Reacting to public outrage, Western retailers and apparel brands began a major push to improve safety at the Bangladeshi factories they do business with. It involves a sprint to inspect hundreds of plants each month and a commitment to help correct any safety problems found — all with an eye to preventing another catastrophic collapse or fire. But instead of joining forces, the Western brands have divided into two sometimes feuding camps.
Building true omnichannel merchandising capabilities requires the merging of previously siloed business functions. Footwear retailer Aerosoles has been omnichannel for about 10 years now, however, over the past 18 months the organization has decided to step up to manage the business properly.
What are the biggest challenges facing the global apparel supply chain in 2014? One that stands out is the pressure to deliver on the omnichannel promise. There's a fundamental disconnect between the demands of an omni-channel retail environment working to give consumers immediate results, and an apparel supply chain that is getting longer, more fragmented and more difficult to predict.
The latest supply-chain news, analysis, trends and tools for executives in the apparel industry — which consists of companies that manufacture clothing, accessories and footwear. Learn how apparel companies and their suppliers around the world are managing the flow of products across all channels of the enterprise. Experts sound off on forecasting and demand planning, supply-chain visibility, logistics outsourcing, inventory optimization, transportation management, warehouse management, supply-chain security, corporate social responsibility and more.
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