then fed into the indigo dye baths and skied after each
dip. The ropes of yarn are rinsed in several water baths to remove any
unfixed dye. If a variant type of yarn color is desired, sulfur dye can be
added at this point. Similar to the bottom-dyeing process discussed
previously, this process is known as a sulfur top. Although the sulfur dye will
migrate towards the core of the fiber/yarn, the sulfur top gives a different
type of yarn color performance when garment washed than a sulfur bottom.
The sulfur top process is then followed by a water rinse to remove any
unfixed dye.

After either rinsing following indigo dyeing or rinsing following sulfur topping,
the yarn ropes pass through squeeze rolls to mechanically extract water. The
yarns are then dried and coiled into large tubs. The typical type of drying
apparatus is a multiple stack of drying cans. These metal cylinders, which in
most cases are Teflon® covered to prevent the yarn from sticking, are filled
with steam under pressure. Maintaining a consistent pressure of steam
within the cylinder can accurately control the temperature of the surface of
each cylinder. Care must be taken not to attempt to dry the rope of yarn too
quickly, which causes the dye to migrate to the surface of the rope.
Additionally, if the surface of the drying can is too hot, the yarn can be over
stressed producing an undesirable glazed appearance that reduces
absorbency in later processing. Over-drying of the yarns will weaken them
considerably adversely affecting re-beaming, sizing, and weaving.

After drying, the color of the yarn is checked either visually or

instrumentally. With many modern indigo dye ranges, the color of the yarn
is continuously monitored by instruments, which are electronically linked to
the controls of the indigo dye baths. This type of control system can
automatically adjust the dynamics of the process to obtain the most
consistent color from the beginning to the end of the many thousands of
yards of yarn contained within a single dye lot.

In order to minimize the color variability between denim fabric panels after
garment washing, denim manufacturers employ a technique known as
 sequential dyeing. Basically, this method is based on the concept that the
color properties of indigo-dyed yarn processed at a specific time, most
closely resemble the color properties of the indigo yarn processed just before
and just after that lot. This method has proven much more effective at
minimizing color variability in garment washing when compared to the
technique of shade sorting alone.

Visit Site : Denim

Posted 25th July 2013 by Vaibhav
Labels: Ball warping Denim fabric Denim Fabric Manufacturing Denim Jeans Denim Yarn Dyeing
with Indigo DyeIndigo Dye Indigo Dyed Yarn Indigo dyeing Indigo Dyeing Process Rope dyeing
  
3 
View comments

1.

Liu Mark28 June 2015 at 18:30

sulphur black dye manufacturer in China, please contact me at mark121928@gmail.com

Reply

2.

Dilip Mall21 January 2016 at 23:16

Thanks for sharing information.

online recharge 
Existing customers can avail the tariff benefit of ALL LOCAL CALLS at 25P/min for 3 months on Special
Tariff voucher (STV)priced at Rs 38 only in Haryana.
Reply

3.

Apsara Sisodia2 February 2016 at 01:12

Thanks for the post. You can also promote your business by simply taking help from the free advertising
sites as they can help you in making your business promotion easy with ease and in minimum cost.
Reply

3.
APR

12
 CLOTHING BRAND ASSOCIATION
Visit Site : Denim

Brand association is anything which is deep seated in customer’s mind about the brand.
Brand should be associated with something positive so that the customers relate your brand to
being positive. Often a consumer will ask for a product by the specific brand name rather than
the general name-for example, a person wanting facial tissues may ask for Kleenex. When this
happens, the consumer is making a brand association.

 Benefit seeking is one of the driving forces for consumers to begin their buying process
with.They may seek a product that can offer at least functional, symbolic or even expressive
benefits to them in order to satisfy their needs or wants. Therefore, you may say a successful
marketing program is not so difficult to create. It simply satisfies the target consumers’ needs
and wants. Meanwhile, to know the consumers’ needs or wants is actually the most difficult task
for the marketers to handle. In order to succeed in today’s competitive environment, the fashion
marketers must be able to formulate effective marketing strategies for their target markets.

The success of a fashion brand depends upon how precise it is in understanding its target
customers and their needs, so as to create wants. A purchase filled with meanings, especially a
fashion purchase. It was because clothing in itself carries symbols and that’s why clothing has
been called a “silent language”. When people talk about the clothes they buy and why they buy
them, they show a variety of logics. An understanding of why customers select one brand over
another and what factors generate such kind of want is crucially important to fashion marketers.
When insiders talk about this issue, the concept of brand image would be mentioned and useful
to explain the phenomenon.

It would be fair to say that we all associate different brands with specific people. In general terms
you may, for example, link sportswear brands (Adidas, Nike, Reebok) to the packs of polyester
clad prats that sit around drinking special brew in the park, shouting at passersby. Unfortunately
however, things are not always quite this clear cut. In many cases brand association differs
between age group, geographical location and social class. Each generation grows up with a style
of its own, with its own particular brands, which, unless you’re talking about established
companies, will vary substantially.

Different places will also adopt different styles; if you were to go to the big cultural areas such as
London, Brighton, Bristol, Manchester etc you are likely to find more people embracing
diversity and variety to create their looks. In this situation brand association isn’t quite as
important, you wear what you want because it suits your ideas and personality. In other cities or
smaller towns you might well see association having more of an influence, as the desire to
conform and fit in is much more powerful in places where diversity isn’t really as accepted.

Some pervious brand image studies seemingly use the term brand image but doing brand
personality studies. They equated the image of a brand to a wide range of brand associations.
They associate brand with a set of human characteristics, the personality traits of human being.
Actually the researches compared the personality of the brand and the consumer to explain
consumer behavior. However, the studies are with little explanation of the “brand image” and the
components of it. Consequently, confusion of the term, brand image was found and the brand
personality becomes brand image rather than just one of the inputs (e.g. brand association) to be
considered. In fact, it does not mean that they used the term incorrectly, they just viewed brand
image in another perspective.

In Keller’s and Howard’s definition, brand image related to brand’s more essential qualities
rather than a reflection of brand. Actually, brand image should be much more than a set of
psychological associations, the scope of a brand image should be broad rather than narrow.
Unfortunately, most of us also think of the term “brand image” in a way that implies brand
personality, since we tend to treat the projected image of a brand as the image of a person, and
most of us used to equate brand image to brand personality.

Visit Site : Denim

Posted 12th April 2013 by Vaibhav
Labels: Brand Association Branding Fashion Industry. Fashion Marketing Garment Brand Textile
Industry
  
3 
View comments
4.
JAN

17

Marketing strategies for fashion industry

Marketing strategies for fashion industry

Visit Site DENIM
      
Today, the fashion industry has almost unlimited resources at its
disposal.  Information and photographs that appear on the Internet instantaneously
reach millions of women the world over. Immediately, they know which fashions
are in and which are out.  They see the colors and trends on splashy, popular
websites.  They find out very quickly what they should be wearing and what
they shouldn't. 

Fashion marketing techniques apply many of the same marketing strategies that
large and small businesses use. Fashion marketing includes market research,
advertising and promotion. Research gathers information about the market for a
particular brand or product. Advertising helps generate sales, and promotion
increases brand or product awareness. Some fashion marketing techniques include
 fashion events, print publications, press releases and media relations, digital media
and product placement.

 Fashion Blogs

People are frequently introduced to brands by friends and family, but they often
venture online to do their research and look for reviews from other customers. A
big part of the online community includes blogs and social networks. In many
instances, bloggers are also tweeting about the topics they discuss on their blogs.

Because of this, it's beneficial to establish strong, mutually beneficial relationships

with local and national fashion bloggers and websites as a part of your creative
marketing strategy. Develop interesting angles, as they are inundated with requests
from up-and-coming designers daily. Send a professional pitch and your look
book. If you need help locating bloggers and websites or determining what to send,
contact a public relations professional for assistance.

   Fashion Showcase

Consider hosting a small gathering of 30 to 50 people to debut your line or

boutique to key people in the fashion industry. Invite bloggers, editors, buyers and
potential high-profile clients. This is a creative way to network and personally
introduce your brand through your own vision. During the event, allow time for a
small fashion show, and also display items throughout the room. You can use your
look book as inspiration and tie elements of it into your event.

   Events

Fashion marketers conduct promotional events. Product launch events invite the
media and public or private guests to learn about new product offerings such as
jewelry and other accessories. Runway events showcase fashion apparel that is
worn by models. Spectators view the models to see how the clothing fits and
evaluate the overall look. Other events involve hosting or sponsoring charity
events and causes that help build brand awareness.

