Chapter 8

SUPP LY C H A I N
MANAG EM E N T
R 8 – FA S H ION B U YIN G
CHAPTE
SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT
• A supply chain is the integrated ‘chain’ of businesses responsible for the manufacture, delivery and
sale of a product to a consumer.
• Some see the fashion supply chain as the series of manufacturers, agents and wholesalers which
supply the product, fabric and trimmings.
• A fashion supply chain could be any group of sequentially integrated businesses working to supply a
product, depending on who the ‘customer’ is in any particular business scenario.
SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT
• The fashion retail supply chain model can often be very complex and convoluted; this is another
reason why supplier rationalisation makes good sense.
• Anything that can ‘de-confuse’ fashion retailing is of automatic benefit to all parties involved.
• Key benefits for retailers arising from this logistical focus are greater efficiencies and
consequential cost savings.
MANUFACTURERS AND RETAILER’S CORPORATE CULTURES
BUYERS’ VIEWS OF SUPPLIERS
• Originally many ‘old school’ buyers believed that they alone had power in the market place.
• Suppliers were plentiful and could be acquired and lost at will, simply because there were easy
replacements available.
• Suppliers were seen simply as providing a replaceable service rather than being an integrated
part of the supply chain.
BUYER/SUPPLIER PERCEPTIONS OF EACH OTHER
THE NEED FOR EFFICIENCY
• One of the most crucial areas for fashion retailers is the movement of products through the
supply chain, from supplier to retail outlet.
• If this is not managed efficiently and effectively, retailers can face reduced profit margins, as
poor stock control results in the expense of housing too much stock or of lost sales arising
through too little stock.
• Getting garments from sample conception to sample stage, into the dc and then finally delivered
to the shop floor is a very complex procedure.
SAMPLE DEVELOPMENT IN THE SUPPLY
CHAIN
• A key factor in achieving agreed delivery dates is the smooth process of developing garment
samples, which begins once the two-dimensional (2d) shapes have been confirmed and
specification sheets drawn up.
• All elements of a garment are sampled and approved by the relevant buying departments (buyer
or assistant buyer, depending on the significance of what is being approved) before a supplier
can proceed with production.
KEY STAGES IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF A
FASHION GARMENT
• Figure 7.5 identifies both the typical sequences of events in

