In My View by Eric Musgrave: Don't lose the personal touch

One of the pleasures of my work is bringing people together. Knowing something I write may prompt a comment back to me or a conversation among readers, who may agree or disagree with what I’ve said, is consistently satisfying.

While I think about it, thanks to all of you who respond to the contents of this monthly column, especially when it is posted on social media. Genuinely, it is very gratifying to learn your views.

For me, even better than receiving an email or a text is to meet face-to-face. In this era of communicating via a laptop or a mobile phone, working remotely, and getting excited (or worried) about the implementation of Artificial Intelligence, it is usually a treat to spend time with one or more people, just having an in-depth, old-fashioned conversation.

I fear it is becoming an endangered practice.

In the latter part of my 43 years in the business, I have refined a formula for that popular gathering, the networking dinner, which reminds me just how rewarding a relaxed chat can be.

I have attended a few such events as a guest and sometimes I have been frustrated they end up being a non-too-subtle sales pitch from the host company or a bit of a one-way propaganda presentation. My way of doing things is more enjoyable and more productive, I am immodest enough to claim.

The first element is to keep the group small. About eight to ten guests, a couple of people from any sponsoring partner and I add up to 11 to 13 (lucky for some!) people around the table. That size of group is small enough to ensure that the Master of Ceremonies (that is, me) can control the conversation and ensure everyone contributes and we don’t end up with three conversations going on around the dining table.

Recently I held my first networking dinner in conjunction with my friends at Infor, a sizable US-based concern that specialises in ERP (or enterprise resource planning, to give it its full moniker). Curiously, the company works closely with some of the biggest fashion names in the world and in this country, yet it is not as well-known here in the UK as it might be. Having me chair some dinners with senior execs is one way to raise its profile while gaining some very incisive insights into what substantial companies are thinking about trade at present and in the immediate future.

All my gatherings are held under the Chatham House Rule, so anyone attending is free to use any information shared but is not permitted to reveal who made any comment. The three major points that stuck in my mind from the recent wide-ranging chat among eight guests are as follows:

1. The industry is still readjusting and resetting in the post-lockdown period, in terms of how and where employees work, how consumers shop, and how the supply chain functions. It’s not clear when we will be back to “normal”, whatever that means.
2. The cost-of-living pressures are being felt, or at least noticed, in almost all sectors of the fashion business below the premium level, with the squeeze getting tighter the lower down the price spectrum you look. It’s hard to sell anything if your consumers do not have any spare money.
3. The consumers are in the driving seat, spoilt for choice in an over-shopped UK market or, perhaps more interestingly for retailers’ development, bored with the repetition of the same offer from many different players.

When I asked how my guests viewed the prospects for the rest of this year and into 2024, most, perhaps looking at the well-replenished wine glasses in from of them, suggested they were cautiously optimistic about the prospects for trading. Only one voice declared themselves to be “cautiously pessimistic”, a view I share.

I see no reasons why things are going to get significantly better for our fellow citizens who are struggling with inflation, rising costs and wages that are not keeping up with inflation.

I was not surprised to see precious little mention of revitalising retailing at the recent political party conferences. It was ever thus. My guests were almost universally of the opinion they achieve what they achieve despite the interference of government, not because of the help it provides.

Returning to the subject of one-to-one encounters, if you haven’t already done so, I encourage you to read the interview I conducted with Tarak Ramzan, the founder of womenswear chain Quiz, which was posted recently.

The plan with TheIndustry.fashion is for me to have more conversations with other industry leaders, especially low-profile ones. All I am seeking is straight answers to straight questions, something Tarak, who I had never met before, was very good at. And if my interviewees can throw in some amusing stories as he did, so much the better.

As someone once observed, it’s good to talk. Let’s not lose the personal touch in our stimulating and challenging industry.