As the apparel sector battles major turmoil across the world from the ongoing war in Ukraine to the Israel-Gaza conflict, the latest issue of Just Style's digital magazine asks experts from across the supply chain to share their advice. 

The next 12 months could prove difficult for fashion industry sourcing executives, so we also take a closer look at the opportunities to be found as well as the obstacles that will need to be overcome.  

Read it for free online on all devices.

Diversification away from China remains a key apparel sourcing theme. Just Style explores how this is impacting China’s fashion exports market and what fashion manufacturers are doing to overcome this permanent global shift.  

Meanwhile, the National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO) president and CEO Kimberly Glas explains why she believes the failure to fully enforce the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) and the de minimis loophole is devastating US textile and garment makers.  

COP28 provided fresh insights on sustainability but the sustainability world sometimes operates in a bubble, argues Gherzi Textil Organisation partner Robert Antoshak. He explains how organisations like Textile Exchange can help the industry to burst it and implement meaningful environmental change and labour reforms. 

Read the latest issue of Just Style Magazine for all this and more insights, analysis, data and interviews from the apparel industry.

You can subscribe here to receive email notifications when a new issue is available. As always, don’t forget to follow us on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn and let us know your thoughts on this issue.

Other X posts of the week came from the Spanish arm of Greenpeace tracking garments placed in recycling bins in both Mango and Zara stores to see where they would be sent and outdoor brand Decathlon announcing its acquisition of Bergfreunde, a German online retailer specialising in mountain sports and climbing gear.

Following The Guardian's report on a Chinese prison ID allegedly being found inside the lining of a Regatta coat, the British outdoor brand told Just Style it "refutes the implication it has used forced prison labour".

In an official statement, Regatta told Just Style it had taken the incident reported by a customer very seriously and an immediate investigation commenced. It has also taken advice from the Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) and pointed out that ETI supports the company in its ongoing commitment to ethical trading practices.  

US President Biden has announced nearly 30 new measures to strengthen the supply chains that are said to be vital to both the economic well-being and national security of the US, as part of his “Bidenomics” agenda to lower prices for inflation-weary American consumers.

The US apparel sector has commended his bid to strengthen supply chains with the creation of the White House Council on Supply Chain Resilience, however, concerns remain over his lack of commitment to global trade policies and tackling domestic forced labour.

Campaign group Greenpeace claims one item was reused from the 29 geolocators it placed on clothing recycled across Spain, including at Zara and Mango stores over four months.

The organisation placed the items, tagged with tracking devices, in 11 containers located on public roads and in Zara and Mango stores across different areas in Spain between July and August. The items donated were used but still in good condition.

French sporting goods retailer Decathlon has announced the acquisition of Bergfreunde, a German online retailer specialising in mountain sports and climbing gear, a move that will allow the company to explore what a GlobalData analyst called “premium price positions”.

Through the deal, signed on 24 November, Decathlon intends to support Bergfreunde’s leadership long-term, fostering continued development and growth. The collaboration is anticipated to yield benefits for Bergfreunde's dedicated customer base, partners, and internal teams.

German sportswear brand Puma shared its successful pilot completion of a "biodegradable" sneaker.

Puma ran a two-year-long RE:SUEDE experiment during which it piloted turning the experimental version of its classic suede sneaker into compost.

The brand said it produced 500 pairs of the experimental RE:SUEDE in 2021, which were made using Zeology-tanned suede, a TPE outsole and hemp fibres. As the next step, these shoes were given to volunteers in Germany who wore them for six months to test their comfort and durability.

Our signals coverage is powered by GlobalData’s Thematic Engine, which tags millions of data items across six alternative datasets — patents, jobs, deals, company filings, social media mentions and news — to themes, sectors and companies. These signals enhance our predictive capabilities, helping us to identify the most disruptive threats across each of the sectors we cover and the companies best placed to succeed.

Independent body the Ethical Trade Initiative (ETI) has concluded the workers at Türkiye supplier Neo Trend were "treated poorly", however it said the evidence to hand and its interpretation of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs), did not lead it to "compel company member Next to deliver recompense".

The ETI added that it has "recommended Next consider a good will gesture but stopped short of demanding this".

Next had not responded to Just Style's request for comment at the time of going to press.

The ETI explained there is "no disagreement that a number of workers were left unemployed after Neo Trend’s owner closed the company, stripped its assets and left workers without due severance, notice, and other allowances".

It stated the employer had a responsibility to make right this breach of workers’ rights and in theory, should be held to account in local law.

However, it added that Neo Trend’s owner had absconded, and workers would face difficulties in pursuing recourse through legal means.

Why ETI cleared Next from the dispute

Labour union alliance Clean Clothes Campaign (CCC) members filed a complaint to ETI on behalf of Neo Trend’s former workers due to Next being an ETI member that had been sourcing from the company.

In response to ETI’s investigation of the complaint, Next provided evidence of orders received, and the full amounts paid for those orders.

ETI explained: "The evidence demonstrated a significant gap in time between the last order and when the company was closed. This was at the time of the onset of Covid which only served to complicate matters".

