Prada’s Bold Step Towards Sustainability. First Luxury Brand To Sign Sustainability Deal

referring to and dealers. the supply chain's difficulties. It is easy to reduce company’s direct carbon footprint, but it is very difficult to reduce effects by involved suppliers Prada's pioneering decision to sign a $43 million green loan with Crédit Agricole was another industry-wide shake-up that paved the way for other brands. The organisation has to achieve its targets which are based on • the number of shops assigned to LEED Gold or Platinum Certification

• showing environmental efficiency • the number of employee training hours which will help them bring up green initiatives and boost creativity • the use of Prada Re-Nylon If Prada is successful in achieving the above targets the interest rate on the loan will be reduced. This is an interesting opportunity for Prada because they are really confident that they will be able to improve sustainability and they have accepted the risk of paying more if they can't. As part of the Luxury Agreement referred to above the corporation has committed to reach net zero emissions by 2050.

We need to understand that each company is as important as the other, arguing that the implementation of a structure whereby businesses are rated within the framework of their sustainability programs is not the solution. Each brand should be responsible for bringing about effective change in its own right. These small and viable changes made towards sustainability by each and every company will cause a huge impact and this can drastically change way things work moving to a greener future.

Mr. Kushal Saraogi MBA, Batch 2020-2022, IBS Hyderabad, India.

The Millennial generation runs completely on the term ON-DEMAND. From buying food to ordering cabs and even taking up exams, everything has become on-demand! It is just a matter of time that even the manufacturing industries will follow the same principle of ondemand. When it comes to the small-scale industries this concept is a very important and indeed beneficial one to them. However, when it comes to the big companies, they are better off with the current system in place. While we don’t get to hear much about this term in the media, let us understand what it means.

The earlier method of manufacturing relied on products with standard specifications and were mass produced and stored. Since both mass production and storage is expensive, bigger companies have had an upper hand in manufacturing. However, things are about to change with the advent of On-Demand Manufacturing. With technologies like 3D printing, it has become possible to manufacture even small quantities at a much cheaper rate. The era of huge minimum order quantities and lead times seems to have gone by. On-demand manufacturing works when the systems of the vendor and the buyer are vicinal. The system works only if orders can be rapidly placed. Hence, the need for economies of scale as well as standardization has been nullified. It is to be believed that huge factories and warehouses will soon be a thing of the past since ondemand manufacturing has so many advantages. Some of these advantages have been listed below

1. No need for markdowns – The modern apparel industry has a common and most practised way which is markdowns and end of season sales. This happens because large number of mass-produced goods lie unsold till the end of the season. As on-demand manufacturing will replace mass production, there will be no situation of markdown. These markdowns hamper the goodwill of the company. As on-

demand manufacturing becomes more prevalent, the era of the end of season sales might be about to disappear.

2. Level playing field - The on-demand manufacturing system provides a level playing field to small companies as well as the bigger ones. This is because there is no need to mass produce products as the per unit prices do not go down pronouncedly. This allows more competition in the market and no few companies can dominate throughout. Increase in innovation and price feasibility will help customers enjoy a better offer.

3. Market testing – The taste and preferences of customers are shifting at a fast pace. What one likes today may not be his priority the next moment. This is a main headache in the fashion and apparel industry. Where they need to keep the stocks ready on the basis of an ongoing trend and the assumption with which the manufactured goods would be sold by the end of the season, failing which will lie unsold in the godowns. With on-demand manufacturing the lead time for manufacturing will reduce leading to companies deciding whether they want to produce more and if so in how much quantity. Since mass manufacturing is not necessary, products can be repeatedly produced as and when required to meet the needs of the consumers.

4. Environment friendly - Mass producing goods is also damaging to the environment. This is because mass production of goods leads to more and more consumption of resources. Sometimes these goods are not even consumed, leading to a mere waste of the resources. Ondemand manufacturing ensures that natural resources are utilized only when there is a genuine demand from the customers. Hence, ondemand manufacturing is way more environment-friendly than other modes of production.