Going “GLOCAL”  The case of the 10,000-pound cotton “dirt-to-shirt” project

This is an excerpt of the original article. It was written for the November 2023 edition of Supply Chain Management Review. The full article is available to current subscribers.

November 2023

Last month, I had the pleasure of attending the NextGen Supply Chain Awards in Chicago. It was my first time attending the conference, which was in its fifth year, and I came away impressed with both the content and the quality of professionals I met in Chicago. This year’s conference—Strategies for a Digital Future—featured nearly 50 speakers and included CEOs and senior vice presidents, founders and innovators, leading academics and researchers, and top consultants. Over two days of the event at the Chicago Athletic Association, we learned more about artificial intelligence and predictive analytics, robotics and machine learning, fulfillment…

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“Glocal,” a portmanteau term built on globalization and localization, emphasizes that the two concepts exist not in polar opposition but in mutual interdependence in a globalized world. Typified by the slogan “Think globally, act locally,” people understand the significance of globalization when it affects their local environment. This leads to the perception that global phenomena are local (e.g., through media representations of far-off places) and local phenomena are global (the imported food in our supermarkets). This article presents a live case study of a small apparel business in the southeastern United States, adapting products available worldwide to suit local needs, with sustainability at its core.

The findings from the research show that minimizing physical transportation distances, increasing transparency across the links in the supply chain, and building personal and professional relationships through trust are cornerstones of the 3Ts sustainability journey. Implications (lessons learned) to the supply chain field are offered.

Building the theme of glocalization: Combining global and local themes

TS Designs (tsdesigns.com) is a custom apparel manufacturer and printer focused on creating domestic and sustainably made shirts for environmentally and socially conscious organizations and other customers. Based in North Carolina, this forward-thinking company has embraced localizing production sites while mirroring the global trend toward seeking the best product prices and quality. Their approach involves outsourcing various aspects of production to multiple companies within North and South Carolina. This strategy not only taps into the rich regional expertise, but also aligns with the growing desire among U.S. consumers to support and wear products made by local companies. By doing so, TS Designs has a unique opportunity to foster strong client retention and association, driven by the pride of supporting local businesses. This approach is a testament to their commitment to quality and community engagement. The steps in the TS Designs T-shirt supply chain are shown in Figure 1.

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