Of these key business shifts, three have been growing well before the pandemic, although the pandemic accelerated them. The other three are a direct result of the pandemic.We see these as changes for the better. GOODBYE BUSINESS TRAVELIf there was one benefit that COVID brought to brands and retailers it was paving the way for the radical trimming to travel budgets. Pre-pandemic no one was willing to implement screen sharing technology in lieu of face-to-face meetings. A year into relying on Zoom, Skype, and others and that’s become ‘the way we work’. Amazing what people can adapt to when necessary.While some travel will be needed, a lot of companies are realizing that it’s cheaper (often a lot cheaper) to simply hire people in other countries to do the work there or to work with 3rd party service providers.The burden of travel will fall on suppliers. Buyers will still want to see materials first hand, but that is less likely to result in a trip to Asia or Europe, like in the good old days. More likely, suppliers will bring samples to them or they will visit local showrooms or trade fairs.One way or another, companies are not going to willingly add those massive travel budgets back onto their books. As a bonus, businesses will win sustainability points for reducing all of those travel-related carbon emissions.So there are multiple benefits here.Why It’s a Win: reduce massive travel expenses and gain huge strides in reducing carbon footprint.EMBRACING 3P SERVICESIf your goal is greater agility then 3rd party (3P) service providers are an option worth considering. A growing number of companies are. While 3P is hardly a new concept, what is new is the growing number of firms that are leveraging their infrastructure and expertise in a specific aspect of the supply chain and letting others ‘lease’ those services.For example, a sourcing office might handle the work for its parent company’s brands, but then also take on outside clients as well.Need quality assurance in Bangladesh? A company with a big office there might be willing to handle your work for a fee. They’ll be able to offset some of the costs of running that office. You’ll be able to get the quality assurance work you need, by people who specifically understand your products, without having the overhead of maintaining your own office.While this has long been a practice in the shipping industry and in IT, apparel is just starting to embrace this model.We see a growing and beneficial partnership between buyers and suppliers. From vendor managed (VM) ordering to moving most non-core parts of their business to carefully vetted 3P providers, collaboration is going to be a big concept going forward.Why It’s a Win: Just like decades ago when brands shed their manufacturing operations and started working with factories they didn’t own. This allowed them to focus on developing their brands, grow retail and fine tune supply chain management. Now supply chain management needs to rid itself of some of the tasks that are bogging it down - and collaborations or 3P will be a key way to do that.SHARED FACILITIESSharing is becoming a new model that extends beyond co-working spaces. Even before the pandemic there were some factories that were pioneering the concept of leasing out lines in their factories.We’re not talking about subcontracting. What we’ve seen growing is factory owners taking idle lines and allowing other manufacturers to bring in their own workers - or at least their own supervisors - and utilize those facilities.The concept offers greater flexibility and allows manufacturers to form networks where they can better adapt to peaks and troughs in demand. With the outlook for demand hard to predict, especially on a country-by-country basis, finding ways to make capital investments more adaptable will play a key role in the success of manufacturers.Why It’s a Win: The move towards smaller orders and more agile production is putting Asia’s massive factories at an increasing disadvantage. Built for volume in an age when there is less volume means capital assets that are underperforming. Previously the solution (if you can call it that) was to chase orders. But that meant razor thin margins and sometimes engaging with high risk customers. For manufacturers, exploring ways to pool resources will allow better (and possibly more profitable) utilization of assets. WORK-FROM-HOME HYBRIDWill we be working from home forever? Some see this as the ‘new normal’. Others say ‘it’s just temporary.’We expect to see some sort of a hybrid evolve. Many employees crave the social aspects of working in an office. Others, particularly those with long commutes, are happy to save the time, money and stress of a round trip to the office each day.For companies, its productivity versus rent. Most agree that the benefits of having the team together under one roof is optimal for creativity and team spirit. Home has more distractions and far less supervision. For many employees this has translated into less productivity. For senior execs it often means longer hours since you never actually ‘leave the office’.Why It’s a Win: Employees will have an opportunity to rid themselves of tedious commutes. Employers will be able to downsize costly office space.TRADE FAIRS WILL REBOUNDWhile a growing number of people have adapted to working with colleagues via Zoom, digital platforms have not proved to be successful for sourcing materials. In fact, just about everyone we’ve spoken with has given them a big “fail”. To properly appreciate a finished product or a raw material, you need to see it, touch it and experience it. For suppliers, online meant that they couldn’t collect those all-important business cards from booth visitors.So yes, live exhibitions will come back, but not the crushing, multi hall events that aggregated a vast range of products under one roof.With travel budgets on indefinite ‘hold’, there will be a growing need for smaller regional shows. These scaled down shows will be more focused, easier for buyers to work and will give suppliers a chance to show their wares, without the huge costs of participating in many of the mega shows.If organizers are clever, they’ll leverage the prevailing demand for all things that are more personal, more local and more transparent. Why It’s a Win: A big opportunity to reach new customers. Even before the pandemic, many of the digital native brands and indie brands lacked the budgets to travel to international fairs. Show organizers and exhibitors will be able to customize their offerings to meet the unique demands of each market.3D SAMPLING GOES MAINSTREAMMuch talked about but less frequently implemented, we’re seeing greater adoption of 3D samples and 3D prototyping.Like working via Zoom instead of in person, there was a lot of resistance to moving away from physical samples and using 3D samples. However, when there were few options people looked at 3D technology with a new attitude.Now it’s becoming mainstream. Why It’s a Win: Sampling has always been a huge cost for brands. It also slows down the production process. With 3D sampling there are critical savings in both cost and time. That’s a game changer in a market where everyone wants to be more agile.