Chapter 86
After filming four episodes in a month, the production team will suspend filming and make adjustments based on audience feedback after the episodes air.
Lin Ting returned to her main job, and orders for the summer e-commerce products had begun to be placed with suppliers for mass production. Everything was going smoothly, except for two problems that urgently needed to be solved.
There's a fabric that needs to be printed all over, but the order quantity is too small, not meeting either the minimum order quantity for the fabric factory or the minimum order quantity for the printing factory. As a result, several suppliers have rejected the order. Lin Ting wanted to increase the order quantity, but Zhang Ying disagreed, feeling it was risky. Her advice was either to cancel the order or find a similar existing fabric to replace it.
Fortunately, Yao Yanyan found an existing fabric that perfectly matched the pattern and style Lin Ting wanted. Unfortunately, it was from a new fabric supplier with whom they had never worked before. The normal supplier introduction process, from qualification verification and factory inspection to trial use, would take at least three months. To shorten the time, Lin Ting volunteered to act as the quality assurance representative, using a special introduction process. They completed all the procedures in half a month, got into the M Group's supplier pool, and the fabric problem was solved.
Another problem was even more troublesome. This season, one of the designs used the traditional "tie-dye" technique. During the sample garment pattern-making stage, we communicated with the dye factory multiple times and made repeated adjustments to finally achieve the result Lin Ting wanted. However, during the mass production stage, the success rate of dyeing a batch was less than half.
Because the tie-dye area was large, uneven distribution of the dye pattern on the fabric would result in significant waste during the cutting stage, leading to high overall costs. Therefore, they opted for garment dyeing, tying up the parts to be dyed before placing them in the dye vat. Unexpectedly, the scrap rate was very high; half of the garments in one batch were ruined, causing panic among the garment manufacturers.
They directly ordered the dyeing factory to stop production, threatening to halt further output until the problem was resolved, and even demanded the factory reimburse them for the cost of the damaged garments. The fabric factory was unhappy and called Lin Ting, full of resentment. "The order was small, and such a large-scale tie-dyeing operation carried a high risk. We didn't want to take the order in the first place; we only agreed because of our long-standing relationship with the M Group. Now that there's a problem, you're hiding behind the scenes, leaving us to bear all the losses. This is incredibly unethical."
It's common for garment manufacturers to encounter such disputes over craftsmanship. The most serious case Lin heard of involved an order of 20,000 pieces, all of which had been sealed in boxes, but during a third-party quality inspection, the printed labels were found to be detached, and the entire order had to be returned to the factory or it couldn't be put on the shelves.
The printing factory knew that the problem was caused by insufficient heat during the pressing process. However, they also discovered that if the heat was too high, the fabric around the printed label would wrinkle. So they lowered the temperature, but the label still stuck on during pressing. They tried to pick it off and found that it wouldn't fall off. They took a chance, but after a while, the label still started to peel off.
So when the problem arose, the blame was directly shifted to the garment manufacturers, who claimed that the fabric was too thin. They also pointed out that the garments must not have been dried after finishing and ironing, and that moisture trapped inside the bags caused the printed labels to become less sticky and increase the risk of them falling off.
The garment manufacturers knew that the label printing factory was only making hindsight. Since they discovered that excessively high pressing temperatures could cause the fabric to deform and wrinkle, why didn't they raise this issue during the sampling stage? They only brought up the problem after the finished product was produced, showing a complete lack of responsibility.
The label printing factory is slacking off. During the sampling stage, did you ever provide us with a final, approved fabric sample for printing labels? Every time you send us a substitute fabric.
The final stalemate was that the label printing factory demanded that the garment manufacturers resolve the fabric issue before they would heat-press the labels, while the garment manufacturers felt that the label printing factory was being unreasonable. They argued that since there were already a lot of garments, how could they possibly improve the fabric quality? They believed that this was a technical issue related to heat-pressing the labels and that the label printing factory should bear the responsibility.
M Group is eager to put this model on the shelves for sale. It's a lightweight, short down jacket for winter, a basic style that's been a bestseller all year round. If the 20,000 pieces are delayed in going on the shelves, they will lose the market opportunity. Moreover, they've already paid a 30% deposit, so how could they allow them to be delayed like this?
Both soft and hard tactics were employed.
First, we made our stance clear to intimidate them: if the issue isn't resolved, we'd rather not have the goods, and the deposit will be wasted. A 30% deposit isn't enough to cover the costs incurred by both factories. We made it clear that if the issue isn't resolved, they'll be the ones who suffer losses. We softened our stance first.
After several attempts by professional fabric technicians to provide guidance and resolve the issue, M Group promised to postpone the delivery date by seven days, providing ample time for repairs, and would not deduct any penalties for delayed delivery as stipulated in the contract.
However, a new payment agreement was signed, still adhering to the original contract. The final payment would be made within one month of bulk delivery, but only 40% would be paid upfront. The remaining 30% would be paid after the season's sales ended, based on total sales volume; unsold goods would be returned to the manufacturer. Print peeling is a potential problem; inevitably, after the product is put on the shelves, some customers will discover this issue and complain to the store, resulting in cancellations.
