PowerPoint Presentation

Insiders Guide to Luxury Cotton

Buxton Midyette VP Marketing & Promotions

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I appreciate the opportunity to talk with you this morning about luxury Cotton

There is a lot of interest now in luxury Cotton

at the same time there is some confusion about what makes a cotton a luxury cotton

My objective for this presentation is to give you a basic understanding of what makes luxury cotton special, how to use it and how to sell it

Presentation Overview

Introduction: Supima

Overview of Luxury Cottons

Supima Fiber Advantages

Supima Fashion Advantages

More information

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1911: Pima is born

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The First American ELS was released by the USDA in Sacaton, Arizona and named Pima in honor of the Pima Indians whose forebears had cultivated cotton in the area for centuries.

Pimas Industrial Heritage1920 Goodyear Tire Co.

Pima cotton is so strong that Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company of Ohio purchased several thousand acres of land in the Salt River Valley to produce Pima cotton for use in its automobile tires. The tires inner-casing was made of layers of strong cotton, and rubber was vulcanized on its surface

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Spirit of St. Louis1927

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Impressed with its strength to weight ratio, Charles Lindbergh utilized Pima cotton as the material for the fuselage for the Spirit of St. Louis for its historic transatlantic flight in 1927.

1954- The Start of Supima

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In the early 1950s, a visionary group of farmers recognized that this special cotton had to be promoted differently from regular.

In 1954, Supima was founded in El Paso, TX to promote American Pima, align with government regulations and become involved with agricultural research.

Supima Authenticity

Licenses entire supply to ensure product integrityLimit licensing to better brands and retailers

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Licenses entire supply to ensure authenticity250 Manufacturers worldwide100 brands/retailers

Markets to both trade and consumer

Partners with brands and retailers

Overview of Luxury Cottons

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At this point, I would like to spend time defining luxury / ELS cotton for your as well as discuss the different types of luxury cotton that are known in the market.

Whats Up with all the Cottons???

Egyptiancotton

Peruvian Cotton

Turkish cotton

Pima Cotton

Supima

Sea Island Cotton

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There are a lot of cottons out there now but little real information

Brands do not know the difference

Retailers do not know the difference

Consumers do not know the difference

Confusion reigns

It is not enough just to say its better. Let me take a minute now to walk you through the major producers of luxury Cotton

Luxury CottonsRepresents top 3% of World Cotton

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Only 3% of total cotton grown in the world is good enough to be called an ELS or luxury Cotton

Represent just 3.1 million bales of 102.3 million bales

There is nothing wrong with conventional cotton, its just that there is something very special about luxury Cottons

Definition of Luxury Cotton

In the U.S., cotton must be 1 3/8 inches or longer to be defined as an Extra-Long Staple (ELS) cotton or Luxury Cotton.

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What difference does length make in cottons, a lot more than you would imagine which is why length claims are regulated by USDA.

The technical term for luxury Cotton is an Extra-Long Staple (ELS) cotton.

ELS cotton is a distinct variety of cotton separate from conventional or upland cotton.

ELS cotton is not just cotton that is left longer in the field, grown in special soil or comes from a specific country

ELS is a premium variety with exceptional performance characteristics: in terms of softness, strength and color retention

Egyptian Cotton

Giza varieties 70, 88, 45Annual Production: 150,000 bales Represents 30% of total crop of 500,000 bales

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One of the best known luxury Cottons

However Egypt produces conventional cotton as well (500,000 480lb bales)

30% of crop is luxury cotton

luxury varieties: Giza 45, 70, 88

Peruvian Cotton

Pima Cotton Grown in northern coastal regionAnnual Production: 16,000 bales

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Known for its luster It is a longer, silkier fiber but weak in terms of strength

Used mostly in knit constructions

Relatively small production

Sea Island Cotton

Historically, was grown in coastal GeorgiaCurrently grown in BarbadosAnnual Production: 300 - 600 bales

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Legendary luxury Cotton

Was original source for luxury cotton

Extremely limited production and extremely expensive

Buyers should take care to require invoices certifying use of the fiber

Supima (Superior Pima)

Grown only in Southwestern U.S.Annual Production: 600,000 balesSupima is registered trademark owned by growersonly licensees can use it

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Developed 100 years ago, based on a cross of Egyptian and Sea Island cotton varieties

Largest exporter of luxury Cotton

Named for Pima Indians in the Southwest

Supima is short for Superior Pima, Pima cotton grown only in the U.S.

Supima is registered trademark owned by growersonly licensees can use it

Supima Production Areas

NEVADA

CALIFORNIA

COLORADO

NEW MEXICO

OKLAHOMA

UTAH

ARIZONA

TEXAS

KANSAS

Eureka

Redding

Reno

Santa Rosa

Bakersfield

San Luis

Obispo

San Bernadino

Grand Juction

Raton

Las Cruces

Lubbock

Odessa

Ft. Stockton

Corpus Christi

Waco

Lawton

Ponca City

Salina

Oakley

Fresno

Yucca

Cedar City

Topeka

Kansas

City

Denver

Colorado

Springs

Sacramento

Salt Lake City

Carson City

Provo

Las Vegas

Oakland

San

Francisco

Los Angeles

Flagstaff

Santa Fe

Albuquerque

El Paso

Phoenix

Tucson

Durango

Austin

Houston

San Antonio

Dallas

Ft. Worth

Wichita

Tulsa

Oklahoma

City

Amarillo

San Diego

Santa

Barbara

Winnemucca

San Joaquin Valley93%

7%

Supima is a 100% irrigated crop

Supima is also 100% harvested by machine

93% of Supima is harvested in California which has the strictest environmental regulations in the world

Supima is cotton you can feel good about

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Luxury Cotton Fiber Advantages

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Supima Length

In terms of fiber, Supima best known advantage is length

Length

Supima is up to 35% longer than conventional cotton

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Supima is 35% longer than conventional cotton and long than most other ELS cottons

Length

Longer Fibers Produce Smoother, Finer Yarn

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Its longer, so what???

