Zara's Secret for Fast Fashion

2/21/2005Spanish retailer Zara has hit on a formula for supply chain success that works. By defying conventional wisdom, Zara can design and distribute a garment to market in just fifteen days. From Harvard Business Review.

by Kasra Ferdows, Michael A. Lewis and Jose A.D. Machuca

Editor's note: With some 650 stores in 50 countries, Spanish clothing retailer Zara has hit on a formula for supply chain success that works by defying conventional wisdom. This excerpt from a recent Harvard Business Reviewprofile zeros in on how Zara's supply chain communicates, allowing it to design, produce, and deliver a garment in fifteen days.

In Zara stores, customers can always find new products—but they're in limited supply. There is a sense of tantalizing exclusivity, since only a few items are on display even though stores are spacious (the average size is around 1,000 square meters). A customer thinks, "This green shirt fits me, and there is one on the rack. If I don't buy it now, I'll lose my chance."

Such a retail concept depends on the regular creation and rapid replenishment of small batches of new goods. Zara's designers create approximately 40,000 new designs annually, from which 10,000 are selected for production. Some of them resemble the latest couture creations. But Zara often beats the high-fashion houses to the market and offers almost the same products, made with less expensive fabric, at much lower prices. Since most garments come in five to six colors and five to seven sizes, Zara's system has to deal with something in the realm of 300,000 new stock-keeping units (SKUs), on average, every year.

This "fast fashion" system depends on a constant exchange of information throughout every part of Zara's supply chain—from customers to store managers, from store managers to market specialists and designers, from designers to production staff, from buyers to subcontractors, from warehouse managers to distributors, and so on. Most companies insert layers of bureaucracy that can bog down communication between departments. But Zara's organization, operational procedures, performance measures, and even its office layouts are all designed to make information transfer easy.

Zara's single, centralized design and production center is attached to Inditex (Zara's parent company) headquarters in La Coruña. It consists of three spacious halls—one for women's clothing lines, one for men's, and one for children's. Unlike most companies, which try to excise redundant labor to cut costs, Zara makes a point of running three parallel, but operationally distinct, product families. Accordingly, separate design, sales, and procurement and production-planning staffs are dedicated to each clothing line. A store may receive three different calls from La Coruña in one week from a market specialist in each channel; a factory making shirts may deal simultaneously with two Zara managers, one

for men's shirts and another for children's shirts. Though it's more expensive to operate three channels, the information flow for each channel is fast, direct, and unencumbered by problems in other channels—making the overall supply chain more responsive.

In each hall, floor to ceiling windows overlooking the Spanish countryside reinforce a sense of cheery

informality and openness. Unlike companies that sequester their design staffs, Zara's cadre of 200 designers sits right in the midst of the production process. Split among the three lines, these mostly twentysomething designers—hired because of their enthusiasm and talent, no prima donnas allowed—work next to the market specialists and procurement and production planners. Large circular tables play host to impromptu meetings. Racks of the latest fashion magazines and catalogs fill the walls. A small prototype shop has been set up in the corner of each hall, which encourages everyone to comment on new garments as they evolve.

The physical and organizational proximity of the three groups increases both the speed and the quality of the design process. Designers can quickly and informally check initial sketches with colleagues. Market specialists, who are in constant touch with store managers (and many of whom have been store managers themselves), provide quick feedback about the look of the new designs (style, color, fabric, and so on) and suggest possible market price points. Procurement and production planners make preliminary, but crucial, estimates of manufacturing costs and available capacity. The cross-functional teams can examine prototypes in the hall, choose a design, and commit resources for its production and introduction in a few hours, if necessary.

Zara is careful about the way it deploys the latest information technology tools to facilitate these informal exchanges. Customized handheld computers support the connection between the retail stores and La Coruña. These PDAs augment regular (often weekly) phone conversations between the store managers and the market specialists assigned to them. Through the PDAs and telephone conversations, stores transmit all kinds of information to La Coruña—such hard data as orders and sales trends and such soft data as customer reactions and the "buzz" around a new style. While any company can use PDAs to communicate, Zara's flat organization ensures that important conversations don't fall through the bureaucratic cracks.