   Print Publication
 Fashion marketers use print publications to promote the brand or product offering.
Print publications include the brand's self-published magazines, trade and
consumer magazine advertisement, mailings and newsletters that feature individual
products, flyers and posters at store locations, point-of-purchase announcements
that are placed at the checkout counter, product inserts that are included with
product purchases and billboard ads along highways and city streets.

 Press Releases

Fashion marketers create and distribute press releases. Fashion marketers use press
releases to announce the brand's activities. Releases may introduce a new fashion
line or brand, or introduce the brand's founders. Press releases often keep the
public informed about the brand's activities by announcing new and upcoming
product launches, runway events, successes and newsworthy stories about the
brand or individual products. Marketers distribute press releases to newspapers and
other media outlets, and may use a public relations firm to help reach larger
audiences.

   Digital Media

Fashion marketers use digital media for research and promotion. Web technology
provides an efficient platform for collecting survey data that reveals information
about the brand's market. For example, some brands that process orders online ask
the customer to fill out a satisfaction survey after they complete the purchase.
Other Web technology involves social media applications that accomplish outreach
and promotional goals. Fashion marketers can keep target markets up-to-date with
live status messages, and use profile queries to find new potential customers and
distribute e-promos to relevant audiences.

   Product Placement

Fashion marketers, publicists and other promoters use product placement

marketing techniques. Product placement techniques involve featuring fashion
items and apparel on television programs, movies and celebrities. Product
placement displays the product without explicitly advertising it, because this
marketing technique displays the product within the context of the primary
entertainment. Sometimes, television commercials follow-up on television shows
that feature product placement items to increase awareness or credibility.
Another specific strategy used by the fashion industry is online
advertising.   The use of the Internet involves several strategies which include:
creating an online version of a print magazine, banner ads (ads placed on specific
sites for greater exposure) and well-placed photographs and articles about the
fashion industry.  According to an industry report on the Internet and marketing
strategies by women’s magazines, “The Internet has become a billion-dollar
business” (Industry Report).   This article also reports that according to Nielsen
Net Ratings, more American women use the Internet than men at a rate of 51% –
49%.  It goes on to say; “Women online readers in the United States tend to visit
general interest sites on the Internet, such as shopping sites, beauty sites, and
health sites. Therefore, magazines discovered the Internet several years ago as
another method to better serve the customer since magazines” .  By targeting the
large numbers of women who regularly participate in online activity, fashion
magazines that maintain an Internet presence provide themselves with continuous,
free advertising.   It is an extremely effectively strategy to “ offer other
information, such as press releases or news that relates to the company or to their
industry, or provide information about special events that relate to the company to
their industry”
A constant theme in fashion marketing is to create ideas or themes for what it
means to look good or look attractive.  Therefore, marketing to women with
various body sizes and shapes makes for good business strategy.  However, the
marketing of fashion to women isn’t just about what you look like but what they
want you to look like.  That is, part of marketing strategy is to generate ideas in
women’s heads about what kinds of clothes we need to wear in specific situations
– the work environment, social situations, etc.  As in many other countries,
Japanese women seek to wear the latest trends.  “As a market segment, young
Japanese women continue to seek new ways to appear trendy and fashionable. In
either theme, clothing that is well designed to make women look more beautiful,
has potential”

Visit Site : Denim

Posted 17th January 2013 by Vaibhav
Labels: Fashion Industry. Fashion Marketing Marketing Strategy for fashion industry marketing
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5.
JAN

16
 Indian Garment/Fashion Retail Sector

A
        new focus on the apparel retail sector has attracted attention in recent days.
Top exporters have introduced their own brands and are aggressively positioning
themselves within segments of the domestic market. The rising importance of
branded segments in the domestic market combined with the pressure of import
competition is blurring the boundaries between exports and domestic production in
countries with large home markets, such as India. With the changing lifestyles,
organized retail is playing a key role in structuring the Indian domestic market,
reinforced in particular by rising incomes and growing purchasing power among
consumers in rapidly growing sectors of the economy such as information
technology and business process outsourcing.

Retail sector in India is witnessing a huge revamping exercise as traditional

markets make way for new formats such as departmental stores, hypermarkets,
supermarkets and specialty stores. The branded apparel market represents the
largest source of growth. The men’s branded apparel market is growing at a rate of
21.8% and branded women’s apparel segments represents 35% of the total branded
apparel market and is growing at an incredible 23% annually.

Leading domestic retailers are becoming more firmly entrenched, increasing their
scale of operations and stabilizing their logistics and technology initiatives. A few
significant foreign players have been selling their branded apparel in India for
number of years. But, now, just like their India counterparts, global apparel brands
are setting up their own apparel outlets, instead of just selling through departmental
stores. Though local retailers generally enjoy higher margins, they wont be able to
keep global retailers at bay for long because of international experience, buying
power, IT systems and cash flow to tolerate lower profits. Presence of these brands
will make the Indian Consumer become more aware of the international fashion
and lifestyle trends leading to a move-up of the industry in the value chain. In this
paper, the recent trend and prospect of apparel retail sector in India have been
discussed.

Fashion retailing, marketing

Once the clothes have been designed and manufactured, they need to be sold. But
how are clothes to get from the manufacturer to the customer? The business of
buying clothes from manufacturers and selling them to customers is known as
retail. Retailers make initial purchases for resale three to six months before the
customer is able to buy the clothes in-store.

Fashion marketing is the process of managing the flow of merchandise from the
initial selection of designs to be produced to the presentation of products to retail
customers, with the goal of maximizing a company’s sales and profitability.
Successful fashion marketing depends on understanding consumer desire and
responding with appropriate products. Marketers use sales tracking data, attention
to media coverage, focus groups, and other means of ascertaining consumer
preferences to provide feedback to designers and manufacturers about the type and
quantity of goods to be produced. Marketers are thus responsible for identifying
and defining a fashion producer’s target customers and for responding to the
preferences of those customers.

Marketing operates at both the wholesale and retail levels. Companies that do not
sell their own products at retail must place those products at wholesale prices in the
hands of retailers, such as boutiques, department stores, and online sales
companies. They use fashion shows, catalogs, and a sales force armed with sample
products to find a close fit between the manufacturer’s products and the retailer’s
customers. Marketers for companies that do sell their own products at retail are
primarily concerned with matching products to their own customer base. At both
the wholesale and the retail level, marketing also involves promotional activities
such as print and other media advertising aimed at establishing brand recognition
and brand reputation for diverse characteristics such as quality, low price, or
trendiness.

Closely related to marketing is merchandising, which attempts to maximize sales

and profitability by inducing consumers to buy a company’s products. In the
standard definition of the term, merchandising involves selling the right product, at
the right price, at the right time and place, to the right customers. Fashion
merchandisers must thus utilize marketers’ information about customer preferences
as the basis for decisions about such things as stocking appropriate merchandise in
adequate but not excessive quantities, offering items for sale at attractive but still
profitable prices, and discounting overstocked goods. Merchandising also involves
presenting goods attractively and accessibly through the use of store windows, in-
store displays, and special promotional events. Merchandising specialists must be
able to respond to surges in demand by rapidly acquiring new stocks of the favored
product. An inventory-tracking computer program in a department store in
London, for example, can trigger an automatic order to a production facility in
Shanghai for a certain quantity of garments of a specified type and size to be
delivered in a matter of days.

By the early 21st century the Internet had become an increasingly important retail
outlet, creating new challenges (e.g., the inability for customers to try on clothes
prior to purchase, the need for facilities designed to handle clothing returns and
exchanges) and opening up new opportunities for merchandisers (e.g., the ability to
provide customers with shopping opportunities 24 hours per day, affording access
to rural customers). In an era of increasingly diverse shopping options for retail
customers and of intense price competition among retailers, merchandising has
emerged as one of the cornerstones of the modern fashion industry.

Media and marketing

Media of all kinds are essential to the marketing of fashion. The first dedicated
fashion magazines appeared in England and France in the late 18th century. In the
19th century, fashion magazines—such as the French La Mode Illustrative  the British
Lady’s Realm, and the American Godey’s Lady’s Book—proliferated and flourished.
Featuring articles, hand-colored illustrations (known as fashion plates), and
advertisements, fashion magazines—together with other developments such as the
sewing machine, department stores, and ready-to-wear clothing produced in standard
sizes—played a significant role in promoting the democratization of fashion in the
modern era. The development of effective and inexpensive methods of reproducing
photographs in print media in the early 20th century led to the rise of fashion
photography and of heavily illustrated fashion magazines such as Vogue. Magazine
advertising rapidly became a principal marketing tool for the fashion industry.