The difference is: longer fibers result in yarn with fewer protruding ends per cross section

This creates a cleaner surface with:

Softer hand feel

Higher reflectivity and sheen

Lower incidence of pilling as there are fewer ends to break off and adhere to fabric surface

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Supima Strength

LESS KNOW BUT AS IMPORTANT IS SUPIMAS ADVANTAGE IN STRENGTH

Strength

Supima is up to 45% stronger than conventional cotton

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As you can see from the chart Supima is the strongest of the ELS cottons

All the cottons are much stronger than regular cotton

tex unit is equal to the weight in grams of 1,000 meters of fiber. Therefore, the strength reported is the force in grams required to break a bundle of fibers one tex unit in size.

Strength

Stronger fibers make stronger yarn and fabric

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The stronger the fiber the finer the Yarns can be

Shown in this slide are examples of Supima yarns in differing counts

Similar to the wool system, lower counts are coarser and higher counts are finer

Supima can be used to make a wide range of yarn counts from the very coarsest for use in say a denim to the very finest for use in a pinpoint shirt.

Any differences in fabric thickness are a factor of the yarn and fabric construction, not the properties of Supima fiber

Strength

Stronger fibers allow designer to use lighter fabrics with not sacrifice to durability.

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Lighter yarns create lighter fabrics

Thick rigid fabrics are not necessary to meet strength requirements

Allows designers the freedom to use lighter weight fabrics that are as strong as bulkier alternatives.

Strength further enhances Supimas resistance to pilling. The few fiber ends protruding on a yarn are less likely to break off.

The result is finer, more supple fabrics with beautiful drape.

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Supima Fineness

LESS KNOWN THAN EVEN STRENGTH IS FINENESS

IT IS CRUCIAL THOUGH IN GIVING SUPIMA ITS AMAZING COLOR

AS WELL AS FURTHER ADDING TO STRENGTH

Fineness

Supimas micronaire is in the optimum range for dyeing: 3.7 to 4.2

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Micronaire is a measure of fiber fineness and maturity, a combination of diameter and density

What is important to know is that Supima fiber is much finer than regular cotton and that fiber fineness for Supima falls into a very narrow range

An airflow instrument is used to measure the air permeability of a constant mass of cotton fibers compressed to a fixed volume

Discount: 3.4 and belowBase: 3.5 3.6luxury:3.7 4.2Base:4.3 4.9Discount:5.0 and higher

Fineness

Narrower range of fiber diameters means:Better dye uptake18% more fibers per cross section Enhanced strength

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See here an image which is a cross sections of regular cotton fiber in a yarn construction

Now imagine that this yarn is put into a dye vat

You see both skinny as well as fat fibers which are going to have very different rates of dye absorbency.

In the skinny fiber, the dye may go to the core while in the fat fiber the dye may only coat the surface

Later as the garment is worn and washed, the dye may be removed from the fat fiber revealing the cottons white core

This is when fading begins to appear in a garment

Because of the consistency of its fineness, Supima is going to have better, more even dye uptake which gives Supima garments their lasting color

Background:Great slide because it shows a range of micronaire and fiber shapesDye absorbency and retention varies with the maturity of the fibers.Higher strength because of bundling effectMore individual fibers per cross section luxury cotton is in optimum range

The greater the maturity, the better the absorbency and retention.

Supima Cotton exhibits the highest Molecular Weight of all Cottons(as measured by Tappi Viscosity Method)uniform dye uptake and low variability in quality parameters)High and persistent durability from fiber to finished product More homogenous material ( Minimum fiber brittleness under hot chemical treatments

Superior Performance = Superior Pima

Fiber Advantages:35% Longer45% StrongerOptimum Fineness18% higher molecular density

Fabric Results:Appearance: Superior drape, color and lusterComfort: Natural softness, smoothness of handPerformance: Strength and durability

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Summarize key advantages of luxury cotton

Translates into at the fabric and garment level

Remember this is not just a luxury fiber though, it is a performance fiber

Supima Advantage:Apparel

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Now I would focus how luxury cotton makes a difference in the clothing you offer to your customers

Supima Advantage:Wovens

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Here are the results for wovens

Shirting:

Fabrics of Supima Cotton had higher tensile strength than all other fabrics (22% to 24%).

Under tension, Supima Cotton woven fabrics were able to withstand up to 50 pounds per inch more than regular or specially blended cottons.

Burst StrengthSupima withstood up to 50 pounds per inch more than woven fabrics made from regular or specially blended cottons.

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Strength Testing:

Industrial roots of Supima are a big advantage

Heavier weights made with Supima provide incredible strength and durability with comfort and softness

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Supima Advantage:Knits

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Supima Cotton knit shirts and sweaters provide up to a 50% advantage in pilling resistance .

Supima Cotton knit shirts provides a range of up to 42% advantage in bursting strength.

Upon washing and drying of 50 cycles, Supima Cotton knit shirts suffered the least thickness change and shrinkage and the best dimensional stability.

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Additional Information on Supima

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www. supima.com

Supimas website contains more detailed information on Supimas history, fiber properties and production

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www.facebook.com/supima

Supima is taking advantage of Social Media to get out our message. This site was launched this summer and already has over 400 fans!

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http://supimacotton.blogspot.com/

-Supima hosts an active blog with over 300 posts-It is an excellent source of information on all things Supima

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Thanks for this opportunity to talk with you about luxury cotton this afternoonI am happy to handle inquiries for all the origins of luxury cottonI hope that you will consider the opportunities that you may have to include luxury cotton in your own collections