Hyosung is a name synonymous with spandex. The largest global spandex producer with its trendsetting creora® brand, Hyosung has been growing from strength to strength. Its Indian subsidiary, Hyosung India Pvt. Ltd., engaged in sales and technical support of spandex yarn, polyester, nylon, tyre reinforcement material, GIS, transformers, motors, pumps, PTA, steel products, ATM machines and gear reducers, has been making inroads into the growing Indian market.
In an exclusive interaction with The Textile Magazine, Mr. Dinesh Keswani, General Manager (Marketing & Technical Services), shared his views on a variety of topics, including global trends vis-a-vis spandex, opportunities in the Indian market, new product launches and what makes the creora brand stand out from the crowd.
Globally there has been a steady increase in demand for spandex. Confirming this point, Mr. Dinesh Keswani said: “The growth of the global spandex market between 2014 and 2015 has been about 6%, with the growth of Indian spandex market being 13%.” Hyosung with its creora brand has been continuing on its growth trajectory.
Highlighting how the year 2015 has been for Hyosung, Mr. Keswani said: “Hyosung creora sales is continuously growing, as the global No.1 spandex maker with over 30% market share in 2015. During the year, we had actively promoted the creora brand to global customers, providing services such as workshops and through participation in several exhibitions and so on. With this kind of focused marketing effort, we hope the awareness of creora has further increased globally.”
Hyosung has been steadily increasing its manufacturing capacity over the years, as can be seen from the graph.
According to Mr. Keswani, Hyosung is operating additional manufacturing facilities in Vietnam and China since 2014 and is expecting to touch 200,000 MT capacity by the end of 2016.
Enthusiastic reception
Mr. Keswani is excited about the enthusiastic reception Hyosung has received for its new products. Giving an example he pointed out to a new colorful lace that can be incorporated for feminine styling in lingerie and swimwear, i.e., creora Color+ dyeable spandex.
He said Dong Yang HongJi Lace, which is a leading Chinese company, is using creora Color+ dyeable spandex and producing a stunning collection of lace. In fact, an elated Mr. Xu Liangfu, Chairman of Dong Yang HongJi Lace, praised the product, saying, “We always strive to create unique designs for our customers. creora Color+ dyeable elastane has allowed us to expand structures and enhance softness while delivering deeper darker color shades for lace”.
Another launch from Hyosung that has been in the news is the creora Fit² technology in the denim segment. This technology has been developed by the global spandex major to meet consumer demands for second skin fit with 360 degree comfort. The technology capitalizes on superior setting performance of creora spandex for 4-way stretch development with reduced shrinkage and better recovery. Bi-stretch denim with creora Fit² technology offers a more comfortable wear and a perfect silhouette.
Mr. Keswani added that new product development is an ongoing process at Hyosung and that some more new products will be launched in the near future.
New campaign
Hyosung recently launched a new promotional campaign for the creora brand. The new campaign uses water as the theme, in an innovative and creative way to illustrate the unlimited potential of shape, use, elasticity, and movement. The water is linked to the creora wave logo and then is wound around a human body to demonstrate invisible energy. The fluid shows freedom across confines and the amazing abilities of spandex fiber to illustrate the concept of ‘Stretching Beyond’.
Mr. Keswani is happy with the penetration that Hyosung has been able to make into the Indian spandex market in the recent past. Hyosung enjoys almost 50% market share in India. It is working with most of the leading textile manufacturers in the country such as Vardhman, Ginza, Pratibha, Maral Overseas, etc.
Speaking about the growth in other key global markets, Mr. Keswani said: “creora has seen good overall growth in the Asian market. China is still the biggest market in the world, though its growth has slowed down a little in recent times. But creora has been growing in the Chinese market. This is in addition to the encouraging growth rates that we are witnessing in big emerging markets such as India and Vietnam”.
Optimistic about future
Sharing his views on the future of the spandex market, globally as well as in India, Mr. Keswani explained: “We’re expecting the spandex market growth in 2016 to decrease a little due to economic contraction caused by the rise in US interest rates and the European sovereign debt crisis. However, in India we anticipate the market to continuously grow over 10% in 2016 with increasing awareness about healthy lifestyle and spandex penetration in various kinds of apparels”.
He added that given the growth in the Indian market, the Hyosung project team is studying the prospects for setting up a spandex factory in the country in the near future.
Listing the key reasons that make creora stand out: from the crowd, Mr. Keswani pointed out: “We take pride in stating that the creora product quality is the best in the market backed by Hyosung’s advanced technology. This gives us the capability to offer a number of specialty products which have distinct competitive advantage. Moreover Hyosung is the largest spandex manufacturer in the world with 7 manufacturing factories in each continent. What it means is that we can supply creora to all our customers, wherever they maybe, in a timely and stable manner. Therefore, both in terms of being a differentiated products manufacturer and a reliable spandex supplier, I can confidently state that Hyosung can be the best partner to all spandex consumers. Moreover, with much investment in innovating items and assertive customer services, Hyosung can be the most valuable partner and not just a mere yarn supplier.”