TCBL Project Results and Impacts

TCBL PROJECT RESULTS AND IMPACTS TCBL: Textile and Clothing Business Labs, was a four-year Research and Innovation project funded by the European Union's Horizon 2020 Programme and completed on June 30th, 2019. As a project, TCBL aimed to achieve a wide-ranging impact on the T&C industry, in order to address some important challenges the sector is facing: excess off-shoring, overproduction and over-consumption, poor working conditions with low wages, and environmental impacts resulting from waste, chemicals usage, high water use, and energy consumption. Against this background, TCBL set out to offer the sector an alternative vision, experimenting new business models that base competitive advantage on knowledge more than price.

The impact pathway that TCBL defined to bring about such a transformation crosses three main steps: • • •

Build a business ecosystem as a value-based community of innovators and businesses willing to explore new business models in a collaborative effort.

Carry out focused experimentations in a set of Business Cases to ignite the business ecosystem and demonstrate the added value of the TCBL approach.

Demonstrate the contribution towards attaining the project’s high-level targets by 2025: new embedded services, a novel supply network, a 5% return in manufacturing capacity and a 20% reduction of environmental footprint.

THE TCBL BUSINESS ECOSYSTEM The collaborative TCBL business ecosystem engaged four kinds of actors – T&C enterprises, innovation labs, service providers, and business advisors – through a sequence of yearly calls that has now become a rolling accreditation procedure called the TCBL Protocol. The figure below shows the numbers achieved at project end in June 2019.

THE TCBL BUSINESS ECOSYSTEM.

To immediately signal the disruptive nature of the TCBL vision, Associates (T&C businesses) and Labs were invited to join on the basis of their match with seven principles1 that the TCBL partnership identified as important for its mission, not – as is convention – on the basis of company profiles or concrete project proposals.

This proved highly successful, attracting like-minded ecosystem members and laying the foundation for a novel way of working in line with the TCBL vision. 41% of Associates responding to the evaluation outcome survey2 were attracted to joining TCBL because of these values. In the words of one associate, “[our company’s ethical, quality and innovation focused] background provided the basis on which we decided our participation in TCBL, sharing the same values and objectives with us, as Associated Member in 2016.”3.

THE #TCBL_2019 CONFERENCE IN IASI (RO).

The construction of the TCBL Business Ecosystem was accompanied by an extensive communication strategy. Social media and video production played an important role, together with a yearly two-day conference with different modes of communication and interaction. Some figures here include: • • •

Over 100,000 pageviews on the TCBL website, 1,484 likes on the TCBL Facebook page and 1,681 followers on the TCBL Instagram account.

Over 220 local workshops and seminars in more than 12 EU countries and over 750 conference attendees at the four yearly events in the UK, Greece, Italy and Romania.

185 videos produced and published on the TCBL YouTube channel, 79 Guidebooks on issuu.com and 42 articles in the TCBL_zine, a scientific journal established by the project.

TCBL FOUNDATION The TCBL Business Ecosystem’s main function is to raise awareness, build a value-based community, and continuously generate innovative practices and business models. Feedback

1

See https://tcbl.eu/tcbl-ecosystem/values Survey carried out by the Tavistock Institute (UK), as TCBL project partner. For more information, see TCBL Deliverable 6.12.

2

3

The quoted statements are from interviews with TCBL Associates directly involved in the Business Cases, unless stated otherwise.

2

from the evaluation survey demonstrates the extent to which this was successfully carried out in the lifespan of the project: • • •

60% of surveyed Associates highlighted the importance of shared goals to transform the T&C sector.

71% extended their network of business contacts, while 37% experimented with a more sustainable business model.

The cost contribution analysis estimates a total value generated for TCBL Associates of over € 16 Million in the life of the project, with an SROI of 0,716 (significant for a research project).4

Given these results, the TCBL Business Ecosystem itself represents a shared outcome that the participants – TCBL project partners as well as Labs and Associates – wish to keep alive. The commitment of a group of TCBL participants is leading to the constitution of the TCBL Foundation, a non-profit entity with the purpose of continuing these activities into the future.