ETI admitted it took time to determine and examine all the evidence available, however it concluded that in this case it was not possible to demonstrate that the action or inaction of Next had caused or directly contributed to the harm to workers, given the time factor and the actions taken by the company in line with government guidance due to Covid.

ETI pointed out that it has a robust process for complaints which is overseen by the ETI Board and in this case when appealed was considered by a committee comprising a trade union, NGO, and company member, chaired by its neutral board chair.

ETI said it agrees with Clean Clothes Campaign stating the affected workers deserve recompense for the harm done.

ETI explained: "The clear villain in this case is the owner of Neo Trend who knowingly closed the business without informing workers or paying what they were owed, even though the company had been paid for orders delivered".

The former owner of Neo Trend could not be reached for comment at the time of going to press.

ETI added that alongside many others it has been advocating for effective mandatory human rights due diligence legislation, to strengthen the ability to hold companies to account on the impact they have on human rights.

It pointed out laws already exist in Germany, Norway, and France, however the UK has fallen behind in providing support for companies already undertaking human rights due diligence and ensuring that this is the norm through the support of legal requirements.

ETI said it will continue to advocate for mandatory legal measures which align with the UNGPs, require effective stakeholder engagement, make specific considerations for people of heightened vulnerability, and include root cause analysis.

The coalition, which includes Fair Wear Foundation have urged Bangladesh's Prime Minister to establish a legal minimum wage that adheres to international labour and industry standards, prioritising human rights.

In an exclusive interview with Just Style Kohnstamm points out minimum wage is not a liveable wage and states it begs the question: "What’s the rationale for the wage board to come to that conclusion?"

He believes it "all boils down to the buyer-supplier relationship" and argues "manufacturers need to feel empowered to raise wages as otherwise the industry can't improve worker rights or labour conditions."

Fashion brands must promise not to walk away following higher wages

Kohnstamm wonders if Bangladesh manufacturers might be concerned that if wages go up and therefore prices go up, international fashion buyers will walk away.

He respects the Bangladesh apparel sector and suggests fashion manufacturers need to be more confident and less afraid that the market will leave the country amid rising wages, arguing: "If you compete on price, what's next? As there’s always a cheaper country so you can’t work solely on a low price."

Kohnstamm has seen first-hand that a lot of factories that are part of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) are investing in their workforce and producing better products, however he believes the industry is suffering from a lack of skilled workers, so raising wages is vital to make it an attractive job choice in future.

Boosting confidence and creating a strong buyer-supplier relationship needs to come from both sides of the nexus with Kohnstamm highlighting Fair Wear's Fair Price App allows factories to cost for human rights as it's "about costing for due diligence".

If manufacturers work with buyers and explain this is what we need to charge as otherwise good due diligence isn't being met, it will ensure buyers make responsible sourcing decisions, he suggests.

The Fair Wear Foundation sees first-hand the impact that a lack of communication can make between factories and buyers. He shares one example of a factory that had worked with a buyer for many years yet felt uncertain if it would get repeat orders from one quarter to the next. The buyer on the other hand loved the factory's work and had no intentions of ever leaving so the issue was a lack of transparency between both parties leading to unnecessary uncertainty.

To sum it up he says: "The Bangladesh government needs to set a higher minimum wage and fashion brands need to commit to stay."

Creating equitable relationships between fashion brands and suppliers

Fair Wear Foundation's ultimate aim is to realise worker rights. Kohnstamm states: "Very simply, our focus to achieve that is to have equitable relationships and equitable value distribution throughout the supply chain."

It is a multi-stakeholder organisation so it is always looking to find ways of bringing together trade union, industry association and NGO viewpoints.

He mentions a quote that the International Apparel Foundation's president Cem Altan said during the opening of this year's World Fashion Convention in Philadelphia, US: "You can’t be green if you’re in the red" and is keen to add to it: "There’s no decent work without work. The good thing is it’s not an either-or situation. A lot of the bad business practices stem from a zero sum game – it's very much a win-win. The interesting thing is that people are seeing that more and more across the supply chain."

He continues: "There’s a lack of skilled workers so it takes some time for some to see the business interest and the value but the rationale is there."

Kohnstamm equates it to whenever there’s a hiccup in the supply chain, fashion brands need to be able to rely on their suppliers as equal partners within the operation: "It's much harder to rely on a supplier that a buyer has just met via an online auction just because they’re two cents cheaper."

But, he continues: "The win-win is in the long-term relationships and having the long-term view. People matter but also people need to see the longer-term value as otherwise your business might disappear."

He believes due diligence is helping as a lot of manufacturers were scared of audits for fear of becoming an outcast if they didn't perform well.

"We should realise there are no perfect factories – there’s always room for improvement – in principle you attack the problem head on together," states Kohnstamm.

He's keen to see fashion manufacturers and buyers committing to each other and doing good due diligence with good systems, reliable information and credible data, and hopes manufacturers will see the value in strengthening due diligence.

For the trade unions part, Fair Wear Foundation sees them as helping everyone within the value chain to understand there's nothing better or cheaper than using workers' voices to validate findings.

"If you're a manufacturer and don't know where to start in terms of making improvements - if workers and trade unions say prioritise 'a' or 'b' - you've got a great answer."

