1.       

COVID19 has exposed the tremendous fragility of the global fashion industry and its supply chain. Exploring the fashion supply chain from Australia to Bangladesh and the sourcing practices of one Australian retailer, Dateline investigates how the global pandemic has upended anzac

 industry already at breaking point and laid bare a system of entrenched inequality, revealing the cost to those at the very bottom.

2.       

MUSIC

TITLE: COVID19: FASHION’S GREAT UNRAVELLING

3.       

 It’s November 2020...and as Melbourne emerges from months under one of the world’s strictest lockdowns, I’m on my way to an event that hasn’t been seen in almost a year.

Organiser/ Does everyone know which hand you’re holding your flags in?

...fashion week.

4.       

5.       

01.54.13 Cal meets Ema “hi ema”

Featuring in the show tonight is independent designer Ema Hewitt.

6.       

01.32.05 So this one I’ve pulled the collar out of the shirt to add a bit more of effect.01.32.10

7.       

01.37.25 / So what pieces are you showing tonight Emma?

Emma 01.37.31/ two new prints, we're showing that in the shirt and skirt and pants.

Cal (02:17:04): So it's, men's wear and women's wear? One of each?

Emma (02:17:07): Yes. We've got a one in, one of each. But Joey has switched it up. So the guy's wearing the women's wear and the woman is wearing the men's shirt.

8.       

02.40.58 Cal (02:41:14): in what ways is this a catwalk of different to a normal catwalk?

Emma (02:41:23):

so it's all outside For one. And the seating is spaced usually, when we have a runway… the, seating goes five stories deep or even more. and so it's, it's very different.

02.43.53 CAL/ So how are you feeling about tonight?

 //02.40.51 So excited. I’ve been waiting for so long!

9.       

Fashion weeks are where all the parts of the industry normally come together - the ecosystem of designers, fashion media and department stores that put us all in clothes and set the seasons trends.

After months on hold, everyone here is hoping this event will signal new life for an industry./ that has been struggling to stay alive.

10.   

Cal PTC (03:26:41):

This feels a little bit odd. I mean, you've got models strutting the catwalk in summer's latest fashions. The COVID-19 is still a very real risk here. And I mean, 2020 was the year of the track suit. Are people actually going to buy these clothes?

11.   

Music

Fashion is worth $2.5 trillion dollars globally and it suffered double digit losses in 2020.

Overnight the pandemic has turned the entire industry upside down.

12.   

Cal PTC (01:29:29): So everywhere I go at Melbourne fashion week, there are strict COVID-19 protocols and this is one of them.

13.   

Hitting fashion weeks at the top – to supply chains at the very bottom.

14.   

Emma (00:50:34):

So we manufacture locally in Australia and overseas in China. at the start we had Chinese new year and COVID peaked and they went into lockdown straight after that. So, um, that affected our production. 00.50.01 And then, we had a lockdown in Melbourne manufacturing & production. 00.51.09

Fortuma /00.56.56 We've had a lot of, um, obstacles. Like we get our fabrics from Kenya, their port shut down. There was nothing we could actually do. Um, so kinda just have to pull up and really kind of got back into what's working. What's not working. \00.57.09

15.   

EVERY DESIGNER AND EVERY RETAILER IS BEING forced radically rethink where and how their clothes are made.

16.   

Cal (01:50:55): It seems like everybody in the fashion industry right now is really taking stock and doing some enormous soul searching.

01.26.42 Cal/ Is the fashion industry kind of experiencing an existential crisis right now

Emma/ Yeah, I think, um, COVID definitely unveiled all the cracks and, um, that the industry was moving at a, um, unsustainable pace. We couldn't keep up, it was one collection after the other. Um, uh, there was too, so much pressure on, um, everyone in the supply chain to produce large volume and get it out very quickly. So I think that needs to change.

17.   

Music + Upsot

18.   

We are a society that likes to shop.

For years the global fashion industry has been a bubble waiting to burst.

It’s acting faster than ever before.

INTRO// Melbourne shoppers lining up as retailers flung opened their doors //

19.   

