Category: Industry

Environmental, social and ethical pressures on the global textiles and fashion sector emerged in Europe in the early 1980s. The main driver was consumer concern over the safety of the materials. However in parallel with this trend, a minority group of ethical consumers demanded chemical-free and low environmental impact clothing and fashion goods. This resulted in the European and later the US organic labeling system being extended to include criteria for clothing and textiles, such as organic cotton. As of 2007, the sector was the fastest growing part of the global cotton industry with growth of more than 50% a year. With reference to safety standards, primarily addressing consumer concern over chemicals in textiles, the Oeko-Tex standard has become highly popular in the industry. Although unknown to consumers, It tests for chemicals such as flame retardants in clothes and categorizes goods according to their likely exposure to humans (e.g. baby clothes must adhere to the strictest standards for chemicals). Thus the issue of chemicals in clothing has become largely one of liability risk control for the industry with the consumers obviously expecting products to pose no risk to their health. Organic and eco fashion and textiles attracts a far smaller, but fast growing group of consumers, largely in Western Europe and Coastal US.

Of far greater concern to the global fashion sector is the issue of worker welfare. The issue was highlighted by pressure groups such as Global Exchange in the US targeting Levis and Nike and others.
In the late 1980s and early 1990s anecdotal evidence began emerging from labor activists in the US and Europe concerning the supply chains and overseas factories of leading US and European multinationals. A key target was the world’s leading maker of denim jeans Levi Strauss, but more significantly Nike, the world’s largest sports shoe marketing firm. Global Exchange launched its Nike Anti Sweatshop campaign, focusing on the firms sourcing in China and Indonesia.

Issues included child labor, minimum wages, working hours and employee benefits. Activists argued that such issues should not differ too widely from standards mandatory in the West, while Nike argued at the time that differing national economic and social conditions dictated different standards globally. A good deal of negotiations and stakeholder meetings led to a generally accepted code of practice for labor management in developing countries acceptable to most parties involved. The SA 8000 emerged as the leading industry driven voluntary standard on worker welfare issues. SA 8000 supporters now include the GAP, TNT and others and SAI reports that as of 2008, almost 1 million workers in 1700 facilities have achieved SA 8000 certification. Such a certification requires investment in the process but also more significantly in changing labor practices such as wage structures. It is clearly being driven by large US and European multinationals that may require certain suppliers to gain certification.

The Fair Trade movement has also had a significant impact on the fashion business. The standard combines a number of ethical issues of potential concern to consumers environmental factors, fair treatment of developing country suppliers and worker welfare. The Fair Trade label has show explosive growth.

Albeit on a very small scale and not always at the top end of the fashion industry, many niche brands have emerged which promote themselves primarily on sustainability grounds People Tree in the UK states that it creates Fair Trade and organic clothing and accessories by forming lasting partnerships with Fair Trade, organic producers in developing countries. Leading fashion journal Marie Claire ranked its top 10 eco brands in a recent issue. The key issues remain chemicals in clothing (certified by organic and Fair Trade labels), worker treatment (certified by SA 8000 and Fair Trade) and increasingly mainstream environmental issues such as climate change. The Carbon Reduction Label verifies a products cradle-to-grave carbon footprint, although is not specific to clothing. Mainstream brands such as Louis Vuitton, Gucci, H&M and Zara have been slower to make firm commitments on the full rage of ethical issues due to the difficulties of switching their supply chains and products lines completely in favor of organic or Fair Trade certified or other standards and norms. They are however, moving slowing to ensure they capture the market if it becomes significant the worlds largest fashion brand Louis Vuitton recently acquired a small eco fashion label. It is clear, however from the example of Nike and Levis, however that certain issues are here to stay, such as a demand by Western consumers that leading brands manage the issue of worker welfare in their supply chain properly.

Theres just one thing online interior designer entrepreneurs like me love more than cupcakes and thats being at the vanguard of the evolution of an entire industry.

