State socialist nationalization policies in the 1980s severely impacted the ethnic Turkish and Muslim regions of Bulgaria, while neo-liberal economic strategies have subsequently further deepened their economic crisis. This paper focuses on the ways in which policies of regional economic...

Pickles J. and Smith A. Delocalization and persistence in the European clothing industry: the reconfiguration of trade and production networks, Regional Studies. This paper examines processes of delocalization and the phenomenon of the 'spectre of China' in the European clothing industry...

Since the late 1980s the European apparel sector has witnessed a dramatic transformation. Driven by increasing costs in Western Europe, major Western apparel retailers and buyers have expanded their contracting of production into lower cost regions of `postcommunist' Eastern Europe and the...

After a period in the 1990s of rapid integration into the production and trade networks of the European Union (EU) (and to a lesser extent of the United States), clothing manufacturers in East and Central Europe have had to adjust quickly to the changing costs of production with EU accession,...

Abstract The Capturing the Gains research network assesses the relationship between economic and social upgrading in global production networksin four sectors; apparel, agro-foods, mobile phones, and tourism. This paper details the findings of the apparel sector research team, with a focus on...

Abstract After a decade or more during which private codes to monitor supply chain and workplace standards have proliferated, recent years have seen the re-emergence of state-based initiatives to create more oversight and accountability across global value chains. In January 2012, the California...

Abstract Much of the global economy is now dominated by global production networks that span countries and continents and connect producers and buyers in global supply chains. This complex and dynamic structure of economic activity has rapidly brought the productive capacity of developing...