RESULTS FROM THE BUSINESS CASES Bringing this business ecosystem alive has involved igniting collaboration among Labs, Associates and Service Providers as they join the community. To this end, joint experimental actions were launched around six Business Cases covering themes of importance for the Associates themselves: Natural Fibres, Eco-friendly production, Short Runs, Independents, BioShades and Digital Heritage.5 NATURAL FIBRES

THE NATURAL COTTON PROJECT ON DISPLAY AT #TCBL_2017 IN ATHENS.

4

Social return on investment (SROI) was used to calculate a financial return for TCBL. This used data drawn from a survey of TCBL businesses and combined their estimates of the tangible financial gains from being involved in TCBL – for example increase on turnover – with the financial gains on ‘intangibles’ – for example business benefits from experimentation. The SROI ratio of 0.716 measures the social impact value set against the initial investment amount. For a research project, this ratio would normally be expected to be negative. The figure of €16m total value generated extrapolates the estimated total value to all members of the TCBL ecosystem combined on the basis of the data derived from the survey.

5

For further information, see project Deliverables 4.2, 4.3 and 4.4 and related Annexes.

3

This Business Case was launched with the involvement of different companies along the natural cotton value chain – from ginning through to design and manufacturing – in Greece, Europe’s main remaining cotton producer. The case later developed to include other natural fibres such as silk, wool and hemp, extending throughout the European TCBL network.

Key takeaways: •

•

•

One of the early successes of the case was the production of a set of models displayed at the 2017 conference. Products from these experiments sold at an economically sustainable price.

For one of the participating Associates, a key benefit was new business contacts within their supply chain. Through TCBL they began to collaborate with spinning mills they were not previously aware of, gaining direct contact and improved margins.

Another of the Associates involved focused on knowledge exchange: “TCBL has helped us to have the info, know-how, networking, access to solutions, to accelerate things.”

Overall, the Business Case involved over 20 enterprises in new production processes, extending to other fibres such as silk and hemp. The creation of a French-Romanian-Polish-Slovenian working group on hemp is driven by a TCBL Associate who claims: “I want to be sustainable, and one direction for this is to have a zero km value chain.”

ECO-FRIENDLY PRODUCTION This Business Case was launched in the Prato (IT) textile district, where chemical usage in textile production and finishing is an important concern. The driving idea is to track and certify chemicals across the value chain rather that with individual companies.

WATER QUALITY ANALYSIS AT THE BUZZI LAB IN PRATO.

Key takeaways: • •

The certification process defined is likely to have an estimated 20% impact on reduced carbon footprint of ecosystem actors.

The business case also shows evidence of having an impact on the configuration of supply networks. Work collaboratively developed templates for certification, protocols and data collection to support compliance with ethical and sustainable values.

4

•

The protocols on five ‘observational domains’ – water, energy, CO2, Chemicals, people – are in themselves a key knowledge output of the collaboration between businesses. “TCBL has allowed us to focus on some knowledge gaps along the production chain, and to develop a protocol that can lead to product certification in the not-too-distant future.”

The issue of eco-friendly production has also given rise to a broad range of initiatives across TCBL Labs and Associates, including up-cycling of used clothes, natural dyeing, recycling, zero waste design, etc.

SHORT RUNS The Short Runs Business Case looked at the issues and barriers involved in both scaling down – the shift from mass production to smaller lots – as well as scaling up – supporting business development for small-scale producers. Work also led to the development of new services such as “My Yorkshire Wardrobe” (a clothing and accessories rental service for men in a local region using local producers) and the Short Runs advisory and mapping service soon to be launched on the TCBL website.

CO-DESIGN OF THE MAPPING SERVICE FOR SHORT RUNS AT THE BERLIN HACKATHON.

Key takeaways: •

•

•

This Business Case supports skills and knowledge transfer between enterprises in areas such as costing, garment production, product development, and branding and marketing techniques, all elements tied to operational capacity factors. “TCBL has taught me the pitfalls of Short-runs, knowing the right questions to ask.”

