TEDxBigApple - Kavita Parmar - Turning Supply Chains Into Prosperity Chains

Summary

The video script narrates the evolution of the fashion industry from a personalized artisan approach to a globalized, mass-produced system. It highlights the loss of authenticity and工匠精神 in the process and introduces a new concept of a 'prosperity chain' that uses technology to trace products back to individual artisans, empowering them and fostering an engaged consumer community. The example of Madras fabric revitalizes traditional craftsmanship and connects it with European artisans, creating a responsible and transparent supply chain.

Takeaways

• 👕 The origin of the shirt industry began with artisans who made custom-fitted shirts, emphasizing craftsmanship and personal touch.
• 🎨 Designers introduced creativity and fashion trends, leading to mass demand for stylish shirts that everyone wanted to wear.
• 🏢 Retailers and wholesalers emerged to meet the growing demand, leading to a complex global supply chain.
• 🌐 As globalization increased, production moved overseas to countries with lower living standards, affecting the competitiveness of local artisans.
• 🏭 The shift to mass production turned artisans into factory workers, stripping them of their creativity and turning the shirt-making process into a repetitive task.
• 🛍️ Consumers became mere 'consumers,' with an emphasis on buying more rather than valuing the authenticity and story behind the products.
• 🔍 The speaker decided to use technology to reconnect unhappy stakeholders in the supply chain, aiming to bring transparency and traceability to the process.
• 🌐 A pilot project was conducted using Madras fabric, which is often misrepresented in terms of its origin and production methods.
• 👔 By connecting Indian weavers with European artisans, the project aimed to restore authenticity and pride to the craft, while also engaging consumers.
• 🌟 The experiment resulted in a 'prosperity chain' where artisans received credit, consumers gained a deeper connection to their purchases, and a sense of community was fostered.

Q & A

What was the initial process of getting a shirt made before the involvement of designers and retailers?

Initially, when someone wanted a shirt, they would go to an artisan who would take their measurements and make a shirt that fit them beautifully.

How did the introduction of designers change the shirt-making process?

Designers brought creative flair and added beautiful details to simple shirts, making them fashionable and desirable to everyone.

What role did retailers play in the expansion of the shirt business?

Retailers heard about the fashionable shirts and wanted to bring them to their communities, which led to the expansion of the business beyond the local area.

Why did the artisan eventually become a manufacturer?

The artisan couldn't keep up with the increasing demand for shirts, so he hired other artisans and became a manufacturer to meet the demand.

How did globalization affect the artisan's competitiveness?

Globalization made trade between countries with unequal living standards easier, which led to the artisan's work being outsourced to places with cheaper labor, making them less competitive.

What changes occurred in the artisan's role as production became more mechanized?

The artisan was turned into a factory worker, losing his creativity as he was tasked with repeating a single part of the shirt-making process over and over for the sake of productivity.

How did the concept of the consumer change in this new supply chain?

The customer transformed into a consumer, expected to consume more and more, with the focus shifting from quality and authenticity to quantity and price.

What was the main issue with the traditional supply chain according to the speaker?

The main issue was the loss of authenticity and value in the products, as well as the unhappiness of all parties involved, including artisans, designers, and consumers.

What was the solution proposed to reconnect the artisans with their customers and restore authenticity?

The solution was to use technology to track and trace every piece of clothing back to the individual artisan who made it, allowing customers to see who made their shirt and potentially engage with them.

Why was Madras fabric chosen for the experiment in the new supply chain model?

Madras fabric was chosen because it is a common fabric with a rich history, but most Madras shirts are not authentically made by the traditional Madras handloom weavers, presenting an opportunity to showcase the benefits of the new supply chain model.

How did the experiment with Madras fabric and European artisans affect the artisans and consumers?

The experiment resulted in artisans gaining pride and recognition for their work, consumers receiving authentic, handmade products at reasonable prices, and both parties being able to engage with each other, creating a more responsible and connected supply chain.

Outlines

00:00

👕 The Evolution of the Fashion Industry

The speaker takes us through the historical journey of the fashion industry, starting from the days of the artisan who made custom shirts to the rise of designers adding fashionable details. The demand for these designs led to the involvement of retailers and wholesalers, eventually leading to the globalization of the supply chain. The artisan's role transformed from a creator to a manufacturer, unable to keep up with the growing demand, and work was outsourced to countries with lower living standards. This led to a complex global supply chain where the focus on faster and cheaper production overshadowed the authenticity and value of the products. The artisan's creativity was replaced by repetitive tasks, and the customer became a mere consumer with an abundance of choices but lacking in genuine connection to the product's origin and the people behind it.

05:01

🌐 Revitalizing the Supply Chain with Technology

The speaker introduces an innovative approach to revamp the supply chain by using technology to reconnect unhappy stakeholders. The idea was to track and trace every piece of clothing back to the individual artisan who made it, providing transparency to the consumer. The experiment involved Madras fabric, which, despite its name, is often not authentically produced in India. The speaker's team engaged with the traditional Madras weavers in Chennai, India, and partnered them with European artisan producers. Each piece was marked with a unique code that allowed consumers to trace it back to its origin, fostering a sense of community and engagement. The outcome was a 'prosperity chain' where artisans received recognition and consumers became part of a community, promoting responsible production, consumption, and conservation.

