Apart from all the other spend management related issues going on in Stockholm at the moment – this week is also one of Stockholm’s fashion weeks. At first sight, high fashion might be as far away from classic corporate purchasing as is possible – low runs, design focused, pricey, you name it – yet last year big fashion talk of the town was all about supply chain management without lost focus on the design and fashion end of the spectrum.
This fall saw the dawning of a new swedish designer jeans brand (adding further competition to a marked blurred by hipster faves such as Nudie, Acne, Cheap Monday, Filippa K and Whyred) – Noko Jeans.
When other designers start with pen and paper and demin – Noko had another thing in mind. A North Korean supply chain.
It took the guys behind Noko 2,5 years to get 1100 jeans produced. So much for a lean supply chain.
The Noko-website does a great job when discussing the issues and ethical questions that arise when dealing with suppliers in countries that are »off the map« for most purchasing organizations. Highly recommended and in my mind there is a great management type book buried in this story.
