Impact of Buyer-Supplier Relationship in Supply Chain Viability and Performance in the Apparel Industry: Evidence from Multi-Mediation Model

Abstract

In today's interconnected business landscape, no company can operate in isolation. Therefore, collaborative buyer-supplier relationships have become essential for sustaining and maintaining competitiveness. This has elevated the supply chain as a critical tool for strategy and competition. However, continuous natural disasters and pandemics have disrupted global supply chains, sparking interest in the concept of supply chain viability; the ability to adapt, survive and maintain performance over the long term in a changing environment. Consequently, the apparel industry which has been the largest gross export earner since 1986 faces variety of challenges throughout the value chain as they rely heavily on complex supply chains that span the globe. Moreover, continuous disruptions to the supply chain due to global as well as local incidents like COVID-19 epidemic, Israel-Hamas conflict, Houthi rebels’ issues in Red Sea, conflict between Russia and Ukraine, disputes between China-Thailand; India-Pakistan; South Korea-North Korea and China-USA over trade policies and territorial claims, Easter Sunday attack in Sri Lanka 2019, the political- economic upheavals (ARAGALAYA) from 2021 to 2022 and bankruptcy of Sri Lankan economy evident above issues go beyond the existing state of the art in supply chain viability dimensions like resilience, sustainability and agility as they cannot be resolved individually within each of these perspectives and require integrated frameworks and extension support like buyer-supplier relationships to perform and sustain in disrupted environment. Therefore, this study will build theoretical model based on Dynamic Capability Approach (DCA) and Network Theory (NT). The study will assess the hypotheses using partial least square-based structural equation modelling with data from all available Export garment factories (72) in Sri Lanka. The findings of this study will offer actionable recommendations for industry practitioners on how to build and maintain strong buyer-supplier relationships that contribute to achieving supply chain viability and enhancing supply chain performance in a disrupted environment.