Trends once drip fed from HIGH-END fashion weeks - TO ORDINARY RETAIL STORES have been pushed into overdrive by the internet and social media.

02.35 Oh my gawd//This is the jumbo size bag//ooft i’m like girls //

05.16 We have a bunch of tees surf tee sun tee - the supreme clientele tee//

Do i need this? No.

 STORES LIKES ZARA PRIDE THEMSELVES ON HAVING MORE THAN 20 COLLECTIONS A YEAR.

It’s a feel good factor isn’t it//

20.   

AND SHOPPERS HAVE BECOME USED TO BUYING AN OUTFIT – WEARING IT ONCE AND THROWING IT AWAY.

The biggest problem is that we are just consuming so much!

21.   

Music

22.   

Cal PTC (04:50):

So we're here in Auburn and this is the distribution center for St Vincent De Paul. And this is where all of the donations from across the city come together before they head out to stores. And as you can see, most of it is clothes.

23.   

Cal (12:10): I guess if you're buying new clothes every year and you're really following the trends, this is where it's going to end up. 00.12.27

Cal (19.09)/ This is a pair of perfect Zara jeans right now. 19.16

24.   

To keep pace with all of this FAST FASHION  manufacturing offshore has become the industry norm.

More than 95% of Australian brands make their product overseas – where labour is quick and cheap.

25.   

Cal (30:42):

So each one of these items involves a really complex chain of supply. You've got buttons from Cambodia, denim,from Bangladesh and printing designs from China. And all it takes is one chink in that supply chain and either orders don't arrive or suppliers don't get paid.

Music end/scene change

26.   

Interruptions to this offshore supply chain have hit big retailers hard. To learn more, I’m meeting up with the head of the Australian Fashion Council Leila Naja Hibri at a charity warehouse in Sydney where more clothes are piling up.

27.   

00.25.43 Cal/ omgoodness this is huge. ///

Butt to:

Cal (00:29:14):

What is all of this Layla?

Leila (00:29:18):

So it's just old stock that retailers, fashion brands could not sell. And it's here. Uh, we've been given to donate it to thread together.

Cal (00:29:30):

Wow. Yeah, there is so much stock in here right now. I know it’s crazy. Cal.

28.   

Every one of these boxes is filled with brand new clothes, shoes and accessories.

Not recycled clothing – but excess stock that couldn’t be sold.

29.   

Insitu looking at box/ Cal (00:31:39):

Can I take a look inside one of these? Let's pull this out.

Leila (00:31:45):

Brand new shirts.(can we add a bit more here – where i look at a tag?)

Butt to:

Cal (00:32:07): And so why is all of this here?

Leila (00:32:10):  I think COVID has really impacted, uh, the amount of stock available out there, excess stock because every brand always has excess stock. However, with COVID and almost a cessation of, selling for a long time. Uh, so much excess stock kind of stayed in the, in the market.

30.   

ADD MUSIC HERE

During 2020 - Shipping delays meant an entire season of clothes, designed for fleeting trends, arrived too late. By the time they did, consumers weren’t buying.

31.   

Leila (00:46:26):Imagine you're a retailer or a fashion brand COVID hits everyone's at home. No one's going anywhere. So it's not an essential in terms of, I need new clothes to do this, or to do that. And so suddenly no one is buying anything, maybe two to three months after COVID hits . People started to buy online again, but there's a definite shift in the way that consumers are buying. They're buying less they're buying more thoughtfully. And they're thinking about why do I need all this stuff? (00:47:12):

Cal (00:47:12): So that leaves a giant problem for fashion makers and the garment industry in Australia..

Leila (00:47:19):A giant problem, or a giant, uh, solution, in my opinion, a giant problem. If you continue to do things the way you've always done a giant opportunity, if you start to change the way you do things for business, model, your operations and look at your supply chain as well.

32.   

MUSIC

In a survey, the Australian Fashion Council (AFC), found up to 80 per cent of companies had been ‘negatively’ impacted by the pandemic.

Only 30% were confident they would recover.

33.   

