What Observers Say— The Buzz

The Wall Street Journal reported the experience of Nike and its apparel line of Tiger Woods golf shirts. At the 2002 Masters tournament, the Georgia heat had wilted Tiger s traditional, final day burgundy shirt. As he stepped forward to receive the winner s green jacket, the collar decomposed on national television to the embarrassment of Nike sponsors. 

The next day, Nike contacted Esquel Group, a 47,000-employee Chinese manufacturer that owns every link in its supply chain. Nike s purpose was to move the account from the incumbent Chinese rival to Esquel. Esquel produced a totally reengineered replacement in months, a speedy response for the industry. Its ability to do so was made possible by its control over its supply chain. 

One response has been the emergence of alternative supply chains that focus on the extended product. Dell sells direct over the telephone or through its Internet site. Dell has lowered overhead and improved cash flow by using supplier capital to finance its business. Existing channels make it hard for other manufacturers to shift their supply chains. They fear alienation of their retail partners if they bypass them and go direct. But the pressure to have a 

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These changes reflect broad undercurrents and may not even be seen by participants in the industry. The examples here call attention to these undercurrents in a few selected industries. We do this through the eyes of industry observers and commentators. What they say, industry buzz, points to the growing importance of SCM, or the spin. The buzz and the spin anecdotes are pointers toward SCM s future. 

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