Sourcing Journal Radio

The strategic benefits of on-demand garment production are plentiful: inventory alignment, trimmed waste and higher margins. Today, this model is not the norm, but digital printing firm Kornit’s goal is scaling up made-to-order manufacturing. Here, Kornit's vice president of marketing Don Whaley speaks with Jessica Binns, managing editor and technology editor at Sourcing Journal, about the growing demand for direct-to-garment technologies and how Kornit's digital production solutions address sustainability. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1973, Cotton Incorporated debuted a brand image for cotton fiber and the cotton industry that has had a lasting impact on cotton usage and consumer sentiment. Today, the Seal of Cotton can be seen on products across 70 countries, and 8 in 10 consumers say they are familiar with the trademark. The seal stands for three C’s: cotton, clothing and comfort. “Consumers love cotton, they trust it, and it has an emotional connection that no other fiber has,” said Kim Kitchings, senior vice president of consumer marketing at Cotton Incorporated. Kitchings spoke with Sourcing Journal's features editor Kate Nishimura about the origin of the Seal of Cotton trademark and major milestones in its 50-year history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Cotton pricing depends on various factors, including basic supply and demand. Due to pandemic pressures, the market experienced volatility as circumstances changed rapidly. AlthoughSupimaand other extra-long staple cottons are unique in the market, these premium fibers have also been riding a pricing rollercoaster. Listen to the chat between Lewkowitz and Sourcing Journal founder Edward Hertzman to learn why higher cotton prices are not necessarily a bad thing. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Namza Akter remembers being on her way to her office inDhakawhen she heard about the 8:57 a.m. collapse ofRana Plaza. Before the workers rights activist and Bangladeshi Awaj Foundation founder learned there were more than 3,000 workers inside, more than a third of whom would be found dead in the rubble, her first thought went to news reports from the day before about factory workers complaining about cracks in the building, she told attendees at theSourcing Journal Sustainability Summit. Many of the workers told management they did not feel safe going back to work, but were told if they didn’t they wouldn’t be paid for the entire month, meaning the previous 23 days of labor would have been all for naught. “There was a large shipment, a political strike, so the factory manufacturers told them if they do not go for work they will not get salary. They had four days until the end of the month, so they didn’t have the option, didn’t have the choice," said Akter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As brands seek to say more about sustainability, they need facts to back up their statements. This is where supply chain visibility comes into play, enabling communications to go beyond greenwashing. “You can't have sustainability without traceability,” said Buxton Midyette, vice president, marketing and promotions at Pima cotton organizationSupima. “If you don't know where a product comes from, you really can't speak credibly about sustainability.” Listen to this chat between Midyette and Jasmin Malik Chua, sourcing and labor editor at Sourcing Journal, to learn why brands need traceability now more than ever and how AQRe builds onSupima’s previous traceability initiatives. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Having a net positive impact is often associated with carbon reduction, but to truly improve the world, companies must go beyond environmental responsibility to address the entirety of ESG (environmental, social and corporate governance). As part of their corporate social responsibility initiatives, both Pima cotton organization Supima and fashion brandMichael Starshave embraced educational and youth-centered causes. Listen to this fireside chat between Supima president and CEO Marc Lewkowitz, Michael Stars co-founder and CEO Suzanne Lerner, and Sarah Jones, senior editor, strategic content at Sourcing Journal, to hear how both companies are tackling social action. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When Interloop rolled out itsVision 2025 strategyin 2021, it set many targets for growth across its apparel manufacturing business. But the core to this five-year plan is its investment in people. By 2025, the Pakistan-based apparel and hosiery manufacturer aims to increase workforce diversity by 30 percent by employing thousands of women in executive and non-executive teams. Additionally, the company has a goal to upskill 80 percent of workers on future competencies across all operations, product development, supply chain management and general management. During a fireside chat with Sourcing Journal's founder Edward Hertzman, Faryal Sadiq, vice president, sales and marketing at Interloop, highlighted Interloop’s focus on creating conditions and culture that promote equity by driving change to ingrained systems of inequality. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The fast pace of consumer demand combined with global supply chain disruptions is putting manufacturers on their heels to keep up—but Interloop knows it is more than capable of adapting to current uncertainties. In fact, the hosiery manufacturer has robust plans to more than double its current apparel capacity from 20 million to 45 million pieces. “Flexibility is the name of the game,” said Faryal Sadiq, vice president, sales and marketing at Interloop. “We were seeing disruptions every three or four years, but now we’re seeing it every three to four months, so our reaction time has to be a lot faster.” Based in Pakistan, Interloop has taken measures to ensure flexibility for its partners, expanding its production presence to Sri Lanka and contracting manufacturing out to China as part of its push to diversify its capabilities. In a fireside chat with Sourcing Journal's founder Edward Hertzman, Sadiq and Shelley Rider, president, Interloop North America, shared the benefits of this type of collaborative planning in fostering supply chain flexibility. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tackling sustainability within international cotton supply chains cannot be done with a one-size-fits-all plan. Both goal setting and measurements must account for the variety in global conditions. Better Cotton remains cognizant of this fact as it reviews its standard to target greenhouse gas reduction and regenerative agriculture, among other pressing sustainability issues. “Although it’s one standard, it really does need to be adapted locally wherever you go,” said Alan McClay, CEO of Better Cotton. Listen to the fireside chat between McClay and Sourcing Journal sourcing and labor editor Jasmin Malik Chua to learn more about Better Cotton’s sustainability goals and environmental and social initiatives, and why sustainable practices are linked with preventing farmer poverty. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Digitization is quickly becoming a priority for modern apparel and footwear brands. Forced to collaborate from afar during the pandemic, teams have accelerated the adoption of virtual tools that streamline design and development, allowing multiple stakeholders to take part in the process. 3D creation digital platforms that live in the cloud can boost cross-team collaboration, drive efficiencies, cut costs and reduce the need for sampling. However, many fashion brands have been slow to adopt them, held back by unfamiliarity with the technology. André Wolper, founder and CEO of Embodee, explains how Orchids by Embodee, its new web-based platform for 3D apparel creation, fosters communication and collaboration across teams, and improves design versatility. Watch the fireside chat to learn: ·What brands, manufacturers and service bureaus need to get started with Orchids and how it’s simpler than they might imagine. ·How Orchids by Embodee is different from 3D design software that’s already on the market. ·The types of decisions and experimentation that brand stakeholders can do within the Orchids platform. ·How digital design and Orchids by Embodee mitigate costs and inefficiencies of physical sampling. ·How design digitization helps reduce a company’s environmental footprint Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices