Option 3: The Deflection Play (Coalition Call)

You polished an op‑ed, pinned blame on the industry, and trusted momentum to carry the day. For forty‑eight hours it works: stock stabilises, and Gazipur’s machines hum like nothing happened. Designers exhale, sketching next season’s lines as if the factory floor were fireproof.

Then the backlash blooms. #SpinelessSilk trends across six continents; online sales dive eleven percent and resale platforms delist STG overnight. Two prized pattern‑makers resign, citing values. Customer‑service tickets triple, each asking what has actually changed. By Day 30, regulators, sensing blood, schedule surprise fibre audits “given the company’s evasive posture,” and a leading NGO pledges weekly scorecards until meaningful reform appears. The garments still ship, but trust haemorrhages faster than cash, and the talent pipeline needed to redesign with solvent‑safe fibres is draining away.

Your op‑ed deferred blame; it did not build capacity. The next external test will arrive earlier, armed with solvents and sample jars, expecting evidence that your rhetoric can stitch itself into real cloth. At present, the cupboard is bare.

Regulators interpret the op‑ed as a lack of cooperation, increasing oversight and fines in line with international conventions. The coalition buffers reputational shocks, but its compromises linger—soon, hard choices about fabric and credibility will test whether alignment can hold.