Cotton USA has shed light on the key factors influencing sourcing decisions in the fashion supply chain in a new report produced following a survey of textile professionals from across Europe.
Cotton USA noted that 2017 has been a good year for US cotton, with exports from the US set to grow by around 37% by the end of the year. “Despite challenges from fast-moving industry trends, cotton has maintained its reputation for superior quality and comfort, with analysts predicting that cotton will be tomorrow’s ‘luxury fibre’,” states the report.
Against this background, Cotton USA sought to investigate attitudes to cotton fibre among European textile professionals involved in the buying, sourcing and product development process; to probe the concept of quality; and to investigate the presumptions of these professionals about the behaviour of consumers when making a textile purchase.
According to the survey’s findings, buyers, sourcing executives and others in the product development environment find themselves under increasing time and resource pressure as they strive to match the accelerating pace of fashion evolution and consumer trends. In fact nearly a third of participants said they were under more pressure than they were two years ago, perhaps reflecting ever increasing consumer expectations around styles and innovation, as well as the global economic climate.
In terms of production, only a small number judged that the production of fibres and other textile materials had improved over the last five years. Many treat with a degree of scepticism the notion that consumers are heavily influenced by factors such as sustainability and ethical sourcing, while frankly admitting that in their own professional lives cost and delivery times are more important.
While the majority still view price as an indicator of quality, the survey found a large minority that dissents from this view and, in addition, believes quality is being driven downwards – perhaps as a casualty of the fast fashion trend.
“When it comes specifically to cotton, its increasing reputation as a premium fibre is apparent, with many references to comfort, quality and natural origin,” states the report. “The overall results point to a more pressured environment where quality, reputation and personal contact are playing an increasingly prominent role in the professional lives of those involved in sourcing.”
Increasing time and resource pressure
The survey highlighted the high-pressure world in which European textile buying, sourcing and product development professionals now operate. Lack of time was identified as the greatest challenge by nearly half (46%) of participants, with budgets the next most widespread concern (40%).
Although the vast majority did not identify the dynamics of changing trends and consumer behaviour to be high among their current concerns, a much larger number (20%) said this was an increasing challenge and 16% of respondents said it was becoming more difficult to keep up with consumer demands.
Technology in the sourcing environment
More than half of participants thought that recent advances in technology (30%) or textile production (24%) had impacted their professional role in the past five years, although only a small number (14%) judged that the production of fibres and other textile materials had improved over the same period. Similarly, only a minority (30%) thought they had gained better access to new suppliers or that new industry resources had emerged to support them in their roles (14%).
Price vs sustainability
Taking ‘quality’ as a given, the survey sough to identify the key factors influencing a buyer or sourcing executive when appointing a supplier, and in particular to establish the true balance between practical matters, such as cost and lead times, and ‘softer’ issues such as corporate social responsibility. Participants were asked to name their top three factors, which were recorded according to the order in which they were mentioned.
The results were emphatic. Two-thirds of participants (66%) mentioned cost as their primary criterion, which was eight times higher than each of the next most frequently mentioned first-choice criteria – lead times and certification. Not surprisingly, 92% of participants had cost among their three nominated criteria. Among second choices, lead times emerged as a major factor (26%), slightly outweighing corporate social responsibility (24%).
Perhaps indicative of the hard facts of the commercial world, only 4% mentioned corporate social responsibility as the first factor they took into account, and only a third (34%)included it among their three nominated criteria.
Buyers clearly thought environmental and ethical matters were lesser, but important, considerations for consumers, as ‘sustainable’ (20%) and ‘ethically sourced’ (12%) both scored highly as second choices. Notably, only 4% of participants gave sustainability as
their first choice, and a further 4% nominated ethical sourcing.
Events still vital in sourcing process
The survey revealed that time-poor buyers and sourcing executives rely heavily on the concentrated opportunities afforded by trade shows to identify new sources of fibre or fabric, with 76% stating this as their principal method.
A striking feature of the results is the low impact of social media, including business-oriented platforms, on the European sourcing process. Only 10% said social media played a part in their identification of new suppliers – all of them specifically citing LinkedIn.
Cotton’s reputation as a premium fibre
Participants were shown a list of words and asked to select the three they most associated with high-quality cotton, such as US cotton. Responses were recorded according to the order in which they were mentioned.
The results indicate that touch and comfort are the qualities that most readily come to mind when considering cotton. 40% of participants gave ‘soft’ as their first nominated quality, and a further 20% said ‘comfortable’. Between them, these two qualities notched up 41 mentions as first, second or third choice.
Of those surveyed, a mere 2% said they consider cheaper or cost effective options highly as part of their purchase decisions, suggesting that the overwhelming majority of buyers, sourcing executives and decision makers favour high-quality fibres, such as US cotton, instead.
Underlying this judgement, a notable 63% said as their second criterion that cotton represents ‘quality fabric/fibre’, with a further 16% giving this as their third choice; and among third-choice criteria 20% said the fibre suggests ‘natural’, while a further 16% said it ‘looks good’.
Organic products notched up only seven mentions across all three choices, with just 4% of participants mentioning ‘organic’ as their first choice, although its adherents were enthusiastic.
• The research was conducted by World Textile Information Network (WTiN) in partnership with Cotton USA. Through a combination of telephone interviews and face-to-face meetings at Première Vision Paris, more than 50 senior sourcing managers and decision makers at global brands and retailers were interviewed.
Source: www.wtin.com