The creation of cinema newsreels—short motion pictures of current events—and

the rise of television made it possible for people all over the world to see fashion
shows and to imitate the fashionable clothing worn by celebrities. The dominance
of visual media continued in the Internet age, with fashion blogs emerging as an
increasingly important means of disseminating fashion information. Red-carpet
events such as awards ceremonies provide an opportunity for celebrities to be
photographed wearing designer fashions, thus providing valuable publicity to the
designers.

India’s apparel market is in the throes of change. Rapid growth and rising

urbanization have spawned a new class of consumers with more money to spend,
and a growing passion for fashion. In India’s high-growth, fast-changing retail
clothing market, we see significant new growth opportunities for foreign and
domestic players.
 In India, apparel is the second largest retail category (behind food and groceries),
representing approximately 10 percent of the total market. This growth is being
driven by following factors:

        New occasions: As the lifestyles of India’s prospering urban consumers have

evolved, their clothing needs have broadened, reflecting more varied usage
occasions. For men, clothing choices once came primarily in three basic categories:
home-wear, work clothes, and special occasion wear. Now, with more
“socializing” opportunities, men are buying more sophisticated combinations of
outfits: party wear, sportswear, clothes for hanging out at the mall. Not long ago,
for example, men from India’s northern regions only required a good dark suit or
Sherwani, the traditional long coat, to cover big occasions and important
celebrations. But over the past several years, men have begun to supplement those
staples with expensive Western style jackets, and collared shirts—some in “funky”
patterns and cut for a night on the town, others in stripes or checks for casual
meetings with important business associates. Today, Indians are more inclined than
consumers in other markets to buy apparel for a specific purpose.

        Fashion increasingly a form of self-expression. Increasingly, Indian consumers

are embracing the idea of fashion for its own sake, as a means of self-expression,
and not merely as a functional purchase. Television, movies, advertising and the
Internet bombard today’s Indian consumer with new ideas about style, even as
American-style shopping malls lure them away from traditional marketplaces.
Traditional clothing remains central to the way consumers dress, and the quality
and craftsmanship of classic Indian clothing have drawn rave reviews in recent
years from some of the world’s leading designers, style magazines, and fashion
blogs. In a recent McKinsey survey of Indian consumers, 62 percent said they
thought it was important to “keep up with trends.”

    Example
    Pantaloons:
   Pantaloons are one of the biggest retailers in India with more than 450 stores across
the country. Headquartered in Mumbai, it has more than 5 million sq. ft retail space
located across the country. It's growing at an enviable pace and is expected to reach
30 million sq. ft by the year 2010. In 2001, Pantaloon launched country's first
hypermarket ‘Big Bazaar’. It has the following retail segments:
        Food & Grocery: Big Bazaar, Food Bazaar
        Home Solutions: Hometown, Furniture Bazaar, Collection-i
        Consumer Electronics: e-zone
        Shoes: Shoe Factory
        Books, Music & Gifts: Depot
        Health & Beauty Care: Star, Sitara
        E-tailing: Futurebazaar.com
        Entertainment: Bowling Co.

Posted 16th January 2013 by Vaibhav

Labels: Fashion Industry. Fashion Marketing Fashion Retailing Garment Retailing Indian Garment
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6.
JAN

15

Things to expect in the fashion marketing in 2013

Things to expect in the fashion marketing in 2013

Brands have continued to leverage social networks for big product launches. Previous year, the
fashion industry proved particularly keen on location-based gaming platform Foursquare. Using
Social media to run promotions or build buzz is an excellent resource for the fashion industry to
utilize. Namely, twitter is one of the biggest emerging social media websites to execute promotions
and also spread information bursts to a target customer in a fast amount of time.
Consumers are tired with the omnipresent marketing. Consequently, to be more effective, fashion
marketers will have to reach further – be more mature and try to establish real relationships with
fashionista, not only depend on the use of social media. To accomplish that, in 2013, they will come
back to the roots of the marketing and turn away from the globalization:

 Localization and targeting

Consumers are more and more convinced of small, local brands. Therefore releases will have to be
targeted more accurately, and marketers will have to take geo-localization more seriously.
Applications such as Foursquare or Facebook Places will be used more often. Understanding the
importance of the localization is already underway, but the big fashion companies will still have to go
down to a more local level than targeting their fan pages or adverts.
This year, marketers will try to reach the single customer, for example by using geo-localizing
applications and tools, and causing the change of the brands’ image – the global brand, marketers
represent, will be perceived as a luxurious shop from the neighborhood.

 Distinction between mobile and tablet and integrating real and digital grounds
 Fashion marketers will acknowledge the difference between people using smartphones
(concentrated on social media, but also on specific tasks) and people using tablets (concentrated on
social media, entertainment and information).
They will also remember that one person can use multiple, different devices. Thanks to that, they will
be able to use more accurate strategies, also those outdoors ones, and better connect campaigns in
real life with those in the web. And this is the main direction of the evolution of the fashion marketing.

 Integration of social media

A lot of social media come into being in recent years, and a lot of them we are able to integrate.
Unfortunately, the fashion brands still do not lead a coherent communication on them and do not
integrate them. I am sure it will change in 2013. Fashion brands will see a potential and relatively low
costs of a coherent social media strategy, thanks to which they will be able to reach to a wide group
of consumers and save on different expenses (for example: on a media planning, or even SEO).
  Tradition

Tradition is following just after geo-localization. Everyone likes the local fashion, mainly because it
allows distinguishing, identifying oneself, and underline one’s descent and individualism. The perfect
example is Style Bubble, who builds her image and blog power on that. In relation to this, in 2013,
with the progress of so called fast fashion we may be able to witness a twist in a fashion distribution
as well as in communication undertaken by the big brands with their customers.
The main fashion houses are already inspired by multiple cultures – see Dolce & Gabbana recent
collections or pro-British communication by Burberry. I think they will go even further – they will refer
to multiple customers’ traditions – both in a content (of different collections), and in a form of
communication (variety of strategies, going back to the provincial sales).

THE fashion industry functions much like your least favorite high school clique: A leader boldly
undertakes something new, a few imitators cautiously follow suit and the rest then clamber to
participate before the trend dies out.

The same pattern has emerged so far this year, as brands sample new digital and mobile
technologies to market to and engage with consumers. In particular, brands took to location-based
social network Foursquare to build buzz around new product launches, like Jimmy Choo's line of
trainers and Oscar de la Renta's limited-edition series of python iPad clutches.
In addition to campaigns, fashion brands released a significant amount of behind-the-scenes content
on a regular basis, ranging from blurry mobile snapshots of runway models for quick distribution over
Facebook and Twitter, to professionally produce short films delivered exclusively on company
websites and mobile apps.
Posted 15th January 2013 by Vaibhav
Labels: Fashion Industry. Fashion Marketing Textile Industry Things to expect in the fashion
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JAN

14

Why do brand fail?

 Why do brand fail?
Proper branding can result in higher sales of not only one product, but on other products associated with
that brand. For example, if a customer loves Pillsbury biscuits and trusts the brand, he or she is more likely
to try other products offered by the company such as chocolate chip cookies. Brand is the personality that
identifies a product, service or company (name, term, sign, symbol, or design, or combination of them) and
how it relates to key constituencies: customers, staff, partners, investors etc.

Some people distinguish the psychological aspect, brand associations like thoughts, feelings, perceptions,
images, experiences, beliefs, attitudes, and so on that become linked to the brand, of a brand from the
experiential aspect. The experiential aspect consists of the sum of all points of contact with the brand and is
known as the brand experience. The brand experience is a brand's action perceived by a person. The
psychological aspect, sometimes referred to as the brand image, is a symbolic construct created within the
minds of people, consisting of all the information and expectations associated with a product, service or the
company(ies) providing them.

Careful brand management seeks to make the product or services relevant to the target audience. Brands
should be seen as more than the difference between the actual cost of a product and its selling price - they
represent the sum of all valuable qualities of a product to the consumer.
Your brand strategy is how, what, where, when and to whom you plan on communicating and delivering on
your brand messages. Where you advertise is part of your brand strategy. Your distribution channels are
also part of your brand strategy. And what you communicate visually and verbally are part of your brand
strategy, too.

