• The Research Journal of the Costume Culture
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• v.7 no.6
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• pp.41-53
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• 1999

Fashion marketing channels experience conflicts inevitably because of constant interaction among fabric producers, apparel manufacturers, contractors, and retailers. However, it is rarely that attempts has been made to identify causes of conflicts in distribution channel of fashion industry. The purpose of this study was to explore causes of conflicts from the standpoint of a contractor. For this study, data were collected from the owner or the manager represented with a contractor in fashion maketing channels. By means of in-depth interviews with multiple informants, their statement was analyzed qualitatively. From analysis of the resulting data, the causes of conflict were associated with two broad sets, attitudinal and structural differences between apparel manufacturers and contractors. First, attitudinal sources of conflict were identified as perception of subordinated relationships between channel members, delayed announcement on order changes, difficulties in communication by using different terms, different expectations between channel members in controlling product quality, and lack of credit in inspecting products. Second, structural sources of conflict involved unilateral decision on wages for contracting, lengthy payment period derived from a bill of credit, deficient autonomy in selecting auxiliary suppliers, unreasonable issues on lead time, and unfair transaction in selecting a contractor or inspecting finished products. There are limitations on generalization due to the results based on interviews, but this study will be a useful exploratory step before designing a large scale survey.

• Fashion Information and Technology
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• v.2
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• pp.48-58
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• 2005

Purchase decision behavior for and satisfaction with apparel among retail buyers and consumers were compared. Kunz's behavioral theory of the apparel fm was the conceptual framework; Oliver's disconfirmation model guided measurement of satisfaction. Buyers and consumers indicated their perceptions about shopping orientations, variables that influenced apparel purchasing decisions, the importance of aspects of customer service and attributes that they expected to find and found when shopping. Surveys were mailed to retailers and consumers identified by random sampling of company lists. Respondents were 66 buyers and 344 consumers. MANOVA revealed differences in retailers 'and consumers' shopping orientations, the influence of variables on purchase decisions, and perceptions of the importance of customer service. Paired sample t tests indicated dissatisfaction for buyers on 10 apparel/shopping attributes and consumers on nine items. Results support the need for vertically integrated manufacturers to redesign strategies that are more appealing to both retail buyers and consumers.

• The International Journal of Costume Culture
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.14-25
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• 2002

The purpose of this study is to define mass customization in the apparel industry and to discover, the apparel industry's potential to deliver customized apparel products. Different from product-centered mass Production, mass customization is focusing on customers' unique needs. The goal of mass customization is for customers to find exactly what they want at a reasonable price. Using new technologies such as 3-D body scanning and digital printing, mass customization can give customers customfit and personalized garments. Mass customization can satisfy a customer in terms of personalization, fit and design. Adoption of mass customization will open new opportunities for the apparel manufacturer of the future. Mass customization is a strategy that apparel manufacturers should consider for their goals.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Costume
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• v.34
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• pp.37-56
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• 1997

The Korean Apparel industry has played an significant role for the econom-ic development in Korea which is mainaly due to the apparel exports to the world market. However the Koran apparel industry has confronted drastic changes in domestic and also in international market for the last several years. Korean apparel products have lost price competitiveness in international market because domestic labor costs have increased so fast and al-so newcomers such as China or other Asian countries have emerged as compet-itive producers. Furthermore domestic market has been saturated with the Korean apparel manufacturers and also with the foreign retailers. Therefore the Korean apparel industry should establish market-ing strategies in order to regain competitiveness. This study aims to analyze the factors for non-price competitiveness of Korean apparel industry and propose the way to regain competitiveness form the buyers' point of view. The present study utilize the survey data for the internet database which is established by the Cotton Incorporated. The results show that the Korean apparel industry is not competitive in terms of non-price factors such as minimum orders terms of payment preproduction stage use of new technolo-gy and lead times. These factors are not directly related to the price of product which is suggested to the buyers. However these are flexibility factors which play important roles in decision making process of buyers because they can reduce risks in uncertain business environment. Therefore the Korean apparel industry should establish global marketing strate-gies which can enhance non-price competitiveness as well as price competitiveness.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.244-255
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• 2009

The purpose of this study was 1) to inquire into characteristics of apparel manufacturers and distributors in China, 2) to classify private Guanxi and organizational relationship type, 3) to find differences in private Guanxi to enterprise type and the class of participations' position, and 4) to also find effects of private Guanxi on organizational relationship. Apparel manufacturers and distributors in China participated in the study. Random sampling method was used to collect the data. Data from 173 questionnaires were used for the statistical analysis. Descriptive analysis, factor analysis, Cronbach's alpha coefficient, t-test, and regression analysis were conducted. Two factors of private Guanxi were classified(i.e., affective Guanxi, instrumental Guanxi). Three factors of organizational relationship type were identified(i.e., opportunistic relationship, cooperative relationship, vertical relationship). The results indicated that distributors regarded affective Guanxi as important more than manufactures and employees regarded affective Guanxi and instrumental Guanxi as important more than presidents. Distributors regarded cooperative relationship as important more than manufactures. Employees regarded organizational relationship as important more than presidents. Affective Guanxi positively affected on cooperative relationship and vertical relationship but negatively affected on opportunistic relationship. Instrumental Guanxi positively affected on opportunistic relationship and vertical relationship. The result of this study may give valuable information to retail merchandisers and strategists who participated in fashion business in China.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Costume
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• v.56 no.4 s.103
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• pp.15-32
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• 2006

