The American Textile History Museum (ATHM), Lowell, Mass., has inducted Peter G. Scotese and
Masahiro Shima, Ph.D., into the American Textile Hall of Fame (ATHF), Class of 2012. ATHF
recognizes individuals, corporations and institutions that have contributed significantly to the
U.S. textile industry.

Scotese’s textile industry career spanned 35 years. In 1969, he became the first non-family
member to be named president of Fort Mill, S.C.-based textile home furnishings manufacturer Springs
Industries Inc. He continued to serve as CEO until his retirement in 1981. He is credited with
shepherding Springs during a strong period of long-term growth.

Shima, founder, president and CEO of Shima Seiki Manufacturing Ltd., Japan, is the first
non-American ATHF inductee. He founded the company at the age of 24 to develop the first fully
automated glove knitting machine. The company debuted its WHOLEGARMENT® computerized flat-bed
knitting technology in 1995. It opened Shima Seiki U.S.A. in Monroe Township, N.J., in 1987 and the
Shima Seiki Design Center in New York City in 2006. The design center offers full-service
consultation and production services to the North American apparel industry.

September 25, 2012

O’DONNELL, Texas — September 12, 2012 — Over a year in the making, the Content Claim Standard
(CCS), written by Textile Exchange, gives companies a tool to establish a chain of custody for the
materials in their products. The standard sets requirements to ensure that the identity and
integrity of the ‘claimed’ materials are protected as material flows from source to finished
product. The standard makes use of transaction certificates (TC’s) which track the input and output
at each step, allowing for a mass balance calculation that will ensure the accuracy of percentage
claims. Because there are no restrictions on the material to be tracked, the standard has a wide
range of application beyond textiles.

Textile Exchange has partnered with Outdoor Industry Association (OIA) to give the standard a
thorough review from a variety of stakeholders via the Materials Traceability Working Group (MTWG).
The MTWG is co-led by TE and OIA and is a subset of the broader OIA Sustainability Working Group
(SWG).

The standard is largely based on the work of the OE standards, developed in 2004 as a means
to track organic cotton through the supply chain. The OE standards have been highly successful in
supporting the production of organic cotton, without making restrictions on the processing of the
products. The CCS has the potential to support the growth of a variety of raw materials, by
allowing companies to accurately and confidently label the content of their products. As a chain of
custody standard, the CCS provides a greater level of transparency into supply chains, and is a
flexible tool that can be easily combined with other social and/or environmental standards.

“To back up a claim to something with the CCS gives us better footing to know that what we
are claiming is valid, and that’s a real competitive advantage. Additionally, it’s a platform from
which you’re having a discussion with your supplier. If we’re doing it alone, and not to a standard
that other people are using, then it doesn’t influence much broad change. But if everyone is
carrying that same flag, then the supplier has a greater reason to perform to the level we’re
asking.” -Sarah Kelley, Econscious

Textile Exchange and OIA members, via the MTWG, are now working on leveraging the CCS and
existing organic farming standards to create an Organic Content Standard that will replace the
current OE standards and will apply to a full range of organic inputs. The MTWG is also exploring
the possibility of using a similar approach with other materials categories relevant to the outdoor
and broader apparel and footwear industries, including recycled inputs, wool, and down.
Participation in the MTWG and these efforts is open to everyone; if interested, please contact Beth
Jensen with OIA: bjensen@outdoorindustry.org.

The CCS is now open to certification bodies for accreditation. As soon as the accreditation
process has been completed by the certification bodies, companies may begin the process of
third-party certification to the standard. To read through the Standard, Implementation Manual, and
additional information, visit: http://textileexchange.org/content/content-claim-standard.



Posted on September 25, 2012

Source: Textile Exchange

MONTREAL — September 24, 2012 — My Virtual Model (MVM) is proud to announce the acquisition of
Mimicme, a European leader in virtual fitting room applications. 

This acquisition provides MVM with state-of-the-art technology to add to its portfolio of
world class solutions, making it the worldwide leader in 3D personalized virtual models, fitting
rooms, and on-demand outfitting solutions. MVM allows third parties to quickly and efficiently
bring entire clothing collections online with easy-to-integrate tools, licensed as a white label
“Software as a Service” technology. The acquisition offers a new and innovative way to integrate
the solution within every ecommerce platform within days.

My Virtual Model’s latest product called ‘Dynamic Outfitting’ cuts costs of expensive photo
shoots while keeping full control of the product image creation process. The end result is
unlimited outfitting possibilities that combine products, human models, backgrounds and effects
that are indistinguishable from real photography. Dynamic Outfitting supports different body shapes
and poses for both men and women. The bottom line is that retailers using Dynamic Outfitting save
millions on product photography.   

MVM now has products for every size retailer large and small. ” I can’t imagine a retailer
that would not want to cut photo shoot costs or deliver the best online outfitting experience to
delight their customers,” Luc Lacroix, CEO of MVM.

Xavier Baars, founder of MimicMe, will continue his career with MVM as a member of the
senior management team, overseeing activities in Europe, while based in Amsterdam. Gregory
Saumier-Finch, founder and CTO of My Virtual Model, will be responsible for worldwide technology
development and research.

“We share the same obsession with My Virtual Model, to enrich online shopping experience and
provide retailers unique solutions to improve customer loyalty,” added Xavier Baars, CEO of
MimicMe.