I’ve heard big retailers are now having issues resolving what to do with all this stock.

Some are holding onto it in the hope of selling it at this year’s A/W season, others are resorting to selling it at even cheaper prices.

34.   

Mackenzie (13:03):I got a t-shirt, two t-shirts and a jumper. (cut my sigh)

Sylvia (00:47): This one. So altogether I bought three and that was $28.

Cal (00:50):$28 for 3 dresses?

Sylvia (00:53):They were $10 each. Yeah.

Jackie (04:09): 3 for 60.

Cal (04:11):$60?

Jackie (04:12): Yeah they were one 50% off.

Cal (04:14): That's an incredible deal. What do you think of that price?

Jackie (04:17):Pretty good. Hey.

35.   

Cal (38:32): I'm at a popular mall in Sydney. And even though it's three months into the year sales are still happening, I've got $50. So I'm going to see just how much I can buy with this.

36.   

The retailer behind loved brands like these including Noni B, Millers and Rivers, recorded a $212 million loss due to the pandemic.

Called Mosaic Brands, its CEO told shareholders in August 2020 it had been “utterly derailed” by the coronavirus.

37.   

Cal (41:45): So I'm going to just spent the $50. And I got three items. We've got a skirt here, a pair of jeans and a t-shirt as well. So that's pretty good. I mean, that's two whole outfits for $50. And while that's great for me. You kind of have to wonder where these clothes are coming from and what's happening for the people who made them

(End with CU of “Made in Bangladesh tag” on clothing in Cal’s hand)

38.   

Music/Breath

Bangladesh is the second largest manufacturer of ready made garments in the world.

It’s home to more than 4000 factories that churn out product for mostly fast fashion brands in America, the EU and also Australia.

39.   

Kalpona Upsot with workers/

You worked less than a year

and you were made redundant?

Yes, I got made redundant.

I did not complete a year of work.

- How long did you work?

- I lost my job last November.

40.   

A former child garment worker turned activist, Kalpona Akter once helped fuel the overseas supply chain.

Since the pandemic hit, she’s been on the frontline helping many navigate the fallout.

41.   

Kalpona Alone IV (00:30:12): This is the one of the biggest garment districts. And if you see this factory up there, there, you know, hundreds of workers are waiting. All of them who lost jobs during this pandemic. And they're just waiting here. If there is a new hire happen,

00.27.31 this is like disaster happening in here.

42.   

UPSOT Kalpona talking to male worker/

They made us redundant because of COVID.

People who worked less than a year

were asked to leave the factory.

- How can people survive like this?

- I know.

They'll close the gate to my face.

Nothing much we can do.

43.   

Over the phone, Kalpona tells me more than 350,000 garment workers have so far lost their job.

44.   

Cal (00:57:55):

What's the biggest fear right now for workers and also from factory owners, there

Kalpona (00:58:00):

Factories definitely, you know, losing the business, getting less orders, less orders mean they don't have money, don't have money mean they cannot pay workers and workers. It is pretty simple. If they lose job, there'll be no, no money and no money means no food.

45.   

She believes a big reason behind these lay offs, has been the action of retailers overseas.

Kalpona (00:58:36):So when the pandemic started, the, the brand and retailers, many, many of them, canceled or postponed their order for infinity time. And they say they

cannot pay because the consumers is not buying the clothes. And you know, that is, that is so irresponsible.

00.59.45 this is not the way you do the business. The brand should know that these are the workers who made profit for them, years who may give them a lavish life. And when our worker has needed them, most, they just run away.

46.   

MUSIC

At the start of the pandemic almost 2000 global fashion brands delayed or cancelled 3.7 billion dollars worth of orders -  according to the Bangladesh manufacturers association - the BGMEA.

The same association sent us a list of Australian retailers who cancelled or delayed orders, or asked for big discounts from suppliers between March and April 2020.

In the following months many of these retailers re-instated orders. Companies like Cotton On and H&M pledged to honour all existing orders and existing payment terms.

47.   