Plus, he says: "There’s a role for trade unions and manufacturers to strengthen their position in the supply chain but it won’t happen by itself. And that’s why we work with the International Apparel Foundation. It's a hidden gem because it's unique in combining brands and buyers with manufacturers. That's really where it happens and it's where the change needs to come."

Fair Wear Foundation's recent partnerships to drive change

In September the Fair Wear Foundation signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Sustainable Terms of Trade Initiative (STTI) in a bid to advance responsible purchasing practices in the fashion and textile industry.

Key to this vision is establishing partnerships between fashion brands and their suppliers, who possess valuable knowledge and practical insights crucial for brands' efforts in human rights due diligence (HRDD) and responsible purchasing practices.

Kohnstamm explains there’s so many countries in the world and even the directives in the EU have to be translated into 27 laws for each nation. Then there's the fact the fashion sector is very different to other industries. In the car industry, for example, he says car manufacturers tend to own their own factories in China so it's in their own interests to treat their own workers well.

He states we need everyone involved to come together and talk about what meaningful stakeholder engagement means and how it can be achieved when there’s thousands of brands and only a few trade unions.

He continues: "We have to figure it all out as a sector as otherwise we’ll see other sector practices being applied to us."

Fair Wear Foundation has also partnered with fellow non-profit GoodWeave to tackle forced labour in India’s supply chain with Kohnstamm sharing GoodWeave's expertise of working deep within the supply chain tiers.

He's hopeful that GoodWeave is in a good position to go into other countries and if it does Fair Wear Foundation can do similar partnerships as the one in India to address child and forced labour within the more hidden and informal segments of the fashion supply chain..

Kohnstamm is also keen to mention Fair Wear Foundation's partnership with Worldly: "We’re exploring what we can offer Worldly's Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC) members. We want to help them do good due diligence in a uniform way that’s building on industry consensus and includes the good work they’ve been doing."

He concludes: "All of our partnerships are based on practical ways to help businesses do better. It needs to be effective from a worker rights point of view but efficient enough for companies to put into practice."

In other words, he continues everyone working within the fashion supply chain needs to know what's expected of them, so providing clarity throughout the sector remains essential.

Gribbin explained: "If the Israel-Gaza war escalated in Middle East there would be spill over effects into Turkiye and Jordan both of which are huge suppliers of fashion".

Plus he said there could be concerns for Egypt, Tunisia and Morocco in North Africa, which are also integral parts of the global fashion supply chain.

He hopes of course that this won't be the case and there won't be another geopolitical disaster in 2024, adding: "Barring another geopolitical disaster – and that’s a catch-all for all bad things that could happen so US tensions with China, Russia with Ukraine, Middle East, trade deals that may or may not get renewed – I suspect a good year in 2024-2025".

Impact of geopolitical disasters on fashion supply chain

He can't deny however that the world is going through a lot of geopolitical upheaval. He pointed out "the tensions are forcing fashion brands and retailers to really look at their supply chains and rationalise and optimise them to not only find the lowest cost and best quality but also to avoid the pitfalls that are out there".

He cited a list of change within fashion sourcing ranging from recent US and EU laws against forced labour, which have encouraged sourcing professionals to rethink where and how they source products to consumers wanting products immediately which has led to a shift towards nearshoring in both Europe and the US.

Basically, he said: "Nowhere in the world has the capacity of China so it’s forced supply chains to splinter."

The US in particular has a lot of trade agreements with alternative fashion sourcing countries to China such as AGOA (Africa Growth and Opportunity Act) and CAFTA-DR (Central America-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement), and multiple others… but Gribbin noted: "Those were underutilised until recently and now the trend is to look more closely at those treaties and use them to de-risk the supply chain and avoid any suspicions of forced labour."

Historically, he said the key trend that has never changed is a focus on cost first, speed second and quality third, but he continued: "I think the world is shifting because cost is not number one anymore – it’s fear of running afoul of some legal situation".

Fashion brands and retailers want to make their supply chains more resilient and less risky and to do this they can't go to one country so sourcing professionals are having to be more creative about how they vet suppliers, including second tier and third tier and it's even going down to DNA testing for cotton products: "These are all things that a decade ago people never really thought about."

Despite all of the change within the sector and the turbulence outside of it with wars and geopolitical tensions, Gribbin remains optimistic for the year ahead.

He said: "When I speak to retailers and brands about their outlook for the year ahead or two years ahead – I sense more optimism now than a year ago. A year ago people knew they had too much inventory and factories would need to lay off workers to match consumer demand but people are now optimistic so they can book large orders."

What to expect from US trade agreements in 2023 and 2024

The US is on the brink of an election in 2024 which could arguably have repercussions for the fashion supply chain.

Gribbin doesn't expect there to be much change from the status quo given neither the Trump administration (and Trump remains a frontrunner to be a Republican candidate in 2024) not the current Biden administration "had a huge appetite for new trade initiatives".

On the plus side, he added: "The fashion supply chain industry recognises that so wants to get existing trade agreements renewed."

Gribbin is on the AAFA Trade Policy Committee and Africa Working Group and revealed he's heard that there will be a trade bill that’s pushed through by year end but the question remains - what will it include?

