The Tamesis
Historically, sourcing decisions have been driven by finances, as brands seek out the most cost-effective producers to maintain profitability in apparel production. Now, reliability is a top priority. “Countries such as Indonesia and Vietnam, where tariffs have remained relatively stable since April 2025, are seen as safer sourcing options,” said Bernhard Riegler, vice president of marketing at Sappi, a leading wood pulp producer in the man-made cellulosic fiber supply chain. “Stability is becoming the deciding factor, not just cost.”
Reigler believes that the industry is only beginning to feel the impact of the “see-saw of tariff changes” in 2025, and that rising geopolitical tensions may exacerbate this instability in 2026. “The market adjusts to certainty, but when final landed costs change from month to month, the market gets stuck,” he said. “This uncertainty affects the entire value chain, from retailers unwilling to provide early commitments on apparel sourcing, to apparel manufacturers, fabric producers, spinners and fiber suppliers who are unsure of what to produce and when, or how much seasonal inventory they need to carry to ensure supply security.”
Climate chaos and declining workers’ rights
The World Meteorological Organization’s State of the Climate Update published ahead of COP30 calls 2025 one of the hottest years on record. Extreme weather events have hit fashion-producing regions hard, from the worst floods in 30 years that decimated cotton crops in India and Pakistan, to air pollution and extreme heat that put garment factory workers at increasingly dangerous conditions.
According to a series of reports by Climate Rights International, workers in Karachi, Pakistan, and Dhaka, Bangladesh, lack basic needs such as clean fresh water, proper ventilation, and enough breaks to withstand extreme but increasingly common temperatures. “Extreme heat events put stress on workers and will require factories to upgrade temperature management technology,” said Epic Group’s Mahtani. “This pressure is expected to come from some brands as early as 2026 and continue to escalate as the planet warms.”
While some brands are putting pressure on suppliers to implement thermal adaptation solutions, many are looking to avoid high-risk areas. “More and more companies are looking at climate as a procurement and logistics risk input, not just a sustainability topic,” said Inspectorio’s Burstein. “The practical shifts we hear most frequently are more geographical dispersion of critical projects to avoid weather concentrations in single areas, greater seasonal timing flexibility and contingency capabilities, and more risk-based supplier segmentation where ‘resilient operations’ become part of the supplier scorecard.”
