Fashion Industry Analysis - a Sustainable Business Scenario in 2060 - Case Study Example

Fashion industry analysis - a sustainable business scenario in 2060

Introduction

Fashion industry plays a critical role in bringing a sustainable development. It has a significant influence on the society and the economy of a country in particular through marketing and the regular customer transactions. The industry has employed millions of people who have contributed more on the world exports. In 2007, the futures report of fashioning sustainability said that the fashion industry was locked in the unsustainability. In the recent years, the company has demonstrated change (Blowfield, 2013). The retailers ended the relationships between the suppliers who could exploit the workers and set goals to improve the conditions of the employees. In the everyday business, people always need clothes, and they tend to purchase them every day. Through its marketing which plays a significant role in sustainability in the fashioning sustainability, the economic environmental and the social factors are mostly considered in the industry. The fashion industry is the one which includes retail promotion, Agric business and providing laundry services.

Analysis of this industry includes how clothes are made, how they reach the consumers, where they get the materials to make the clothes and what happens to them at the end of their life. Fashion industry has grown faster and has become more globalised.

Aims and Objectives

The industry aims at putting changes into practice which needs to explore new business models and trying new ideas each and every time to ensure fashion sustainability.

Another objective of this industry is to look for unexpected competition. They should consider applying the key competencies in their markets to avoid competition. It also aims at developing other skills for the new world market which will make them successful in future (Janigo, K.A., 2015).

Sustainability situation analysis 2060

The government will help in the achievement of the vision 2060 by coordinating legislation on trade, poverty, and economics. This will increase clothing and will attract many customers. The marketers will be able to engage themselves into globalization. The cotton growers in the United Kingdom will be subsidized to grow crops that will meet more energy requirements.

Consumer demands may drive the clothing industry in the achievement of sustainable development. The demands help the industry produce more clothes giving first priority to the consumers shopping lists. When the demand is high for the clothes, the supply is also high which leads to elevated levels of income which increases fashion sustainability. One of the barriers is that the fashion industry may be affected negatively if the degree of consumption goes down. If the demand for clothes reduces, the supply of the same product will decline to lead to unsustainability in the fashion industry (Peng, M., 2015).

In the year 2060, economies will be larger in the United Kingdom since the less middle-class consumers will be more influenced to get involved in the fashion industry. During that year, there will be increased demand for western style clothing in the fewer developing countries which make the industry gain sustainability. One limitation that the sector may face is that if the culture in the other countries may hinder them from dressing in the westerly styles, the industry may face challenges in producing many clothes.

Technological advancement in 2060 will help the industry to have less labor and move to automation. The online tracking systems will be there to increase the tracking systems in the supply chains. Many researchers have argued that there will be a vast improvement in the efficiency of energy in the supply chains.

Business scenario 2060

PESTLE analysis introduces six macro-level factors which affect the decision making of business. Many political factors can influence the fashion industry in future. One of the factors is the rise of taxes induced by the government. This affects both the company and the level of purchasing by the consumers. The government of the United Kingdom has lowered the taxation to stimulate the economic activities in the country (Hitchcock and Willard, 2008). The future may be affected because there is no guarantee that the tax will remain the same, or it will change according to change in the government. The United Kingdom has a system which is based on parliamentary democracy (McRobbie, 2003). This may help the company to have a safe market which will encourage many investments in the fashion industry.

Economic

The current state of economic development may bring a significant impact to the fashion industry. Many countries over the years have had an increase in the disposable income which implies that there is more money to purchase clothes from the fashion industries. In the year 2060, the level of purchasing may reduce due to high level of unemployment among the consumers. The company may face a lot of challenges since the average money spends by the retailers to every customer may rise due to decreased number of clients.

Social-cultural

There are many changes which may impact the fashion retailers socially in the year 2060.The ageing population may affect the markets of the fashion industry. The ageing populations are less mobile than the younger population. In the year 2060, online services and door to door services may be put to solve the problem. The United Kingdom has diverse races and ethnicities which contribute to the drop of the economic development. In future, the fashion industry may face an increase in labor and high levels of consumption than the past years because of increased diversity.

Technological

Technological developments have transformed the business environment of the United Kingdom. The internet has made the work of the retailers easier as they have been able to interact with the customers using networking. The smart phones have allowed the customers to be able to access the products online and know what will be suitable for them. In 2060, the technology will be more advanced in that the men labor will be decreased due to the invention of machines which will make the work easier. The fashion industry may become a significant investment to many countries because of the advanced technologies.

Environmental

The environment is a key factor to the operating firms which has a substantial impact on the businesses. The natural disasters such as floods, earthquakes and have affected the retail sector leading to poor sales of the industry. The fashion industry on environment and development published its report in 2015, and presented a new concept; that is sustainable development. The sustainable development concept has become most successful approaches to be introduced in many years to come. During the year 2060, high environmental credentials such as efficient transport and implementation of ethical policies will be put in place in the retail sector to ensure easy access to the consumers (Hitchcock and Willard, 2008). It has defined sustainable development as development aimed at meeting the needs of current generations. It is done without compromising the ability of future generations that meets their needs. The concept underlines high economic and social development.

Legal

The fashion industry must comply with the legal issues such as the minimum wage legislation. According to the U.K government, the employees are supposed to be paid a minimum wage of 6-19 pounds per hour. Another legislative issue is that the fashion industry should ensure equality in both recruitment and the workplace.

SWOT ANALYSIS

Swot analysis is reviewing strengths, weaknesses and threats of an organization that provides invaluable information to the understanding of the industry.

