Globally known textile care forum, Texcare, marked its entry in India through a dedicated forum on laundry, cleaning and textile rentals. Organised by Messe Frankfurt India and Virtual Info Systems, the Indian edition attracted more than 170 attendees from over 120 companies.
Scheduled alongside the Laundrex exhibition in Mumbai, at Bombay Exhibition Centre on 20 January 2018, the conference brought together global decision makers, potential investors and trade professionals.
Panel discussions addressed a range of topics – key subjects and issues included global best practices, trends in laundry, dry-cleaning, textile care, sustainability, resource efficiency, process automation and software.
The panel of speakers included business leaders, technology experts and sector specialists from India and abroad, such as Elgar Straub, managing director, VDMA Textile Care, Fabric and Leather Technologies; Guillem Clofent, GM, Girbau SA; Ruth Lorenz, VP Technology, Messe Frankfurt Exhibition GmbH; David Stevens, director, NewGen Business Services, UK; and John Hacker, director of sales Asia Pacific, Herbert Kannegiesser GmbH.
Other speakers who shared insights about new approaches taken up by start-ups in this industry included Edward Menezes, director, Buzil Rossari Pvt Ltd; Anup Poddar, director, Beepee Enterprise Pvt Ltd; Balachandar R., founder & CEO, Wassup Laundry; and Rachit Ahuja, co-founder, Quick Dry Clean Software.
“The potential of the Indian market brings us here for Texcare and it has been a very pertinent platform addressing issues that meet market needs…The audience has kept us interested in understanding the different ways in which India works. We will take back a lot of insights from here,” shared Xavier Salas, international sales director, Girbau SA.
Also addressing the crowd was Ruth Lorenz, VP Technology, Messe Frankfurt Exhibition GmbH, who shared: “Europe and Indian markets work very differently…As a show organiser, I would like to inform our exhibitors globally about the need to adapt to different markets.”
Delegates attending the conference had a cross-section of decision-makers and directors from sectors like railways, hotels, hospitality, and healthcare; from institutions and entrepreneurs; and from industry suppliers of equipment, linen and chemicals for laundry, dry-cleaning and textile care.
Attendees included Central Railway-Nagpur, North Western Railways (NWR), Southern Railway, German Engineering Federation (VDMA), and CINET – the International Committee of Textile Care.
Sisir Reddy, CEO, founder, Safe Wash, said: “One of the biggest challenges we face in this sector is skilled labour. There are no proper institutions for teaching laundry techniques, their operating systems and the technology being used. Many eco-friendly technologies and new technologies such as wet cleaning and other variants are entering the market, which I am sure will help the sector grow...”
Texcare Forum India is a sister event of Texcare International – every four years, Texcare International provides an international venue for the textile-care sector in Frankfurt, Germany. The upcoming Texcare International will be held from 20 – 24 June 2020.