the process of developing garments and the functional area of
responsibility associated with each, although sampling
procedures may vary from business to business.
• There is a clear shift in the shared responsibility of garment
technology and buying with design throughout the process, as
issues become more commercially oriented.
SAMPLE REQUIREMENTS
• Once the designer and buyer have agreed the product designs, the buying team will make
official requests for samples of all products to be purchased.
• These need to be clearly identified to the supplier, as they are a cost that will need to be
quantified.
• Samples can range from prototypes, called ‘fit samples’, to photo samples that are production
garments couriered early for press, brochure and other promotional photography.
BASE AND BULK FABRIC TESTS AND APPROVAL
Fabric approval usually occurs at two different stages, the first being Colour Fastness Tests Include Reaction To:
‘base fabric’ approval, which is required for all new fabrics that the
buyers have not used before, and the second being approval of the
• Washing
bulk fabric. these may include the following: • Dry Rubbing
• Stability of the fabric to various cleaning methods • Light
• Pilling/abrasion • Water
• Tensile strength • Perspiration
• Extension and recovery • Chlorine (Swimwear)
• wrinkle recovery. • Dry Cleaning.
CATEGORIES OF SAMPLES
PRINT STRIKE-OFFS, LAB-DIPS AND
TRIM APPROVALS
• ‘Lab-dips’ are swatches of fabric dyed in tonal variations of the
specified colour and sent to the fashion retailer for approval.
• The buyer or designer, using ‘light boxes’, examines lab- dips, where
differing light bulbs are used to reproduce daylight, store light and
ultra-violet conditions
• It is increasingly common for fashion retailers to have an on-line
order management system that can track progress of the product
from sampling through to delivery.
CHANGES RESULTING FROM SUPPLY
CHAIN MANAGEMENT
1 Change in business culture between retailer and supplier, as the traditionally adversarial and
dominant approach of the retailer toward its suppliers has been replaced with clearer and
standardised communications set in partnerships.
2 The ability of retailers to react quickly, to sales and place repeat orders with short lead-time
suppliers, has significantly been improved through the huge advances in information gathering,
transmission and analysis. point of sale it combined with more sophisticated computer-based
merchandising systems enable retailers to spot and react quickly to sales trends.
3 Distribution centres (DCS) instead of warehouses. there has been a move away from a business
philosophy of filling up warehouses to hold stock until, or if it is required by the stores, to one
where a dc receives, quality controls and distributes new stock to stores within twenty-four hours.
4 Reduced numbers of suppliers – smaller supplier base focusing on improving
relationships/developing partnerships with a small number of key suppliers, who consistently
achieve good performance in terms of profitability, returns, and delivery reliability. a number of
multiples are in a position where their top twenty suppliers are producing 70–80 per cent of their
products.
5 The development of thorough standardised supplier manuals for all suppliers setting out clear
procedures and directions for all products areas across all divisions.
SUPPLIER SELECTION
• The professionalism needed in good supply chain management now requires the supplier to come
into contact with many other support functions within fashion retailing.
• The buying manager or buying director is able to keep a much better grasp on supplier performance,
as a direct result of computerised management information systems.
• The whole management team is now involved in the development and improvement of the trading
relationship.
• The need for an objective, rather than subjective, approach to a fashion business’s day-to-day
dealings with a supplier is essential if both parties truly want to improve the product, supply the
customer with what they want – and, more importantly, sustain profitability over time.
ISSUES FOR RETAIL BUYERS ISSUES FOR MANUFACTURERS
• THE NEED FOR IMPROVING SKILLS AND • SUBJECTED TO INCREASING INTERNATIONAL
UNDERSTANDING COMPETITION
• TO MEET THE RIGOURS OF THE NEW FASHION • SUPPORT FOR HOME-PRODUCED GOODS
ORDER
• TRAINING AND THE NEED FOR PERSONAL SELF- • FASHION BOYCOTT
DEVELOPMENT • DESIGN, QUALITY, DELIVERY AND VALUE FOR
MONEY
• UP TO DATE WITH THE LATEST TECHNOLOGY
AND MANAGEMENT TECHNIQUES. • ROOM FOR SECOND-RATE SUPPLIERS
• SELF-IMPROVEMENT TO ADVANCE PERSONAL • MOVED THEIR MANUFACTURING TO CHEAP
UNDERSTANDING LABOUR-COST COUNTRIES
MEASURING PERFORMANCE
• The continual monitoring and measurement of supplier performance, on both an individual and a
comparative basis is now clearly revealing true levels of supplier performance, in more and more
detailed formats.
• The better more efficient supplier welcomes comparative details of performance, as this can act as an
enabling yardstick to future improvement.
• This data is transmitted in a similar way to internet signals down telephone wires. this is commonly
known as Electronic Data Interchange or EDI.
• Data and information will increasingly become a valuable commodity throughout the entire fashion
industry.
THE BENEFITS OF SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT
There are a number of key benefits for the fashion retailer from supply chain management:
1 The retailer is able get products from the manufacturer to the customer more profitably
2 Stock inventories are kept to their lowest and most efficient level at all stages of the year. this keep shops looking
refreshed and minimises poor-selling lines in favour of best-selling lines by more frequent and smaller deliveries
3 Sales, stock, delivery and other key performance indicator (KPI) information is generally more easily gathered,
distributed, analysed and effectively acted upon by both retailer and supplier
4 A firmer and longer-lasting relationship is created between both retailer and supplier by the development of
longer-term production commitments
5 Response to consumer demand is more timely and accurately focused
6 Terminal stocks of unseasonal stock at the end of the season are minimised as result of better overall control
methodologies

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SUPP LY C H A I N

• Figure 7.5 identifies both the typical sequences of events in

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