Strengths

The creativity of United Kingdom design created a one of the core strengths in the fashion industry. They have a unique name for helping them set it apart from the most competitive leaders in the world fashion. Urban culture and the music were more considered in designing the brand image. The Oxford Street offered the customers a good experience because it had a variety of clothing and different types of fashion. The United Kingdom had a high education system which helped the company to produce products of high quality (McRobbie, 2003). Design education was provided to the employees on whom it was based on clothing, footwear, and textiles. The industry had specialized in the manufacturing sector which made it competitive.

Weaknesses

The lack of linkages between the scientific disciplines and the designers was weakening the industry in its ability to innovate there was a small number of graduates who graduated in the field of design which was a tremendous failure to fashion and design industries in the United Kingdom. Lack of skilled labor in the market brings weakness in the industries since there are few graduates, and the industries are many.

Opportunities

There is fast growth in the emerging markets such as India, China, and Brazil, which has raised the demand for designers and retailers. This means that the sales will be many. With the internet, there is a growing importance of sales which has led to increasing in the sales industries. The online sales have resulted in fast growth at the rapid rate over the next 45 years. The depreciation of the country’s currency boosted retailers during 2009 which enjoyed strong growth in other nations like London (McRobbie, 2003).

Threats

Prolonged economic weakness brings forth an economic stagnation which has been there for an extended period. A high rate of unemployment has made the economy depreciate. The threat of global warming was a significant threat which is a future risk. It is likely to make the retailers have low cost of production. Rise of alternative fashion weeks has increased expenditure. Public funding pressures have given future implications for the labor market. The risk of being financed by the public makes the company have many debts which may lower the productions of the enterprise.

Connect the scenario in 2060 to today

Sustainability concept has been measured through the political and the environmental factors. Economic sustainability happens when activities in the fashion industries are financially beneficial to the customers. Social sustainability is based on the social consequences of the action at all levels that are the providers, local communities, and the employees. The society has grown widely in the fast fashion sector (McRobbie, 2003). The retailers at the high streets focus in selling the garments at a lower price. It is because they are produced in the countries in which the employees are given low salaries. The low-quality products are garments that will prove a handful of occasions since the consumer accepted the fashion clothes as disposable items. Weak sustainability is defined as the viability of the economic system. There is no incompatibility in relating the natural capital with the economic growth.

The fashion industry on environment and development published its report in 2015, and presented a new concept; that is sustainable development. The sustainable development concept has become most successful approaches to be introduced in many years to come. It is an idea that will last up to 2060. The concept will help fashion industry to shape the international community agenda and attitude towards social, economic and environmental development. The fashion industry has defined sustainable development as development aimed at meeting the needs of current generations. It is done without compromising the ability of future generations that meets their needs. The concept underlines high economic and social development. It is in particular to those people who live under low standards. It also stresses the importance of protecting the natural environment and resource base. The social and economic well being cannot be improved with measures that destroy the environment. For all the development to take into account intergenerational solidarity is crucial to its impact on the opportunities for future generations. The striking characteristic of the sustainable development term is that it can mean all things to all people. Many have accused the government and business of fashion environmentalism in the environmental community. Some people feel that the sustainable development term is used as an alibi rather than as strong action guidance. There are critical voices that demand more emphasis on the economic and social pillars of the sustainable concept. More recently many have argued that the sustainable development political sustainability depends on its capacity to respond to country's persistent social problems. The economic pillars in the United Kingdom have to be integrated into the concept as a whole. It means should not be an independent part of it. It is therefore noted that the term does not give any guidance on how to arbitrate between the conflicting objectives which are unavoidable of economic rationality/profitability, ecological equilibrium, and social justice.

The social pillars in particular pose it owns complex measurement problems. Most social phenomena sometimes are difficult, often impossible to quantify.

The concept is seen as inclusive and operational enough to make actions which are meaningful to sustainable development showed that the enthusiasm of the fashion industry in the UK. The focus has clearly changed from all encompassing attempts to cover numbers simultaneously to a more practical approach with the limited number of substantive areas at a time emphasis. The United Kingdom also boldly highlighted the implementation of commitments instead of spending time on drafting new declarations. The fashions industry is given a stronger recognition than before. By 2060, it is felt that the better implementation demanded devolution of the global process. The identification of the main problems areas has emerged to particular and the conclusions more oriented action.

The decision is developed to choose three different items each year cycle of the fashion industry on sustainable development that will help significantly to focus the work.

The experience of more than a decade of sustainable development work produced both challenges and successes. One of the successes which are evident is the widespread local activity. There are thousands of municipalities in the world that are in support and promotion of sustainable development with the improved subsequent performance and increased awareness.

All in all many problems persist. Some may raise some concerns in the industry like lack of understanding of the concept in the administrations, limited resources at different levels for proper action, insufficient political support, inadequate involvement of civil society, and various problems in particular sectors and inertia in education systems of the economy. \

There is future belief that there will be a win-win solution. Active social policies on housing promote social equity and inclusion, increase mobility and boost economic growth and labor productivity. More sustainable transport in the fashion industry leads to less pollution and fewer health problems and fewer environmental problems, less congestion and fewer accidents in the industry. Education is important in achieving the 2060 sustainable development of the fashion industry in the United Kingdom (McRobbie, 2003).

Conclusion

Sustainable development is a process and not an end in itself. It implies that participation and genuine dialogue among different stakeholders are critical in sustainable development as a prerequisite. Sustainable development for the fashion industry in the United Kingdom needs democratic thinking which can strengthen democratic institutions through consensus-based participation. The concept is seen as inclusive and operational enough to make actions which are meaningful to sustainable development showed that the enthusiasm of the fashion industry in the UK (McRobbie, 2003). The focus has clearly changed from all encompassing attempts to cover numbers simultaneously to a more practical approach with the limited number of substantive areas at a time emphasis.