Fashion Fair 2008 to Attract 100 Businesses

More than 100 domestic and foreign enterprises will take part in the Vietnam International Fashion Fair 2008 (VIFF) which is slated from November 19-24 in Hanoi, said Deputy General Director of the Vietnam Garment and Textile Group (Vinatex), Mr. Le Tien Truong.

 

VIFF is aimed to strengthen the relationship between domestic and foreign businesses, and to achieve the garment and footwear sectors’ goals in the domestic market in the context of increasing competition in the global market.

 

The latest garment and footwear fashion products will be displayed at 300 stalls of the fair. Of particular note is a new collection of designer spectacles showcased by the Global Optic JS Company.

 

A number of seminars regarding the development of the domestic market and solutions for the garment industry will be held during the fair, which takes place annually in Ho Chi Minh City in July and in Hanoi during November.

 

Garments have traditionally been considered one of the country’s key export staples with an average annual growth rate of 32 percent. In the past ten months, garment export turnover reached US$7.64 billion, representing a 20 percent increase over the same period last year. The figure is expected to hit US$9.5 billion by the year-end.

 

In 2007, Vietnam was listed among the world’s top 10 garment exporters. The country has set a target of being named in the top five by 2015.

 

Experts, however, have warned that Vietnamese garment businesses are at risk of losing a share of the domestic market due to high-volume, low-cost imports from China and Thailand.