But news reports at the time said Mosaic Brands was delaying, holding or cancelling orders worth $15 million and delaying payment on some orders by 8 months

48.   

While a recent Oxfam Australia report revealed factories rated Mosaic Brands among the worst performers when it comes to it business practices.

The report noted aggressive price negotiation, inaccurate forecasting and last minute changes to orders which put manufacturers under intense pressure.

49.   

Cal PTC/ I want to find out what happened to Mosaic’s Bangladeshi suppliers and whether they’ve been paid. There’s just one problem. It’s almost impossible to find out who they are. While lots of Australian retailers publish their supplier details online, Mosaic doesn’t.

50.   

To help me track down Mosaic’s suppliers, I make a call to London.

Katie Shaw works for a group called the Open Apparel Registry.

51.   

Cal (01:58):

Thank you so much for talking to me. So you, you have the unenviable task of mapping, retail suppliers all around the world….//How big of a task is that?

Katie (02:34):

Um, it's actually a huge undertaking because it really basic level, no one actually knows how many garment facilities there are worldwide. …/And part of the issue is that global supply chains in the apparel sector are incredibly complex and opaque. And there's all sorts of subcontracting that goes on. And, um, yeah, so it's just, it's, it's an enormous, constantly moving beast.

52.   

Katie (06:22):

So I will share my screen with you now say that you can see the open apparelregistry//…..//So on the right hand side, you can see a map of the world and the, the global spread of apparel facilities.

Cal (06:36):

Wow. So each of those little dots right now, they are supplier facilities?

Katie (06:42):

Exactly. So it's a really simple key in that the darker, the blue, of the dot, the greater, the density of facilities at that point….//And you can get right down to the individual factory level.//….///So you can see density around India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, um, and Southeast Asia.//Cal (07:27):

53.   

Katie says there’s been a lot of progress in the industry to increase transparency since the collapse of the Rana Plaza garment factory in 2013.

Killing over 1300 workers, it showed the devastating toll when brands have little oversight of their supply chain.

02.55 crying girls upsot

54.   

Since then, public pressure has urged many retailers to publish their supplier information.

It’s this data Katie is collating.

55.   

Cal (11:31):

what Australian brands retailers do you have in the database right now?

we have cotton on data in the registry. We have , um, jeans West, um, the Australian brand. We have Coles the chain. Um, we have Woolworths.// Cal (11:56):

56.   

Cal (12:20):

Katie I want to find the suppliers of Australian retail, retail company called Mosaic brands. Do you have any information about them in your database?

Katie (12:33):

Unfortunately we don't.

/It could be that they have that data internally at their organization, but they're not ready to share that yet. There's any number of reasons. It could also be as simple as they haven't completed the exercise of mapping out supply chain yet.13:18):

(should we move aus law info here)

To find Mosaic’s Brands suppliers I reach out to the body who represents manufacturers in Bangladesh - the BGMEA. But have no success.

So instead I search all the key unions in the country, contact them all, and wait.

00.23.37 CAL LEAVES SHOT

The next day, I get a bite.

57.   

One union replies with a list of factories said to be suppliers for Mosaic brands.

Searching the BGMEA’s database, I find their phone numbers and give them a call.

58.   

Music /reset

59.   

Due to the pandemic - the fashion industry faces a reckoning when it comes to its supply chain

I want to know how the actions of Australian retailers are impacting factories in Bangladesh

Having identified three suppliers of one major retailer -  In December last year, we paid one a visit.

60.   

Zach (00:47:24):

Come I'll show you our showroom. The products that we do for, for the brands here, an example, this is Australian brand river that we do for mosaic.

00.47.57 Here's for Millers. This is for Millers

 There's another one. So many more. I have, they used to be one of my big customer. 48.52

61.   

Zakirul Alam is a supplier for overseas retailers including -  Mosaic Brands.

He says – his business is now in crisis.

62.   

Zach (00:50:05):This is our finishing area. As we see the goods are lying down all these are for. All These are sitting here for mosaic brand for, to be shipped to Australia. I have here, I have there. I have upstairs. 50.31 Okay. I can, uh, let's go upstairs. I'll show you more, more stuffs.

