“Let’s Design” Fashion Competition in India Reaches 5 Million Consumers

Up-and-coming fashion designers in India created distinctive cotton fashions during the nationally televised “Let’s Design” competition. CCI partnered with Zoom Entertainment Network to produce six episodes of “Let’s Design,” which reached 5 million consumers in India. Nearly 650 entrants submitted sketches of cotton apparel under the theme of “innovative use of cotton,” and a judging panel of fashion industry professionals ultimately selected 17 designers to join the “reality house” in Delhi. Each contestant was given a sewing station and had to complete a series of design challenges, including creating prêt-a-porter garments and evening wear with cotton fabric. Celebrity judges eliminated the weakest designers, and 12 finalists showcased their designs during a fashion show. The winning designer, Shrivan Bhatia, became CCI’s Brand Ambassador for 2009/10 and will design an exclusive cotton collection. The TV program’s earned advertising value was $410,000, more than double CCI’s investment. Impressed by CCI’s campaigns, India’s cotton industry announced in 2009 that it would begin consumer promotion of cotton products within their domestic markets. CCI views this as an important step by the world’s second largest cotton producing country to join global efforts to enhance consumer demand. India has a fast-growing economy, the second largest population behind China and represents one of the world’s best opportunities to expand demand for cotton products at retail.

Cotton Industry Convenes in Dubai for “Cotton’s Revolutions” Conference

2008 (Summer)
CCI and Cotton Incorporated's "Cotton's Revolutions From Sourcing to Sustainability" conference in Dubai gathered cotton business leaders from Europe, the U.S. and South and Southeast Asia to discuss the effects of short and long-term developments in global business and society. Nearly 130 brands, retailers, mills, manufacturers and merchants attended the two-day conference, which consisted of panel discussions ranging from regional sourcing advantages to cotton's sustainability. Attendees heard a summary of the Seven Revolutions, a project analyzing how demographics, natural resource management, technology, the movement of information, global economic integration, conflict and governance will challenge companies and society as they move toward 2025. A speed-sourcing event and trade fair enabling brands and retailers to identify COTTON USA licensed suppliers concluded the conference.

Executive Delegation Represents U.S. Cotton Industry in Vietnam, Pakistan and Turkey