Posted on September 25, 2012

Source: My Virtual Model (MVM)

Hardly ever in the history of modern Europe has a decision been as eagerly anticipated as the
judgment of the German Federal Constitutional Court regarding the European Stability Mechanism
(ESM). On September 12, the court announced that it has rejected the urgent request of several
plaintiff groups to abolish the ESM. The mechanism shall enter into force, however, under some
rigorous conditions.

A decision to block ratification of the ESM would have had unforeseeable consequences for the
eurozone in particular, but, without any doubt, would also send severe shock waves through the
global financial system and, consequently, would impact the global textile and textile machinery
industry. The problems with the European financial situation and its influences on the global
textile industry in general, and on the Asian textile industry in particular, have been discussed
in different Rupp Reports over the past few weeks.

European Stability Mechanism

In the Treaty Establishing the European Stability Mechanism (ESM), the following is stated:

1. The European Council agreed on 17 December 2010 on the need for euro area Member States to
   establish a permanent stability mechanism. This European Stability Mechanism (“ESM”) will assume
   the tasks currently fulfilled by the European Financial Stability Facility (“EFSF”) and the
   European Financial Stabilization Mechanism (“EFSM”) in providing, where needed, financial
   assistance to euro area Member States.
2. On 25 March 2011, the European Council adopted Decision 2011/199/EU amending Article 136 of the
   Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union with regard to a stability mechanism for Member
   States whose currency is the euro adding the following paragraph to Article 136: “The Member States
   whose currency is the euro may establish a stability mechanism to be activated if indispensable to
   safeguard the stability of the euro area as a whole. The granting of any required financial
   assistance under the mechanism will be made subject to strict conditionality.”

Germany Is The Top Payer

The ESM should completely replace its temporary predecessor, the EFSF, in mid-2013. Its
registered capital will total 700 billion euros, but no more than 500 billion euros may be assigned
in loans.

Germany’s liability for the ESM totals 27 percent in accordance with its capital share in the
European Central Bank (ECB). However, critics fear that the German liability could be even higher.

Germany, the largest member state, hasn’t yet ratified the ESM treaty. Without its
participation, the ESM can’t go into effect. The German association More Democracy, with more than
37,000 people, brought an action to block Germany’s ratification of the ESM and spare the country
from taking on “unlimited and irreversible liability risks.”

Difficult Decision

The final countdown is now starting: As the Chief Judge Andreas Vosskuhle explained, the
ratification process and the signing of the treaty by the German president can only be executed if
international law guarantees that Germany’s liability in the ESM is not more than 190 billion
euros. This limit can only be changed by the German parliament.

More Power For The Parliament

The chief judge explained in his verdict that the responsibility of the high court is
limited, and they had only to judge whether the treaty complies with German law, saying “the
appropriateness and reasonableness of the ESM must be decided by the German parliament.” He also
said that “even in an intergovernmental system of governance, the elected members of the German
parliament as representatives of the people must keep control over basic decisions on the budgetary
policy.”

Chancellor Merkel Satisfied

For German Chancellor Angela Merkel and her center-right coalition government, and to some
extent also for the docile opposition – the left-wing Social Democratic Party and the Greens, the
verdict comes as a great relief. A ruling from the court in favor of blocking the ESM ratification
would have jeopardized the euro rescue program, which was negotiated with painstaking diplomacy. If
German President Joachim Gauck signs the treaty by the end of June, Merkel can carry on her policy,
which she thinks is the right and only way. However, the 190 billion euro liability will drive the
German deficit to new heights. Serious news networks reported a few days ago that the deficit is
now 2 trillion euros.

A Good Idea — In The Beginning

As everybody knows, this European crisis is throwing a lot of shadows on the global economic
system because of its uncertainty. For the same reason, dark clouds are hanging over the global
textile industry. As some major textile machinery suppliers have confirmed repeatedly, there are
projects everywhere, but everybody is holding back on these projects. In the 1990s, when all these
European ideas and projects came into being, they all looked pretty good. Europe reached a state of
political stability and economic dynamism. But the economic integration of Europe, which was at the
time associated with building the internal market and increased permeability of the borders, was
not enough for the elite of European politicians. With the subsequent actions to integrate all
kinds of duties into one pot, the idea broke apart and brought on the current situation, affecting
the social and economic life and the long-term prospects of the EU.

A Relief For Europe

The German approval of the ESM was of utmost importance for the euro crisis management.
Without this green light from the main financial backer of the fund, the ESM could not be
implemented at all, which could have led to an even more profound crisis in the eurozone.
Currently, the financial resources of the temporary bailout fund, the EFSF, will soon be exhausted
– after reform programs for Greece, Ireland and Portugal have swallowed around 200 billion euros,
plus another 100 billion for Spain.

Banks Never Lose

Immediately after the verdict of the high court, the German stock index (DAX) rose
considerably, as did the value of the euro, which rose to US$1.29. It seems that the financial
players don’t bother too much about the restrictions. Obviously, these people are not interested in
sustainability and sincere reforms – they are more interested in the next cash injections.

All over Europe, the citizens are not happy with the situation, but they are not asked for
their opiniosn. On one blog, a German citizen wrote, “we’ll get Mediterranean relations, easy use
of money and loans. Overall, we get what no one in this country wanted to have.”

September 18, 2012