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Stories

Stories

01 Dec 2014

Instilling Production with Principles

Marjorie Yang (MBA 1976), Chairman, Esquel Group
Re: Margie Yang (MBA 1976); James Reinhart (MBA 2009); Christopher Homer (MBA 2009); Soufi Esmaeilzadeh (MBA 2010); By: April White
Topics: Operations-ProductionEnvironment-Environmental SustainabilityMarkets-Industry StructuresGovernance-PolicyLeadership-Leading Change
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The Esquel Group has reduced water consumption at its factories by more than 50 percent in the last nine years.

Asia–based Esquel Group is one of the world’s largest manufacturers of high-end cotton shirts, producing about 100 million shirts a year for brands like Ralph Lauren and Tommy Hilfiger. But chairman Marjorie Yang doesn’t spend much time talking about apparel anymore. Instead, she’s talking about the importance of improving the livelihood of workers (which reduces turnover) and reducing water and electricity use throughout the supply chain. Pro-worker and pro-environmental policies are money savers and the key to her company’s continued success, Yang says.

More Retail Revolutions

Recycling the
Consignment Shop

Bigger than the local consignment shop and easier than eBay, thredUP, cofounded by James Reinhart (MPA/MBA 2009) and Chris Homer (MBA 2009), lets customers clean out their closets and earn some cash or score discounted used clothing and lighten fashion’s carbon footprint.

Revitalizing Bricks and Mortar

Under the guidance of product manager Soufi Esmaeilzadeh (MBA 2010), Google Maps comes inside with Business View, which captures panoramic images to give local shops an enticing web presence alongside their e-commerce peers.

Yang took a leadership role at Esquel Group, which her father founded, in 1995. The company has grown steadily despite the economic downturn, and today Esquel Group has 59,000 employees worldwide, growing, ginning, spinning, dyeing, knitting, and weaving cotton and manufacturing garments and accessories. Every step is governed by Yang’s E-Culture—ethics, environment, exploration, excellence, and education—which has earned the company the accolades of its clients and watchdog groups. Now she wants the attention of her competitors in an industry often known for low wages and dismal environmental records. “We can be a catalyst of change,” says Yang, who is planning sustainability conferences and factory tours to share her company’s successful strategies.

“We’re not going to just count our own commercial success. We’re going to count how much impact we have on changing the behavior of the whole industry,” she says. “We’re going to create some noise.”

Next: Áslaug Magnúsdóttir (MBA 2000) — Customizing Couture Online »

Return to Fashion's Retail Revolution main page «

 

To learn more about these seven HBS Alumni trendsetters, click on their photos below:


Marjorie Yang
Instilling Production with Principles
Instilling Production with Principles
 
Áslaug Magnúsdóttir
Customizing Couture Online
Customizing Couture Online
 
Jamal Motlagh
Taking Tailoring High Tech
Taking Tailoring High Tech
 
Katrina Lake
Dressing by Number
Dressing by Number
 
Karen Moon
Making Big Data Fashionable
Making Big Data Fashionable
 
Ivy Ross
Creating the Shopping Experience of the Future
Creating the Shopping Experience of the Future
 
Imran Amed
Rethinking the Fashion Beat
Rethinking the Fashion Beat
 
 
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Featured Alumni

Margie Yang
MBA 1976
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Featured Alumni

Margie Yang
MBA 1976
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