Supply Chain Management Journal
Quick Response strategies in Fashion Industry
Mirela Octavia SÎRBU
Andreea Simona SĂSEANU
The Bucharest University of Economic Studies
mirela.sirbu@com.ase.ro
Abstract
QR systems represent just-in-time inventory strategic partnership between
suppliers and general merchandise retailers and involve supply techniques that allow
retailers to change demand as a result of fashion trends and seasonal variations in sales.
The QR strategies in the fashion industry are different from the ordinary strategies of any
other business organization. Therefore QR is one of the best policies in fashion industry
with important consequences at the level of electronic data interchange and automatic
replenishment system, improving planning and activity-based cost accounting and
performance measurement systems, reducing the time between the moment of the sale
and the one of the replacement of goods on the retailer’s shelf.
Taking these into consideration, in this paper we want to focus on the
development of quick response techniques in fashion retailers. We will present
advantages and disadvantages of QR implementation and discuss the impact of
seasonality on QR strategy. Therefore, the purpose of this paper was to investigate some
significant cases of quick response implementation in the fashion industry and we
concluded that, in general, retailers and their suppliers have accepted QR as a response
to the fast fashion trend.
Keywords: fashion industry, quick response, fast fashion, global quick response
Introduction
ECR
(Efficient
Consumer
Response), QR (Quick response), which
are management strategies specific to
the supply chain, are two concept that
have arisen due to the increase of the
competitive pressure and the consumers’
demands, against the background of the
active cooperation between the partners
within the supply chain management
(SCM).
The implementation of the ECR in
Europe was launched in July 1995 by a
group of around 20 large companies
operating in the fields of industry and
commerce which had obtained good
results in applying the ECR management
strategies in the United States, whereas
the implementation of the QR took place
particularly in 2000.
Both concepts were coined by a
US consultancy company, Kurt Simon
2012, Volume 3, Number 2
Associates and have reached recognition
in the theory and practice of SCM in
general and in fashion history in
particular (Cachon, 2009).
Thus, the
dynamics of the fashion industry
generated the implementation of this
concept at the level of chain supply
management as a defining prerequisite
for quickly answering the ever changing
demand. Companies such as Zara and
Benetton have been promoters of this
trend.
Although the QR strategies have
been
analysed
in
the
specialised
literature, which highlights advantages
such as reducing the time elapsed
between the reception of the order and
the delivery, the decrease of stocks,
acceleration of the stock rotation speed
and the increase of the cash flow, the
majority of the studies conducted in this
field have approached the concept more
from the suppliers’ point of view, and
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Supply Chain Management Journal
less from the consumers’ point of view
(Hunter, 1990; Fisher & Raman, 1996;
Eppen & Iyer, 1997; Holweg, 2005; Caro
& Gallien, 2010) .
Starting from these premises, this
article
will
present
the
defining
coordinates of QR, as well as its
specificities in the fashion industry and
will analyse the results of some
researches on the implementation of QR
by companies that are beneficiaries of
these strategies.
1. QR – definition, advantages and
applicable technologies
The need to survive in the more
and
more
intense
international
competition, given the shift from selfproduction to outsourcing to foreign
low/cost companies and the migration of
the apparel production from developed
countries to developing countries, has
forced companies to be more and more
concerned with adopting commercial
practices aimed at providing a better
receptivity and flexibility in dealing with
the demands of the market. Thus, the
QR strategies, the “just in time”
techniques and the agile supply chains
have resulted in the reduction of the
buying cycles, of the performance of the
partners involved in the supply chain and
the decrease of the delivery term. As for
the definition and the content of the QR
strategy, Lowson and Vinelly have had
remarkable contributions:
- a state of responsiveness and flexibility
in which an organization seeks to provide
a highly diverse range of products and
services to a customer/consumer in the
exact quantity, variety and quality, and
at the right time, place and price as
dictated
by
real-time
customer/consumer demand (Lowson et
al., 1999).
- modifying the current organizational
system of the chain and speeding up the
physical and information flows, in both
directions, between all the phases of the
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value operative chain system (Forza &
Vinelli , 2000).
The
main
causes
for
the
emergence of QR have been:
- the intensification of competition; the
threat posed to the established brands
by the new brands;
- the outsourcing
of supply chain
processes, particularly the production
process ;
- changes in the consumers’ lifestyle and
the increase in their demands.