In September Louisiana senator John Kennedy introduced a bill for a 20-year AGOA renewal and on 1 November Biden committed to renewing AGOA beyond 2025 but without any detail on what the extension would be.

Gribbin pointed out that if AGOA in particular is renewed for a long period of time Congress would like to see reforms such as third-country inputs – while cotton is abundantly available in Africa but synthetic fibres are not – and added: "To build a synthetic supply chain will take 20 years - not 10 years.

He believes a 20-year extension will give brands, retailers and suppliers enough time to make the advancements necessary in synthetic fibres.

He sees a lot of potential in the fashion supply chain initiatives happening in Ghana right now in terms of taking used clothing and breaking it down to the fibre level and recycling them into new yarns, but he believes it’s in its early stages so it's a question of how fast it can scale to the amount of yarns that are needed to support the supply chain.

Gribbin is confident there will be a trade bill between now and the end of the year and he stated that most people are most interested in GSP (General System of Preferences) and MTB (Miscellaneous Tariff Bill), which have both lapsed.

He added that there's no discussion about changes to the Haitian Hemispheric Opportunity through Partnership Encouragement (HOPE)Act and the Haiti Economic Lift Program (HELP) Act as there’s bi-partisan support to renew them given the aid they provide to one of the poorest countries in the world.

Finally, Gribbin stated the jury is out on what will happen with the de minimis rule and whether any changes would be made to it before the year ends.

De minimis provides admission of articles free of duty and of any tax imposed on or by reason of importation but there has been concerns that goods entering the US this way avoid the new inspections required under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act.

He shared: "There has been legislation drafted that may or may not get included in a year-end trade bill. That said there are brands and retailers on both sides of the equation lobbying for no change, change or parity with other countries.

"That said because there are so many different points of view – I wouldn’t be surprised if it doesn't get changed this year and gets put on the back burner because of the elections and then will come up again in 2025."

A lot of conversations have started on the back of the Labour Behind the Label rally on 1 October but the organisation's campaigns and activism lead Alena Ivanova admitted during a campaigns meeting held in Leicester that it's not going to be a "quick win".

She explained: "Output from the rally and media and messages of solidarity with workers in Leicester have come from all over the world and from key production countries such as India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka."

Leicester garment workers receive support from global production countries

Ivanova added that when fashion brands "abandoned" Leicester they maintained production in other countries and workers in these countries recognise that Leicester's workers experience the same struggles.

The rally was deemed "successful" and Ivanova believes it showed to the press and all involved how frustrated and dissatisfied workers are with the lack of pay and conditions.

She was thrilled that over 500 people turned up for the rally and suggested it shows people are worried about their livelihoods so are willing to be visible and go out in groups.

She added: "There were factory owners at the event too so in that sense it was a great success."

Another plus point, she argued was the renewed interest from journalists wanting to speak to garment workers and Labour Behind the Label is trying to facilitate that as much as possible: "Without the media focus it’s harder to make people respond and politicians and other stakeholders pay attention."

Since the rally, Labour Behind the Label has written a series of letters to UK brands – not just the brands producing in Leicester, with Ivanova noting: "we know that number is reducing but we also contacted brands that used to produce in Leicester."

She explained that many fashion brands largely benefit from the ‘made in UK’ label as they know this sells.

"This is an angle we’re also trying to exploit and drive home with brands to help them explore more sustainable production because there's less carbon footprint as well as more ethical conditions with better contracts, pay etc," she said.

Labour Behind the Label writes to UK brands no longer manufacturing in Leicester

Ivanova continued: "We’ve been pushing UK brands – not just the ones you currently see in the workshops around Leicester but also Next, Marks & Spencer (M&S), Asda and others – that used to have more of a presence in the city but no longer produce here to have some conversations on how they could trial different lines – maybe more specialised lines and combining it with a sustainability angle that we know companies are interested in from a marketing perspective."

An Asda spokesperson said: “Asda is committed to upholding our Standards for Suppliers and maintaining decent working conditions for workers. We continue to work closely with suppliers in Leicester, where we predominantly undertake printing, this is via direct engagement, our social compliance programme and additional due diligence steps. However we realise there are existing challenges which need further attention and via industry groups we are looking to work towards these improvements and we will continue to engage with Labour Behind the Label in their campaign.”

Next and Marks & Spencer had not responded to Just Style's request for comment at the time of going to press.

Labour Behind the Label has also been talking to MPs and explained Leicester's deputy mayor has written to the government and said it’s an urgent issue for Leicester.

Ivanova admitted that December is when everything slows down from a UK government perspective so she's not expecting much more engagement on the parliamentary side, but she said: "We’re awaiting for a response from the government."

Meanwhile the public position Labour Behind the Label launched and the rally itself and the public petition is still out there and is being pushed by partner organisations.

She remains hopeful that in January the fight will be in a better place with "a critical mass of MPs" tackling the issue and "we will have a stronger voice from the trade unions as well".

Alongside positive engagement and dialogue with brands following the letters that have been sent out and more numbers on the petition with a bigger block of supporters going to parliament and taking demands there.

She concluded: "Our role is to be as persistent, loud and annoying to our elected representatives as possible so they don’t feel they can ignore us and we can tackle it from that angle as well."