Keywords

💡Artisan

An artisan is a skilled craftsperson who practices their trade in a traditional way, often with a focus on quality and craftsmanship over mass production. In the video, the term refers to the original shirt maker who took measurements and made shirts to fit individuals beautifully. The artisan represents the beginning of the fashion supply chain, emphasizing the personal touch and authenticity in the production process.

💡Designer

A designer is a professional who creates original designs for clothing, often adding creative flair and aesthetic appeal to basic garments. In the context of the video, the designer is responsible for making a simple shirt fashionable by adding beautiful details that everyone wants, thus driving demand and setting trends in the fashion industry.

💡Retailer

A retailer is a person or business that sells goods to the public in relatively small quantities for use or consumption rather than for resale. The video mentions retailers as those who heard about the fashionable shirts and wanted to bring them to their community, thus playing a crucial role in the distribution of goods and making them accessible to a wider audience.

💡Wholesaler

A wholesaler is a business that sells goods to retailers, rather than to the general public. In the video, wholesalers are part of the supply chain that helped meet the increasing demand for the fashionable shirts, indicating a step further in the distribution process where goods are bought in bulk and then sold to retailers.

💡Distributor

A distributor is a person or company that provides goods or services to other businesses, rather than directly to consumers. The video implies that distributors are part of the complex global supply chain, helping to manage the flow of goods from manufacturers to retailers and ultimately to consumers.

💡Manufacturer

A manufacturer is a person or company that makes goods in large quantities, often using machinery. In the video, the artisan becomes a manufacturer to keep up with demand, hiring other artisans and shifting from making complete shirts to making parts of them, which reflects the transition from craftsmanship to mass production.

💡Global Supply Chain

A global supply chain is a network of organizations, people, activities, information, and resources involved in moving a product or service from supplier to customer. The video describes the complexity of the global supply chain and how it added many layers to manage the production and distribution of goods, leading to a loss of authenticity and工匠精神.

💡Commodity

A commodity is a basic good used in commerce that is interchangeable with other goods of the same type. In the video, the once unique and artisan-made shirt becomes a commodity, losing its value and authenticity as it is mass-produced and available at various price points, competing for consumer attention.

💡Consumer

A consumer is a person who purchases goods and services for personal use. The video discusses how the traditional consumer has evolved into a more passive role, focused on consuming more and more, often without considering the origins or impact of the products they purchase.

💡Authenticity

Authenticity refers to the quality of being genuine and not copied or imitated. In the video, authenticity is lost as the unique, artisan-made shirts become mass-produced commodities. The speaker's initiative aims to restore authenticity by connecting consumers directly with the artisans who make their products.

💡Traceability

Traceability is the ability to verify the history, location, or application of an item or substance by means of recorded identification. The video highlights the use of technology to track and trace each piece of clothing back to the individual artisan who made it, allowing consumers to understand the origin and production process of their garments.

💡Prosperity Chain

The term 'Prosperity Chain' is used in the video to describe a new type of supply chain that aims to ensure everyone involved is recognized and rewarded for their work, promoting a more equitable and responsible system. It contrasts with the traditional supply chain by emphasizing the value of each participant's contribution and encouraging consumer engagement.

Highlights

The origin of the shirt-making process involved an artisan who personally crafted each shirt to fit the customer.

Designers introduced creativity and fashion to the simple shirts, making them desirable.

The concept of a retailer emerged as demand for the fashionable shirts spread beyond the local community.

The growth of global demand led to the development of wholesalers and distributors.

Artisans had to adapt to mass production, becoming manufacturers to keep up with demand.

The shift to cheaper labor overseas affected local artisans' competitiveness and job security.

The complex global supply chain led to a loss of authenticity and value in the products.

Artisans were reduced to factory workers, losing their creative input and job satisfaction.

Consumers became mere consumers, with an emphasis on buying more rather than valuing quality and authenticity.

The speaker decided to address the issues within the fashion industry by leveraging technology.

The idea of tracking and tracing every piece of clothing back to its individual artisan was proposed.

The experiment involved using Madras fabric, which has a rich history but is often misrepresented in the market.

The project aimed to connect authentic Madras weavers with European artisan producers to create a new supply chain.

Each piece of clothing was marked with a unique code, allowing consumers to trace its origin and artisan.

The experiment resulted in a positive impact, with artisans gaining recognition and consumers becoming part of a community.

Artisans are now proud of their work, receiving individual credit and establishing a connection with their customers.

Consumers can now purchase authentic, handmade products and participate in promoting the artisans who made them.

The new supply chain model, referred to as the 'prosperity chain', encourages responsible production, consumption, and conservation.

The story concludes with a call to action for consumers to be mindful of the origins of their clothing and the impact of their choices.

