Sourcing Journal Radio is thought leadership brought to life. Each podcast episode provides apparel industry executives with a platform from which to showcase their personalities and share their perspectives on a range of engaging topics, enabling listeners to consider new points of view and plot their next steps.
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October 8, 202637 min
How Value Will Drive Holiday Shopping Behavior This Year
Chris Riedy, chief revenue officer at Ibotta, speaks with Ian Fredericks, CEO of Hilco Global Capital Solutions and executive director of Hilco’s consumer and retail platform, about how retailers and brands can create value, what promotional tactics work well for discretionary and premium categories and how Ibotta is partnering with retailers like Walmart and last-mile delivery firms like Doordash. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
September 25, 202618 min
The Data Advantage: Building the Foundation for Smarter Fashion Decisions
For fashion sourcing operations today, data management is often the difference between profitability and margin erosion. Without the right intel on demand and stock levels, inventory can be misaligned in either direction—leading to stockouts or discounting. As companies try to manage complex, speedier supply chains, centralized data is key. “Data becomes a big issue, and often because we're maintaining things outside of a system, or we're not all working off the same single source of truth, we've got different answers to the issues that the company is facing,” said Ken Weygand, solutions architect at software firm Aptean. As companies increasingly adopt artificial intelligence tools, having data handling in order becomes all the more critical. “AI can help identify patterns and recommend actions, but the only way that works is if your underlying data is good and trustworthy,” said Mike Lisson, North America apparel sales director at Aptean. This fireside chat features Lisson and Weygand in conversation with Sarah Jones, senior editor, strategic content at Sourcing Journal. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
September 22, 202617 min
Sugarcane Stretch: How Hyosung is Scaling Bio-based Spandex
With the help of brands and mills, Hyosung TNC is bringing bio-based spandex into the fashion industry in a bigger way. The South Korea-based synthetic fiber manufacturer’s parent company has invested $1 billion to set up a plant to produce bio-BDO, an input for spandex. Whereas BDO (aka 1,4-Butanediol) is typically made from fossil fuels, Hyosung is creating the compound out of sugarcane. Commercial-scale production of bio-based spandex using this sugarcane BDO began in August, allowing a growing number of partners to develop products using the lower impact stretch fiber. “We have a quite a robust matrix of mills, spinners and suppliers across the value chain that have been some of those early adopters and willing to really test the boundaries and the grounds of what bio-based spandex can do,” said Malvina Hoxha, director of U.S. marketing at Hyosung TNC. This fireside chat features Hoxha in conversation with Jasmin Malik Chua, climate and labor editor at Sourcing Journal. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Following multiple years of supply chain volatility, the leading logistics priority for fashion firms is resilience. Creating agile, adaptable supply chains starts with visibility on two fronts. Firstly, knowing where merchandise is positioned so it can be routed properly. Companies should also keep on the pulse of current events to anticipate disruptions. “You cannot build a resilient supply chain without knowing the details of it, without having the full end-to-end visibility,” said Lene Dalsgaard, chief commercial officer of air & sea at DSV. Helping companies adapt when needed, DSV has a global presence across multiple modes, including road, sea, rail and air. By leveraging its scale as well as services like automation and warehousing, brands can access these capabilities without having to build them out themselves. “We realize that fashion is a cost-competitive industry, so you have to keep an eye on the ball in terms of cost,” said Ronald Poort, executive vice president of the consumer vertical at DSV. This fireside chat features Dalsgaard and Poort in conversation with Sourcing Journal’s logistics editor Glenn Taylor. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
September 2, 202619 min
True Religion's Renaissance: Inside the Brand's Repositioning and Retail Strategy
True Religion’s chief executive officer Michael Buckley speaks with Ian Fredericks, chief executive officer of Hilco Global Capital Solutions and executive director of Hilco’s consumer and retail platform, about True Religion’s marketing approach, what factors have allowed the brand to successfully navigate supply chain challenges and Gen Z’s role in the brick-and-mortar revival. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
July 15, 202627 min
How Roller Rabbit Forges Connections with Its Multigenerational Customer Base
