US-based leading fashion brand Patagonia has placed a repeat order for purchasing Khadi Denim fabric, which comes as a global appreciation of Khadi's world class product quality and punctuality in fulfilling the supply order. In March this year, Patagonia, through textile giant Arvind Mills, placed an order for purchasing 17,050 meters of Khadi Denim fabric worth nearly Rs 80 lakh from Udyog Bharti, a Rajkot-based Khadi Institution in Gujarat. The repeat order comes after the successful completion of the previous order for 30,000 meters of Khadi Denim fabric worth Rs 1.08 crore. Patagonia, is using the handcrafted Khadi Denim fabric for making Denim apparels.
In July 2017, Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) signed an agreement with Arvind mills Limited, Ahmedabad, to trade Khadi Denim products around the world. Since then, Arvind Mills has been purchasing a large quantity of Khadi Denim fabric every year from KVIC-certified Khadi institutions of Gujarat. With the latest order, the total Khadi Denim purchase by Patagonia has gone up to 47,000 meters worth nearly Rs 1.88 crore
Chairman KVIC, Vinai Kumar Saxena lauded the development saying the repeat order from Patagonia was a result of Khadi's Denim's outstanding quality that matched all international standards. "While supplying the order, special attention was given on maintaining the highest quality standards, uniformity of the product and timely supply of the fabric. The previous order was executed exactly in 12 months' time as per the schedule. The repeat order for Khadi Denim has reaffirmed that Khadi is an apt example of 'Local to Global' as envisaged by the Hon'ble Prime Minister," Saxena said.
The purchase of Khadi Denim fabric is also creating extra man hours for Khadi artisans of Gujarat. In all, the purchase of Khadi Denim by Patagonia has created additional 3 lakh man hours of work for Khadi artisans.
Last year, a team from Patagonia visited Udyog Bharti to see the manufacturing process of Khadi Denim. Impressed by the manufacturing process and quality of the handcrafted Denim fabric, Patagonia, through Arvind Mills, placed the purchase orders for different quantities.
Before finalizing the purchases, Patagonia appointed NEST, a US-based global third-party assessor, to assess the complete process of Denim production at Gondal, i.e. spinning, weaving, carding, dying, wage payments, age-verification of workers, etc. involved in production line. The NEST, after thorough assessment of all parameters at Udyog Bharti, stated in the certificate that "The spinning and handloom weaving operations are now eligible for the NEST Seal of Ethical Handcraft". This is for the first time that a Khadi Institution in the country has been assessed and certified by an international independent assessor for meeting ethical standards in its operations.