Unable to compete with big volume, low cost competitors, Thai manufacturers found that they could combine their legacy as a top textile producer with their ability to be fast, reliable, creative – and accept small orders, even those with micro MOQs.
Today even larger brands want to place small orders but few garment manufacturers can accept orders below 500 pieces.
“My factory can start with 300 pieces. If we can source a smaller quantity of the fabric, then we are willing to take an even smaller batch as well,” said Thamonwan Virodchaiyan at Apparel Creations Co., Ltd.
Most Thai manufacturers are willing and able to accept orders with low minimums, something no other Asian nation will do.
“We are a more customer service oriented garment factory. Because we are a mid-size factory we are able to be very flexible,” said Pirapol Tatiyamaneekul at S.P. Brother Co., Ltd.
“There’s no more six-month planning in advance. So we have to be able to adapt to the changes, usually last minute changes. We are very good at that, which is one of our competitive advantages,” said Narumol Hutasuwan at Theparerg Co., Ltd.
Somewhat unexpectedly, Thailand has become the leading Asian nation where smaller brands, as well as big players, can source small orders.
Resilience Means Finding Reliable Suppliers
Before the pandemic brands were talking about the importance of diversifying their sourcing. After Covid created chaos for global supply chains, brands started to realize that their survival meant having suppliers who not only offered competitive prices, but were also reliable.
“During the pandemic everything was uncertain. Brands became more concerned about risk management. Some thought it would be wise to have Thailand as one of the options when things don’t go right,” said Thunthospon Manathon at Yong Sanga Co., Ltd.
The Quest for Sustainable Cotton Yarn
Stricter legislation banning imports of products containing China’s Xinjiang cotton are forcing brands to take deliberate measures to ensure that the yarns and fabrics in their garments don’t contain any traces of this cotton.
A growing challenge for U.S. and EU brands is finding a source for cotton garments and fabrics that is clearly outside of the China-ecosystem.
Thailand has an excellent domestic supply chain from spinning through to finishing and knitting and weaving. The mills have access to a steady inflow of U.S. cotton, and while prices aren’t the cheapest, they are affordable, backed by excellent quality and meet key sustainability standards.
Thailand is Truly Transparent
While most other nations were competing on price, Thailand has been greening up and focusing on building supply chain transparency. Investment in new equipment, installation of solar panels, opting for cleaner chemicals, R&D into upcycling and focusing on cotton and other natural fibers is making Thailand a sustainable sourcing paradise.
“Our best decision so far is joining the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol® because it provides us with information about the cotton used in our products. This is very important because it’s the connection between cotton suppliers and the global buyers, who need to provide greater transparency about their supply chains,” said Mr. Manathon.
Thailand’s textile industry has seen where the industry is headed and has strategically positioned itself to leverage its textile and garment skills to offer better, greener and more flexible products – rather than compete on price.
“We’re a lean factory so we want to use just enough inputs for the production. This way we can reduce waste and have less CO2 and less water consumption per kilogram of fabric we produce,” said Chet Vongsuraphichet at Thong Thai Textile Co., Ltd.
With an established textile supply chain in its backyard, Thai garment manufacturers don’t have to wait for imported raw materials. The result is shorter lead times, more reliability and greater supply chain transparency.
Certified Sustainable
The Trust Protocol is aligned with existing sustainability programs including the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals. It brings quantifiable and verifiable goals and measurement to sustainable cotton production, and drives continuous improvement in six key sustainability metrics – land use, soil carbon, water management, soil loss, greenhouse gas emissions, and energy efficiency. The Trust Protocol is designed from the ground up to address the unique regulatory and larger farm growing environment in the United States.
How the Trust Protocol Works
The Protocol Consumption Management Solution (PCMS) starts at the gin when the participating producer’s cotton is ginned and each unique Permanent Bale Identification number (PBI) is attached. At this point we know the exact gin weight and can create an exact amount of Protocol Cotton Consumption Units, where one Protocol Cotton Consumption Unit is created for each kilogram of Protocol Verified Cotton. This important step provides absolute authentication of U.S. cotton origin, verifying against the USDA database.
Supply Chain Transparency
The PCMS harnesses blockchain technology through a powerful combination of the Trust Protocol platform and TextileGenesis™ system to deliver full supply chain transparency by recording and verifying the movement of U.S. cotton along the entire supply chain. This creates article-specific transparency for finished products that was not previously accessible to brands and retailers.
Trusted Third Party Certification
The Trust Protocol incorporates a comprehensive program of verification against Trust Protocol benchmarks, in the form of both second-party and independent third-party audits of grower performance through Control Union Certifications—the latter through allocated on-site visits.
Control Union Certifications has certified over 150 industry standards programs worldwide, including working as a key partner in the early development and piloting phases of Impact Claim Verification Protocol.
Learn More https://trustuscotton.org
The COTTON USA Advantage
- Family growers who are committed to working their fields sustainably and leaving them better for future generations.
- A long history of innovative harvesting and ginning technologies resulting in higher-quality cotton.
- One of the highest rates of adoption in the world for Precision Agriculture, which minimizes water and pesticide usage.
- U.S. farmers operate under voluminous, stringent, and enforceable regulations.
- A commitment to transparent partnership that is unmatched anywhere.
- One of the most comprehensive systems for monitoring and measuring all the key metrics involved in sustainability.
U.S. Cotton Facts
- 2/3 of U.S. cotton land uses only rain water
- U.S. cotton water use efficiency has improved by 79% over the past 35 years
- Cotton is carbon footprint neutral, meaning the plants remove more greenhouse gasses than production produces.
Sustainability Goals
The U.S. cotton industry is building upon the strong environmental gains already achieved over the past 35 years. The aim is to help members meet their current needs while making the world a better place for future generations.
Specific goals include:
- Reducing by 13 percent the amount of land needed to produce a pound of cotton fiber
- Reducing soil loss by 50 percent, in balance with new soil formation
- Increasing water use efficiency (more fiber per gallon) by 18 percent
- Reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 39 percent
- Increasing soil carbon in fields by 30 percent
- Reducing energy to produce seed cotton and ginned lint by 15 percent
Learn More www.cotton.org