Leicester's garment factories made headlines in the height of the pandemic for poor working conditions and not paying its workers.

Earlier this month UK fashion retailer Boohoo, which manufactures in Leicester told Just Style it was continuing to deliver on commitments following a BBC Panorama investigation that alleged Boohoo staff had pressured suppliers to drive down prices, even after deals had been agreed.

During a one-to-one chat at the 38th World Fashion Convention in Philadelphia Lamar reels off the issues impacting his AAFA members, which is a who's who of the fashion retail industry ranging from US denim brand Levi Strauss & Co. to US retailer Target Corporation.

In no particular order he says his members' main concerns are with the economy, health of both the consumer and worker as well as the health of the fashion supply chain overall.

Current concerns for fashion sourcing executives

More specifically, he adds: "There’s a lot of headwinds regardless of whether you’re looking at the US economy or anywhere else – inflation, interest and inventory woes all continue to create challenging economic environments."

If that wasn't enough political tensions around the world are also present - whether it’s Israel, the ongoing Ukraine-Russia war or the possibility of other conflicts breaking out and the key question is what does that mean for our industry?

Plus, he's quick to point out that a lot of people in our industry are also personally affected by what's happening around the world or know people that are personally affected.

On top of all this there's the generational sourcing shift: "We're no longer just sourcing for Tier 1 but also Tier 2 and Tier 3 and making wide scale sourcing changes. Some of it is driven by policy and needs to be diverse based on how supply chains work in wake of the pandemic."

Then the question is whether or not the US government's trade policies support or instruct those fashion sourcing decisions.

Lamar uses the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) as a good example of this as AGOA provides eligible sub-Saharan African countries with duty-free access to the US market on apparel products until 2025.

"What if you want to make AGOA part of your sourcing dynamic but it hasn’t been renewed," he asks rhetorically, and continues: "There’s a lot of optimism about talking about AGOA but the political dysfunction that occurs in the US might make that difficult."

Irrespective of politics he notes that we’re also in a period of time where supply chains are increasingly called upon to be more traceable and transparent than ever before.

"This is not only going all the way back but all the way through to the end – what kind of responsibility should you have for your product long after you’ve sold it and used it i.e. extended producer responsibility and how much are all those activities transparent?"

The fashion sourcing industry now has to disclose more so that your vast army of stakeholders ranging from your own workers and employees to governments, NGOs and the public at large can be assured that you’re part of the solution in terms of the social and environmental challenges the world is facing.

Navigating a 2024 US election

The election year means the fashion industry will need to look more closely at the dynamics within Washington and whether an election hinders or accelerates the ability to get stuff done.

Lamar says AAFA will also need to look at the steps that can be taken during the election year to continue the progress or lay the groundwork for all the 2030 and 2050 sustainability commitments that have already been made.

"We’re spending a lot of time looking at those things and we want to try and help the industry and make sure the conversations are properly grounded to be as productive as possible," he says.

A key question for AAFA and its members regarding the US election is who will be the Republican candidate? He presumes President Biden will be the Democrat candidate so is also keen to know what a second Biden administration would look like or indeed a second Trump administration if he is named the Republican's candidate.

He notes that President Biden talks about trade as being US worker-centric and more inclusive but, he believes it’s meant abandoning some of the market access concepts.

"We’ve always said that trade needs to be worker centric but you shouldn’t hit the pause button on new agreements," he asserts.

Lamar points out that Trump continues to talk about using tariffs as a tool and for that matter, he quips Biden has probably collected more revenue from tariffs than Trump ever did.

In other words, he summarises: "It doesn’t matter who wins as you will see this discomfort about trade policy continue on" and he declares the US Government's pause button on trade policy is making it difficult for our industry to be all the things it can be.

A case in point for this is the US's major trade programme with Haiti, Haiti HOPE, which is due to terminate in 2025: "It sends a message of unpredictability – congress’s inaction is saying [to fashion brands and suppliers] maybe you shouldn’t be [sourcing from] there. It’s the message Congress is giving by not taking action or delaying it."

Lamar suggests the best opportunity to get legislation through Congress is the end of this year given 2024 is an election year, but he notes other trade programmes that should've been renewed have already been allowed to expire.

"We will try again of course but there is often a [window] of opportunity to get some legislation through congress. We know there’s a lot of members of congress that would like to see that happen but it might be outside of their control," he explains.

Another hot Washington topic is the de minimis rule, which Lamar tells us is not a loophole for online packages to avoid US customs laws. It's a programme that congress authorised eight years ago but the question is - does it give customs the ability to check the data fully for forced labour or legitimacy?

His take on the issue is that if the problem is a lot of goods are coming in that are unsafe counterfeits – the place to fix that is not de minimis – it should be about passing the Shop Safe Act.

The de minimis rule is often criticised for allowing goods to reach consumers without the proper Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act checks. However, the irony is not lost on Lamar that prison labour in the US is taking business away from domestic fashion manufacturers.

He shares: "We should never allow ourselves to be in the position where we are rightfully stopping forced labour elsewhere but prioritise 'forced labour' within our own country."