We are living in a world where water is sold with a name, clothes are being marketed with signature signs
and food items are being promoted with trademarks. The concept of branding has completely shaped the
way people consume commodities. Customers in this day and age prefer status symbols over necessity.
This shows the importance of branding and its influence on businesses.
Scott Bedbury, Starbucks’ former vice-president of marketing, controversially admitted that ‘consumers
don’t truly believe there’s a huge difference between products,’ which means brands have to establish
‘emotional ties’ with their customers.

However, emotions aren’t to be messed with. Once a brand has created that necessary bond, it has to
handle it with care. One step out of line and the customer may not be willing to forgive.
This is ultimately why all brands fail. Something happens to break the bond between the customer and the
brand. This is not always the fault of the company, as some things really are beyond their immediate
control (global recession, technological advances, international disasters etc). However, more often than
not, when brands struggle or fail it is usually down to a distorted perception of the brand, the competition or
the market.
 It takes years to erect a successful brand identity, but only an instant to destroy it. All the famous brands
and corporations have risen to their current status after a lot of painstaking effort. Failure is common for
small businesses and start-ups, but have we ever wondered how famous brands falter? Today, I seek to
uncover some of the most common reasons why renowned brands fall by illustrating the cases of some
famous brands.

Brand amnesia – For old brands, as for old people, memory becomes an increasing issue. When a brand
forgets what it is supposed to stand for, it runs into trouble. The most obvious case of brand amnesia
occurs when a venerable, long-standing brand tries to create a radical new identity, such as when Coca-
Cola tried to replace its original formula with New Coke. The results were disastrous.
Brand ego – Brands sometimes develop a tendency for over-estimating their own importance, and their
own capability. This is evident when a brand believes it can support a market single-handedly, as Polaroid
did with the instant photography market. It is also apparent when a brand enters a new market for which it
is clearly ill-suited, such as Harley Davidson trying to sell perfume.
Short-Term Approach: For a successful brand, the short-term approach is always hazardous as it restricts
the domain and vision of the company. While it is an inherent truth that all companies are there in the
market to make money, one cannot keep such a short-term and narrow-minded mindset if it wants to win
customers for a longer period of time. A recent case in point was British Petroleum that didn’t accurately
forecast the repercussions of its business on the environment and ended up becoming the bad company in
the eyes of the general public.
Brand megalomania – Egotism can lead to megalomania. When this happens, brands want to take over the
world by expanding into every product category imaginable. Some, such as Virgin, get away with it. Lesser
brands, however, do not.
Brand deception – ‘Human kind cannot bear very much reality,’ wrote T S Eliot. Neither can brands. Indeed,
some brands see the whole marketing process as an act of covering up the reality of their product. In
extreme cases, the trend towards brand fiction can lead to downright lies. For example, in an attempt to
promote the film A Knight’s Tale one Sony marketing executive invented a critic, and a suitable quote, to
put onto the promotional poster. In an age where markets are increasingly connected, via the Internet and
other technologies, consumers can no longer be deceived.
Too Slow to Change: In this day and age, companies cannot afford to lag behind in technology and
advancement. Those who were too slow to adapt to the changing environment lost the race in the long run.
I remember a 64-Bit Commodore system lying in my attic that was once used by our grandparents for
computing and entertainment purposes. The company was too slow to update their systems and lost the
race to giants like IBM, Compaq and Apple.
Going Against the Image: Honda, Toyota, Ford and Ferrari – all of these brands have built an image of
being reputable car manufacturers. This brand image is attached to the company and affects their future
operations as well. If one of these car manufacturers decide to enter a totally diverse field, let’s say,
perfumes, would it be appropriate? Most certainly not! A similar case happened in 1999, when the famous
women’s magazine, Cosmopolitan, introduced its own line of low-fat yogurt. The brand failed badly since
the customers were reluctant to accept a yogurt linked to a female magazine.
Brand paranoia – This is the opposite of brand ego and is most likely to occur when a brand faces
increased competition. Typical symptoms include: a tendency to file lawsuits against rival companies, a
willingness to reinvent the brand every six months, and a longing to imitate competitors.
Some Examples:

Outkast clothing                                Created By:Outkast                                       Founded:2002

When Outkast announced that they were going to launch their own clothing line, Andre said that fans would
be able to get "everything...the furs, the leathers...hats...everything." But when it hit stores it looked like a
rehashed Enyce. It didn't represent 3 Stacks, the George Clinton of hip hop style or Big Boy’s fly pimp
styling’s. It was just kind of boring. And they never wore it. Rule #1 of the celebrity clothing game: If you
don't wear your clothes, no one else will.

Levi’s - Type 1 Jeans

Apparently jeans that are perfect for those situations when you're being dragged through the dirt while
hanging on to a rope wrapped around a possessed car don’t resonate with the masses. This confusing
Super Bowl commercial was simultaneously the debut and the death knell for Levi's Type 1 Jeans.
Why it failed: Fashion is a capricious field. The designers at Levi’s made Fashion Fumble #41b: Celebrating
the launch of a product before checking to see if anyone RSVP’d to the Evite.

Posted 14th January 2013 by Vaibhav

Labels: Branding Garment Brand Failure Why do Brand Fail?
  
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8.
JAN

12

Clothing Brand Promotion

Clothing Brand Promotion

Visit Site : Denim

Brand promotion is a strategy that is commonly used in marketing in order to increase customer
loyalty, awareness of products, and sales. Instead of focusing on a specific product or products, a
company instead tries to focus on the promotion of its brand.

Great brands are no accidents. They are a result of thoughtful and imaginative planning. Anyone
building or managing a brand must carefully develop and implement creative brand strategies.
To aid in that planning, three tools or models are helpful. Like the famous Russian nesting
“matrioshka” dolls, the three models are inter-connected and become larger and increasing in scope:
The first model is a component into the second model; the second model, in turn, is a component into
 the third model. Combined, the three models provide crucial micro and macro perspectives to
successful brand building. Specifically, the three models are as follows, to be described in more
detail below:

1)      Brand positioning model describes how to establish competitive advantages in the minds of

customers in the marketplace;
2)      Brand resonance model describes how to create intense, activity loyalty relationships with
customers; and
3)      Brand value chain model describes how to trace the value creation process to better understand the
financial impact of marketing expenditures and investments.

Collectively, these three models help marketers devise branding strategies and tactics to maximize
profits and long-term brand equity and track their progress along the way

One of the biggest problems new clothing lines face is promoting their brand in such a saturated market. For
typical clothing, not only are you promoting yourself to the stores that you will sell to but also the end user. As
a result of the importance of self-promotion you will find that most of the time you will spend running your
clothing line will be promoting your brand and its ethics.
Using wholesale clothing as a promotional giveaway is a great way to brand your business and get your logo
and company name recognition as well as exposure. Not only that, but brand name clothing is more likely to be
worn frequently by your employees, clients, and just about everyone, bringing you extra advertising
impressions along the way. Increase the visibility of your corporate logo and brand message in the
communities you value most. This thoughtful and significant practice is not only a useful marketing technique
but also rewards recipients with designer apparel that impresses the high-quality values now connecting your
brand and the manufacturer. And available in women's, men's, and children's sizes and styles, Pinnacle
Promotions has perfect piece of brand name wholesale clothing to fit your needs, brand, and budget.
Develop a brand strategy to help you communicate your positioning and value proposition every time you
touch your market. Together, these strategies are the essential building blocks for your business.
BRANDING AND MESSAGING

Branding is a powerful tool for positioning your product. Branding is used on almost all customer facing
elements of a product, from the packaging design to the style of writing used on posters. Every communication
a customer received ads up to form a mental picture of your brand and can influence the price they are willing
to pay for your products. This ability to charge more due to the positioning of your product is known as 'brand
equity'. Your branding also needs to consider your unique selling points (USPs) and ensure these are easily
recognized through your messaging – is your product the best value, longest lasting, sweetest smelling or
fastest?

GETTING THE BEST RESPONSE

To get the best response from your target market, you need ensuring the message is relevant and clear – once
you've managed to gain the valuable attention of your customer the last thing you want is for them to be
confused about what you're saying. Determine the objectives of the advert and ensure these aims are addressed
clearly. Think about the next steps you would like the audience to take, whether this is visiting a website,
ringing a number, or being able to recall your brand when they are next in the shops.