Work also involved a new collaboration between two companies – Sqetch and Sourcebook – with online services connecting brands with producers. “Having met Sqetch and started to share a vision about future collaborations is one of the key takeaways from the TCBL project for us.”

The case directly facilitated more than 10 business transactions / opportunities, overcoming a lack of knowledge or expertise and improving production capability through the aggregation of orders. “It has been very valuable to talk things through with TCBL. TCBL has helped me to access a new market.”

5

INDEPENDENTS The Independents Business Case focuses on the needs and potentials of independent designer-producers. Work initially focused on highlighting innovative business models and capturing needs for networking and scaling up, and then gave rise to two concrete innovation projects: the TCBL Café and the Workplace of the Future.

TESTING THE TEAM PRODUCTION LAYOUT AT COCO&RICO IN PARIS.

Key takeaways: •

•

•

The project increased awareness that the organisation of production is key for improving manufacturing capacity and of the benefits of adopting new practices. One Associate involved in the experimentation reported that “we definitely saw a huge improvement in communication, skills and knowledge exchanges between staff, and better management”, validating the benefits of socialisation of on-the-job learning.

The collaborative sewing café project launched between two TCBL Labs in the UK and Italy explores ways to bring out hidden skills while engaging consumers in the production process. The TCBL Café model has spread throughout the TCBL network.

Workplace design projects experiment with team production for garment manufacturing and more flexible and social layouts. One implementation registered a 9% savings in manufacturing times, a significant reduction of defects, and an improved working atmosphere. “TCBL gave me the idea [of re-organising the workspace]. Before that, I was more focused on optimising garment development, but not the floor. [The experimentation] showed improvement of three major things: manufacturing time, communication in team, and fabric usage.”

BIOSHADES This Business Case originated from research in the Amsterdam Bio-FabLab, experimenting with growing bacteria to dye textiles. The ‘open to citizens’ approach and the disruptive sustainability potential – near-total elimination of the use of water and chemicals for a nearzero environmental impact – help spread awareness and learning across the TCBL network of Labs.

6

BIOSHADES FABRIC SAMPLES ON DISPLAY AT THE MAZDA SPACE IN BARCELONA.

Key takeaways: •

•

•

This lab-led Business Case adopts a way of open, interdisciplinary inquiry that transcends the immediate TCBL ecosystem by bringing in external people from industry, scientists, creatives, academia and students. This has led to a network of labs and enterprises actively collaborating on advancing knowledge of bacteria dyeing.

One of the participating Labs supported the idea that knowledge generation is accelerated by this approach: “That openness makes it easier and more interesting, and it moves faster to take experimentations to the next level.”

In BioShades to date, a network of 31 organisations has actively collaborated on aspects of bacteria dyeing, with approximately 200 people now knowledgeable about the techniques involved.

DIGITAL HERITAGE This Business Case was inspired by the Design Lab at the Textile Museum in Prato and explored the brand value of digitized textile archives together with their potential as a source for the creation of new designs.

RESIDENT DESIGNER LENA PERRAGUIN EXAMINING THE MARINI INDUSTRIE ARCHIVES IN PRATO.

7

Key takeaways: •

•

•

Through the case, new business models using cultural heritage as a main asset have been developed. “The businesses really learned how to utilise their archives to create something new. Before, they were just archives somewhere, not used in any way.”

A software tool ‘Heritage Manager’ was developed to support digitalization and the transfer of archiving skills, making legacy designs available online to creatives and fashion students.

An artists-in-residence program created collections of fabrics and garments that were presented at Premier Vision in Paris, September 2018. “The designers’ work was well received which is great as the fabric was based on the materials from the 50s and 60s.”

BUSINESS MODEL MAGNETS In the course of the development and implementation of the Business Cases, an innovation landscape took shape as the framework for an alternative industry structure. This landscape is characterised a well-defined set of ‘Business Model Magnets’ or possible archetypes towards which businesses can gradually shift in order to become more sustainable, fair and competitive.

• • • •

•

Short Run production: a direct spinoff of the Short Runs case, with Associates such as Fabio Giusti as the forerunners.

