The clothing industry in the context of international business

Abstract

This essay proposes to explore the textile and clothing sector, grouped here in its entire production chain as “clothing sector”, and its global production chain. Characterized by fragmentation, the circuit production process allows production steps to be part of one another as input and output of supply and demand. This sector is relevant in Brazil, considered to be one of the largest clothing producers, occupying the sixth position in the international scenario. Intensive in labor and characterized by the lowest investments necessary to generate employment among the various industrial sectors. Consequently, a sector characterized by a fragile barrier to the entry of new players. For Mendes Júnior (2018) they are highly volatile products with great price elasticity and, consequently, large buyers and dominant retailers are playing cards in the production of clothes in a market that has great fragility at the end. In this critical essay, working conditions and the following hypotheses for the formation of in-depth research in the future are pointed out: (H1) The internationalization process of the fashion industry in emerging countries is focused on factors of production; (H2) The context of the fashion industry is broader, more diverse and segmented than we imagine, involving various sectors within the production chain and (H3) The fashion industry is undergoing changes in the way products are being produced.