QR essence was synthesized
through
the
following
enablers
(MacCarthy and Jayarathne, 2009):(a)
strive for fast and accurate information
transmission: the processes and speed
of transmission of both product and
order information need to be analysed;
(b)
develop
flexible
production
resources; (c) utilise technology and
automation where appropriate; (d)
develop fast logistics: rapid material flow
needs to be encouraged and enabled in
any
QR
system;
(e)
exploit
all
opportunities for lead time compression:
the combination of the above initiatives
reduces many of the time delays
affecting overall response times; (f) QR
must be a key part of an organisations
strategy
and
have
a
supportive
organisational culture.
Just as with ECR, the main
instrument for applying QR is EDI (the
electronic data interchange), which led
to a new orientation of the management
of
operation
and
commercial
technologies, particularly with respect to
the content of the supply processes. The
computer
assisted
design
(CAD),
automated re-supply (AR), computer
integrated manufacturing (CIM) and total
quality
management
(TQM)
are
representative to this end. These
technologies enabled companies to
enhance their operative performance, to
respond fast to the demand by reducing
the delivery terms and increasing, at the
same time, the flexibility of the food
chain and the quality of communication
between manufacturers and retailers.
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Supply Chain Management Journal
Table 1: The benefits of QR implementation
Suppliers’ benefits
Retailers’ benefits
-Reduction of buying mistakes
-Minimization of stock holding
-Quick tracking of merchandise
-Higher stock turn
-Improvement of cash flow
-Increment of customer service
-Very higher level of profit
-Enlarged competitive advantages
-Improvement of communication
-Improvement of planning systems
-Quick access to sales information
-Easy tracking of products
-Security of getting more orders
-Improvement of manufacturing systems
-High volume of production
-Reduction of stock holding
-Higher level of sales
-Good profit margin
-Getting of competitive advantages
-Enhanced customer satisfaction & loyalty
(Source: Mollah 1994;2)
The analysis of the advantages of
QR (table 1) reflects, for the participants
in the supply chain, the increase of
effectiveness
in
terms
of
global,
commercial and marketing performance,
such as: increase of sales, limiting the
price cuts, the decrease of the stock
exhaustion and the increase of the cash
flow.
2. Specificities of QR in the
fashion industry
The main factors which have led
to the need for QR strategies in the
fashion industry are related to the
increase in competitiveness in the
apparel industry, the shift from large
series production to the production and
sales of small collections, the increase of
the number of seasons (the period of
time when the product is in fashion)
from two to three or even five
intermediate
seasons.
A
proper
understanding
of
the
mutations
undergone
by
the
supply
chain
management in the fashion industry
requires, in the first place, presenting
the specificities of the apparel industry in
general and of the apparel in particular.
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2.1. The specificities of
fashion apparel market
As they represent features that
are distinct for a certain style, the
fashion garments are accepted by a
large number of fashion consumers for a
certain period of time. In recent years,
important changes have been noticed
with regards to the duration of
acceptance
and
heterogeneity
of
consumers:
the
demands
have
diversification and the duration of
acceptance of the products by the
consumers has decreased, and thus, the
lifetime of the product was considerably
reduced.
Fashion is equally an opportunity
and a threat for retailers, reflecting the
economic,
social
and
cultural
environment of a society at a given point.
The changes in the lifestyle, the
expansion
of
the
intercultural
relationships,
the
development
of
technologies and of the economic
conditions are some of the major factors
reflecting the changes in the society,
which
have
to
be
taken
into
consideration when drafting the fashion
collections. This aspect gains new facets
against the background of the last years,
characterized
by
the
competition
between
retailers,
in
terms
of
acceleration of the speed of launching on
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Supply Chain Management Journal
the market and capacity to respond
quickly to the fashion tendencies,
reflected by the fashion shows and
podiums (Bhardwaj & Fairhurst, 2010).
Retailers follow permanently the
trends of the various styles, in order to
identify what is “in vogue”; at present, in
planning the apparel assortment and
implicitly in their supply policies they
adopt and:
a) Features such as form/cut,
colour, even size, but also other
characteristics of the products, are of
particular interest for consumers, when
making the buying decisions. Fashion
collections are always based on precise
references which stimulate the sales of
the retailers who taken them into
consideration. Concretely, the fashion
garments have the following features:
- They are special products, for the
purchase of which consumers are willing
to allocate more time and money,
compared to other products;
- They contribute in the enhancement of
the retailer’s image;
- They generate profit above the average,
and at the same time, they entail certain
risks, related to the uncertainties of the
acceptance of fashion by the consumers;
to this end, knowing the fashion cycle is
important.
b) The fashion cycle
The life cycle of fashion garments
resembles the life cycle of a new product.
An important difference is that fashion
garments move a lot faster from one
phase to another; to this end, we might
say that the maturation phase is
inexistent.