Local Cut, Make and Trim (CMT) Hubs: an emergent model tested in the Independents case, with Coco & Rico and Katty Fashion as forerunners.

Design Co-Workings: a model based on Design Labs in Huddersfield, Athens, Prato and Ljubljana, with the COF Hub in Slovenia as a forerunner.

Circular Materials: a combination of the Natural Fibres, BioShades and Eco-friendly cases, parallel work in several TCBL Labs, and associated Service Providers, with the Natural Fibres value chain as a forerunner.

Retail experience: new models from the Short Runs and Independents cases, with the My Yorkshire Wardrobe project as a forerunner

This configuration of Business Model Magnets defines a transition path for the Business Cases to be developed in the coming years under the TCBL Foundation.

ATTAINING ‘HIGH-LEVEL’ IMPACTS The work in the Business Cases not only aims to address concrete concerns of TCBL Associates leading to the development of new business models, but also had the purpose of demonstrating how the TCBL ecosystem can ultimately attain the ‘high-level’ industry-wide

8

impacts set as the targets for 2025 related to: new embedded services, a novel supply network, manufacturing capacity, and environmental impacts.6 NEW EMBEDDED SERVICES Here the goal consists in the “creation of new embedded services supporting the customerdriven supply chain”7. In this regard, we can say that the TCBL ecosystem is driven by embedded services at three levels: •

The TCBL Open Platform aggregates third party on-line Business Services that support agile value chain development in response to a consumer-driven market: o Wave: collaborative open innovation idea generation. o Sqetch: brand-manufacturer matchmaking. o Thela: supply chain management Key takeaway: 1,055 registered users on the TCBL Open Platform seamlessly access these services as part of their TCBL experience.

•

The network of Business Labs provides innovation services to TCBL Associates at both the local community and network levels. Service modelling methods are used to co-design concrete innovation projects with TCBL Associates.

Key takeaway: 15 on-going innovation projects demonstrating the benefits of engaging end users in co-production of innovation.

•

“TCBL as a Service” is an innovation environment capable of mobilising Labs and Associates to explore and test alternative value chain solutions in response to needs expressed by Foundations, funding agencies, etc.

Key takeaway: 5 out of 15 start-up concepts generated at the Makesense Créathon in Paris, 2 February 2019, responded to the FAMAE Foundation’s challenge of reducing water consumption in the T&C industry.

NOVEL SUPPLY NETWORK This target involves “Creation of a novel supply network involving at least 100 organisations and individuals at the end of the project and 1,000 organisations and individuals within 5 years after the end of project.” In this context, the TCBL ecosystem is there to provide the 247 Associates an environment that lowers the risk of innovation by facilitating the agile composition of new value chains within which to test new business models.

Key takeaways: •

•

4 of the 6 Business Cases - Natural Fibres, Eco-friendly production, Short Runs and Independents – involved new supply chain relationships in real business transactions.

The full set of Business Cases saw a total over 350 participations by TCBL Labs and Associates (several in more than one project).

The figures in this section are based on the ‘Outcomes Survey’ delivered to a target group of all members of the TCBL ecosystem in May-June 2019, i.e. 50 TCBL Labs, 20 start-ups and 230 Associate Enterprises. A total of 67 ecosystem members completed the Survey, of which 22 were Associates or Start-ups.

6

The quotes in this section refer to the ‘expected impacts’ section in the Call text, taken up in the TCBL workplan.

7

9

•

87% of businesses surveyed said creating collaborative business partnerships is very important to business, noting 26% value added as a result of TCBL.

MANUFACTURING CAPACITY Here the goal is a “return of delocalised manufacturing to Europe, in the order of at least 5% of the total manufacturing capacity” in the sector by 2025. While at first sight this can be taken to mean re-shoring or re-location of production, work in TCBL revealed other equally important ways to increase existing manufacturing capacity, related to issues such as revealing hidden knowledge capacities (particularly in the recently unemployed), exploring new production models including local small-scale units, a shift towards agile and flexible production focusing on quality rather than quantity, and the experimentation of new, more sustainable and more competitive business models.