Once the team selects a prototype for production, the designers refine colors and textures on a computer-aided design system. If the item is to be made in one of Zara's factories, they transmit the specs directly to the relevant cutting machines and other systems in that factory. Bar codes track the cut pieces as they are converted into garments through the various steps involved in production (including sewing operations usually done by subcontractors), distribution, and delivery to the stores, where the communication cycle began.

Zara's cadre of 200 designers sits right in the midst of the production process.

The constant flow of updated data mitigates the so-called bullwhip effect—the tendency of supply chains (and all open-loop information systems) to amplify small disturbances. A small change in retail orders, for example, can result in wide fluctuations in factory orders after it's transmitted through wholesalers and distributors. In an industry that traditionally allows retailers to change a maximum of 20 percent of their orders once the season has started, Zara lets them adjust 40 percent to 50 percent. In this way, Zara avoids costly overproduction and the subsequent sales and discounting prevalent in the industry.

The relentless introduction of new products in small quantities, ironically, reduces the usual costs associated with running out of any particular item. Indeed, Zara makes a virtue of stock-outs. Empty racks don't drive customers to other stores because shoppers always have new things to choose from. Being out of stock in one item helps sell another, since people are often happy to snatch what they can. In fact, Zara has an informal policy of moving unsold items after two or three weeks. This can be an expensive practice for a typical store, but since Zara stores receive small shipments and carry little inventory, the risks are small; unsold items account for less than 10 percent of stock, compared with the industry average of 17 percent to 20 percent. Furthermore, new merchandise displayed in limited quantities and the short window of opportunity for purchasing items motivate people to visit Zara's shops more frequently than they might other stores. Consumers in central London, for example, visit the average store four times annually, but Zara's customers visit its shops an average of 17 times a year. The high traffic in the stores circumvents the need for advertising: Zara devotes just 0.3 percent of its sales on ads, far less than the 3 percent to 4 percent its rivals spend.

Excerpted with permission from "Rapid-Fire Fulfillment," Harvard Business Review, Vol. 82, No.11, November 2004.

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Kasra Ferdows is the Heisley Family Professor of Global Manufacturing at Georgetown University's McDonough School of Business in Washington DC.

Michael A. Lewis is a professor of operations and supply management at the University of Bath School of Management in the UK.

Jose A.D. Machuca is a professor of operations management at the University of Seville in Spain.

For Fast Response, Have Extra Capacity on Hand

Excerpted with permission from "Rapid-Fire Fulfillment," Harvard Business Review, Vol. 82, No.11, November 2004.

In the business of fashion, time has always been important. However, speed and efficiency are now both a strategic imperative and a tactical necessity. With greater unpredictability in the market, it is critical to have the correct product at the correct time in the right quantity. Fast fashion requires completely different thinking in the way product is developed, how pre-production processes are undertaken and how production is organised. The Fast Fashion Seminar will draw upon the live experiences of leading practitioners from the area

of product development and supply chain. It will be structured as an interactive session. This Third Eyesight Fast Fashion Seminar will provide you with a valuable insight into how to effect rapid changes in the market to your benefit.Among other aspects, it will:

Describe in detail the concept of fast fashion Identify key strategic actions to meet fashion consumer demand Detail how leading brands such as Zara operationalise the concept Discuss how to achieve less than 1% inefficiencies in their processes from design to

delivery, including inventories and markdowns substantially below the industry average.

Understand the underlying principles of the fast fashion model and how these might be applied to retail and fashion business models in India

Fast Fashion and Speed Sourcing Instructor Led Class

Successfully implementing fast fashion and speed sourcing.

Best practices for Apparel Retailers

Target Audience

This class is designed for apparel retailers, and their partners, either where this is their core business or a key growing sector, e.g. supermarkets or general retailers - in particular, those who are looking to improve their supply chains to get more benefit out of it.

Buying, Merchandising and QA Directors Supply Chain / Sourcing Directors

Business Change Directors

IT Directors or those supporting supply chain initiatives

Manufacturers partnering with retailers to implement fast fashion or speed sourcing

Suppliers selling merchandise management, merchandise planning, range planning, PLM and CAD systems to retailers.

