Cotton Prices Drop 27% in Past 3 Months

Cotton prices are headed back down. Current prices have dropped 27% in the past three months from the March high of $2.296. December 2011 pricing closed at 98.64 cents per pound, representing a 57% drop from the high.

But don’t get your hopes up. Lower prices (if any) will not show up until mid-2012. It’s been a number of years since apparel companies have taken a price increase and now they have to decide to keep the current prices and make up some margin or reduce prices and pass the savings on to you.

“Apparel inflation has gone nowhere close to the price of cotton,” says Joe Nicosia, chief executive of Tennessee-based Allenberg Cotton, the world’s biggest cotton merchant.

We will continue to monitor cotton pricing and how it will affect our industry. In the meantime, please review these two articles for more details on the future of cotton pricing.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111903554904576458270983393048.html?mod=dist_smartbrief

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/international-news/global-exchange/financial-times/cottons-volatile-run-set-to-continue/article2108399/?utm_medium=Feeds%3A%20RSS%2FAtom&utm_source=Home&utm_content=2108399

Post Written By Marty Duncan, ICBA Program Manager

Social Media Statistics

Sometimes it is nice when someone digests a huge amount of statistics for you. And that is just what blogger Sarah Evans whose Commentz blog deals with social media and public relations did for AdAge. Sarah selected her staff's fifty most insightful stats on social media. Among the ones of most interest to me are these:

1. "Social media accounts for one out of every six minutes spent online in US." (Journalism.co.uk)

16. "Mobile is one of the fastest-growing platforms in the world. With 40% of U.S. mobile subscribers regularly browsing the internet on their phone and a projected 12.5% of all e-commerce transactions going mobile by the end of the year, it's a channel that you need to be aware of. According to Google, mobile web traffic will surpass PC traffic by 2013." (60 Second Marketer)

20. "Users say they're more likely to buy if a business answers their questions on Twitter." (NYTimes.com)

27. "Groupon is on track to bring in between $3 billion and $4 billion in revenue this year alone. Facebook's 2010 sales were reported to be only around $2 billion in its sixth year of existence." (Knowledge@Wharton via MSNBC)

36. "33% of Facebook posting is mobile." (Dan Zarella)

49. "Nearly seven in 10 tablet owners reported spending at least 1 hour per day using the device, including 38% who spent over 2 hours on it. And while just 28% consider it their primary computer, 77% are spending less time on desktop or laptop PCs since they got a tablet." (eMarketer)

See the entire article here: http://adage.com/article/adagestat/50-social-media-stats-kickstart-slide-deck/228708/

Post Written By Stacy Waymire, ICBA Executive Director

Don't Read This Blog

Okay, I mean don't just read the ICBA Insider - participate by commenting. Contrary to common understanding, blogs are not a one-way communication.  As our name implies, the Insider succeeds because you are on the inside. We grew up with so much monologue media that we continue to use new media the same way. So...welcome to the ICBA Insider - I look forward to blogging with you!

Stacy Waymire

ICBA Executive Director

Welcome to the ICBA Insider!

Welcome ICBA Members & ICBA Vendor Partners!

I am happy to announce the launch of the new ICBA Insider, a blog including information about the programs and services from ICBA. I, along with various guest contributors from time-to-time, will pass along information about the ICBA Buying Programs, as well as other industry information that will keep you informed of our ever-changing industry.

The open exchange of information creates opportunities for buyers/mangers, stores and our business partners alike. My goal is that you will be empowered through the knowledge and networking of the ICBA Insider to find new business opportunities and partners that deliver real business value – every time.

I hope that you'll check out the new ICBA Insider, and that you'll consider adding it to your regular blog reading. Thanks!  

Marty Duncan
ICBA Program Manager

Hanesbrands Opens Hanes Ink Division to Supply Fashion Graphic Tees

Underwear Maker Hanes Tries On Fashion

Hanesbrands, Inc. is trying its hand at fashion through a new graphic T-shirt division. The new company will be called Hanes Ink. Hanes is betting it can use its size and scale to make decorated tees faster and cheaper than competitors.

“The potential is sizeable. T-shirt consumption has risen sharply, to more than 10 per person last year from around four in 1990, according to Hanesbrand data from market-research firm NPD Group and the Census Bureau. Americans bought 3.2 billion T-shirts in the 12 months ended in May, up 4.1% from a year earlier.”

In 2006, Hanes consolidated a lot of its production  to factories in China, the Dominican Republic and El Salvador and has “substantially increased capacity, meaning Hanes could make more shirts at a cheaper price. For years, the company has been selling small batches of its plain T-shirts to graphic designers or screen printers who would decorate them and then sell them to retailers at a markup. Hanes thought it could eliminate the middleman” says Jim Phelan, vice president of Hanes Ink.

Hanes has already produced fashion tees for Walt Disney Co., Wal-Mart , Macy's, Kohl's and arget.

The questions I have after reading this article are:

1. How soon before Hanes Ink applies for its first college license?
2. If they go after the college business, will they be able to offer a lower price at the same minimums as many of the current suppliers in our industry (“eliminating the middleman”)?

Click Here to read the complete article, I look forward to hearing your thoughts!

Post Written By Marty Duncan, ICBA Program Manager