Key takeaways: • • • • •

24% of survey responses said that TCBL helped them to create new business lines, with an average value of € 258,000.8 8% said they had increased their geographic markets.

73% of businesses surveyed said increasing local employment is very important to business; 18% value added to their business as a result of TCBL 49% of TCBL businesses have acquired a positive attitude to risk taking, contributing to € 6,500 average value per business as a result.

37% of TCBL businesses have experimented with new sustainable business models, contributing to € 62,500 average value to business as a result.

The economic analysis suggests that organisations in the TCBL ecosystem gained an aggregate of € 2,331,000 in benefits from business model experiments.

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT Here the target is a “reduction in environmental footprint compared to products produced in the traditional value chains by 20% through less stock, less waste, and less transportation.”

TCBL extended the scope of this objective to include water and energy consumption and chemical usage, finding that while single impacts can be empirically measured, the radical transition required for attaining a circular economy involves above all a shift in business models and mindsets throughout the industry.

Key takeaways include: • •

•

8

Average annual reductions in the TCBL ecosystem are estimated at € 15,000 for raw materials, € 8,000 for waste, and € 5,000 for energy consumption.

20 TCBL Associates witnessed increased orders based on waste reduction measures, with an estimated € 60,000 average value from compliance with the waste reduction protocol.

80% of businesses surveyed rated a reduction in environmental footprint as very important to business.

Figures in this section are rounded to the nearest € 1,000 for readability.

10

The economic analysis suggests that organisations in the TCBL ecosystem made a total savings of € 319,000 from implementing TCBL waste reduction strategies, € 100,000 through TCBL energy saving strategies, and € 120,000 by reducing raw material consumption.9

LOOKING FORWARD While significant progress has been made towards the TCBL high-level impacts, it is equally important to identify the key dynamics that the TCBL Foundation will need to take into account in moving the ecosystem forward towards its goals for 2025.

Three areas – trends, issues, open variables – have been identified in this respect: •

•

•

Rapidly increasing awareness of the climate crisis is accelerating a change of mindset that is also beginning to have a concrete effect on both policy (new REACH legislation, Circular Economy funding) and consumer behaviours. While not initially the focus of attention, the textile and clothing sector is now fully in the spotlight (e.g. ‘fast fashion shaming’10). This trend strongly reinforces the mission of the TCBL ecosystem and could lead to a greater than expected increase of its role in accompanying industrial transformation towards sustainability.

In parallel there is the trend towards digital society and, more specifically Industry 4.0. These technologies can bring important benefits to supporting business models coherent with TCBL’s goals, digitising supply chains and making sustainable fashion economically viable, but will also have to address serious concerns about privacy, job losses, and the tendency to only further contribute to over-production. Here the opportunities for the TCBL ecosystem are to demonstrate how Industry 4.0 can support knowledge and interaction rather replacing them in a model of ‘human digital fashion’.

All of these trends will be influenced by the strategic choices of the big brands, in both the fast fashion and luxury markets. While many are claiming headline actions towards sustainability, efforts often challenged as ‘greenwashing’, their business models are likely to face difficulty in escaping from the trap of over-production with cost-driven supply chains. Those willing to make a real commitment to shift their significant organisational and infrastructural assets to support alternative business models could potentially be powerful allies for TCBL, although this is not seen as a necessary condition for the ecosystem’s continuing development.

Indeed, the evaluation has shown that the real key to keeping the momentum is to continue to support the TCBL ecosystem in line with the principles of operation defined in the project’s four years. During the grant funded period, encouraging this has required TCBL partner involvement, shared (business) interest in a common project and an ability to resolve practical problems arising from a novel way of working. Reaching the 2025 targets will in part also depend on the ongoing efforts to deal with these practical challenges whilst maintaining TCBL’s common goals.

9

The figures on waste reduction, energy saving and reducing raw materials are aggregated figures combining the individual savings estimated by those survey participants who provided data on these questions 10

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/hm-fast-fashion-boss-karl-johan-persson-environmentaldamage-a9174121.html

11