Bluezone: Mills Woo the German Market with Lightweight Stretch Denim
Angela Velasquez
7 min read
Over 70 international denim mills showcased their latest developments for denim and sportswear last week at Bluezone in Munich. Though the trade show and sister show Munich Fabric Start saw 10 percent fewer visitors than last season, designers found the show valuable to their research.
First-time Bluezone visitor Angela Fusco, senior denim designer for Chloé, praised Bluezone’s workshop and education program. “Trade shows are an important part [of] this. Denim is not just another fabric. To make educated design decisions, it’s crucial [to meet] different people and discuss topics like new innovations and sustainability,” she said. “It’s nice to actually try out things and not just discuss them in theory.”
Many companies introduced collections geared toward the German market or filled a gap in the supply chain.
Officina39 is meeting the demand for sustainable dyestuff for nylon. The Italian chemical manufacturer previewed Recycrom, a dyestuff derived from recycled textile pre- and post-consumer materials, for polyamide fabrics. Like in denim, Recycrom for nylon can achieve aging effects through finishing process—a process Andrea Venier, Officina39 managing director, said was previously complicated for nylon.
Calik Denim tailored an assortment of lightweight, high stretch fabrics with flat surfaces and deep, dark colors for the German market. The fabrics sat alongside the Turkish mill’s F/W 25-26 main collection that spans Japanese-inspired fabrics, fancy stripe constructions and a wide assortment of stretch fabrics with a vintage and authentic look.
A rep from Calik added that several clients are in the processes of testing fabrics with Lycra FitSense technology, which launched in April. The mill is guiding them through the technical aspects of the shaping technology that allows brands to customize jeans with targeted compression.
In Munich, DNM Denim also saw more interest in lightweight and comfort stretch fabrics over the mid-weight rigid fabrics leading other markets.
DNM Denim expanded its color range with three new gray shades: blue/black, brownish gray and granite gray that lightens easily. The new Basel Gray taps into the market’s interest in “dirty looks” that are usually achieved through garment dye, a rep said.
New colors from Maritas Denim included “off-shade indigos” like green-tinted Dustin Charm Blue, blue/gray Iceberg and Lunar Black overdyed with Tobacco for a brown effect.
Maritas Denim
Bossa introduced novelties such as brushed fabrics for a warm touch, denim with leather-like coatings and fabrics dyed with a special technique that allows brands to achieve light and dark extremes. A brand can create many shades with one fabric.
Berto set out to give denim an unexpected image for F/W 25-26. The Italian mill showed ready-to-dye flocked fabrics and indigo flocked fabrics with recycled denim. The collection also included fabrics with Lurex wefts for shimmering effects and a new polyester fabric that has a glossy finish. The specialty fabric is ideal for pleated constructions.
For denim traditionalists, Berto presented a wide assortment of rigid-looking cotton fabrics with a soft feel and clean finish. Others include a touch of elastane for comfort. The mill introduced an ecru option to its cashmere blend fabric family.
Advance Denim responded to the German market’s interest in stretch with Free Cross, a line of 4-way stretch denim made with a special weaving technique that controls the shrinkage in the warp, and Infinity, a power stretch fabric family with low shrinkage and low weight.
Fabrics enhanced with Lycra T-400 are a focal point in Naveena Denim Mills’ collection for the German market. Tom Tailor, Only and S.Oliver are among the brands sourcing from the fabric group.
The Pakistani mill also showed a trio of new reactive dyes that maintain their color for over 20 home laundries
To align with German market trends, Brazilian mill Vicunha showcased stretch denim fabrics with consistent performance and recovery. The mill’s Fit & Flex range adapts to multiple body shapes for an optimal fit across all lifestyles, movements, and body types. Fabrics like the Lucie, which offers an “exceptionally soft touch and high performance with minimal growth and low shrinkage,” are particularly well-suited for the German market, said Kursad Cakilcioglu, Vicunha Europe’s product development and sales manager.
In addition to colored denim, Vicunha presented Premium Crafts, a collection of premium fabrics crafted with special dobby designs and a blend of sustainable fibers, including ABR-certified cotton, hemp, linen, man-made cellulosic fibers, and recycled materials sourced from its own production facilities. Bio-based pigment from Nature Coatings is used in the collection to reduce carbon emissions and waste.
Natural denim is another way Vicunha is preserving natural resources. The Ilheus fabric is made with 100 percent cotton with an ecru finish. It has a soft touch and clear twill line. Kursad said the unique effect is achieved by ecru warp sheets and recycled fibers.
Bluezone was an opportunity for companies to highlight their latest sustainable projects.
A series of new products from Officina39 aim to minimize denim’s impact on the environment. With Aqualess All-In-One, Officina39 offers a pumice stone wash replacement with “outstanding abrasion effect.” Compared to traditional pumice stones, the compound—which includes waste from the marble industry—produces 90 percent less sludge, requires significantly less space and causes no damage compared to pumice stones.
The compound is suitable for indigo and black denim and is compatible with Officina39’s Recycrom, Novantic and Nebudye dyestuff. Final products have authentic vintage looks, high and lows and a better blueish cast compared to pumice stone, Venier said.
Easyndigo is a chemical package that uses a push and pull mechanism to garment dye with indigo from DenimBlu, resulting in an easier indigo garment dyeing process and reduced water and energy consumption. Officina39’s wetting and leveling agent and unique dispersing agent pulls indigo onto the fibers, while the firm’s Base Easyndigo compound pushes the dye into the fibers in the dye bath.
Officina39
The chemical package reaches its deepest effectiveness with Tonello’s DyeMate technology, an industrialized replacement for traditional manual indigo garment dyeing.
Regenerative cotton is a strong focus for Maritas Denim. Regenerative cotton is used alongside Tencel, organic cotton and recycled cotton in the mill’s NeoVintage collection of fabrics with a soft cotton feel and look.
The fabric producer is working with Harran University and Gaziantep University to grow Turkey’s supply of regenerative cotton and to spread awareness of the positive impact regenerative agriculture has on the environment and farmers.
Berto showed fabrics made with recycled waste from its production. Some fabrics are dyed again for a richer indigo look; others are left natural and obtain their color from the original fibers.
Vicunha continued to share stories about its fabrics made with locally sourced and traceable regenerative cotton certified by Regenagri. Ralf Dislich, managing director of Vicunha Europe, also participated in a roundtable discussion on producing denim with zero fresh water. Through its VSA project, Vicunha eliminates the use of clean, potable water in denim production, transitioning to 100 percent recovered water.
“Our efforts to reduce the environmental impact of our operations reflect Vicunha’s long-standing commitment to sustainability. We have been focused on driving positive environmental and social impact in our communities. Through these innovations, Vicunha continues to lead the way in developing high-quality, sustainable denim solutions that meet the evolving demands of the global market,” Dislich said.
Recycled cotton and polyester produced by Sanko Group’s recycling division Re&Up are key ingredients in Isko’s entire F/W 25-26 collection of fabrics. Though Re&Up’s operations are exclusively in Turkey, a rep said the firm is working to set up facilities in Spain, U.S. and Asia.
Isko Luxury by PG
The six F/W 25-26 capsules in the Isko Luxury by PG collection eliminate any doubt that circularity has a future in high-end fashion. All fabrics used in the trend-forward collection, which spans denim that mimics the look and texture of stingray, velvet and corduroy to clear glass-like coated denim, use Re&Up’s recycled cotton and polyester.
“Isko has been a unique and amazing partner because they have allowed me to create a collection that is amazing both visually and ethically speaking, thanks to their circular vision and advanced technology,” said Paolo Gnutti, creative director of Isko Luxury by PG.
