The third edition of the Denimsandjeans.com Viet Nam Show opened in HCM City on Wednesday with over 100 garment enterprises from 11 countries taking part.

The expo, organised by the Viet Nam Textile and Apparel Association (VITAS) and Balaji Enterprises of India, showcases the latest fashion trends and innovations in the global denim industry.

“By signing many free trade agreements (FTAs), especially the European Union-Viet Nam FTA and the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, Viet Nam has become one of the leading destinations for investors interested in the textile and garment industry,” VITAS chairman Vu Duc Giang said in his opening speech.

The event is quite attractive to retailers, fashion brands and textile companies from around the world, especially from the EU and the US, and offers a good opportunity for exhibitors to seek and establish partnerships, according to Giang.

On the sidelines of the event, six seminars will be held today with international experts focusing their discussions on the future of denim supply, the denim supply chain for sustainable development and conversion from analogue to digital.

The two-day expo is on at the Riverside Palace in District 4.

“We are planning to organise the fourth edition in Ha Noi next year,” Giang said.

Vietnamese-owned companies only produce raw materials for 55-60 per cent of the country’s denim and jeans production and efforts are on to increase this since the rest has to be imported.

“VITAS is helping small and medium-sized enterprises directly source raw materials from producers,” Giang said.

Last year the second edition of the expo had attracted around 300 buyers.

The total global exports of denim and jeans are worth US$80 billion. — VNS