This is a gripe that Lamar has shared with Just Style before. In June he told us exclusively US federal prison inmates are "obligated" or "forced to work" without being paid a "minimum wage".

At the time a spokesperson for Federal Prison Industries (FPI) assured Just Style that no inmate is “ever forced to work for FPI” and that its work programme is 100% voluntary.

“Inmates selected to work for FPI may resign at any time and for any reason, without any consequence,” the spokesperson added.

All of the above, including the US-specific issues over its de minimis rule, prison labour and counterfeits comes back to whether or not the US should engage in trade policy.

The fashion sourcing industry is global so when we look inward and choose not to participate on a global or even a national level - that's when major issues and concerns will remain unresolved.

Twinco Capital's CEO described the organisation, which started out in 2016 in Spain, as a "major disruptor" to the traditional fashion supply chain financing model as it is using funding "as a force for good".

Earlier this year Twinco Capital said it was on a mission to reduce the world’s estimated $1.7 trillion trade finance gap, which disproportionately affects small and medium-sized companies in emerging countries and hinders their ability to access business opportunities and grow.

The amount of money Twinco Capital can offer to fashion suppliers in emerging fashion markets is expected to go up by a quarter in 2024 with Nolasco stating: "We’re now doing $150m transactions per year and next year it will be $200m and this is money going direct to emerging markets such as Pakistan, Bangladesh and China."

Twinco Capital works direct with fashion buyers who can then give suppliers the option of taking money for orders in advance of fulfilment.

The organisation is already working directly with a number of leading fashion buyers. Nolasco couldn't name any of them for confidentiality reasons but Spanish news publication Expansion claims it is already working with the likes of Mango, El Corte, Inglés and Tendam.

Nolasco could reveal that Twinco Capital hopes to increase the number of leading fashion buyers on its books to at least 10 or 12 over the next two years.

"We believe that if 10 or 12 leading fashion brands use Twinco Capital we will have changed the way the industry is funded," she said, adding: "We’ve just closed a facility for an additional $50m and we’re continuing to increase funding capacity but we want to have the infrastructure to increase funding for everyone."

Nolasco pointed out that before Twinco Capital, a fashion supplier would need to go to a local bank to get the funding needed to choose the right raw materials based on responsible production in order to fulfil a buyer's order.

The problem, she said is that a supplier might deliver buttons or t-shirts extremely well but won’t necessarily have a big balance sheet so they will only have access to a certain amount of credit from a local bank.

"The bank leaves out the decisions being made to do the production. We can look at the data that reflects how well a supplier does their production and what socially responsible decisions they’re taking in terms of processes. We provide value to those kinds of decisions – whether big or small so everyone benefits," Nolasco added.

This means fashion buyers working with Twinco Capital can offer their suppliers 60% in advance to pay their own suppliers or use as needed within their processes to fulfil orders.

She was keen to highlight that it's a solution and not an imposition so fashion buyers working with Twinco Capital give their suppliers the option of receiving a percentage of the money early if they want or need it.

Plus, she said: "What is maybe the most important thing for us is we help to level the playing field to help more suppliers participate in the supply chain. If a big buyer wants to increase an order to a supplier for instance, the supplier then has the liquidity to do that."

Nolasco explained Twinco Capital's customers are truly committed to having responsible production but it’s all about risk management: "You need to be able to do it in a way that makes sense from a risk management perspective".

For this reason data also plays a key role with Twinco Capital using a lot of data for its own risk assessments to look at the combination of performance, financial and ESG risks: "We’ve developed and are continuing to develop a specific risk analysis methodology that is material to the industry such as assessing water treatment, health and safety and biodiversity and use information such as where are the factories and the factories of their suppliers. We can then provide information on the risk exposure and we have a lot of information from the transactions themselves."

She continued: "We’re also working to provide estimates on CO2 emissions with a view not to say this is a good or bad supplier but to say these are the risks and these are the mitigating factors and this is how we can manage those risks."

For Twinco Capital using data against suppliers is very short-sighted, it's much more important to work with suppliers to drive positive change: "We’re testing data with some of our largest customers to help companies comply with the regulations that are coming up."

Nolasco sees her company as being "just on time and a first mover in this area," but she's not afraid of competition and admitted: "To make supply chains more inclusive and responsible we need a lot of people working on it – some will be competing directly and some will be adding value to the solution we’re bringing."

For Nolasco changing the supply chain to focus on social responsibility is key and she revealed it's even hidden in her company's name. Twinco Capital came from the fact three of the team have twins, which she said is a symbiotic relationship and the organisation looks for similar relationships between buyers and suppliers who don’t want to compete - instead they want to grow together like a true partnership.

Last week UK retailer Boohoo made headlines following a BBC Panorama investigation for allegedly pressuring suppliers to drive down prices, even after deals had been agreed.

Boohoo maintains that it is continuing to deliver on the commitments it made as part of its Agenda for Change following the criticisms it received around the pandemic.

The trickle down effect of any fashion company bartering for the cheapest price is the impact on factories being able to pay their workers a decent wage and being able to give their workers enough time to produce the orders without running them into the ground.

Pretty much every fashion brand or retailer now has someone dedicated to sustainability with some even having consumer-facing sustainability ambassadors.