Every industry has had its challenges when it comes to evolving to better serve its customers online. Many industries struggle with piracy, others with delivery and logistics. My industry, residential interior design, has struggled to evolve its cost-to-serve model toward something that is attractive to more than just the wealthiest one percent of Americans.

When I launched online interior design website HMDhome.com six years ago the first sightings of my online interior designer competition could be found buried on page eight of a Google search in the form of a website selling “design in a box”. “Design in a box” consisted of the client completing a rudimentary online form (inclusive of room dimensions and style questions) and paying $800 via PayPal to an interior designer hundreds of miles away whom theyd never get to speak to, let alone develop a relationship with. Six to eight weeks later a large hat box was to be delivered full of a very carefully curated selection fabric samples, paint chips, furniture plan drawing and a shopping list of furniture, lighting and decorative accessories.

Admirable in its presentation quality the design in a box as a product was extremely beautifully prepared however as a business model it was doomed to fail for three reasons. It was an impersonal transaction in an industry that requires consultative collaboration. It was technically an improperly curated catalog because it represented what the designer had to offer, not what the client ultimately purchased for their interior design project. Finally, for the typical homeowner it was expensive. At this price point the interior designer wasnt expanding the overall interior design client base to a broader market and I suspect they failed to convert a meaningful number of home owners to online interior design in the process.

Today, home owners planning a home renovation or remodeling project can get tremendous value from online interior design services at a fraction of the cost of the original design in a box. Virtual services include ongoing consultation with a designer, specifications for colors, furniture, fixtures and finishes and access to exclusive designer discounts from popular retailers and trade sources.

Let me bore you for just a moment with some important statistics about the highly fragmented residential interior design industry relevant to its potential future online evolution.

A May 2011 report by the Bureau of Labor and Statistics indicated there are 40,950 interior designers in the US inclusive of all disciplines (residential, hospitality, corporate, restaurant and specialty). A minority of these professionals are expected to be localized residential interior designers serving fewer than 1% of US households with a traditional cost to serve model made up of hourly design fees and/or extra-retail product mark-ups.

The most significant barrier between interior designers and millions of potential new customers is the structure of the current interior design cost-to-serve model which is prohibitive for all but the wealthiest Americans.

According to a 2010 household income report from the US Census Bureau 8.4% of households earn in excess of $150K per year. While 90.2% of these were owner occupied as of two years ago, its estimated that 7.8 million households representing a potential prime demographic for online interior designers have never before consulted with an interior designer.

With a lean six sigma black belt on staff at
Homemade Design Corporation (HMD) you can bet we collect and analyze key client data related to our online interior design firm. For example, 89.6% of approximately 954 current HMD clients report having never hired a designer before working with Homemade Design. Among the primary reasons given for not previously having hired an interior designer is the perception that hiring an interior designer will increase overall project costs.

Yes, wealthy homeowners in the Hamptons may enjoy bragging about how much theyve spent as they sip champagne at the polo match. However, for the online interior design industry to evolve toward delighting a greater number of interior design clients we must enable them to brag about how much they have saved.

Marketing through the internet is extremely effective in reach to a large group of audience from different corners of the world. However, this approach is highly competitive as a result of which millions of users are opting for the online marketing approach. This has led to infinite numbers of websites highlighting same topic or depicting similar themes. It makes getting lost in the vast crowd of websites becomes easier. But with the presence of seo manchester service providers, scenarios look a lot better. A website’s performance depends largely on the SEO methods applied on it before getting listed on the search directories. SEO, or search engine optimization, is the approach to build a website’s reputation in the most positive way while being placed on the search engines.

The SEO process comprises of different techniques, like article submission, linking to top rated sites, socializing the site, checking on the correct set of keyword usage, and most importantly, taking necessary initiative to find out about originality of the content. SEO professionals need to be dedicated and hard-working. It is said that professionals of SEO in Manchester have a fixed time to enter the office but no fixed time to go out. The work pressure is immense. However, only those who love to accept these work pressures can able to achieve the highest level of success in this industry.

seo companies in Manchester always offer the maximum benefits in terms of website optimization process. Clients from all over the UK and other parts of Europe rely heavily on the SEO service providers of Manchester. They have a fast and expert approach to rely upon. The companies feature teams comprising of young talents with experienced professionals to take the search engine optimization procedures to an altogether different height. The whole approach ensures that client websites are met with the very best of outcomes in terms of traffic accessibility and search engine ranking.