Case Study

Colorplus : consistency pays

Brand: Color-plus
Company: Raymond
Color-plus was launched in 1993 by color-plus Fashions which was a unit of Coimbatore based
Ambattur Clothing Limited. It was launched at a time where no global brands were seriously
exploring the Indian market. I would say that no serious branding effort was there in place during
that time. The ready to wear segment was in a nascent stage.  Color-plus as a brand now has an
iconic status in the ready-made segment. The brand which is carefully crafted and brilliantly
communicated is the perfect example of brand management.
Rajendra Mudaliar, managing director, and Kailash M Bhatia, CEO has been clear on what the
brand is and how this is to be communicated.

In 2003 this brand was acquired by Raymond. I thought that the communication and brand
strategy would change but to my pleasant surprise, it is the same. Thank God...

The brand falls under the Smart casual segment in the ready to wear market with its presence in
South and west Asia. In this era of celebrity endorsement, this is a brand which uses no celebrity,
and Color-plus is always the star. The brand is exposed through careful media selection and you
never see a TVC of this brand. The copy and the layout are ever so consistent and the ad has
maintained a classy look throughout its existence.

Seen only in premium publications and business magazines reveals that the brand is clear about
the target segment.
Raymond by acquiring this brand has now entered the premium casual wear segment which is
now fast growing. With Parx at the lower end and Color-plus on the premium end, Raymond is
hoping to gain a major foothold in the Indian ready to wear segment in years to come.
Visit Site: Denim

Posted 12th January 2013 by Vaibhav

Labels: Fashion Industry. Fashion Marketing Marketing Strategy for fashion industry marketing
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9.
JAN

11

Marketing Strategies of Garments Industry of India

Marketing Strategies of Garments Industry of India

Visit Site: Denim

The ready made garments industry has been chosen for various reasons. Firstly it plays an
important role for it’s directly concerned to one of the basic needs of every citizen. The garments
industry operates in a highly complex environment. Indian garments industries has been creating
in a rapidly changing environment particularly since mid-seventies. It is therefore important to
examine what the modern trend are being introduced by the companies in their marketing
strategies and cope with the changing environment because this is a fashion age and everyone is
concerned about the new fashion and wants the new test specially the young generation. Second
reason to choose the ready made garments industry is that the contribution of the garments sector
in the sphere of production, earning of foreign exchange and investment in the Indian economy
has been quite significant.  Third, the functional performance of majority of the garments sector
that is in the private sector deserves a significant consideration. The profitability trends, working
of garment units’ dependence of garments industries on imports are some of the areas which
have also been touched upon and lastly the leadership role of garments sector in India as this is
the second employment providing sector after agriculture. The garments industry alone provides
the major employment to the Indian citizen as this sector is concerned to small scale industries
sector.
A marketing strategy serves as the base of a marketing plan. A marketing plan contains a list of
specific actions required to successfully implement a specific marketing strategy. An example of
marketing strategy is as follows: "Use a low cost product to attract consumers. Once our
organization, via our low cost product, has established a relationship with consumers, our
organization will sell additional, higher-margin products and services that enhance the
consumer's interaction with the low-cost product or service." Without a sound marketing
strategy, a marketing plan has no foundation. Marketing strategies serve as the fundamental
 foundation of marketing plans designed to reach marketing objectives. It is important that these
objectives have measurable results.
Observing how people shop, when they shop and where they purchase from is crucial for
determining future marketing strategies. In 2005, only half of the American populace shopped
online. By 2008, that number grew to 65 percent and continued to jump each subsequent year.
This reality forced many retailers to expand their Internet presence by purchasing more online
advertising and not just advertising in fashion magazines. In addition, companies were forced to
improve or establish their e-stores to allow for convenient shopping. Companies increasingly
partner with member-only communities and other merchants to sell product.
Marketing is the process of developing and communicating value to your prospects and
customers. Think about every step you take to sell service and manage your customers:
         Your knowledge of the market and your strategy to penetrate it
         The distribution channels you use to connect with your customers
         Your pricing strategy
         The messages you deliver to your market
         The look and feel of your marketing materials
         The experience you deliver to your market and customers
         The actions of your sales and service reps
         All of the planning, preparation, forecasting and measurement of your investments
From the diagram, the main components of a marketing plan can be summarized as:
Component of the plan Description
Mission statement A meaningful statement of the purpose and direction of the business
Corporate objectives The overall business objectives that shape the marketing plan
Marketing audit The way the information for marketing planning is organised.
Assesses the situation of marketing in the business – the products,
resources, distribution methods, market shares, competitors etc
Market analysis The markets the business is in (and targeting) – size , structure,
growth etc
SWOT analysis An assessment of the firm’s current position, showing the strengths
& weaknesses (internal factors) and opportunities and threats
(external factors)
Marketing objectives and What the marketing function wants to achieve (consistent with
strategies corporate objectives) and how it intends to do it (e.g. Ansoff, Porter)
Marketing budget Usually a detailed budget for the next year and an outline budget for
the next 2-3 years
Action plan The detailed implementation plan

OR
The Strategic Marketing Process organizes 29 marketing subjects into three categories:
 

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Posted 11th January 2013 by Vaibhav
Labels: Fashion Industry. Fashion Marketing Marketing Strategy for fashion industry marketing
strategy.
  
5 
Indian Journal of Fibre & Textile Research
Vol 29-March 2004-pp 100-109

Dyeing of denim with indigo

J N Chakrabortya
National Institute of Technology, Jalandhar 144 011, India
and
R B Chavan
Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi 110 016, India
Received 25 April 2003; accepted 30 June 2003

Indigo is extensively used for dyeing of denim. Though indigo is a class of vat dye, it cannot be applied
following conventional vat dyeing method due to its very little affinity for cotton. This paper reviews proper
application of indigo on denim as well as various aspects relating to this application.
Keywords: Cotton, Denim, Dyeing, Indigo, Vat dye
IPC Code: Int.Cl.7 DO6P 1/22

Introduction 1
Natural indigo, known in different names in different parts of the world, has been in use since around
7000 BC for dyeing of cotton in attractive and bright blue shades. Plants belonging to the genus
Indigofera are most valuable for producing natural indigo. The colouring matter in the plant is present as
a glucoside of indoxyl, known as indican, which is hydrolyzed to the indoxyl by enzymatic action and
indigo is then obtained by subsequent oxidation 1.

O          O

                                   N            N

                                   H            H

In ancient times, reduction of indigo was carried out by fermentation technique which included use of
ripen fruit and stale urine assisted by wood ash or lime as alkali. The solution prepared in this way was
left overnight for reduction and solubilization of indigo. The supernatant liquor was then taken out for
colouration through repeated dipexposure to air sequence at room temperature 1–3 till a deep shade
was produced, a cumbersome as well as time consuming process.
 However, extensive work for finding out a suitable alternative of natural indigo to meet growing
demand of it gave birth of modern indigotin by Adolf Von Bayer in 1880. Later, BASF AG (Germany)
placed commercial synthetic indigo in market in 1897 (refs 4, and 5). Indigo (C.I. Vat Blue 1) has the
chemical structure as shown below:
Though natural indigo was known since ancient times and the synthetic one was developed more
than 100 years back, research work started slowly in various areas of indigo dyeing only in the 60s with
an intensification since 80s to cope up with increase in popularity of indigo dyed denim worldwide.
Enormous developments were proposed which mainly comprised changes in conventional reduction and
application techniques, modification in design of machineries, various ways to enhance indigo uptake
and quantitative estimation of indigo on cotton denim. Beside, developments have also been made to
improve wash-down property through efficient dyeing 6-36. The present paper reviews proper application
of indigo on denim as well as various aspects relating to this application.

 
Application of Indigo 2
Indigo is exclusively used to produce attractive blue shades on denim along with desired wash-down
property. However, in its reduced and solubilised form, indigo possesses little affinity for cotton the
extent of affinity is too less to exercise exhaust dyeing; rather multi dip/nip technique with intermediate
air oxidation is followed for gradual build up of shade. A suitable method of dyeing, viz. slasher dyeing
(sheet dyeing) or rope dyeing (ball warp dyeing or chain dyeing) or loop dyeing, is followed for dyeing of
warp yarn. After dyeing, the dyed warp yarn is woven using white cotton weft to produce mostly a warp
faced 3  1 twill fabric with blue face and white back. The fabric is then washed through specific
techniques to remove a

Fig. 1Omez SpA continuous slasher dyeing range38

 Fig. 2Slasher dyeing with integrated sizing range38

part of dye in order to develop unique fading property 37.

