Tat Fung’s Take on Textiles
Denim is often made by those who love it most—those who believe in its history and heritage, yet want to carry the staple through to the future in new and innovative ways.
And when it comes to innovation, it’s all about what happens at the fabric level. For Tat Fung Textile Co., a Hong Kong-based, fully integrated textile manufacturer, the last 31 years has been about perfecting the fabric offering. Part of the company’s ethos is to keep up with the times without losing sight of the past. From ginning to spinning, weaving, denim dyeing, piece dyeing and printing, every step is about quality at Tat Fung.
To find out how they do what they do so well, Carved in Blue chatted with Shadow Chan, sales director at Tat Fung, to get the latest scoop on their business and the business of denim today.
Carved in Blue: So who is Tat Fung?
Shadow: Tat Fung is a fully vertical fabric mill from cotton ginning to spinning, weaving, dyeing, printing and finishing in house. Our products are cotton-based woven fabrics in denim, piece-dye and print, and our history goes back to 1986 with our holding company Panther Textiles. Our vertical facilities offer unique opportunities for flexibility, control and innovation along the value chain, and we involve R&D and product development all the way from raw materials through each process until finished fabrics. Our customers come to us for innovation, flexibility, complex orders, and our capacity of 5 million yards of denim, and 4 million yards of piece-dyed and printed fabrics per month.
Carved in Blue: What fabrics does Tat Fung specialize in?
Shadow: Tat Fung specializes in fabrics made of regenerated fibers like TENCEL® branded lyocell fibers and Lenzing Modal® branded fibers. More than 50 percent of our current piece-dye business is based on these fibers, and it takes up a big part of our developments—and increasingly more in denim. Our core specialties also include super-stretch fabrics with low growth, performance finishing, and color-fading effect finishes. Sustainability is always a big focus for us, and we have developed patented technologies for enhancing the resource efficiency and effectiveness in every stage of the production process. We have spent several years establishing our sustainable processes and this is now starting to become one of our core specialties to the market.
Carved in Blue: Tell us about your start and your role at Tat Fung.
Shadow: I have been with Tat Fung since we set up the Hong Kong office in 2010. We have now grown into a big office with specialized teams working directly with customers, developments and production at our mill facilities. I have been in the industry for many years now, and it makes me very excited to get to work in such a pulsating, challenging industry. I believe that Tat Fung has a lot to offer to the future of denim, piece-dyed and printed fabrics.
Carved in Blue: How have TENCEL® fibers and Lenzing Modal® fibers set Tat Fung fabric apart?
Shadow: We use TENCEL® fibers and Lenzing Modal® fibers for its recognized brand and product quality, and especially for the increasing demand we see in the market. It is important to us to sell high-quality and sustainable fabrics, and TENCEL® fibers and Lenzing Modal® fibers is critical for us to be able to offer these core products to our customers. Women are very often looking for that drape and softness that these fibers offer, and the demand only seems to be increasing.
Carved in Blue: What’s your oldest and most beloved pair of jeans?
Shadow: An old pair of Levi’s 501’s from the early start of the 1990s.
Carved in Blue: That said, old world craftsmanship versus new age technology—which do you prefer?
Shadow: There is something about old world craftsmanship that has always attracted me. It was more difficult in the old world to do things we often take for granted today, and the imperfections that came with the difficulties and challenges gives products from the old world some added personality. At the same time, people have not been very caring for the environment in the old world and I do believe that this something we need to focus on improving in the new ages.
Carved in Blue: So what sustainability initiatives is Tat Fung focused on improving?
Shadow: We have developed and patented our own EQUA series that encapsulates our initiatives for more sustainable denim fabrics. EQUA takes a holistic look the manufacturing process to ensure
significant resource savings in each stage. We offer sustainable raw material options, enhanced and more efficient spinning methods, alternative dye processing with significant water savings, and unique finishing options with up to 98 percent water savings. When combined, EQUA gives us a denim fabric that requires 80 percent less water and less energy, while producing a softer and more comfortable hand feel. We believe that true sustainability starts with a holistic view, and that a pair of jeans can only be truly sustainable with cleaner and better denim fabrics.
Carved in Blue: Do you see a shift away from indigo and more toward piece dye?
Shadow: Indigo has a history and culture that is hard to shift away from. With trends coming and going in cycles, indigo always seems to be coming back to every area of fashion. We offer both piece-dyed and denim fabrics, and this gives us a chance to take inspiration from the variations in processing and trends. I think our ECO-DENIM technique on piece-dyed/PFD fabrics is a true example of how we can learn to apply old tricks in one field to create new looks in another.
Carved in Blue: What’s your favorite city to visit for denim inspiration?
Shadow: Amsterdam is definitely one of my favorites., probably next to Barcelona. There is something about the vibrant culture and free spirit in these cities that inspires creativity. It always gives the visit an edge compared to other destinations. I absolutely look forward to getting a feel of spring through the eyes of denim world at the Kingpins Amsterdam show.
Carved in Blue: What’s next for Tat Fung?
Shadow: We will be exhibiting at the upcoming Kingpins Amsterdam and New York shows, and the BPD EXPO 5.0, with our latest developments for the season. We have been focusing on continuing our sustainable developments, so we will be presenting our renewed EQUA denim range, as well as a brand new EQUA Black series. Performance is also a key topic for us with special fabric finishes, alternative dye processing and special functional concepts. We have taken inspiration from heritage and tradition, and implemented new technology and features that give the fabric new identity. We will also be showing new styles and technical developments for bi-stretch and high-stretch fabrics, and we promise something special for those who come to visit us at our booth.
Carved in Blue: What does Carved in Blue mean to you?
Shadow: To me, Carved in Blue represents long-lasting denim history, tradition and culture that is changing to become more sustainable. We want to retain so much of the beauty in denim heritage, but we must learn to carve our blue future in new ways. It is always inspiring to see an industry in change, and we want to be an important part of leading this change in the coming years.