Class Overview

This class consists of a combination of instructor led discussion, practical exercises and lectures led by fast fashion and speed sourcing experts. It will review the best practices associated with implementing fast fashion and speed sourcing successfully. By the end of the class all delegates will have put together a personalised action plan for starting to

implement fast fashion and / or speed sourcing in their company, or the next steps to making it work more effectively.

Class Objectives

Develop a personalised action plan to implement or improve your implementation of fast fashion or speed sourcing processes in your company

Differentiate between fast fashion and speed sourcing and explain related supply chain best practices

Understand how you can use collaboration to shrink seasons

Improve the accuracy of forecasting and other decisions by making them closer to the season

Understand the best use of technologies (low and high tech) to support fast fashion and speed sourcing

Training Formats

Fast Fashion and Speed Sourcing Instructor led classesCurrently no US public classes scheduled, in-house classes available on request.Currently no UK public classes scheduled, in-house classes available on request.

Content for corporate universities and intranets

Fast fashion

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Fast fashion is a contemporary term used by fashion retailers to acknowledge that designs move from catwalk to store in the fastest time to capture current trends in the market.[1] This has developed from a product driven concept based on a manufacturing model referred to as "quick response" developed in the U.S. in the 1980s [2]and moved to a market based model of "fast fashion" in the late 1990s and first part of the 21st century. Zarahave been at the forefront of this fashion retail revolution and their brand has almost become synonomous with the term but there were other retailers who worked with the concept before the label was applied such as Benetton. [3] [4] Fast fashion has also become associated with disposable fashion because it has delivered designer product to a mass market at relatively low prices.[5] Fast fashion is a term used to describe clothing collections which are based on the most recent fashion trends presented at Fashion Week in both the spring and the autumn of every year.[6] These trends are designed and manufactured quickly and cheaply to allow the mainstream consumer to take advantage of current clothing styles at a

lower price. This philosophy of quick manufacturing at an affordable price is used in large retailers such as H&M, Zara, and Topshop. It particularly came to the fore during the vogue for "boho chic" in the middle of the first decade of the 21st century.[7]

A H&M store in DowntownMontreal

Contents

1 Philosophy o 1.1 Category Management

o 1.2 Quick Response Method

2 Marketing

3 Production

o 3.1 "Supermarket" Market

o 3.2 Supply Chain, Vendor Relationships and Internal Relationships

3.2.1 Supply Chain

3.2.2 Vendor Relationships

3.2.3 Internal Relationships

4 Design Lawsuits and Legislation

o 4.1 Lawsuits

o 4.2 Proposed Legistlation

4.2.1 H.R. 5055

4.2.2 H.R. 2033

5 References

6 Further reading

[edit] Philosophy

[edit] Category Management

The primary objective of the fast fashion is to quickly produce a product in a cost efficient manner. This efficiency is achieved through the retailers’ understanding of the target market's wants, which is a high fashion looking garment at a price at the lower end of the clothing sector.[6] Primarily, the concept of category management has been used to align the retail buyer and the manufacturer in a more collaborative relationship.[8] Category management is defined as "the strategic management of product groups through trade partnerships, which aims to maximize sales and profits by satisfying customer needs"..[8] This collaboration occurs as many companies’ resources are pooled to increase the market's

total profit. The fast fashion market utilizes this by uniting with foreign manufacturers to keep prices at a minimum.

[edit] Quick Response Method

Quick Response (QR) was developed to improve manufacturing processes in the textile industry with the aim of removing time from the production system.[9] The U.S. Apparel Manufacturing Association initiated the project in the early 1980s to address a competitive threat to its own textile manufactures from imported textiles in low labour cost countries.[10] During the project lead times in the manufacturing process were halved; the U.S. industry became more competitive for a time, and imports were lowered as a result. [11] The QR initiative was viewed by many as a protection mechanism for the American textile industry with the aim of improving manufacturing efficiencies.[12]