In slasher dyeing method, denim yarns in the form of a warp sheet are pretreated in earlier
compartments followed by multi dip/nip indigo dyeing; the process completes with after-washing
followed by drying, sizing and final drying. Handling of yarn is minimum as the warp sheet is directly
processed and then sent to weaving section for its subsequent conversion to fabric 38 - 41. A slasher dyeing
range may consist of either the indigo dyeing range alone 42–45 or a continuous indigo dyeing range with
an integrated sizing range46. In the first type, yarn sheet moves forward through one or two
pretreatment boxes with the stages of dipping, squeezing and skying; washing and drying are the only
aftertreatments. On requirement, two or more layers of warp sheet may be processed simultaneously.
Schematic diagram of a popular slasher dyeing range is shown in Fig. 1. The second  type includes the
steps followed in first type, extra attachments are the sizing and the washing compartments as shown in
Fig. 2. Slasher dyeing is suited for better production schedules with a possible problem of centre to side
variation. Superior quality of yarn is needed to minimize breakage problems. Broken end roll wrap ups
can cause catastrophic shut-down problem as well as undesired waste. On the other hand, the dipping,
squeezing and oxidation require less time as each yarn is independently subjected to treatments.

In rope dyeing method, yarns from creel are pulled by a ball warping machine and then passed
through a lease stand consisting of a special comb and lease rods to ensure proper registration of ends.
These drawn ends then pass through a condenser tube assembly to merge these into a bundle followed
by passing the latter to form a rope comprising 350-400 ends. Ropes are then wound on drums Once the
beam has been fully wound, it is unloaded and mounted on dye range creel 7,47. Dyeing is done by passing
ropes, up to 12 at a time, through pretreatment bath followed by multiple dipping in separate indigo
baths with intermediate squeezing and skying, as done in slasher dyeing. Schematic diagram of a rope
dyeing unit is shown in Fig. 3 (ref. 48). Rope dyeing method is important for higher production rate with
better quality dyeing and better fastness to wet/dry rubbing as well as colour wash down It includes less
breakage of ends and better shade consistency but in contrast more handling of yarn to open ropes
before sizing. However, the efficiency of slasher and rope dyeing methods depends on back feed to
dyebaths to maintain concentration of indigo and other chemicals at a constant rate 42-48, which is a
cumbersome

 
 Fig. 3Rope dyeing 7, 38 (reproduced from International Textile Bulletin)

Fig. 4Principle of “Loopdye 1 for 6” (ref. 49) (reproduced from International Textile Bulletin)

work. Moreover, consumptions of chemicals and dye remain on higher side with greater chance of
uneven / tailing effect.

In loop dyeing, problems associated with slasher and rope dyeing were solved through the
development of a new dyeing technique, known as "loopdye 1 for 6", by Eckhardt Theodor Godau In
comparison with other indigo dyeing methods with six colour troughs, in loop dyeing there is only one
brief indigo dyebath with one squeezing unit. The process, offered by Looptex SA(CH) and under licence
by Intes(I) and Texima SA(Brazil), is of modular construction. It comprises 8-16 warp beams (threading in
feature), pre-wetting or pre-mercerising unit, twin-pad colour applicator, an integrated skying passage,
two rinsing sections and an accumulator scray. Fig. 4 shows the sequence of operation used in this new
technique49 - 53.

Reduction of Indigo 3
 

Conventional Reducing Agents 3.1

Sodium hydrosulphite reduces indigo at 30-50oC depending on type of indigo used, resulting in
formation of biphenols (leuco-indigo)54. The reduced form is quite stable in presence of NaOH to carry out
dyeing at room temperature. However, hydrosulphite is very unstable. At the time of reduction of dye, it
gets decomposed thermally, oxidatively and in various other ways 55, requiring 2-3 times higher amount
over the stiochiometric requirement56-58. Attempts have been made to keep control over its use through
scientific analysis in course of dyeing59-62.

Other reducing systems, viz. fermentation technique 1 copperas method1, 63, 64 zinc-lime method1,
bisulphite-zinc-lime vat method  1,65, thiourea dioxide method 66–68 and sodium borohydride method  69 -
72
have fallen out of use due to limitations associated with their applications.

 
3.2 Ecofriendly Reducing Agents
In recent times, the use of ecofriendly reducing systems for indigo has attracted attention of
researchers73. These new reducing systems include hydroxyacetone, iron-pentacarbonyl compounds,
electrochemical reduction, glucose-NaOH and iron (II) salt along with a suitable ligand.

Hydroxyacetone when used as a reducing agent (reduction potential ~-810 mV) in refined
dyeing74 process results in 20% higher dye uptake along with less consumption of auxiliary chemicals.
Other advantages are higher quality dyeing, better ring dyeing effect, better elasticity of yarns, increased
productivity, higher dye uptake and less dyestuff in effluent. However, in this method the required
reduction potential for vatting is obtained at 100 oC with higher concentration of NaOH and the produced
shade does not correspond with that obtained with hydrosulphite. Hydroxyacetone is found to be more
suitable for pad - steam method75.
 

The detailed report on the use of iron-pentacarbonyl compounds, though suggested as reducing
agent, has not been disclosed so far76.
 

In electrochemical reduction technique, vat dye is directly reduced by making the contact between
dye and electrode. A reducing agent at lower concentration must be added to the reduced dyestuff to
ensure corresponding stability of reduced dye liquor. However, the dyestuff requirement for a specific
shade is too high77 – 80.
 

Glucose in combination with NaOH can be used for the reduction of sulphur dyes [reduction potential
~ (-550)(-600) mV]. Indigo requires ~ -700mV potential for reduction ; hence glucose-NaOH system can
also be used preferably at boil, producing reduced indigo baths free from sediments and highly stable
for several hours. The problem related to this reducing system is that the padded textile requires more
time for oxidation in between two successive dips and the indigo uptake is less 81.

It has been reported that ferrous hydroxide is a strong reducing agent in an alkaline medium 73. The
reducing effect increases even more with the increase in pH value. Ferrous hydroxide is poorly soluble in
alkaline conditions and precipitates. It must be complexed 82 in order to hold the ferrous hydroxide in
solution. Fe++ has hardly any reducing power as the central ion of complexes has the stable arrangement
of krypton shell. However, a stable complex with reducing power is obtained with weaker ligands, e.g.
gluconic acid. On dyeing with vat dyes at 60 oC, good dye uptake was achieved for optimum
concentration of iron(II) salt and molar ratio between this salt and gluconic acid. However, dye uptake
decreases with the decrease in concentration of iron salt, even too low concentration of iron(II) salt
gives lighter and unlevel dyeings at 1:1 and 1:2 molar ratios of iron(II) salt and gluconic acid due to the
insufficient vatting of dye. When molar concentration ratio of iron(II) salt and gluconic acid was reduced
to 1:0.5 unlevelled shades were produced with reduced brilliance 73. Iron (II) salts in combination with
NaOH and a weak ligand, like gluconic acid, tartaric acid citric acid or triethanolamine, at suitable
concentrations can produce reduction baths with reduction potential ranging from–800mV to–1000mV.
These reduction baths are capable of reduction and dyeing with indigo at room temperature. The
reduction baths showed superior stability in presence of indigo up to 24 h. Deposition of iron on dyed
samples was also assessed and it was found that gluconic acid as ligand causes least deposition whereas
citric acid causes maximum deposition. Produced shades were bright with no shifting of  max. The baths
were turbid throughout dyeing83.

It may be summarised here that for quality dyeing, whatever may be the reducing agent the
reduction potential and alkalinity of bath should be accurately adjusted for development of true shade
of indigo84 - 90.

 
Factors Influencing Indigo Uptake 4
Reduced and solubilized indigo, though ionic in nature, possesses negligible affinity for cotton; a
multiple dip / nip technique is followed with intermediate airing for gradual build-up of shade. Yarn to
be dyed is dipped in indigo bath for a specific time followed by a passage through padding unit in order
to achieve better penetration as well as distribution at nearly 100% expression, succeeded by air
oxidation. This dip / nip followed by airing cycle is repeated till desired depth of shade is produced,
succeeded by a final oxidation for 3-5 min for complete conversion of soluble indigo to its insoluble
form.

As stated, desired depth of shade is primarily governed by number of dips/nips, but dye uptake
during each dip is influenced by a number of other process parameters, viz. pH of dyebath, immersion
time, time of intermediate oxidation, concentration of indigo and temperature of dyebath. These
parameters affect build-up of indigo on cotton, degree of penetration and various fastness properties.
 