The very “fashion whims” have a
strong impact on the life span of the
fashion garments. This phenomenon is
the basis for the fact that fashion
garments does not undergo all the life
phases of a common product and have a
relatively short lifespan. When a garment
starts to be liked by consumers, sales
increase fast, but then, irrespective of
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how popular the product becomes, the
decline of the sales is sure and fast, and
the product is no longer among the
consumers’ preferences. This explains, to
a large extent the need for quick
response strategies, through the active
cooperation of the members of the
supply chain, given that identifying the
moment of peak popularity of the
products is equally difficult and costly.
In spite of these difficulties,
knowing the apparel life cycle is a
necessity and a prerequisite for boosting
sales.
As for the three phases in the life
of the fashion apparel – launch,
acceptance and decline, the main focus
is on the acceptance by consumers of
the innovations in the fashion industry.
The prosperity of the specialists in the
field – designers, manufacturers and
retailers – is strictly related to the
permanent search of the novelties by the
consumers and the rejection of what is
old.
It is important to acknowledge,
however, that, as of 1980, we can speak
of a cycle which is typical for the fashion
apparel and similar to the traditional life
cycle of the product, namely the
introduction and adoption by the fashion
leaders, the development in terms of
consumers’
acceptance,
the
mass
conformity (maturation) and the decline
and obsolescence in fashion (Bhardwaj,
2009).
The
degree
of
acceptance
/rejection of the products by the retailers
varies, significantly influenced by two
criteria: the level of acceptance of the
fashion apparel (quantified in sales) and
the duration of acceptance (measured in
units of time - weeks, months). The
variables mentioned have generated the
emergence and the development of new
concepts and strategies in the fashion
industry supply chains. Further on, we
will approach these concepts and
strategies
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Supply Chain Management Journal
Table 2: The main trends in QR strategies implementation in the fashion industry
Time pespective
Trends
In the short run
- extending the use of EDI to all partners involved in the
supply chain
- increased efforts to combine educational information on
supply chain solutions to specific operational practices
- providing CIE colour coordinates
In the long run
-design of specific demand management techniques in
relation with fashion trends in general, and colours in
particular
- interactive designing customer-retailer offering
garments structure using CAD
- the manufacturer/ retailer systems will have to use
reliable POS data so that the industry can be attached
into the very complicated up-stream systems to support
the demand-activated production
(Adaptation after Mollah, 2010)
In the last two decades, fashion
industry
has
registered
important
changes, concretized mainly in a
decrease in the mass production and
mutations in the structure of the offer
and the fashion seasons. Although the
traditional fashion markets have changes
their features as a result of the
manufacturers’ and retailers’ refocusing
on more flexible supply chains which
were more receptive with regards to
satisfying the clients’ needs, the defining
characteristics of the apparel market
remain, essentially, the same: (a)
reduced life cycles of the products –
months and even weeks; (b) reduced
volatility of the market; (c) minimum
predictability; (d) impulsive buying
behaviour, (d) there are three critical
lead-times: time to- market, time-toserve and time-to-react.
The expansion of the so-called
“fast fashion” market is a direct
consequence of the multiple renewals of
the garment collections, of the styles and
products in a year, under the pressure
exerted
by
the
increased
competitiveness and the demands of the
clients. Focusing on models, colors and
styles that prove to have a high degree
2012, Volume 3, Number 2
of acceptance, to the detriment of those
who are less popular than it was
expected, leads to the necessity of
reducing the prices of the less popular
garments, which are not sold at the
expected level (Ferdows et al., 2004;
Tokatli, 2007). A significant aspect to
this end is that the quick response
reduces
significantly
the
errors
generated by the long term sales
forecast. Thus, as a general rule, it is
estimated that the forecast made at the
beginning of the season generate errors
of ± 10%, whereas the forecast made 16
or 20 weeks before the season have
error margins of ± 20%, respectively ±
40% (Martin, 2009).
2.2. New
industry
trends
in
the
fashion
2.2.1. The Global Quick Response
and the Fast Fashion concept
The globalization, the mobility,
the dynamics and the changes occurred
in the fashion industry after 1990 have
generated the emergence of new
industry specific concepts: the Global
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Supply Chain Management Journal
Quick Response (GQR) and the concept
of Fast Fashion (FF) or throwaway.
„Global Quick Response (GQR) is
a strategy that seeks to achieve accurate,
rapid and cost effective response to
specific
markets
dynamically
by
leveraging the potential of dispersed
global supply and production resources
through lead time compression, effective
real time information management,
flexible
pipeline
management
and
optimal
logistics
and
distribution
systems” (MacCarthy & Jayarathne,
2009).