The concept of quick response (QR) is now used to support "fast fashion", creating new, fresh products while also drawing consumers back to the retail experience for consecutive visits.[13] Quick response also makes it possible for new technologies to increase production and efficiency.[13] The Spanish mega chain Zara has become the global model for how to decrease the time between design and production. This production short cut enables Zara to manufacture over 30,000 units of product every year to nearly 1,600 stores in 58 countries.[14] New items are delivered twice a week to the stores, reducing the time between initial sale and replenishment. As a result, the shortened time period improves consumer's garment choices and product availability. In the case of Renner, a Brazilian chain, a new mini-collection is released every two months.[14] New technologies are constantly being pioneered to accelerate quick response. Recently, the continuous inkjet printing process was introduced from the combined effort of Dutch printing company Osiris, and the French inkjet specialist Imaje.[15]The process uses image editing software to convert screen printing into continuous digital printing. The digital printing continuously recirculates the unused ink back into the system instead of the stop start method used by the traditional screen printing method.[15] As a result, the recirculation results in a reduction of preparation time and a reduction in ink costs because of fewer waste products.

[edit] Marketing

Marketing is the key driver of fast fashion. Marketing creates the desire for consumption of new designs as close as possible to the point of creation. This is achieved by promoting fashion consumption as something fast, low price and disposable. The fast fashion business model is based on reducing the time cycles from production to consumption such that consumers engage in more cycles in any time period. For example, the traditional fashion seasons followed the annual cycle of summer, autumn, winter and spring but in fast fashion cycles have compressed into shorter periods of 4-6 weeks and in some cases less than this. Marketers have thus created more buying seasons in the same time-space.[16] Two

approaches are currently being used by companies as market strategies; the difference is the amount of financial capital spent on advertisements. While some companies invest in advertising, fast fashion mega firm Primark operates with no advertising. Primark instead invests in store layout, shopfit and visual merchandising to create an instant hook.[17] The instant hook creates an enjoyable shopping experience, resulting in the continuous return of customers. Research shows that seventy five percent of consumer's decisions are made in front of the fixture within three seconds.[8] The alternative spending of Primark also "allows the retailer to pass the benefits of a cost saving back to the consumer and maintain the company's price structure of producing garments at a lower cost".[8]

[edit] Production

[edit] "Supermarket" Market

The consumer in the fast fashion market thrives on constant change and the frequent availability of new products.[13] Fast fashion is considered to be a "supermarket" segment within the larger sense of the fashion market.[8]This term refers to fast fashion's nature to "race to make apparel an even smarter and quicker cash generator".[13] Three crucial factors exist within fast fashion consumption: market timing, cost, and the buying cycle.[8]Timing's objective is to create the shortest production time possible. The quick turnover has increased the demand for the number of seasons presented in the stores. This demand also increases shipping and restocking time periods. Cost is still the consumer's primary buying decision. Costs are largely reduced by taking advantage of lower prices in markets in developing countries. In 2004 developing countries accounted for nearly seventy five percent of all clothing exports and the removal of several import quotas has allowed companies to take advantage of the even lower cost of resources.[13] The buying cycle is the final factor that affects the consumer. Traditionally, fashion buying cycles are based around long term forecasts that occur one year to six months before the season.[13] Yet, in the fast fashion market the quick response philosophy can result in higher forecast accuracy because the time period is significantly shortened. A higher sell-through for the goods produced is also a result of the shortened production period.

[edit] Supply Chain, Vendor Relationships and Internal Relationships

[edit] Supply Chain

Supply chains are central to the creation of fast fashion. Supply chain systems are designed to add value and reduce cost in the process of moving goods from design concept to retail stores and finally through to consumption.[18] Efficient supply chains are critical to delivering the retail customer promise of fast fashion. The selection of a merchandising vendor is a key part in the process. Inefficiency primarily occurs when suppliers can't respond quickly enough, and clothing ends up bottlenecked and in back stock.[14] Two kinds of supply chains

exist, agile and lean. In an agile supply chain the principle characteristics include the sharing of information and technology.[13] The collaboration results in the reduction in the amount of stock in the megastores. A lean supply chain is characterized as the correct appropriation of the commodity for the product.[13] The combination of the two supply chains is called "leagile".