The crucial factor is pH of indigo bath 54,91-95. Depending on dyebath pH, indigo may exist in
following  four  different  forms  as  shown  in  Fig. 5:

(i)   indigotin structure at lower alkaline pH,

(ii)  reduced but non-ionic form at moderate alkaline pH,

(iii)               mono-phenolate form at relatively higher pH, and

(iv) bi-phenolate form at very higher pH,

 
  

Structures (i) and (ii) exist below pH 9-9.5; their relative fraction depends on exact pH of bath. With
slow increase in pH structure (i) collapses and gets converted to either (ii) or (iii) or mixture of both.
Further increase in pH above pH 10 slowly converts all (ii) to (iii). At around 11.5 pH almost all indigo
molecules are in their mono-phenolate form. Any further addition of alkali beyond pH 11.5 slowly
attacks second C=O group of indigo in presence of excess hydrosulphite, resulting in the conversion of
mono-phenolate form (iii) to bi-phenolate form (iv). The extent of conversion strictly depends on exact
pH and excess hydrosulphite in dyebath. As the presence of excess hydrosulphite is must for successful
indigo dyeing, if alkali is added in excess above pH 12.5, the structure (iv) predominates.

Fig. 5Different ionic and non-ionic forms of indigo 38, 92 [(i) indigotin, (ii) reduced non-ionic form, (iii) mono-phenolate form,
and (iv) bi-phenolate form]

 Indigo in the form of structure (iv) shows reduced affinity for cotton and thus dye uptake falls.
Structure (i) shows no affinity whereas structure (ii) has negligible affinity, as both these structures are
non-ionic forms of indigo. Mono-phenolate form is the desired structure which possesses highest affinity
as well as strike rate to give higher dye uptake. In this context it is also to be noted that cotton when
dipped in alkaline bath acquires negative charge. The higher the pH, the higher is the charge on fibre
and more is the repulsion between dye and fibre, resulting in reduced dye uptake.

Importance of pH is also related to ease in washing. Indigo shows maximum affinity as well as higher
strike rate on cotton at pH 10.5-11.5 due to the lower solubility of mono-phenolate form in this pH range.
This hinders penetration inside cotton and gives more intensive surface dyeing, achieving better wash-
down

 
Fig. 6Fractional form of each reduced species of indigo found in dyebath as a function of pH 91 [··········Acid leuco
form,   Mono-phenolate form, and   Bi-phenolate form] (reproduced from AATCC Review)
 

effect96.

Fig. 7Distribution of indigo in the cross- section of cotton denim yarn at different pH conditions  105 (reproduced from
AATCC Review)

It was mentioned earlier that the relative fraction of mono-phenolate and bi-phenolate forms of
indigo can be positively controlled by adjusting the dye bath pH 54, 87, 91, 92, 94, 95, 97-104. pH is such a crucial
factor in dyeing with indigo that it not only controls dye uptake but also distribution of indigo on cotton
yarn through control over strike rate and hence wash-down properties with removal of unfixed dyes 87,105.

Out of two soluble forms of indigo viz. mono-phenolate and bi-phenolate, the former has relatively
lower water solubility and higher strike rate, just opposite to that of bi-phenolate species (Fig. 6). Hence,
if pH can be kept within a range of 10.5-11.5, most of indigo molecules will exist in bath in their mono-
phenolate form, showing higher strike rate for cotton, resulting in poor penetration and higher surface
deposition of dyesthe so called ring dyeing effect 87, 91, 105. In ring dyeing, only a few surface layers are
dyed leaving interior of yarn undyed due to the absence of adequate time for penetration as well as
thorough distribution105 (Fig. 7). If pH is raised above 11.5, the relative fraction of mono-phenolate form
gets reduced with instant increase in that of bi-phenolate form, lowering the strike rate. This
consequently increases time for absorption, resulting in dyeing of few more layers than that obtained
with mono-phenolate form. With the further increase in pH, mono-phenolate form goes on diminishing
with a substantial rise in bi-phenolate form and thorough dyeing of cotton occurs 105.
 

Efficient wash-down property of indigo dyed yarn depends on the amount of dye present on yarn
surface. It is the 10.5-11.5 pH range which gives dyeings with desired washing performance and a
deeper shade with less amount of indigo. Dyeing at higher pH range gives relatively lighter shades and
lower wash-down property92 106 – 108.
 

Ionic nature of cellulose also affects indigo uptake. With the increase in alkalinity of indigo bath
ionisation of cellulose (expressed in g-ions / litre) increases with development of more anions, e.g.
concentration of Cell-O- at pH 10 is 3 10-3 g-ions/ litre, which increases to 1.1 g-ions/ litre at pH 13. This, in
turn, suppresses substantivity of indigo, finally lowering the dye uptake 87, 105. Calculation of different forms
of indigo in bath, though cumbersome, can be made through the study of equilibrium ionisation constant
values107.
 

Effect of immersion time on final colour depth in indigo dyeing shows that with the increase in
immersion time, dye uptake increases initially, remains nearly same for little further increase in pH and
beyond certain limit falls considerably. An immersion time of 30 s seems to be adequate. Prolonged
immersion reduces colour depth mainly due to the re-reduction of oxidised indigo retained by cotton
through previous dips and go back to dyebath. To get optimum colour yield oxidation time is fixed
at 60 s. Due to very low affinity of solubilised indigo in bath for cotton, the increase in indigo
concentration in bath though initially can increase the depth of colour, but beyond certain concentration
does not show any remarkable change on dye uptake. Increase in indigo concentration up to 3 g/L in
bath increases its uptake on cotton but beyond this concentration it shows little impact on dye uptake.
Optimum depth of shade is obtained in as high as ten dips and beyond that no such increase occurs. But
keeping in view the limitation in machinery set up and a lengthy process time, generally a 6-dip 6-nip
technique is followed96, 97. However, it has been reported elsewhere to use the lowest possible
concentration of indigo and maximum number of dips. By doing so, colour uniformity, fastness and
wash-down properties after dyeing improve. A rule of thumb is that more the number of dips used for a
given shade with low concentration of indigo in bath, the better the colour uniformity, fastness and
wash-down properties109.

Affinity of solubilised indigo for cotton decreases with the increase in temperature, initially at a faster
rate followed by very slow decrease. At lower temperature, affinity of indigo is better and also re-
reduction of oxidized indigo does not occur typically. Hence, it is better to carry out dyeing without any
application of heat. It has been reported that the maximum dye uptake occurs if dyeing is carried out at
room temperature. With the increase in dyeing temperature from 40 oC to 60oC, dye uptake falls
relatively at a slower rate and beyond that it becomes almost parallel 96 97.
 

Techniques to Enhance Indigo Uptake 5

 

Alternate pH Control Techniques 5.1

 Indigo uptake can be enhanced through proper control over pH in the region 10.5-11.5. NaOH, used
in indigo dyeing, is a very strong alkali and makes efficient dyeing impracticable due to the wide
fluctuation in pH during dyeing. Initially, the pH is highly sensitive to NaOH concentration, a small
change in NaOH concentration changes pH remarkably 110 The normal practice is to add NaOH at higher
concentration so that the final dyebath pH does not fall below 10.5 with a result of less dye uptake in
initial dips. This is because when less NaOH is used in an attempt to achieve a dyebath pH of 11.0, small
changes in NaOH concentration lead to very large changes in dyebath pH. In fact, the dyebath pH may
drop suddenly into a range in which mainly non-ionised indigo is formed and superficially deposited
onto the denim yarn. Such deposition inhibits sorption of ionised dye, leading to streaking and
extremely poor crock fastness110. In contrast, the use of excess alkali makes lighter dyeings of higher
alkalinity, which creates trouble in finishing 111.

Attempts to substitute NaOH with other alkalis/ bases developed buffered alkali system of
undisclosed composition., This was manufactured by Virkler Company, USA, which when applied in
indigo bath at recommended concentration produced a stable pH in the range of 11.0 and little
fluctuation occurred in dye uptake throughout the period of dyeing 112.

In another attempt, NaOH was substituted with different organic bases. Before application,
alkalinity of these bases was evaluated and then these were applied in various indigo baths, keeping
equivalent alkalinity with that produced with NaOH. It has been reported that the dye uptake with these new
systems was on quite higher side than that obtained with NaOH method. Stability of indigo bath was
superior to that of NaOH baths even after a lapse of 8 h. Change in pH with time was also studied and it was
found that most of the bases are capable of maintaining pH in 10.5-11.5 range upto 4 h (ref. 113).
 