Boohoo is good a case in point for this given it named reality celebrity Kourtney Karadashian-Barker a sustainability ambassador in September last year.

Sadly, we don't see the same focus on social responsibility either behind the scenes or with a Tik-Tok/Instagram-friendly celebrity-fronted role so it begs the question: Has the focus on tackling sustainability allowed social responsibility to go by the way side?

There has been a lot of change in a short space of time within global fashion supply chains, especially as legislation is on the horizon that will force fashion brands and retailers to be accountable for extended producer responsibility as well as environmental and social due diligence.

But what is being achieved on the sustainability front still seems to be outweighing what is happening on the social side.

Only a couple of weeks ago for instance, US fashion brand Nike was named a ‘backer’ of what is being called an industry first clean energy project to decarbonise supply chains, which is fantastic from a sustainability point of view.

However in September its shareholders were criticised for rejecting a proposal to assess the efficacy of its supply chain due diligence efforts, which would have included its social responsibility efforts such as the methodology and metrics used to measure performance on forced labour and wage theft risks.

Zara’s parent company Inditex has been doing lots of cool stuff within the circularity space and most recently revealed it would be acquiring the first available 2,000 tonnes of Circulose to lower its impact on the environment by 2030. This is another great sustainability initiative but it's good to see it is also taking social responsibility seriously by partnering with the International Apparel Federation to improve working conditions and traceability throughout its fashion supply chain.

This is particularly important as Zara came under fire last week with the Canadian corporate ethics watchdog CORE launching an independent fact-finding investigation into Zara Canada over allegations of forced labour links, which Zara has denied.

Cost can no longer be the driving factor if we do want true ethical sourcing on both a sustainable and social level to be the norm for all retailers and brands.

Until the entire fashion sector proves to members of the public that it is doing right by both the planet and its people, investigations by the likes of the BBC will help to keep social responsibility and the importance of treating suppliers and workers as “partners” front of mind with consumers.

Top stories on Just Style from last week

Boohoo defends driving positive change amid new ethical failure claims

Fast-fashion giant Boohoo tells Just Style it is continuing to deliver on commitments following a BBC Panorama investigation that alleges Boohoo staff pressured suppliers to drive down prices, even after deals had been agreed.

Why Bangladesh unrest is nothing for fashion buyers to worry about

International fashion buyers can place orders in Bangladesh with confidence as all factories are open and any unrest last week was limited to a few pockets of activity, writes Denim Expert Limited managing director and Bangladesh Apparel Exchange CEO Mostafiz Uddin.

Canadian watchdog probes Zara over alleged forced labour links

The Canadian arm of Inditex's fashion brand Zara is facing scrutiny due to alleged links with Uyghur forced labour within its supply chain and is currently being investigated by Canadian Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise (CORE).

Bangladesh sets minimum wage at Tk12,500 as garment worker protests continue

While Bangladesh's State Minister for Labour Monnujan Sufian has announced Tk12,500 ($112.8) as the new minimum monthly salary for garment workers, the demonstrations with demand to up the wages continue on the streets of Dhaka with another garment worker said to have lost their life.

Surge in 2023/24 cotton production to push global reserves to all-time high

The International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC) projects global cotton reserves will reach the highest level ever recorded in its 83-year history of data collection, with China’s 23/24 stocks expected to rise to 9.16m tonnes.

Signal: Sportswear brands lead the way on NFT patents as fashion grapples with Web3

The Italian retail brand Diesel's Web3 and NFT-driven project brings the fashion world to the digital realm, connecting consumers with a seamless blend of physical and digital experiences as Globaldata patent data reveals that sporting brands are dominating the NFT patent arena.

Primark profits rise in 2023 as shoppers continue to spend despite price hikes

The parent company of fashion retailer Primark, Associated British Foods (ABF), reports increased profits and sales in 2023 thanks to selective price increases amid rising inflation.

Signal: H&M explores AI potential as global safety summit highlights risks

Swedish fashion retailer H&M experiments with AI for on-demand printing courtesy of its Creator Studio, however global leaders are keen to test the safety of new AI models moving forward before they are released.

Earlier this month (1 November) President Biden announced he is committed to working with Congress and the US's African partners to renew AGOA (the African Growth Opportunity Act), beyond its 2025 expiry date.

The law provides sub-Saharan African countries with duty-free access to the US market and Biden "strongly" supports reauthorisation in a "timely fashion" and suggests modernising what he describes as an "important Act for the economic opportunities of the coming decade".

He states: "In so many ways, Africa is the future – and so when Africa succeeds, the whole world succeeds".

Hansult tells Just Style during an exclusive chat over Zoom that irrespective of what happens with AGOA his company is dedicated to creating a fully vertical synthetic fashion supply chain in Ghana by 2026, however he believes an AGOA renewal of at least 10 years but ideally 15 or 20 years will benefit the entire fashion supply chain.

He explains it's important to understand what DTRT stands for, and says: "I'd like to emphasise our philosophy is Do The Right Thing" and "it’s something we want to do and we want to do it for Ghana," which is where DTRT Apparel has its manufacturing facilities.