[edit] Vendor Relationships

The companies in the fast fashion market also utilize a range of relationships with the suppliers. The product is first classified as "core" or "fashion".[13] Suppliers close to the market are used for products that are produced in the middle of a season, meaning trendy, "fashion" items. In comparison, long-distance suppliers are utilized for cheap, "core" items that are used in collections every season and have a stable forecast.

[edit] Internal Relationships

Productive internal relationships within the fast fashion companies are as important as the company's relationships with external suppliers, especially when it comes to the company's buyers. Traditionally with a "supermarket" market the buying is divided into multi-functional departments. The buying team uses the bottom-up approach when trend information is involved, meaning the information is only shared with the company's fifteen top suppliers.[13] On the other hand, information about future aims, and strategies of production are shared downward within the buyer hierarchy so the team can consider lower cost production options.[13] The buyers also interact closely with merchandising and design departments of the company because of the buyer's focus on style and color. The buyer must also consult with the overall design team to understand the cohesion between trend forecasting and consumer's wants. The close relationships result in flexibility within the company and an accelerated response speed to the demands of the market.

[edit] Design Lawsuits and Legislation

[edit] Lawsuits

Recently "Forever 21", one of the larger fast fashion retailers has been involved in several lawsuits over alleged violations of Intellectual Property rights.[19] The lawsuits contend that certain pieces of merchandise at the retailer can effectively be considered knockoffs of designs from Diane von Furstenberg, Anna Sui and Gwen Stefani's Harajuku Lovers line as well as many other well-known designers.[19] Forever 21 has not commented on the state of the litigation but initially said it was "taking steps to organize itself to prevent intellectual property violations".[19]

[edit] Proposed Legistlation

[edit] H.R. 5055

H.R. 5055, or Design Piracy Prohibition Act, was a bill proposed to protect the copyright of fashion designers in the United States.[20] The bill was introduced into the United States House of Representatives on March 30, 2006. Under the bill designers would submit fashion sketches and/or photos to the U.S. Copyright Office within three months of the products’ "publication". This publication includes everything from magazine advertisements to the garment's first public runway appearances.[21] The bill as a result, would protect the designs for three years after the initial publication. If infringement of copyright was to occur the infringer would be fined $250,000, or $5 per copy, whichever is a larger lump sum.[20] The bill was suspended after the House of Representatives session concluded in 2006, this resulted in H.R. 5055 being cleared from the agenda.

[edit] H.R. 2033

The Design Piracy Prohibition Act was reintroduced as H.R. 2033 during the first session of the 110th Congress on April 25, 2007.[22] It had goals similar to H.R. 5055, as the bill proposed to protect certain types of apparel design through copyright protection of fashion design. The bill would grant fashion designs a three-year term of protection, based on registration with the U.S. Copyright Office. The fines of copyright infringement would continue to be $250,000 total or $5 per copied merchandise.[22]

[edit] References

1. ̂ Hines, Tony, and M. Bruce. 2001. Fashion marketing - Contemporary issues. Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann.

2. ̂ Lowson, B., R. King, and A. Hunter. 1999. Quick Response - Managing the Supply Chain to Meet Consumer Demand. Chichester: Wiley.

3. ̂ Hines, T. 2001. "From analogue to digital supply chains: Implications for fashion marketing " In Fashion marketing: Contemporary issues. Eds. T. Hines and M. Bruce. Oxford: Butterworth Heinemann, 26-47

4. ̂ Hines, T. 2004. Supply chain strategies: Customer driven and customer focused. Oxford: Elsevier.

5. ̂ Hines,T. (2007) Globalization: Global markets and global supplies, in Hines, T. and M.Bruce. Eds. Fashion Marketing Contemporary Issues 2nd Edn. Oxford, Elsevier

6. ^ a b Muran, Lisa. "Profile of H&M: A Pioneer of Fast Fashion." Textile Outlook International (July 2007): 11-36. Textile Technology Index. EBSCO. Mary Couts Burnett Library, Fort Worth, Texas. 13 Nov. 2008 <http://lib.tcu.edu.ezproxy.tcu.edu/PURL/EZproxy_link.asp?url=http://

search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.tcu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=tdh&AN=27084147&site=ehost-live>.