Pretreatment of Cotton 5.2

Indigo in solubilised state is anionic in nature and will be attracted by cotton if the latter is pretreated
with cationic compounds. Cotton was pretreated by immersing it in a solution containing 200 g/L of 12%
aqueous Hercosett 57 (cationic water soluble polyamine-epichlorohydrin resin) and 10 g/L of Sandozin NI
for 5 min followed by squeezing the material in padding mangle to achieve 80% pick-up and drying at
100oC for 3 min. Treated cotton was padded with indigo through 6-dip 6-nip technique. It has been
reported that dye uptake on pretreated cotton remain on higher side than that on untreated cotton under
identical dyeing conditions96.

Pretreatment of cotton with metal salts prior to padding with indigo (which may be done in several
ways to synchronize with batch or continuous dyeing methods) results in substantial increase in indigo
uptake. It is also observed that iron and cobalt (II) salts are more effective even at very low concentration
of 1g/L. Formation of insoluble metallic hydroxides in situ cotton in presence of NaOH and air is
responsible to attract more anionic indigo molecules in bath, causing increase in dye uptake114.

Introduction of a mercerizing step prior to indigo padding enhances indigo uptake considerably. A
DIMER was shown at ATME–1, Greenville, October 1988, which is basically a loop dyeing system that
incorporates real premercerizing in the loop dye process for indigo warp dyeing. The technique was
originally developed in Switzerland by Loopdye, but is now being produced and marketed by Kuesters. The
unit simplifies warp production with advantages like improved fabric appearance and handle, higher yarn
strength, higher dye uptake and more intensive ring-spun yarn dyeing with shorter stone washing. Even it
is also possible to bottom with sulphur, indanthrene, reactive and naphthol colours115.
 

6 Cost Effective Production in Indigo Dyeing

Multi-vat machine concept has regained its importance through flexible adaptation of machine
technology. Accurate dosing, targeted dyestuff use, low dyestuff and chemical losses are the main
aspects of such production system.

According to literature, adequate dwell times in the steeping bath (approx. 6 m/bath) and oxidation
zones (>60 s) together with a high circulation rate with low dyestuff concentration have been pursued in
order to achieve optimum dyeing104, 116-118. Due to lower dyestuff concentration in the effluent, ultra-
filtration device can then be equipped with smaller filter surfaces to reduce investment and operating
cost. Washing water consumption can be kept low at 
3 L/kg of warp.
 

Indigo vat, hydrosulphite and NaOH are continuously dosed in proportion to speed of circulation
avoiding shade variation. A Semen Op 20 automation unit, confirming a high degree of processing
reliability and reproducibility, controls dosing. Dosing of dye is controlled via a special frequency control
pump. Measuring systems are available for bath concentration, pH value, redox potential, bath
temperature, etc.

Another unique way of cost reduction is ‘zero discharge concept’, which works in ‘loopdye 1 for 6
process’ using hydroxyacetone as reducing agent to produce waste-free improved quality dyeing at
reduced cost through recovery and reuse of unused dye and wastewater 119.
 

Quantitative Estimation of Indigo 7

Indigo in dyed textile/dyebath/wash liquor is determined spectrophotometrically at maximum wave

length (max). When indigo is in solid state, each of its molecules forms H-bonds with 4 adjacent dye
molecules (between C = O and NH groups) and makes it insoluble in water as well as in most of the
organic solvents120. Pyridine acts as a good solvent For spectroscopic estimation of indigo, a clear and
stable solution of indigo is an indispensable pre-condition for consistent and reproducible results.
Alternately, turbidity of oxidised form of indigo may be a measure of quantitative estimation. Several
analytical methods have been devised in this context, viz. colorimetry of leuco indigo, turbidity of indigo
in oxidised form and colorimetry of sulphonated indigo. In solvent technique, a few methods based on
colorimetry of chloroformic, pyridine/rwater and dimethyl sulphoxide extracts have also been
reported 121 – 124.

The colorimetry of leuco indigo method consists of reduction of pure indigo with hydrosulphite in
alkaline medium. Absorbance is instantly observed at 412 nm, as reduced indigo has time-bound
stability ; its spectrum changes considerably in very short time intervals. This technique lacks
reproducibility125 However the technique may be dispensed with other methods if stability of reduced
indigo can be increased It has been mentioned in literature that iron(II) complex with triethanolamine
can reduce vat dyestuffs and the reduced dyebath has high degree of stability to temperature, time and
atmospheric oxygen126 In this technique, iron(II) salt concentration should be kept under control as iron
ions below 400 nm tend to go for self absorption.

Turbidity of oxidized indigo method shows no linear relation between turbidity and concentration. In
some cases, the higher values of turbidity were also achieved on reducing the concentration. This
behaviour is possibly due to the excessive dimensions of indigo particles as well as distribution of
uneven sizes. Addition of glycerine to stabilize the suspension did not improve the results (glycerine
increases bath density and retards particle fall). Maximum absorbance was found to be at 666 nm but
the slope of the calibration curve varied according to the status of initial dyeing bath 126.
 

In sulphonated indigo method, incorporation of solubilizing groups of sulphuric acid in indigo

structure makes indigo water soluble, stable and deep blue coloured. The absorbance is maximum at
605 nm (ref. 125). Beer's law is fulfilled up to 15 ppm of concentration and the reproducibility of the
method is 0.3-2%. However, before sulphonation, indigo should be in oxidized and dried form otherwise
a greenish- brown solution is obtained Indigo should also be free from hydrosulphite. This analytical
technique is hardly suited for instantaneous and continuous control of indigo liquors 126. Sulphonation of
indigo with concentrated sulphuric acid  at 75oC is also troublesome.

Solvent Techniques 7.1

The colorimetry of chloroformic extract gives maximum absorbance at 605 nm and good linearity is
achieved in the calibration curve up to indigo concentration of 10 ppm. At this concentration solubility
limit of dye in chloroform is reached and a blue interphase between the two layers is formed during
extraction125

Indigo structure has a similarity with that of pyridine. Solubilization occurs through H-bonding
between these two Oxidized indigo can be dissolved up to a concentration of 40 ppm by boiling
in pyridine-water (50:50) solution which is then photometrically measured at 625 nm. Measurement
must be done when the solution is hot to avoid precipitation of indigo on cooling the solution. Indigo
should be completely free from hydrosulphite; if not, the later decomposes indigo during heating with
reagent solution. Presence of NaOH with dye also changes absorbance as aggregation of dye alters with
pH. This method has a reproducibility of 2-4% (ref. 125).

A completely new approach has been made by solubilizing oxidized indigo in dimethyl sulphoxide
(DMSO). The method does not have any problem as shown with earlier methods. It is time saving, safe,
without interference and largely reproducible. Solubility of indigo is excellent even at room temperature
; the maximum absorbance is achieved at 619 nm. The solution is highly stable for several days and for
indigo concentration of up to 250 g/ml, complete dissolution takes place. The only problem lies in
handling of DMSO is that it is slightly detrimental to health, causes irritation in contact with skin and
itching, etc.127.
 In some cases, denim is dyed with a combination of indigo and sulphur or hydron blue dyes. To
estimate contribution of these two in the shade developed, indigo is first extracted completely from
sample at boil in pyridine-water solution. The dyed sample under test is rinsed with methyl alcohol and
dried at 40oC to remove residual pyridine and methyl alcohol. Reflectance of the sample is measured.
Colour strength calculated from reflectance value at each wavelength is integrated over the wavelength
range, the result is an integrated value 128.
 

Conclusion 8

Though indigo is a class of vat dye, it cannot be applied according to conventional vat dyeing
techniques due to its negligible affinity for cotton, rather multiple dip/nip with intermediate airing is to
be followed. During dyeing, the pH of dyebath plays a crucial role to affect indigo uptake as well as
location of dye on cotton structure, though influence of other factors cannot be overlooked. Dyeing
mostly takes place in yarn stage, necessitating selection of specific machine depending on form of yarn.
Beside dyeing parameters, special techniques through use of buffer/other alkalis/bases, pretreatment of
cotton, etc. may be introduced to enhance indigo uptake. As far as quantitative assessment of indigo is
concerned, DMSO method has been found to be the most effective one.

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