We are living in times of uncertainty and instability which affect every facet of our lives. For the apparel industry, constantly changing market dynamics mean companies who want to survive must be ready to implement frequent and rapid changes in order to overcome endless challenges which will only intensify in the coming years.
Over the past two decades, every time the apparel industry is faced with new hurdles, factories think that initiating Lean manufacturing or adapting the Toyota Production System (TPS) into their operations is how to drive competitiveness. But the way they undertake these programs is outmoded, something like continuing to use an old version of an iPhone that ignores all the evolutionary developments of the later models.
Those efforts have resulted in very few apparel groups who are able to answer the constantly changing dynamics of market trends and customer demand. Companies who think they have “gone Lean” have mostly limited their improvement programs to specific manufacturing areas, particularly the sewing department, and have achieved modest improvements at best. Certainly they haven’t really improved the company’s overall profitability.
The key to understanding how to stay ahead is to study the changing dynamics of global business trends. This can yield important insights on how to stimulate change practices and processes at all levels of the organization. Unless we recognize the changing dynamics affecting every aspect of the business, the industry will continue to struggle. Defining the changing business dynamics will help create sustainable opportunities for new and competitive engagements.
