This issue has plenty of everything, with three core profile stories, multiple event overviews, and tons of insights to keep you hooked. This month’s cover story is a conversation with Daniel Hernandez, Group Industrial and Supply Chain Director of the French luxury brand S.T. Dupont.
S.T. Dupont is world famous for its beautiful lighters, pens, and leather goods. There’s an enormous sense of pride running through the company as – despite constant outside pressures – it continues to manufacture in France using traditional methods. Hernandez says: “It’s a key differentiator for our brand. Luxury is associated with quality; if you’re buying a luxury product, you’re expecting a high degree of quality, which includes the service. The way we produce and have kept the plant fully integrated here in France allows us to provide a much better service and after-sales service, but especially to control the whole process of production.”
We also dig into the challenges of polar supply chain management with Simon Lancaster, Head of Supply Chain Logistics at British Antarctic Survey. It’s a difficult area to drive transformation in, but Lancaster has been doing that successfully via technology and people management.
“From now, it’s about driving improvement – hence the current focus on quality,” says Lancaster. “Once we get everything settled, repeatable, reliable, and capable, we can start looking at driving efficiencies, utilising data from the system, and really benefitting from standardisation.”
And that’s not all…
Plus, we have a fascinating discussion with Ruyman Gallardo Armas about his career in the aviation industry, and how it’s evolved. Aviation has historically been fairly slow-moving, and within the current landscape, that has only worsened. However, it’s also an industry with huge potential – especially when a strong supply chain is involved. “Aviation doesn’t reward theory – it rewards execution,” Gallardo explains. “It’s about the ability to break down complex problems, prioritise actions, and deliver measurable outcomes. That’s critical, particularly in high-pressure moments like supply disruptions.”
Alongside these expert conversations, we have insights from CloudPaths and 4Flow, an overview of March’s Exiger Executive Forum, and key lessons learned from ethica26. We also have more leadership expertise from Koray Köse of KOSE Advisory, and three round-up articles from our engaging visit to Ivalua NOW earlier in the year. And finally, as always, we close with a look ahead at our picks for upcoming supply chain events.
Enjoy this issue!