Zach walks into room (00:51:33):

I can't even turn on the lights nowadays because I cant bear the electricity. Come you see. Here. These Are all for mosaic brands waiting to be shipped. They told us to hold them. 51.52 And let's see.

 If this goods would have shipped on time, I wouldn't be in this condition today.59.17

63.   

Zakirul says Mosaic Brands was a good customer.

But when the pandemic hit he claims the company made a cancellation worth almost $US 500,000.

He says an additional $US 600,000 worth of clothes were already made and ready to be dispatched.

But according to Zakirul  Mosaic Brands also suspended and delayed shipment of these goods

Interviewer (01:07:48): Have you been in touch with Mosaic?

Zach (01:07:48):

Yes, Yes, yes. We've been, and they've been saying that they will take it slowly. But they're slowly is killing me. You know, I, I cannot afford this. You know, this slowly it's really killing me because my bank has stopped everything.

64.   

The problem is Zakirul says Mosaic Brands also imposed new payment terms – meaning he only receives payment up to 170 days or almost 6 months after shipping the goods.

But he has to pay for all the materials to make these clothes and his workers wages up front. 

65.   

Zach (52.47 Here is a sewing line. All this long lines are idle.53.00 /So only two lines running right now in the entire factory.53.24

ALT/ Now in significant debt, Zakirul says he’s been unable to pay many of his workers and had to lay off hundreds.

66.   

Zac (00:07:27): Well, you know, what happens to, uh, when you have a heavy duty earthquake? After the earthquake where you stand everything's broken. I'm pretty much into that right now.

67.   

Zac (00:24:59): I can't. I can't, I can't buy anything If the bank shuts down on me. I can't buy fabric. I can't buy threads. I can't buy your accessories. I can't do anything. Bank is the main pillar of the business.

68.   

Cal (00:55:25):

Do you think mosaic has any idea that you're out there and that you're in this situation?

Zac (00:55:40):

I think all they know is the sourcing company, whoever we getting the work from, I don't think mosaic knows the condition of ZAS apparel, what condition we are in? Whom ZAS is. I don't even think that mosaic knows us.

Cal (00:56:05):

That's crazy.

Zac (00:56:12):

It is. To me, of course, to me, the same thing. It is crazy.

Zakirul says orders for clothes are made through a middle man not directly from Mosaic Brands, obscuring the supply chain even more.

69.   

I still can’t find a full list of Mosaic Brand’s Bangladeshi suppliers.

But at least two other factories I did track down say they’ve also been negatively impacted by its cancellations and delays

70.   

Natsot/music

Meanwhile, those who’ve been forced out of a job are now struggling to survive.

71.   

48:42 INTERVIEWER - Did you fold like this when you worked in the garments factory?

48:44 JASMINE - Yes,

I used to attach the ‘prastick’ and check the labels, bar codes, etc.

49:03 INTERVIEWER - I can imagine the way you fold…You do it nicely.

72.   

Jasmine Akhter is 24 years old.

She USED TO MAKE CLOTHES AT ZAKIRUL’S FACTORY BUT  lost her job as line worker at the finishing section in September. She’s been unemployed since.

73.   

54:30 INTERVIEWER - Do you miss your job?

54:32 JASMINE - Yes, I do. I've always been at work. But I’ve been staying at home since the last three months. I don’t feel good staying home.

74.   

With her father ill, Jasmine is the sole provider for her family. 

55:21 JASMINE - Dad, do you want to go, shower? Shall I ask Ma for hot water?

75.   

JASMINE MASTER IV /

32:26 JASMINE- Since September I’ve been worrying about paying the rent, buying food, about my dad’s eye operation so that he’d have a job. We would be better off then.

If I can’t pay the rent, the landlord will kick us out. I owe him three months' rent.

3,000 taka per month. 9,000 taka in all.

I... I asked my brother for some money

but he didn’t give me a penny… Now I'm responsible for everything. I never utter a word because my parents will feel bad. Who’ll look after them if I leave?

76.   