7. ̂ See, for example, Sunday Times Style, 17 September 2006

8. ^ a b c d e f Sheridan, Mandy, Christopher Moore, and Karinna Nobbs. "Fast fashion requires fast marketing: The role of category management in fast fashion positioning." Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management 10 (2006): 301-15.

9. ̂ Hines,T. (2007) Supply Chain Strategies, Structures and Relationships, in Hines, T. and M.Bruce. Eds. Fashion Marketing Contemporary Issues 2nd Edn. Oxford, Elsevier

10. ̂ Hines, T. 2001. "From analogue to digital supply chains: Implications for fashion marketing " In Fashion marketing: Contemporary issues. Eds. T. Hines and M. Bruce. Oxford: Butterworth Heinemann, 26-47.

11. ̂ Hunter, N.A. . 1990. Quick Response in Apparel Manufacturing. Manchester The Textile Institute.

12. ̂ Hines,T. (2004), Supply Chain Strategies: Customer Driven and Customer Focused, Oxford: Elsevier

13. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Bruce, Margaret, and Lucy Daly. "Buyer behaviour for fast fashion." Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management 10 (2006): 329-44.

14. ^ a b c Pfeifer, Margarida O. "Fast and Furious." Latin Trade (English) 15.9 (Sep. 2007): 14-14. Business Source Complete. EBSCO. Mary Couts Burnett Library, Fort Worth, Texas. 13 Nov. 2008 <http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.tcu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=26768746&site=ehost-live>.

15. ^ a b Gee, Tim. "Fast fashion." Engineer (00137758) 293.7742 (25 Feb. 2008): 16-16. Business Source Complete. EBSCO. [Mary Couts Burnett Library, Fort Worth, Texas. 13 Nov. 2008 <http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.tcu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=31484251&site=ehost-live>.

16. ̂ Hines, Tony. 2001. "Globalization: An introduction to fashion markets and fashion marketing." In Fashion marketing: Contemporary issues. Eds. T. Hines and M. Bruce. Oxford: Butterworth Heinemann, 1-24.

17. ̂ Baker, Rosie. "Following fast fashion." In-Store (June 2008): 37-39. Business Source Complete. EBSCO. Mary Couts Burnett Library, Fort Worth, Texas. 13 Nov. 2008 <http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.tcu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=33119643&site=ehost-live>.

18. ̂ Hines, T. 2010. "Trends in textile global supply chains." Textiles 37 (2): 18-20.

19. ^ a b c Casabona, Liza. "Retailer Forever 21 Facing A Slew of Design Lawsuits." WWD: Women's Wear Daily 194.15 (23 July 2007): 12-12. Textile Technology Index. EBSCO. Mary Couts Burnett Library, Fort Worth, Texas. 13 Nov. 2008 <http://lib.tcu.edu.ezproxy.tcu.edu/PURL/EZproxy_link.asp?url=http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.tcu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=tdh&AN=25996233&site=ehost-live>.

20. ^ a b United States. Cong. House. Committee on the Judiciary. 109th Cong., 2nd sess. HR 5055. By Goodlatte, Delahunt, Coble and Wexler. 30 Mar. 2006. 13 Nov. 2008 <http://www.aipla.org/content/contentgroups/legislative_action/109th_congress/house1/hr5055.pdf>.

21. ̂ Woyke, Elizabeth. "FASHION'S BID TO KNOCK OUT KNOCKOFFS." Business Week (10 Apr. 2006): 16-16. Business Source Complete. EBSCO. Mary Couts Burnett. 13 Nov. 2008 <http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.tcu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=20339336&site=ehost-live>.

22. ^ a b United States. Cong. House. Committee on the Judiciary. 110th Cong., 1st sess. HR 2033. By Delahunt, Goodlatte, Maloney and Bono. 25 Apr. 2007. 13 Nov. 2008 <http://www.aipla.org/Content/ContentGroups/Legislative_Action/110th_Congress1/House2/HR2033.pdf>.