The paper industry is one of the leading and prominent industries in India. The industry is among the highest contributor of revenue to the country. It also provides employment to more than 1.5 million people and is considered to be a developing industry. Paper products have been in constant demand during the past several decades which has led to the further growth of the industry in many ways.

Various types of paper products are used in many ways including bags, cups, plates, books, envelopes and so forth. The availability of raw materials is one of the most important factors that concern the paper industry. With the growing destruction of forests, authentic raw materials are becoming scarce which has led to the increased import of raw materials from neighbouring countries.

The Growth of Paper Industry in India

Due to the wide spread demand for paper products, non conventional methods are utilised for producing different types of raw materials required for the production of paper. The paper industry is now further identified as three types mainly the agro based, forest based and other varieties such as waste materials, market pulp and fibre.

Today the paper industry has around 515 units which manufacture various types of paper products. The Indian industry is the fifteenth largest industry in the world. The high costs of production, concentration of industries in one place are the various bottlenecks of this industry.

The paper industry has also witnessed a considerable demand for products with the shift in consumer behavioural patterns. The use of plastics has declined considerably due to many health and environmental issues. This has in turn increased the consumption of different types of paper products such as stationery items, photo frames, kites, magazines, bank notes, catalogs, playing cards, tissue paper, albums and directories.

Different types of products can also be made with the use of recycled raw materials. Today the process of using recycled raw materials for the manufacture of various paper products are encouraged to reduce the ill-effects of deforestation. Waste materials such as rags, jute, cotton and straw is used for manufacturing various types of products.

The paper industry also utilises hand made paper which is quite popular in the country. Known to provide employment to more than thousands in the rural areas, the industry is a major source of employment. The hand made paper is durable and lasts longer. It can be used to manufacture various types of handmade materials.

Today the government has introduced several policies to support the paper industry. Better manufacturing technologies, reduction in the import duties and production cost, availability of better raw materials are some of the measures taken by the government to improve the production of paper products.

In spite of facing several challenges, the industry has attained considerable growth in different parts of the country. Paper importers have known to import raw materials only for specific types of paper. Today there are a number of industries that manufacture paper and are known to be the leading industries of the country.

Lets face it shall we, finding a music industry professional is as simple as taking a trip to Los Angeles, New York City or Nashville and heading to the lairs where they work and hang out. That can however be rather cost prohibitive unless you happen to be geographically located close to a city that has the resources you need.

Luckily the World Wide Web has made it a snap to visit the far corners of the globe and choose from a pool of talented folks that you could not even dream about otherwise. It is simply a matter these days of figuring out the need that you have and going on line and finding someone with the skill to fulfill that need.

You can find anything from a musician to a producer to a mastering facility and never leave your bedroom. In fact, you can do it without even getting dressed. How is that for convenient? You can have the proverbial brainstorm at 2 in the morning and get on the Internet and find the solution as quickly as a few moments later.

Places like myMusicCircle have made this portion of trying to locate a music industry professional as easy as getting a dish of ice cream from the freezer. If you are on a search engine such as Google, for example, and type in a music-related key word. You never know what or whom you are going to pull up. It could be a legitimate music pro. It could be stripper. It might even be someone from a foreign country just there to rip you off.

There is a fairly good chance that if you are on a site that caters to the music industry professional, that you are not going to find anything there other than what you are after. The people that frequent and use the site and the site administrators would put an end to that quickly.

So the next time you are in need of a music industry professional for one reason or another, point your browser to a site that actually caters to the exact need that you have and quit wasting time looking over the millions of non-related hits at some other locations.

Your time is valuable and you have none of it to waste sifting through the plethora of miscellaneous non-entities out there that wouldnt know a music industry professional if he slapped them across the face.