The manufacturer was one of the first to identify West Africa and specifically Ghana as a tremendous opportunity for fashion sourcing: "We anticipated a potential shift towards sourcing in West Africa and made the decision to invest."

He highlights there’s certainly a few more players building up operations in the region today but DTRT Apparel remains the largest in terms of employees, volume and export.

AGOA is a significant part of DTRT Apparel's business and he says it incentivises buyers significantly from a cost perspective especially as his business from the very beginning has been focused on synthetic which has the highest duty among apparel – upwards of 30%.

AGOA really helped DTRT Apparel to set up in West Africa with Hansult pointing out: "We had to make significant investments to build up skills [for our workforce] and that came with a tremendous cost".

He's hopeful AGOA will be renewed for another decade long before it expires in September 2025.

Hansult states: "When AGOA gets extended, it’s not just the investment that will come but it's the fact that Africa can take all the learnings made elsewhere [such as other sourcing destinations] and over decades and leverage technical advances and environmental footprints to build a much better industry and that's exciting."

He is realistic about its renewal and when it will happen as there’s always the question – of how it can be improved based on what’s worked and what hasn't: "There’s a push for a better version of AGOA – that has made it more difficult to have an extension of the existing agreement.

"Everything I hear in terms of improvement – it is about driving more investment into building our vertical capabilities – that hasn’t really happened to the extent the US would’ve liked to see."

Hansult admits that to a certain extent AGOA hasn’t delivered on the expectation of driving more investment into the industry, but he argues "the market conditions today in our sector and the need for global supply chains has never been as great as it is today.

"There’s a lot of people ready to invest that are ready and waiting for the AGOA renewal to happen."

Hansult is keen to urge the US Administration and President Biden to renew it now as the investments will happen because the market needs alternatives and needs to diversity from existing supply chains.

"The time for AGOA to deliver success has never been better," he says.

Plus, he's quick to add that West Africa and more specifically Ghana has a number of advantages to offer to global fashion brand sourcing professionals.

It has the sub-Saharan Africa advantage of being duty free and the cost competitive labour advantage.

Ghana is the closest country in Africa to both the US and Europe which gives it the speed to market advantage that is increasingly important for buyers.

Plus, it has the benefit of political stability, which is incredibly important during these times of global geopolitical turbulence.

He says the rest of the world needs to overcome its perception that Africa is "risky" as "it is not just one region – it is many countries with many realities".

Another benefit, he adds is the tremendous opportunities available to focus on ESG from the get-go and invest in greener equipment and technology because it doesn't have to work around existing infrastructure, which is often the case in other regions.

DTRT Apparel's growth strategy - with or without AGOA

For Hansult, the intention is not just driven on third country fabrics and lower labour costs and he argues that shouldn’t be the strategy of anyone: "Africa should be viewed as an opportunity to grow a vertical manufacturing platform – this is our strategy".

He continues: "There’s a space in the market for third country fabrics but to move the needle in Africa and gain market share building vertical capabilities is critical and that will enable sub-Saharan Africa regions to make those investments and compete with China.

Hansult admits that to make it a reality it requires significant capital investment and investors need to have a long term perspective so 10-15 years or 15-20 years. This is why he believes a 15 or even 20-year AGOA renewal would be far more beneficial than a decade.

"No-one comes in and sets up a textile mill knowing there’s three or four more years where AGOA will be in place so we need this long-term perspective which AGOA would deliver," he declares.

Of course, Hansult believes AGOA could always be improved but right now he's adamant that it's more important for an AGOA renewal to happen as quickly as possible and to send that renewal signal to the world as adjustments over time could still be made.

"For our business – we’re committed to Ghana and we’re doubling on our original investment. We believe it will get renewed and we’re operating under the assumption it will get renewed."

DTRT Apparel is in the final stages of financing for its first textile mill in Ghana to make synthetic-based performance garments in the region.

"We’re focused on sustainable technology that cuts down water consumption and we're tremendously excited about it."

Hansult sees DTRT Apparel becoming a true alternative to traditional sourcing by helping companies to diversify and the textile mill investment is the first step.

His longer term perspective is to be a facilitator of building out an eco system with yarn capabilities and having partners to set up yarn extrusion in the region.

There's also "exciting conversations around circularity" as Hansult points out the used clothing market is a huge issue in Africa with it going into landfill so there’s conversations around used clothing and DTRT Apparel is part of those conversations as well.

Plus, he says: "I would expect that by the end of 2025 to early 2026 we'll have an operational full verticality for synthetics in Ghana."

This is a massive leap for the global fashion supply chain as he explains there's huge concern about China from a geo-political perspective and he claims there isn’t a synthetic supply chain that doesn’t touch China or Taiwan so for DTRT Apparel it is a huge breakthrough to become vertical in the region from finished product backwards through to textile mill and yarn and these conversations are already happening all the way through to finished product completely without China or Asia.

He believes that once that's achieved within a three to five year span, the market share towards Africa can increase: "We’re not going to take 20% market share over the next 10 years but we only need 1% or 2% to have a transformational effect so that will be so impactful."

He concludes: "And that’s what AGOA is all about - creating jobs, economic development and driving export growth.

"We believe our strategy checks all the boxes of what AGOA intends to do."