Roller Rabbit's chief executive officer Ed Bertouch and chief marketing officer Carolyn Phillips speak with Ian Fredericks, chief executive officer of Hilco Global Capital Solutions and executive director of Hilco’s consumer and retail platform about the brand's collaboration strategy, how it is engaging Gen Z and the company’s DTC pivot. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
February 4, 202639 min
Marine Layer’s Cofounders on Brick-and-Mortar Investments, Why Materials Matter and Running a B Corp Business
More than 15 years ago, two childhood friends decided to make the switch from finance to fashion, and Marine Layer was born. What began as a small operation with a single 450-square-foot storefront today counts 55 locations, with more retail openings in the works. On this episode of WWD Voices for Retail Rx, Michael Natenshon, cofounder and chief executive officer of Marine Layer, Adam Lynch, cofounder and chief operating officer of Marine Layer, chat with Ian Fredericks, chief executive officer of Hilco Global Capital Solutions and executive director of Hilco’s consumer and retail platform, about their company’s early stages, how they are approaching product development and what is next for the brand. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
January 7, 202619 min
Disposable to Durable: Altering Apparel's Fast-Fashion Mindset
Over the last few decades, the industry has been reliant on ever-expanding production volumes to achieve continued sales growth. Although a few super-fast-fashion giants are often criticized for their overproduction contributions and low prices, the general mass manufacturing trend across the fashion landscape has collectively led to excess. For 8 billion people, the industry is creating upwards of 80 billion pieces per year.Suzanne Ellingham, director of trade show Source Fashion, made the case for tamping down on overproduction and adopting a “post-growth” strategy. This leaves margins and profit intact by right-sizing inventory, reducing discounting and waste.“What we should be looking at doing is producing how much we can actually sell,” Ellingham said. “[There’s] this constant need to be producing more and more and more. The reality is volume doesn't do anyone any favors, apart from continuing to drive the profits at the cost of people and planet.”Listen to the fireside chat, with Ellingham in conversation with Jasmin Malik Chua, climate and labor editor at Sourcing Journal, to learn more about why the current production and pricing models are so harmful to people and the planet and what post-growth actually means for operations and profitability. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
December 2, 202530 min
NRF on Shopping Shifts and That $1 Trillion Holiday Forecast
With news headlines shouting doom and gloom in every direction, is the National Retail Federation’s record-breaking $1 trillion holiday forecast wishful thinking? Or something more nuanced? “The consumer is sentimentally weak, but fundamentally sound,” explained Mark Mathews, chief economist and executive director of research for the NRF in a special podcast episode for Retail Rx with Ian Fredericks, chief executive officer of Hilco Global Capital Solutions and executive director of Hilco’s Consumer and Retail platform. That’s important because the consumer is powering our economy more than ever before. Today, 68 percent of GDP is driven by consumer spending—the largest percentage in the past 15 years. “While lower-income households are definitely struggling, what we have seen over the course of the year is that all households have protected their spending on loved ones,” said Mathews. “Mother's Day, Father's Day, Valentine's Day, Back to School, Halloween… we've had at or near record levels of spend across all of those events.” Essentially, it’s the nature of spending that has changed, and to safeguard that spending, many have pulled back in other areas like recreation or travel. Consumers have also shifted to more promotional spending that squeeze margins. “The retailer is constrained because prices are rising, so while retailers will offer sales that are important to consumers, we may not see the breadth of sales that we’ve seen before,” Mathews said. The NRF has been analyzing data and advising retailers for over a century. The November/December season represents roughly 20 percent of the year’s retail sales for many retailers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
November 25, 202512 min
Moving Wood-Based Fibers Forward with Sustainability and Transparency
As the fashion and textile industry increasingly seeks out greener fiber options, India’s Birla Cellulose is rising to meet the demands of a more exacting market.The manufacturer, which specializes in the production of man-made cellulosic fibers (MMCF) such as viscose and modal, is expanding the production capacity for its Birla Excel lyocell, investing in the closed-loop fiber that is even more eco-friendly than its MMCF peers.Listen to the fireside chat between Vadiraj Kulkarni, business head of Birla Cellulose, and Sarah Jones, senior editor, strategic content at Sourcing Journal, to learn more about what sets lyocell apart in the fiber field and the business impact of responsibly sourcing inputs. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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