Seasalt strengthens ethical supply chain management

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Cornish fashion favourite, Seasalt, has added K3 Retail to its roster of carefully sourced suppliers. Currently undergoing a period of expansion, Seasalt sought a way to continue to nurture its supplier relationships and customer-centred philosophy, while still growing.

The solution lay in K3's proprietary software, ax|is fashion. Built on the bedrock of Microsoft Dynamics AX, ax|is fashion enables retailers to oversee and control every point of a retail supply chain, from concept to consumer. Currently being developed and installed, go live is set for early 2015.

Seasalt Director, Leigh Chadwick, said: "K3's technology solution will help us maintain the care and attention to detail that we built our business on while we were still a small retailer in the heart of our community.

"As we have grown from just one shop in Penzance to the 24 stores and online presence we have today, we have continued to know everyone who supplies us, and the journey their products take. We have always talked to our customers directly and built relationships with them, as well as with our suppliers. We don't want to lose that intimacy and knowledge as we grow bigger in the future."

K3's solution, ax|is fashion, is pre-configured for the fashion sector and will give Seasalt's head office real time visibility and control over the supply chain from a single point, while creating a solid platform for growth.

K3 Retail Sales Director, John Little, explained: "Seasalt's core values are central to everything they do. They are committed to ethical trading and, in addition to adhering to Purchasing, Environmental and Social Responsibility Policies, they believe in developing loyal relationships with suppliers and customers. Our solution was a good fit for them as it will help them develop the policies and practices that are at the heart of their work."

Seasalt's adherence to the highest levels of quality and ethics in business are almost legendary. They were the first fashion company to be certified by the Soil Association (for their organic cottons) and, in 2013, were the first fashion company to win the Queen's Award for Enterprise and Sustainable Development.

"It's great working with a company like Seasalt," John Little acknowledged. "Even just walking into head office, you can feel that it is a family business.

"And although we at K3 Retail may never be certified organic", he adds, "we do share their belief in developing our staff, with both companies holding Investors in People accreditations."