McKinsey data show: the epidemic situation makes the world textile industry into crisis

According to Spain's "national newspaper" website reported on March 1, 2020 to the world's textile and garment industry suffered a heavy blow. First, the isolation of the epidemic, followed by restrictions on business and leisure activities, as well as telecommuting and worse economic prospects, have minimized people's desire to put on new clothes and the possibility of doing so. As a result, about half of the world's people wear sportswear most of the year. People do buy a lot of things online, but it's not enough to offset the economic collapse.

According to a survey conducted by McKinsey consulting company, the crisis has made textile and garment enterprises lose 30% of their sales and 90% of their profits worldwide. The advent of the vaccine gave the industry hope at the end of last year, but the slow progress of vaccination may prolong the painful period of the textile and garment industry, at least until this summer. "Uncertainty" is the word most frequently heard by reporters when consulting enterprise managers and experts on business development prospects in 2021. Industry insiders believe that in 2021, the textile and garment industry will not be able to recover lost land. The industry will also experience some changes: closer production activities to the market; more flexible supply; smaller, cheaper and more durable product sets; possibly lower correlation with seasons; more emphasis on sustainability, etc.

According to the report, the emergence of a pandemic a year ago had a great impact on the textile and garment industry. The mandatory suspension of business activities has dried up the industry's revenue sources and forced many well-known European and American brands to protect their cash flow capacity by cancelling and delaying orders (even some are already in progress) or delaying payments. "During the period of closed quarantine in Europe, we extended the payment time to all suppliers by 30 days," said a person in charge of a Spanish clothing company who did not want to be named. It has a big impact on them, but it's about our survival. It wasn't until last August that we more or less restarted the supply chain. "

The impact hit the other end of the chain, with large numbers of employees employed by textile and garment companies, many of which are concentrated in Asia, the report said. A survey conducted by organizations concerned with labor rights around the world shows that in 2020, 38% of employees in textile and garment enterprises (sampled in nine countries and regions) will lose their jobs, and these employees and their families will generally suffer from poverty and hunger.

The report pointed out that although the initial impact has been alleviated and production and trade activities have gradually returned to normal, the subsequent continuous epidemic wave has brought new trade and people movement restrictions. According to McKinsey, by the end of last year, the global textile and apparel industry had lost 20% to 25% of its sales, including 25% to 30% in Europe and 20% to 25% in the United States. According to the specific conditions of different countries and regions, it is expected that the industry data level of 2019 will not be restored until the end of 2022 or 2023.