Sweden: Latest apparel and textile news & analysis

What Arket reveals about H&M's new direction 21 Jun 2017

H&M’s new Arket concept is quite unlike anything previously seen from the retailer. Rather than adopt a faster sourcing strategy, the company has opted to introduce a new brand to cater to shifts in consumer behaviour and progress towards a more sustainable business model. Bernadette Kissane, senior analyst for apparel and footwear at Euromonitor International, takes a closer look.

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What's the difference between compliance and safety? 26 May 2016

Swedish fashion retailer H&M is one of the leaders of the move to change compliance, and is at the forefront of sustainability. However, at the same time H&M appears to show no interest in the safety of workers making its products, write Emma Birnbaum and David Birnbaum. What is the difference between compliance and worker safety? they ask.

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H&M sustainability goals include water-based PU shoes 15 Apr 2016

Hennes & Mauritz (H&M) is to place its first volume orders for shoes made with water-based vegan leather this year as part of new sustainability goals set out by the Swedish fashion retailer.

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IN THE MONEY: H&M faces margin pressure on dollar impact 26 Jun 2015

H&M Hennes & Mauritz will likely suffer gross margin pressure in the near-term, analysts believe, as the negative impact from the strong US dollar is compounded by increased purchasing costs and increasing wages.

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SUSTAINABILITY: H&M adds transparency to yarn and fabric suppliers 10 Apr 2015

The latest sustainability efforts from fashion retailer H&M Hennes & Mauritz include adding fabric and yarn mills to its publicly published supplier factory list, and further progress in its work towards fair living wages - although criticism suggests this is not progressing fast enough for some.

Embroidery thread colouring tool goes into production 17 Apr 2018

A Swedish textile technology that enables embroidery thread to be coloured instantly during the embroidery process is to be made available as an attachment that will work with any existing embroidery machine.

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H&M pilot to educate consumers on garment care 16 Apr 2018

Swedish fashion retailer Hennes & Mauritz (H&M) has launched a pilot project aimed at educating consumers on how to prolong the lifespan of their garments.

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Polygiene terminates employment of former CEO 11 Apr 2018

Christian von Uthmann, former CEO of Swedish solutions firm Polygiene, has seen his employment with the firm terminated.

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Weak sales take toll on H&M Q1 27 Mar 2018

Shares in H&M were down by more than 6% this morning (27 March) as the Swedish fast fashion retailer booked a drop in first-quarter profit and revenue and identified four priority action areas – including supply chain – within which its transformation work will continue with "full force".

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Sustainable textile innovations win $1m from H&M Foundation 23 Mar 2018

A new technology that converts leftovers from food crop harvests such as flaxseeds, sugar cane and pineapples to make sustainable bio-textiles has won the largest slice of an EUR1m (US$1.24m) grant backed by Swedish fashion giant H&M.

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H&M off to sluggish start with flat Q1 sales 15 Mar 2018

Hennes & Mauritz (H&M) has reported the group's first-quarter sales including VAT were unchanged in local currencies compared to the same quarter of the previous year.

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Sustainable innovations win EUR1m Global Change Award 14 Mar 2018

Custom-made clothes produced from decomposable mushroom roots, sustainable bio-textiles made from leftovers from food crop harvests, and a dissolvable thread are just some of the winners of the third EUR1m (US$1.24m) Global Change Award.

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Lindex invests in female textile worker health 7 Mar 2018

Swedish fashion retailer Lindex has pledged to donate 10% of its revenues during International Women’s Day (8 March) to the HERhealth project, which aims to improve health and lives of female textile workers.

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H&M renews online focus amid store sales slump 15 Feb 2018

Swedish fast fashion retailer Hennes & Mauritz (H&M) saw its shares drop by nearly 6% yesterday (14 February) after revealing it expects comparable store sales to continue to slide this year, with a prediction of a 2019 rebound failing to reassure investors.

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H&M shelves digitalisation reinvestment plan 13 Feb 2018

Swedish fashion retailer H&M has shelved plans to let shareholders reinvest their dividend payouts in new shares that would help finance investments in areas such as digitalisation, saying the move would be difficult to implement.

H&M leads on sustainable fashion 17 Apr 2015

H&M's new Conscious Exclusive collection, which launched this week, proves that high street fashion can be sustainable. And as the line gains momentum it’s using more diverse materials, including recycled beads, fabrics such as hemp, organic linen, and organic leather.