Transcripts

[Music]

[Music]

[Applause]

let's go back to the beginning once upon

a time when you wanted a shirt you went

to someone who knew how to make it an

artisan he took your measurements and he

made you a shirt that fit you

beautifully then in there came a

designer some with creative flare great

ideas he put some beautiful details on a

simple shirt and everybody wanted it it

became fashionable then I guess you

could easily say that somebody from a

nearby Town heard about those shirts and

wanted to stalk them for their community

and that was a

retailer as Communications made ideas

spread really fast lots of other people

around the world wanted it and then you

had of course the wholesalers the

Distributors The Artisan couldn't keep

up with the demand that he was getting

so he hired other artisans and those he

became a

manufacturer further as business between

countries trade between countries with

unequal um you know living standards

became easier well then our Artisans

were not competitive anymore and all

that work all that production went

overseas well now this is where it got

complicated a lot of layers were added a

lot of layers to manage this incredibly

complex Global Supply

Chain of course we needed demand to

increase so faster and cheaper became

really important and for fast and

cheaper meant that the Artisan had to be

turned into a factory worker what does

that mean that means that he doesn't

make the shirt anymore he just makes a

part of the shirt he repeats that

process over and over and over again any

creativity out of his job is taken away

in the name of productivity and as far

as a customer he's now a consumer

because that's what he's supposed to do

consume more and more and more um this

shirt had lost all its value it has lost

all its authenticity it had just turned

into a commodity there was it was

available at different price points

vying for your attention on the latest

celebrities

back so here we were we have this really

complex supply chain and everybody all

of us who were working within it were

not at all happy with it um you had the

Artisan turn factory worker yes he was

making a bit little bit more money but

really he was in competition at any

given moment

to lose his job to a machine or a

cheaper Source yes you had us the

designers and we had incredible pressure

to keep up with the latest Trend that

was in the market and then of course you

had the customer the new consumer yes he

had incredible choices and incredible

price points but really was there such a

difference it didn't matter where you

went London New York Rome Singapore you

had the same shirt following you around

where was the

authenticity so I decided it was enough

time we've been complaining about it at

fashion shows and fabric trade shows

that we're going to do something about

it so we thought what if we could use

technology and bring all of these

unhappy people face to face so that they

could see each other and talk to each

other so we decided that we were going

to track and Trace every single piece

all the way back to every individual

Artisan who made it and then we were

going to offer that information to the

customer they could trace back who had

made their piece and if they really want

wanted to they could even find out where

it came from how it was made and plus

get involved and maybe help them promote

the artisan and social

media so we ran an experiment for that

experiment we

chose madas now madas is something madas

plat is something that all of you

probably have in your it's one of the

most common Fabrics available and the

sad truth about Madras is 90% of the

Madras shirts made in India that are

called Madras are not made in India and

the ones that Are Made in India are not

even made by the real Madras handloom

Weavers in the south of India and

actually the south of India is the place

is no longer called Madras so we don't

even know if there's a mythical name

that came from somewhere but anyway

there was a place called Madras which is

now called chenai and that is where

these handloom Weavers were producing

this fabric for centuries that's what

gave it the name now imagine if we had

bubbly wine and there was they could put

champagne label on it I mean the French

would really get upset about that

so here you were the madas Weavers and

they could do nothing about this so we

just we went there we found there were

over

250,000 families still doing hand and

weaving and they were frustrated because

they couldn't compete with the machine

made Goods coming from overseas as well

as in India so we talked to them we

found out what is it that they wanted

and we took this authentic madas Fabric

and then we went all the way to Europe

where we found again disgruntled

European

Artisan producers who were making

beautiful shirts for centuries and now

couldn't compete against the cheap

shirts coming out of the Far East so we

put them together we every single piece

had The Artisans trace on it we traced

it back from madas to Europe put a

unique code onto that piece and that

piece the consumer could use that unique

code to trace it back to who it was to

get involved to find out and we actually

encouraged the consumer to take a

picture and put it up so that he could

get involved and he could maybe promote

his Artisan now this experiment I happy

to tell you had the most magical

consequences we are so excited The

Artisans are now suddenly so proud of

what it is that they're doing finally

someone gives them credit individual

credit they're signing every single

piece with their name they actually get

to know people across continent who've

bought their work people are sending

them thank you notes thank you that was

so beautiful and the consumer now no

longer is a consumer he's an Engaged

Community he gets an authentic real

handmade madra shirt at a reasonable

price point and on top of it he can

trace it back and he can even help

promote his Artisan maybe make maybe

make some money out of that for himself

becoming a trunk sh hose so here you are

I told you this story and I'm hoping

that you see what it is that we're

trying to do what we're trying to do is

that we're trying to make sure everyone

understands and realizes that we're all

part of this we should all see each

other and seeing each other and being

aware of each other makes us aware of

the responsibility we have towards each

other responsibility to produce to

consume and to conserve responsibly and

of course I hope this little story has

made all of you a little intrigued that

tomorrow morning when you get and get up

and reach out for that shirt you wonder

who made it and I hope you also feel

that this story of this new supply chain

that we call the prosperity chain is an

idea worth spreading thank thank you

[Applause]