Limits of buyer-driven governance for sustainability: inherent challenges of fragmented supplier networks

Sustainability in global production networks: introducing the notion of extended supplier networks

Rachel Alexander

Journal of Economic Geography, 2022, vol. 22, issue 4, 801-828

Abstract: This article questions retailers’ role as buyers driving production. Exploring a network involving Indian suppliers of UK retailers’ cotton garments, limitations preventing coercive buyer power from controlling production practices are identified. Overall, the dominant system of large-scale fragmented supplier networks connecting raw materials to final products accommodates commercially viable practices causing social or environmental challenges. While some pressures effectively span complex networks, buyers’ practice-related demands do not. Dissecting the ‘drivenness’ concept, this study shows multipolar governance within an industry often considered buyer-driven. Also, it furthers critiques of private governance’s effectiveness, indicating the need for alternative governance frameworks or network structures.

Keywords: Global production networks; sustainability; governance; corporate social responsibility (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: L23 L67 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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