[edit] Further reading

Anderson, Kim. "Alternative Strategies to the ZARA Fast Fashion Model." AATCC Review 8.4 (Apr. 2008): 33-33. Textile Technology Index. EBSCO. Mary Couts Burnett Library, Fort Worth, Texas. 13 Nov. 2008 <http://lib.tcu.edu.ezproxy.tcu.edu/PURL/EZproxy_link.asp?url=http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.tcu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=tdh&AN=31745670&site=ehost-live>.

Baker, Rosie. "Following fast fashion." In-Store (June 2008): 37-39. Business Source Complete. EBSCO. Mary Couts Burnett Library, Fort Worth, Texas. 13 Nov. 2008 <http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.tcu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=33119643&site=ehost-live>.

Bruce, Margaret, and Lucy Daly. "Buyer behaviour for fast fashion." Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management 10 (2006): 329-44.

Casabona, Liza. "Retailer Forever 21 Facing A Slew of Design Lawsuits." WWD: Women's Wear Daily 194.15 (23 July 2007): 12-12. Textile Technology Index. EBSCO. Mary Couts Burnett Library, Fort Worth, Texas. 13 Nov. 2008 http://lib.tcu.edu.ezproxy.tcu.edu/PURL/EZproxy_link.asp?url=http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.tcu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=tdh&AN=25996233&site=ehost-live

"Charlotte Russe Holding Inc." Apparel Magazine 49.9 (May 2008): 16-18. Textile Technology Index. EBSCO. Mary Couts Burnett Library, Fort Worth, Texas. 13 Nov. 2008 <http://lib.tcu.edu.ezproxy.tcu.edu/PURL/EZproxy_link.asp?url=http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.tcu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=tdh&AN=32117993&site=ehost-live>.

Cole, Michael D. "The Oxford School of Fast Fashion." Apparel Magazine 49.11 (July 2008): 40-41. Textile Technology Index. EBSCO. Mary Couts Burnett Library, Fort Worth, Texas. 13 Nov. 2008 <http://lib.tcu.edu.ezproxy.tcu.edu/PURL/EZproxy_link.asp?url=http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.tcu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=tdh&AN=33484012&site=ehost-live>.

Corcoran, Cate T. "WHERE THE GARMENT FACTORY IS GOING." WWD: Women's Wear Daily 194.129 (19 Dec. 2007): 10-10. Business Source Complete. EBSCO. Mary Couts Burnett Library, Fort Worth, Texas. 13 Nov. 2008 <http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.tcu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=28228394&site=ehost-live>.

Field, Thomas G, Jr. "Focus on: Intellectual Property Tights." U.S. Department of State's Bureau of International Information Programs. 24 Nov. 2008 <http://usinfo.state.gov/products/pubs/intelprp>.

Gee, Tim. "Fast fashion." Engineer (00137758) 293.7742 (25 Feb. 2008): 16-16. Business Source Complete. EBSCO. Mary Couts Burnett Library, Fort Worth, Texas. 13 Nov. 2008 <http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.tcu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=31484251&site=ehost-live>.

Hines, Tony, and Margaret Bruce. 2006. Fashion Marketing: Contemporary Issues. Oxford: Elsevier.

Muran, Lisa. "Profile of H&M: A Pioneer of Fast Fashion." Textile Outlook International (July 2007): 11-36. Textile Technology Index. EBSCO. Mary Couts Burnett Library, Fort Worth, Texas. 13 Nov. 2008 <http://lib.tcu.edu.ezproxy.tcu.edu/PURL/EZproxy_link.asp?url=http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.tcu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=tdh&AN=27084147&site=ehost-live>.

Pfeifer, Margarida O. "Fast and Furious." Latin Trade (English) 15.9 (Sep. 2007): 14-14. Business Source Complete. EBSCO. Mary Couts Burnett Library, Fort Worth, Texas. 13 Nov. 2008 <http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.tcu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=26768746&site=ehost-live>.

Sheridan, Mandy, Christopher Moore, and Karinna Nobbs. "Fast fashion requires fast marketing: The role of category management in fast fashion positioning." Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management 10 (2006): 301-15.

Sull, Donald, and Stefano Turconi.. "Fast fashion lessons." Business Strategy Review 19.2 (Summer2008 2008): 4-11. Business Source Complete. EBSCO. Mary Couts Burnett Library, Fort Worth, Texas. 13 Nov. 2008 <http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.tcu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=31815537&site=ehost-live>.

