‘Made in Britain’ trend boosts British supply chains

  • Written by Peter Needle
  • Published on 14 June 2016
  • News Blogs

Over the past few years retailers have seen increasing demand for Made in Britain lines and are starting to reshore their supply chains to help meet the demand.

The ‘Made in Britain’ label has long been associated with great quality and design. Over the past few years demand from retailers to revive the nation's textile and garment industry has been steadily growing. Suppliers are starting to listen and have begun reshoring some of their facilities to satisfy the demand for locally made goods. 

Amongst the many companies to see the potential benefits of reshoring are British chocolatier Hotel Chocolat, who chose to reshore its production from mainland Europe to help protect its brand. Fashion giant Burberry also released a statement in February stating that it planned to invest over £50 million to expand its production in Leeds, whilst luxury goods maker Mulberry announced plans to make 50 per cent of its handbags in the UK by 2019. 

The benefits of a UK based supply chain

Offshoring production to countries in the Far East is becoming less attractive to UK companies as wages, shipping costs and oil prices steadily increase. Low labour costs were a significant reason why many companies decided to base their suppliers in these countries, but these increases, along with far longer lead times on products, are starting to cancel out the savings made from cheap labour. The higher costs in UK wages are readily compensated by speed and efficiency, making for a more agile and less risky supply chain.

 Basing an entire supply network within the UK means potential issues are much closer to home, making it easier to pick up on possible problems early and allowing businesses to take swift action to remedy them. As well as shorter lead times, retailers are freed from having to order such large volumes. Shorter production runs mean businesses can rapidly respond to trends; offering exclusives and getting products into stores and to their customers quickly ­ a distinct advantage in today's marketplace. With suppliers on their doorstep, auditing and quality control also become easier to manage and allow for regular check-ins to monitor and maintain standards.

The importance of supply chain mapping

A UK based supply network does not come without risks, though, and supply chain mapping is still vital to ensure high standards are met and that factories are complying with modern slavery and ethical production laws.

This year alone there have been major arrests in both Manchester, where 7 potential victims of forced labour were rescued, and Dewsbury, where up to 45 men were forced into building beds for some of the UK’s biggest high street stores ­ all for £10 per week. It’s, therefore, incredibly important that businesses run thorough audits on all suppliers and keep track of production throughout their network to avoid putting their brand reputation at risk by association.

Segura gives businesses complete visibility of their downstream supply chain, making it easy to spot and remove poor quality suppliers from the network. This allows retailers to make sure that not only are their vendors complying with MSA legislation, but also that they are capable of handling the volumes required and producing products to the high quality expected. Factory audits and compliance certificates are made visible and new audits can be booked with a single click through Segura’s audit partners. Ecovadis CSR scorecards can also be mapped against each supplier, giving extra assurance of ethical behaviour.

Retailers are also able to trace the entire production journey of their products, providing complete oversight of their network. Knowing exactly what is ordered from each supplier and when it has been fulfilled avoids the risk of poor quality components being used and can help to tackle delays as soon as they occur and deal with any potential recalls quickly and efficiently.

By mapping their supply chain with Segura companies also benefit from being able to monitor the stability of their suppliers through in built financial feeds, giving advanced warning of problems and allowing them to gain the upper hand in dealing with issues as they arise. 

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