Setting up a Business Plan for a Design House

1. Setting up a Business Plan for a Design House Sanjay Gupta sanjaygupta@niftindia.com

2. Brief • In the making of a business plan what are the aspects of IPR that an independent designer would normally take into consideration. • If one has some distinctive designs, how does one plan commercialization of the same? • If a designer in NIFT has developed a set of designs, what are the key aspects that you need to address in a business plan? • Any case studies to illustrate these features either from your rich experience and/or from literature.

3. Textile designers are not well aware of design laws and the protection it can offer. • They are aware that their traditional faith in negotiation and trust is no longer enough protection; and that emerging technologies like digital cameras and CAD are offering unprecedented opportunities but undermining traditional protection.

4. The design sector is informal, fragmented, mostly individual freelancers & small firms with a lot of networking between them. • Imitation, both legal and illegal, is common among designers. Designers usually rely heavily on automatic copyright and trust between parties. But whereas most still turn a blind eye to copying, a few with a wider reputation to defend are turning to law

5. The fabric production process usually involves a wide range of different firms and individuals, from independent designers through to mills and printers. This results in many fabric suppliers using the same designers or intermediary firms with a corresponding fear and suspicion over the security of new designs before they reach the market.

6. Lets examine the potential for IPR protection for textile designersTextile design range from fiber to finished fabric/made-up

7. What Can be Patented? • New man-made Fibers • Fiber Production Processes • Fiber/yarn/fabric making machinery • Dyes and Chemicals • Dyeing/printing/finishing processes • Finishing machinery • Making-up process • Making-up Machinery

8. Conflict • What to protect - the product, process or machinery ?

9. Example: New Fibers • ACRYLICCresLoft®,Duraspun®, • ANTIMICROBIAL Biofresh®, Innova® AMP (polyolefin), MicroSafe® (acetate), Salus® (polyolefin) • ARAMID Kevlar® • NYLON Cordura®, Supplex®, MicroSupplex™ ,Tactel®, Anso-tex®, Caprolan®, Eclipse™, Hydrofil®, Spectra®, Tru-Ballistic® • PBI (Polybenzimidazole) • POLYESTER ComFortrelPlus®, ComFortrel XP®, Holofiber™ , MicroSpun®, Sensura®, Spunnaire®,CoolMax®, ThermaStat®, ESP®, Finesse®, • POLYOLEFIN FIBERS Innova®, Telar®, • SPANDEX Lycra®,Dorlastan®

10. Example: Fabric Manufacturing • Seam-less whole-garment making technologies using 3D weaving or knitting technology offers great new sensorial experience. • Wholegarment® knitting machines produced by Shima Seiki Mfg. Ltd, • Hats, jumpers, dresses, skirts, cardigans, tights, legwarmers and socks being made.

11. Example:Finishing Chemical Stain-repellent and Stain-release • Teflon and similar treatments provides an invisible coating that repels stains but does not affect the fabric visually or physically, is breathable and has easy care properties. • NanoSphere finish repels water, dirt based stains and also allows easy release like a lotus leaf.

12. What else is being protected ? • New Technologies • Integration of Technologies • Innovations applying existing knowledge to new applications • Focus on functionality and performance

13. Luminex - a fabric that gives off its own light. • Tiny, flexible optical fibers, developed for high-energy physics experiments, are woven into fabric and powered by an ordinary battery sewn into the cloth. A smart chip can make it glow in flashing patterns • Used in stage costumes, handbags and curtains as well as clothing. DKNY offering a line of silver Luminex pillows.

14. Perfumery: underwear and accessories (gloves, socks, hats, etc.) ready-to-wear, sportswear, casual wear, footwear, bedding (mattresses, blankets, pillows etc.). • Body-care : for freshness, also moisturising and massaging, designed to persuade the wearer that they are receiving a beauty treatment as they wear it. • Fragrances : original aromatic fabrics with fragrances like lilac, jasmine, lavender, lily of the valley, narcissus, peppermint, rose, violet, eucalyptus, camomile, banana, lemon, apple, vanilla, chocolate, pineapple, coconut…

15. Thermo-chromic fabrics that change colors with variations in temperature. • The dyes are thermo-chromic or photo-chromic substances in liquid crystal form, that are microencapsulated, • Lingerie and swimwear are major markets

16. H2OFF, a non-coated, high-density woven fabric by Toray, made of air-entangled micro denier textured polyester yarn, which exhibits particularly pronounced high vapour permeability due to its characteristic construction

17. Skiwear, rainwear, wind breakers • Vapour permeability, water proofing. Also sunlight absorbing with heat retention

18. Body Suits • Through wind tunnel testing of different fabrics and design ideas, the strategically placed textured fabrics on the suit for Aerodynamics and "drag reduction." • The effect of the differently textured fabrics over the athlete's body is similar to the one that dimples have on a golf ball during its flight. • Side seams were slightly relocated to the back to further minimize drag. The result is a very unusual looking sprint uniform that utilizes several fabrics and colors, from the ankle all the way to the hood.

19. This body suit focuses on muscle temperature and aerodynamics. • The suit manage muscle temperature in two ways. First by use of color, using darker colors on certain zones of the body to absorb radiant heat from the sun. The second is by use of different textiles - making the fabrics in less critical power areas as light and breathable as possible, while using fabrics that help maintain higher muscle temperatures where higher power is necessary.

20. The other instruments of protection i.e. Copyright and Design are used for protecting ‘artistic content’ and ‘visual eye appeal’ of designs.Designs may be woven, printed, embroidered or otherwise embellished

21. Wovens

22. Printed & embellished

23. Traditional Textiles (protection under geographical indications!)

24. Thank you