United States. Cong. House. Committee on the Judiciary. 109th Cong., 2nd sess. HR 5055. By Goodlatte, Delahunt, Coble and Wexler. 30 Mar. 2006. 13 Nov. 2008 <http://www.aipla.org/content/contentgroups/legislative_action/109th_congress/house1/hr5055.pdf>.

United States. Cong. House. Committee on the Judiciary. 110th Cong., 1st sess. HR 2033. By Delahunt, Goodlatte, Maloney and Bono. 25 Apr. 2007. 13 Nov. 2008 <http://www.aipla.org/Content/ContentGroups/Legislative_Action/110th_Congress1/House2/HR2033.pdf

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Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fast_fashion"

Fast-fashion retailers often get inspiration from the catwalks of Paris and Milan. Now, luxury companies like Cavalli Group say they must take their lead from cheaper and speedier rivals.Hennes & Mauritz AB and Inditex SA, the owner of Zara stores, update their clothing and accessory designs continuously and can get them from studio to store in as little as two weeks. The speed of change increases pressure to offer new products more often, Cavalli Chief Executive Officer Gianluca Brozzetti said in an interview.As demand for 3,750-euro ($5,102) silk dresses and 2,395- euro zebra design bags returns after the recession, luxury companies need to innovate to attract and retain customers, Brozzetti said.

“Loyal clients that are coming to the store frequently will get bored of not finding something new,” he said.

Cavalli and companies including Chanel SA and PPR SA-owned Yves Saint Laurent already offer pre-collections of apparel and accessories and limited-edition lines, in addition to the

traditional spring-summer and autumn-winter ranges that are the focus of fashion weeks in New York, London, Milan and Paris.“The concept of the two seasons is more and more obsolete,” Peter Farren, an analyst at Bryan Garnier & Co., said in a telephone interview. “That’s what especially Zara has brought to the scene and accustomed the customer to. Luxury companies are responding to that.”Twice a Week

Inditex, the world’s largest clothing retailer, delivers new models to its stores twice a week, according to its website. H&M, which sells $29.95 blazers, can design, manufacture and distribute new products in three weeks, spokeswoman Jenni Tapper-Hoel said.

To be sure, fast-fashion retailers don’t always get it right. While H&M’s August sales rose 14 percent, the quickest pace in more than two years, third-quarter profit missed analysts’ estimates after the Stockholm-based company’s efforts to increase sales weighed on margins. H&M didn’t specify where it spent more improving the “customer offering.” The shares fell the most in two years on Sept. 29.

Luxury companies need to improve their logistics to react more quickly to changes in consumption patterns, Farren said. Burberry Group Plc is now able to replenish stock monthly and in April introduced a limited-edition range of apparel and accessories, which went from design to store in three months.‘Season-less’

The maker of $3,595 double-breasted silk lace trench coats has also allowed customers to order items online during fashion- show webcasts since September 2009 to enable early delivery and installed iPad tablet computers in its stores during London Fashion Week.

“It’s got to be a dynamic business,” Burberry CEO Angela Ahrendts said in an interview. “So keep being dynamic is going to be part of our longer term success.”Because sales of luxury goods are rising fastest in markets like Asia and Latin America, “there has to be a large part of the line that’s season-less,” she added.

Emerging market consumers may account for 60 percent of global luxury goods sales in 2020, up from 40 percent in 2009, according to Luca Solca, an analyst at Sanford C. Bernstein. Excluding tourist flows, luxury expenditure in emerging markets may rise to 40 percent of the total from 23 percent in the same period, Solca estimates.Saint Tropez

The goal for every luxury company, wherever their clients are, “is to keep people coming back into stores with new products,” analyst Farren said. “That’s what consumers want.”

Cavalli will introduce in November the Saint Tropez denim collection for spring ahead of the main seasonal range, Brozzetti said.

The Florence, Italy-based company won’t be able to present new collections every month because it’s costly, Brozzetti said. “But the premium luxury brands are developing packages that can be delivered in step to the shops so that almost every four weeks you have something new to show the clients,” he said