Industry Report
consumers will also be watching how their trusted brands have acted during the crisis. We are also very thankful that we are not answerable to shareholders looking only at financial profit, we can put our values into practice as we embrace the other two aspects of the triple bottom line: People and Planet – as well as Profit.
Sourcing and development Sourcing and product development will change too. The lockdown in China has disrupted many supply routes and in the future diversity of supply will be key, with more nearshoring opening up and avoiding over-reliance on one region. I believe brands also have a chance to look at their launches and ask themselves how much sense there is in launching thousands of new products every year. The crisis has shown the fast fashion model of constantly bringing in new product at cheap prices is broken, with many brands now stuck with irrelevant styles they can’t carry over to next year. Much of our sourcing and product development will happen digitally, and brands who stick with the same trusted supply partners will find that the years spent understanding each other will result in a fairer share of the development and approval process. It normally takes at least six to nine months to develop, manufacture, market and distribute a new product. In this crisis, it took us four weeks to get
The fast fashion model of constantly bringing in new product at cheap prices is broken
organic face masks to market, showing just what we can achieve when we communicate well with each other, our suppliers and our distributors. (For more info see page 28).
With most of the team on furlough, our 20-year-old company feels like a start-up again, with a small team in place and everyone pitching in. Our financial controller has become an expert in order
If such huge adjustments can be made in response to the pandemic, certainly some adjustments can be made to help both the planet and the lives of all who live on it. Just maybe, the gentler, more sustainable and collaborative way of doing business that I have been advocating is now within our grasp.
– Prama Bhardwaj, founder and CEO, Mantis World
Sustainability is not going out of fashion any time soon
processing and customer service, and at points, I have had to be tech support (Anyone who knows me will understand the irony of this). I think the cost-cutting strategies put in place by businesses may well continue as we realise the efficiencies to be gained.
Sustainability on the agenda We firmly believe that sustainability will be high on the agenda once the crisis abates. Looking back at the origins of the pandemic, it strikes me that a disregard of nature is responsible. SARS, Ebola and even Mad Cow Disease all originated from the same issue, our treatment of animals in particular – shipping wildlife across the globe, eating animals we shouldn’t be and destroying habitats causing human-wildlife conflict. The next crisis may well be an environmental one. Years of industrial conventional agriculture has degraded soil across the world – it’s estimated we only have 60 years of topsoil left, having huge implications on how we can feed ourselves. And we cannot forget that we are living through a climate crisis, causing more extreme and unpredictable weather patterns.
In this pause, we have had time to reflect on our actions, and how our buying decisions can help ease the burden on the environment. Sustainability is not going out of fashion any time soon and we all have a responsibility to look at what we purchase and how we live our lives. If such huge adjustments can be made in response to the pandemic, certainly some adjustments can be made to help both the planet and the lives of all who live on it.
Just maybe, the gentler, more sustainable and collaborative way of doing business that I have been advocating is now within our grasp.
www.printwearandpromotion.co.uk July 2020 |49 |
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