However, both the printing factory and the garment manufacturer are long-term partners of the M Group. They know that this style is a top-selling item and there is basically no chance of it not selling. This move is clearly a reminder to them that we are a community of shared interests and that we share the responsibility when problems arise. No one can escape responsibility. Therefore, we must speak up as soon as we discover a problem and not wait until the end. We should work together to find solutions where possible and discuss alternative approaches and methods where not possible.
However, shifting blame and covering up problems are the two behaviors most disliked in teamwork.
Lin Ting is now facing a similar problem. When she was an assistant, she didn't have to deal with these issues and disliked handling them. They appear to be technical problems, but in reality, they involve too many interpersonal relationships. Her attitude can't be too firm or too soft; if handled poorly, things will fall apart. This isn't just about three people or just one order; it's about the collaboration of three companies and the reputation of the enterprises in the industry. If handled improperly, it will leave room for criticism and lead to the loss of many partners.
But Lin Ting is now the lead designer, the leader of a team, and she has to face these kinds of problems. Although she hadn't dealt with them before, she'd seen how things work, even if she hadn't experienced them herself—it's just a matter of giving someone a slap first and then a sweet treat.
One should assume corresponding responsibilities according to their position.
So she decided to go to the printing factory herself and meet up with the garment merchant.
Yao Yanyan saw Lin Ting's business trip application and offered to go with her, but Lin Ting politely declined. The round trip was expected to take four days, and the team could not be without a decision-maker, so she needed to stay at the company to handle affairs.
Lin Ting's feelings towards Yao Yanyan evolved from indifference to mutual appreciation. They were all in the same boat; only by working together to steer the ship well could they sail further. She was very grateful that Yao Yanyan could handle various tasks in her place during the recording of the program, managing them all appropriately. Moreover, when discussing finances, Yao Yanyan proactively shared her past experiences, helping them avoid some mistakes. After all, online and offline sales models are different; what sells well offline may not necessarily sell well online.
It was only through getting to know her that Lin Ting discovered Yao Yanyan wasn't inherently bad, and she was quite capable at work. It was just that her life had been too smooth, and she'd been praised too highly, which had made her arrogant and disdainful of others. Demoting her by one level had tempered her arrogance, allowing her to settle down, calm her mind, and focus on her work. Her true nature and abilities were revealed, and people in the office noticed the change. She became quieter and gentler, truly becoming a beautiful and capable woman in everyone's eyes, and the more they looked at her, the more pleasing she became.
This must be the intention of the higher-ups.
A woman's true ability lies not in how high she can stand, but in her ability to rediscover her original aspirations and start anew whenever she falls to the bottom.
After his business trip application was approved, Lin Ting set off directly from home the next day. The dyeing factory was in Xingzhen, which Lin Ting was quite familiar with, as it was next to Lizhen. Lizhen, Xingzhen, and Taozhen were all towns under Tongcheng. Tongcheng itself was the first city of modern light industry, mainly developing the textile and garment industry, so its subordinate towns each had their own characteristics. Lizhen was the hometown of embroidery, Taozhen was an important weaving center, and Xingzhen was the dyeing and finishing center, where you could find inheritors of all kinds of dyeing techniques. Its most famous product was blue-and-white printed fabric, which has a history of more than a thousand years and is a key intangible cultural heritage. Tie-dyeing was also one of their specialties, winning gold medals in national tie-dyeing competitions many times.
Tie-dyeing is a process that consists of two parts: tying and dyeing. It involves using tools such as yarn, thread, and rope to tie, sew, bind, attach, and clamp the fabric before dyeing. A key characteristic of this technique is that the thread is knotted around the fabric before dyeing, and then the knots are removed.
Lin Ting's tie-dye design this time was on the hem of the garment, with multiple knots tied and then thrown into the dye vat. The original intention was to create an orange gradient umbrella effect after the knots were untied, but instead, the gradient and umbrella shape did not appear; instead, the garment was dyed into a clump.
Upon arriving in Xingzhen, Lin Ting rushed to the dyeing factory. When he arrived, the garment merchant, the dyeing factory owner, and the dyeing experts he had invited were already gathered together discussing solutions.
Tie-dyeing is a delicate process; even the slightest mistake can lead to disastrous results. Experts can spot problems with just a touch of the fabric. The mass-produced fabric is much rougher than the sample fabric, which means it absorbs dye less effectively. Therefore, the dyeing ratio, duration, and vat temperature all need to be readjusted.
Fortunately, the garment merchant brought a large roll of fabric, and after several adjustments, the desired effect was finally achieved on the afternoon of the second day, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
Regarding the damaged garments, Lin Ting agreed to let the garment supplier spread the cost of the damages over the next few orders that were still in the pricing stage, which made all three parties happy.
In early spring, March, the sun shone brightly, warming her face. Lin Ting closed her eyes, enjoying the sunshine. The air was filled with the faint fragrance of flowers and the scent of earth—the unique aroma of spring, fresh and intoxicating.
Everything was so beautiful and full of hope. Suddenly, she opened her eyes, a bright smile on her face.
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