2021 has been a year we won’t forget. Like most companies around the globe, we have been going through an unbelievable rollercoaster due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
During these challenging times, close partnerships have proven to be crucial and are, we believe, the best way forward. Today, we look back at the year 2021 and forward to 2022.
Lockdowns and Curfews
Several lockdowns and curfews were implemented in Siem Reap, Cambodia, in the past year. These restrictions meant that at some moments, our production facility had to shut down completely or that a big part of our staff could not come to work due to an inability to travel between districts.
Obviously, this caused serious complications and created a big backlog that we had to catch up with later. However, no matter how challenging the conditions were, our Cambodian workforce managed with great teamwork, flexibility, and resilience.
However, this requires a closer and fairer collaboration between brand and supplier.
The Importance of Partnerships
While navigating lockdowns and curfews in 2021, partnerships have proven to be particularly important to us. The genuine relationships we have with our customers allowed us to openly discuss the challenges we faced and work toward beneficial solutions.
Another important lesson from the past year is that the pandemic has accelerated consumer demand for increased sustainability and transparency in the supply chain. Experts presume this trend will continue. In our view, this is an optimistic development; it will help to achieve much-needed change in the industry.
However, this requires a closer and fairer collaboration between brand and supplier. Strong partnerships can ease various risks throughout the supply chain and help brands and suppliers take steps in sustainability – as we also highlighted in our post Investing in a long-term brand supplier relationship.
Only together can we create lasting change in the industry.
Looking Forward to 2022 and Beyond
We are optimistic and look forward to further investing in our partnerships in the coming years. We continue to optimize our product development and production efficiency while enhancing our focus on recycled and up-cycled materials. These steps are combined with a raise in existing high service levels so that our partners can stay at the forefront of their industry.
Only together can we create lasting change in the industry. We look forward to the years ahead and wish you a happy, healthy, and prosperous 2022!
Are you interested in learning more about our manufacturing solutions? Contact us today and discover what a relationship with Pactics can do for you.