Facing homelessness and poverty,

Jasmine says she is still owed one and a half month’s salary by Zakirul’s factory.

77.   

JASMINE MASTER IV/

37:24 INTERVIEWER -  Who do you blame for losing your job?

37:29 JASMINE - I don’t think it’s our company’s fault. It's a good company. But the buyers don’t pay them. That’s why they are not paying us. Let’s say, if I owe money to someone, and if I don’t get my payment, how will I pay them off? So this is what the company is doing.

MUSIC / TRANSITION/BREATH

MUSIC/

AS JASMINE WAITS FOR THE WAGES OWED TO HER, THOSE LAID OFF FROM OTHER FACTORIES HAVE RUN OUT OF TIME.

78.   

SEX WORKER 1/ No company is willing to hire us because of the COVID situation. In order to earn money, I’ve ended up in this situation with this job. What kind of a life am I living? At this age,and being unemployed I had to end up sellign my own self every day.

THESE GARMENT WORKERS SAY THEY DIDN’T MAKE CLOTHES FOR AUSTRALIAN RETAILERS BUT RECALL PRODUCTS BEING SHIPPED TO CHINA AND DUBAI.

AFTER LOSING THEIR JOBS LAST YEAR, NOW THEY’VE TURNED TO SEX WORK TO SURVIVE

79.   

SEX WORKER 1/21:57: The guests who come to me sometimes talk rubbish. treat me like rubbish. They ask me to do it in different positions, which I do not like at all. They ask me to do weird sexual acts and positions which is not acceptable to me at all. On top of that, they refuse to use condoms.

WHILE TECHNICALLY LEGAL, sex work REMAINS EXTREMELY TABOO AND MANY ASPECTS OF THE JOB ARE STILL CRIMINALISED.

80.   

49:58 INTERVIEWER -

Does this job cause you stress?

50:01 SEX WORKER 2/ - Of course, there's stress, like fear of a police raid. They might find me carrying condoms in my bag, that’s a worry. They might put me in jail. If they do, what will I say to my family if they ask why the police arrested me? It might cause trouble in my family. These are my fears.

81.   

SEX WORKER 1// I must follow very strict hygiene with these clients of mine, wash my hands, sanitise myself, try not to touch people. It's stressful.

/ BUTT

I wear socks on my hands,

as I am scared to touch anything

that could be contaminated.

/ BUTT

Using condoms is safe practice, but nothing can protect me from the pandemic. You never know who has the virus and who doesn't.

82.   

With many factories beholden to overseas buyers, THEY say more and more garment workers are turning to this work.

83.   

53:40 INTERVIEWER - Did you see anyone else in a similar situation to yours?

53: 53 SEX WORKER 2/ - Yes, many, many girls. Most of the garments factory girls are doing this job. Most of them. It wasn’t like this before. Now most of the garments factory girls are in this industry. 54:15

84.   

SEX WORKER 1/27:34: I wish foreigners, especially foreign buyers could help them, support us….and the people of our country.

85.   

86.   

01:37:30 JASMINE - Is there anyone inside? Will they come here?

MAN/ How can they come here? The factory isn’t doing well.

JASMINE/ Could you ask, if they want…? They don’t? Okay.

DESPERATE, 24 YEAR OLD JASMINE

NOW spends her days wandering the streets looking for factory work.

87.   

01:44:10 JASMINE/  Are they hiring?

They're not?

But there are few openings.

88.   

01:48:00 JASMINE/ No one is answering.

Nobody notices you if you’re unemployed.

89.   

Since filming with Zakirul at ZAS Apparel in December, and only after a long delay, Mosaic Brands has taken shipments and made payments for delayed goods. 

WITH THE LAST SHIPMENT LEAVING THE FACTORY THIS WEEK.

STILL IN DEBT HE’S MANAGED TO RE-HIRE AROUND 100 WORKERS BUT SOME ARE STILL OWED WAGES, AND MANY ARE STILL OUT OF WORK.

While mosaic brands isn’t the only Australian retailer that’s delayed shipments and payments - and their conduct isn’t illegal - I want to know if the company thinks this is fair.

