A formula as simple as 'ABCD'​

Deepanshu Sharma

I am writing this post on request of, and for the benefit of the participants of ICAHT, 2018.

Mr. RC Kesar, the Director General and Conference Chairman very graciously invited me and my co-presenter Dr. Suruchi Mittar as guest speakers at this annual convention for leaders of the apparel and garment industry. Dr. Mittar and I spoke about, 'Creating Resilient Organisations' and I am sharing stats, observations, and possibilities as a sequel to the conference, to encapsulate my key takeaways.

Indian Garments Industry can be a bit moreAmbitious, a lot more Brand Conscious, a tadCourageous, and very Deliberate, to convert this wave of disruption the Indian garment industry is witnessing today.

Coming from the technology world, Garments Industry was as alien to me as Greek to begin with, quite literally! However, in the run up to the session I ended up going through a crash course on the history, geography, anatomy and psychology of the garment and apparel exports industry - in large part, thanks to my co-presenter Dr. Mittar, author of "HRM Practices and Organisational Performance in Garment Industry", is a very well known figure in the garments industry circle and she has seen it evolve over the last two decades. Top three stats which are important to note:

Significance: contributes over 14% to India's industrial production, which supports a large domestic consumption as well as supplying to global import markets.

Influence: growing at a clip of over 13% CAGR, it plays a crucial role in sustaining and growing the Indian economy.

Impact: provides employment to over 45 million Indians, a very large percentage of which are women, thus creating an enabled, empowered and equitable social fabric.

Having understood what I could through this steep learning curve, three aspects stood out for me -

Potential: The industry continues to grow, for both domestic and exports. Also, India's share of global exports still has a lot of head room for growth. We have the opportunity to be a preferred supplier, just as we are seen in the IT-ITES industry.

Challenges: The industry is facing a variety of speed bumps, some outside of their direct influence, but a few that are within their scope of impact. Different players can play their specific roles in managing what is within their control - Associations can make representations to the Government for a favourable commercial environment; The Ministry can play a role in providing the platform across large markets; and Manufacturers can improve their quality and perception, to become the preferred suppliers for global buyers.

Capability: There are a bunch of very capable and committed set of stakeholders, including the industry associations, and very capable and visionary bureaucrats, such as Mr. Sudhir Garg, Joint Secretary and Additional Development Commissioner, Ministry of MSME. But this is not an individual sport. This problem cannot be solved in isolation by any one player - all stakeholders will need to work in tandem, just like a sports team.

So taking a lead from the capabilities, I see three possibilities:

One - Dream Big: Several original component manufacturers across a variety of industries went on to launch and build their own brands and moved up the value chain (for example Asus), thereby improving both their top-line as well as the bottom-line. Three part advice: a) Be Dissatisfied, with the crumbs handed to the manufacturers by the brand owners; b) Be Hungry, for a larger share of the pie and look for ways to keep moving up the value chain; c) Be Ambitious, for going beyond just a manufacturer, to invest in building your own brands. But if you are satisfied with just being the manufacturer, then be 'the best and most preferred' vendor. It will of course require guts, but it will certainly ensure glory 

Two - Join Forces: Industries flourish globally riding on the reputation of countries. Which is the first country that comes to your mind when you think of electronics? Was earlier Japan and now it's China; Engineering? Perhaps Germany; IT and consumer goods? USA. Now think of Garments / Apparel? Most likely, China, Bangladesh or Sri Lanka, and India as an also ran. The trick lies in 'coopetition' (cooperative-competition) - imagine possibilities when we build pride and reputation as a country - 'Brand India', which will benefit the industry as a whole. It seems to be the right time as even Bollywood is starting to take note of this opportunity now (you may want to watch the film Sui Dhaaga, albeit purely for the idea they propose). 

Three - Forget the Past: Albert Einstein famously said, "We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them". What is certain is that future will be different from today and it is incumbent on the players to take the hammer and chisel in their own hands to shape the future to their advantage, rather than play catch-up with those who created the future where they are the hero. However, it cannot be done with the mindsets, processes, and practices of the past. You have to forget what is no longer relevant and build-on what is unique to you. Just like culinary art and culture, garments industry can offer unparalleled variety and uniqueness to the global market - only if you can forget the need to only provide what global buyers ask for, and find the gumption to build a market for what we can offer. Gaggan Anand and Vikas Khanna could do it, so could you. 

The future holds immense potential for Indian garment industry to come out victorious - but that is possible only if as an industry we can be a bit more Ambitious, a lot more Brand conscious, a tad Courageous, and very Deliberate, in how we can convert this wave of disruption the Indian garment industry is witnessing today. There you go - this is the ABCD of converting adversity to opportunity. 

Wish you all the best in your journey to build a glorious future for this glorious industry.

-------------------------

The 14th International Conference on Apparel and Home Textiles (ICAHT 2018) was held at the India Habitat Centre, New Delhi, on the 8th of September 2018. This marquee event was jointly organised by Apparel Export Promotion Council and OGTC, with support from Ministry of MSME, Government of India. The event addressed an enthusiastic audience of over 600 participants, representing a wide cross section of stakeholders who make significant contributions to this industry - from manufacturers to vendors; brand owners to exporters; government to academia; and students to seasoned professionals..

#Strategy #Innovation #Ambition