Lace look lingerie produced on Karl Mayer RSJ4/1

20 December 2011, Obertshausen

This light and airy,
lace-look lingerie fabric is the result of the latest upgrade made to Karl
Mayer’s RSJ 4/1 machine. (click image to enlarge)

“Christmas is the time for snug hats, cosy gloves and warm
coats – yet you would be surprised at the beautiful, seductive textile hidden
under all this arctic clothing. When the wraps are off, something unexpected
may be revealed – as the example illustrated here shows,” says Karl Mayer.

 This festive lingerie
set comprises a halter-neck top and a pair of briefs made from the subtly
patterned fabric bands produced on an RSJ 4/1.
Ornamental effects and snaking tendrils form the central
theme of this romantic, lace-like pattern. The filigree motifs run towards two
wide, lengthwise stripes, which enclose a spotnet ground featuring a delicate
spotted look in the centre.

“The textile construction, which is reminiscent of the
Pointillism style of painting, attractively complements the simple net
construction that forms the background to the decorative effects. The edges of
the decorative bands run towards the Paisley patterns on the outside with their
stylised wavy shapes and flat border,” explains Karl Mayer.

Two of the fabric bands were sewn together horizontally to
produce the briefs and the body section of the top. With its high level of
stretch in the working direction, this clever textile guarantees an excellent
fit and lies smoothly against the body to provide a high degree of comfort.

The fabric was used in the crosswise direction in the bust
area of the top, and was processed to form gentle curves to match the body’s
anatomy.
This light and airy, lace-look lingerie fabric is the result
of the latest upgrade made to the RSJ 4/1 machine.

Most of the technical
modifications that were made to the machine relate to the way in which the
yarns are fed to the jacquard bars. This is now done from two warp beams
arranged as a mirror image, instead of being fed from just one yarn carrier as
used to be the case.

This separate feeding-in arrangement enables the jacquard
bars to carry out a counter movement – to work patterned net grounds, for
example.

“In addition to its obvious versatility, the RSJ 4/1 is
exceptionally efficient and offers a performance profile that will appeal to
lingerie manufacturers in particular,” Karl Mayer says.

According to the German company, the positive feedback at
ITMA 2011 clearly illustrated that the Rascheltronic, with its excellent
price-performance ratio, is generating a great deal of interest within the
sector. In Barcelona, the Rascheltronic was producing a lightweight apparel
fabric in a gauge of E 28 and at a working width of 130″.     

 

 

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Western companies finds growing markets for lingerie in Muslim countries

Behind their more modest street clothes, many women in Arab countries apparently are wearing North American lingerie as western companies expand into these markets.

With slightly lower hems and largely altered advertisements, Canadian lingerie retailer La Vie en Rose has made a splash in Arab countries.

About 10 per cent of the Montreal-based company’s annual revenue comes from its stores in Arab countries, and the company plans to expand to meet growing demands there, said Luc Poirier, the CFO and vice-president of international business.

“It was a bit surprising to see the growth compared to the Canadian market,” Poirier said.

“Still, we feel that women, whether Muslim or whatever the religion, like to be fashionable. So if there’s a demand there, we thought we should try to serve it as well as we do here in Canada.”

The lingerie retailer has 55 stores across the United Arab Emirates, Algeria, Kuwait, Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, Kazakhstan and Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia is the company’s biggest Middle East customer, with 29 stories in that country alone. The company plans to add another six stores there and two more in Kuwait.

The company started exploring these markets five years ago and found an appetite for its products. By 2013, it plans to have stores in Oman, Bahrain, Qatar and Tunisia.

Many of La Vie en Rose’s shops in the Muslim world see sales volumes double that of comparable stores in North America, Poirier said.

About 90 per cent of La Vie en Rose’s Canadian collection is well-accepted in these countries, Poirier said, although the women prefer longer gowns. The company also produces a special series for Ramadan.

The stores, however, are quite different. In Saudi Arabian stores there are no change rooms. Until last July, only men could work in many of them, especially in Saudi Arabia. And the advertisements in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait can’t show models — just the lingerie.

But that hasn’t slowed the sales.

“These women are very fashion conscious. They know the trends, and retail has been growing at a very fast pace.”

There’s a common misconception that Muslim women aren’t fashionable or interested in glamorous clothing, said Alia Hogben, the executive director of the Canadian Council of Muslim Women. The demand for lingerie likely was always there, particularly in the wealthier Arab countries, Hogben said.

“Just because women cover up in public on the street doesn’t mean that they don’t dress up spectacularly underneath those clothes,” Hogben said.

“The philosophy is that women are not out there for the world to look at them, so they don’t dress for the general public. But for their family and friends, they dress beautifully. They have magnificent hairstyles, they wear magnificent jewelry and they love lingerie.”

Limited Brands, an international company whose stores include Bath and Body Works, Victoria’s Secret and La Senza, recently agreed to start working with a franchise operator in the Middle East, referring to the move as a “critical inroad” on the investor website.

“We have spent several years carefully researching, testing and vigorously vetting a multitude of means and locales for international growth. In the course of that purposeful work, we’ve identified the Middle East as a region we believe we can grow in and learn from,” the company said.

La Senza opened its first newly designed store in the Middle East last year.

Limited Brands declined to give an interview.

nstechyson@postmedia.com

Twitter.com/natstechyson

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