AD BREAK

1 MIN

106

VO: In the suburbs of Sydney, sits the office of Australian retailer Mosaic Brands.

107

I want to interview its CEO about cancelled orders and delayed shipments, and ask about the company’s duty of care to suppliers and their employees.

108

PTC: But this is as close as I’m going to get. The company declined my request FOR INTERVIEW.

PTC: They say they adhere to a number of social compliance measures to ensure worker safety, the avoidance of modern slavery and an ethical supply chain.

109A

VO: IN RESPONSE TO MY QUESTIONS THEY SAID THAT:

The onset of the COVID-19 Pandemic was the biggest crisis in Australian retail in recent memory.

AND THAT THEY WORKED WITH SUPPLIERS TO NAVIGATE THE CHALLENGES.

The outcome 12 months later is every pre-Covid manufacturer in Bangladesh continues to choose to work with Mosaic Brands.

109B

VO: In response to ZAKRIUL’S claims

Mosaic Brands did not deny they delayed shipments in March 2020, thereby delaying payments to Zakirul’s factory.

They also did not deny that a 500,000 US DOLLAR order was cancelled,

But THEY DISPUTE THERE WAS ANY FINANCIAL COST OR LIABILITY TO Zakirul and say he requested the cancellation.

A claim that, in turn, Zakirul denies.

109C

Mosaic Brands says their orders make up less than10% of his annual factory production, based on January 2020 figures

But Zakirul claims this is misleading /// because this figure is based on the TOTAL CAPACITY OF THE PRODUCTION LINES NOT THE ACTUAL ORDER VOLUME. He claims Mosaic Brands is one of his biggest customers.

110

PTC: There are still some questions that remain AROUND TRANSPARENCY.

PTC THERE ARE

AUSTRALIAN RETAILERS SUCH AS BIG W, TARGET AND COUNTRY ROAD PUBLISH SUPPLIER DETAILS ON THEIR WEBSITES.

WHEN I Asked  MOSAIC BRANDS to provide a list of its Bangladeshi suppliers THEY didn’t, they also did not answer my questions about why their supply chain remains non-transparent.

PTC SITTING: Out of the three suppliers contacted for this story– one told us they have recently severed ties with Mosaic Brands due to its unfavourable payment terms.

REFLECTIVE MUSIC + BEAT

Cal (07:32): So. What do you think will be the lasting legacy of the pandemic? Kalpana in terms of the global fashion industry?

Kalpona Master IV at laptop (07:41):

Uh, this is the high time for us to understand that where is the problem is and fix it. We just cannot sit. I'm an optimistic, I will keep fighting. I will keep fighting along with my members and make sure that we are changing the behavior of manufacturers.

01:28:02: Someone or the other must start this, If you don’t stand against wrong things, it will continue to affect your life.

01: 28:08: Always remember this okay.

We are, we will be asking our government to change the regulations, but in the same time, consumers and us together, we need to change the brands, behavior, or business behavior too.

CAL REENACTMENTS @00.14.27 Cal/ Is ending off shore manufacturing the solution?

Kalpona (11:17): no, I mean, this business created a job for the women's in the production country and we really need these jobs, but we want them with dignity.

This pandemic is a once in a lifetime event. Causing ripple effects from Dhaka to the streets of Melbourne - it’s brought the entire fashion industry, momentarily, to its knees. 

 Leila (01:11:46):  

I'm hoping that the lasting legacy, uh, o the pandemic is going to be a positive one. It's going to be a legacy of change.   

It's not about immediately change the way you do things, but it's about really looking at the business model and the supply chain and look relooking at incentives, KPIs for CEOs or board members and for shareholders really challenging everyone leaders in particular. Why is it okay for us to tread all over people, planets for the sake of profits? I don't think that's okay.  

01:19:23): There's an absolute appetite for change and the new generation and new consumers are not going to accept this anyway. So I believe businesses will change because they have to.

But will an appetite for change be enough to reach the lives of those like Jasmine?

That, remains to be seen.