The purpose of this study is to research on the actual condition of production and selling in silver apparel market. For the questionnaire, 19 women's wear brands which were in higher ranking of sales in boutiques and madame-zone of department stores were selected. Pattern makers of each brand were questioned about 40 items for this research. The results of the questionnaire were as follows: 1) According to the result of the survey on the made-to-wear production of 19 ready-to-wear manufacturers, there was the gap was in ages between the target and the real consumer. Consumers of these brands were older and aged more broadly than their target ages. 2) Most of the consumers of silver-zone has thick waists, common heights, fat shapes. Custom-made clothes are ordered in many cases because of the big abdomen(50.0%) and H-shape(58.3%) of a somatotype. The body size variation of user population is needed for a good fit. 3) All brands(100%) of this research are using KS standards in the label of clothing, but they don't use these data in their production by reason of unawareness and distrust about these data. These inconsistency between the label and the real size of products may cause a confusion when consumers buy ready-to-wear. 4) Silver apparel manufacturers have need of anthropometry information and dummy(78.6%) suitable for their target consumers to increase their satisfaction about their apparel fit.

• The International Journal of Costume Culture
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.71-84
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• 2009

For fit satisfaction evaluation, the subjects were asked to put on the jackets from the seven manufacturers in random order, view how the jackets fit in a full-body mirror and answer questions regarding fitting in 22 specific areas, including the neck, shoulders, waist, hips and arms, as well as eight questions related to maneuverability. The surveys and evaluations were conducted between October 2007 and November 2008, and the compiled data were analyzed using the SPSS 14.0 statistics program. The One-way analysis of variance was performed to comparatively analyze the differences among the products from the seven manufacturers. Post-hoc tests were performed based on Duncan's test for the criteria that displayed significant differences. The results were summarized as follows. Fit evaluations were performed for the size 88 formal jackets from the seven manufacturers. All items, except the center front line, displayed significant differences at p<0.05 or higher among the manufacturers. The age group 20-39 felt that the main problems were in the shoulder, armscye, upper arm, waist, abdomen and hip areas. Modifying the shoulder area, armscye depth and hip areas severely compromises the jacket's balance, and attention to these areas must be given developed pattern design.

• The International Journal of Costume Culture
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.93-100
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• 2010

The business strategies of small to medium enterprises (SMEs), especially in relation to the Japanese apparel wholesaler and apparel manufacture markets, have been undertaken by Urakami and his colleagues (Komiya et al., 2009; Urakami et al., 2009; Urakami & Wu 2010). The aim now is to investigate the changing business climate of apparel products in Asia, now that China seems to a major player of apparel products in the Asian region. The production of apparel products from China has resulted in a major shift of the business environment. Such products have now invaded import markets throughout the world economies. Such a drastic change in the business environment impacts the structure of distribution channels in competing economies, affecting both wholesalers and manufactures. This research focuses on the effects this has had on the Japanese distribution channels. The findings derived from our previous research are highlighted, together with several planned hypotheses that require testing, in order to build a clearer understanding of apparel manufacturing in the Asian region.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.126-137
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• 2010

This study examines the effects of trust and commitment on firm performance in the apparel manufacturer-contractor relationships. A total of 92 apparel manufactures participated in the study. Factor analysis, Cronbach's alpha coefficient, and multiple regression analysis were conducted for the statistical analysis. Two factors of trust were identified: credibility and benevolence. Two factors of commitment were identified: affective commitment and calculative commitment. Three factors of firm performance were identified: customer service performance, finance performance, and product performance. The credibility of the apparel manufacture in a contractor had a significant positive effect on the affective commitment of an apparel manufacturer and on the calculative commitment in a contractor. Meanwhile, the benevolence of the apparel manufacture on a contractor had a significant positive effect on the affective commitment of an apparel manufacturer on a contractor. The credibility of the apparel manufacture on a contractor was positively related to customer service performance, finance performance, and product performance. The benevolence of the apparel manufacture on a contractor was positively related to customer service performance and finance performance of an apparel manufacture. The affective commitment of the apparel manufacture in a contractor was positively related to service performance. The calculative commitment of the apparel manufacture on a contractor was positively related to finance performance and to the product performance of an apparel manufacture. The results of this study provides practical guidelines toward exchange partners of apparel manufacturers as to how to facilitate from performance in apparel manufacturer-contractor relationships.

• The Research Journal of the Costume Culture
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.278-292
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• 2008

The purpose of this study is to propose apparel sizing system for each body shape of early adolescent boys. The subjects of this study were 549 boys in the capital area. Their body shapes were classified based on 47 anthropometric measurements, 43 photographic measurements and 10 indexed measurements. The apparel sizing system was proposed for each body shape. For data analysis were performed descriptive statistics, correlation analysis and crosstabulation using SPSS Ver. 12. The control dimensions to propose apparel sizing system were stature and waist circumference for the lower garments. Intervals between sizes were 5cm for stature and irregular for waist circumference. For each type, $5{\sim}8$ sizes were proposed for lower garments. Reference measurements suggested fur lower garments were 7 items. This study is meaningful in that it proposed apparel sizing system for each type of body shape. The results of this study are expected to contribute to planning sizes according to the type of body shape and improving the fitness of ready-made clothes in apparel and school uniform manufacturers.