The specificity of GQR, compared
to the established approach of QR,
consists in combining global resources
with the quick response, so as to satisfy
the demands of the market in the
shortest possible terms, given the need
to render SCM costs more efficient. The
increase of the mobility in the apparel
market has led to various initial
advantages, in terms of manufacturing
costs, but also to limits generated by the
long distances between members of the
supply chain, the geographic spread,
various forms of relationships and types
of property at the level of participants in
the value chain. As a consequence, it has
become
absolutely
necessary
to
approach QR in a global vision, by
implementing processes that would
ensure the prerequisites of reducing the
delivery terms, so as to answer, in real
time, to trends and clients’ demands.
GQR refers to both the general processes
and the structure of the apparel industry,
and to the demands and the existing
challenges and opportunities; three key
processes can be identified here: the
design and the development of the new
products, the initial order and the
process of completion or repeat of the
order.
„Fast Fashion is defined as an
expression that is widely accepted by a
group of people over time and has been
characterized by several marketing
factors such as low predictability, high
impulse purchase, shorter life cycle, and
2012, Volume 3, Number 2
high volatility of market demand” (Fernie
& Sparks 1998, Bhardwaj 2009).
Understanding the FF concept
requires a double approach: from the
perspective of the supplier and of the
buyer. Thus, from the supplier’s point of
view,
the
emergence
and
implementation of the FF strategies have
been generated by the need to provide
an increased flexibility to the supply
chain, against the background of the
increased assortment diversity and rapid
changes in the structure of the demand.
As for the consumers’ approach,
FF is a concept resulted from the
mutations occurred in the consumers’
behavior, particularly with regards to
their wish to find immediate diversity
and satisfaction. The increase of the
consumers’ sensitivity to style and
fashion and of the awareness of the
fashion phenomenon have led to the
supply of high fashion at low price, which
turned the throwaway market – or the
fast fashion market , by its new name –
in a trend, or a norm (Bailey 2001,
Tokalti et al. 2008).
Certainly, the FF strategies will
maintain their importance in the apparel
industry in the next 10 years as well,
with direct effects on the purchase
manner of consumers and reaction to
trends.
2.2.2. A comparative analysis of the
quick response and fast-fashion
systems
In a brief definition, the quick
response mechanism consists in the
following: conveying information on the
sales (quantitatively and structurally)
directly to suppliers (through the abovementioned technologies), reducing the
assortment plan established, by the
supplier, depending on the evolution of
the sales, manufacturing the requested
products and renouncing the production
lines with slow sales, given the existence
of flexible production techniques. The
factors
that
determine
the
implementation of this strategy are the
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Supply Chain Management Journal
cooperation among the members of the
supply chain and the existence of the
technical support required for conducting
technical and logistic operations. In
operative terms, the main difference
between the system of the traditional
supply-delivery chain system and quick
response system is the capacity of the
latter to ensure a quick correlation
between offer and demand. In addition,
the fast-fashion system combines two
major elements (Passariello, 2008,
Rohwedder and Johnson 2008, Cachon &
Swinney, 2011):
1. Ensuring short execution terms
for production and distribution, able to
ensure a good correlation between the
offer and the uncertainty of the demand,
by means of quick response techniques.
Meeting these terms requires combining
the resources of production with complex
information systems, which facilitate the
monitoring,
ensures
the
frequent
restructuring of the stocks and effective
distribution methods (Cachon & Swinney,
2011)
2. A “latest trend” design of the
product – enhanced design techniques.
In order to meet this requirement, the
tastes of the consumers and of the
industry are monitored, so as to identify
the hidden, unpredicted whims and to
reduce the execution terms for that
model.
Starting from the quick response
strategy
models
existing
in
the
specialized literature, Cachon, 2009,
presents the order of the processes of
the existing production systems (figure 1)
and developed his own mathematical
model on the fast-fashion system.
Figure 1: Sequence of Events in the Traditional System
Firm:
Design finalized and
inventory level
chosen
Firm:
Selling price
(p) chosen
Before the selling season
Consumers:
Arrive and choose
To purchase now or
wait for the sale
Firm:
Remaining inventory
marked down to s
Selling season
(Source: Cachon & Swinney 2011: 782)
This article does not aim at
covering, in an exhaustive manner, the
existing quick response (figure 2) and,
respectively, the fast fashion models;
nevertheless, we would like to underline
that the element of novelty brought by
Cachon’s model consists in approaching
2012, Volume 3, Number 2
separately the impact of enhanced
design over the consumer’s buying
behaviour and of the interaction between
enhanced design and rapid response,
with the purpose of generating a fast
fashion type system.
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Supply Chain Management Journal
Figure 2: Sequence of Events in the Quick Response System
Firm:
Design finalized and
inventory level
chosen
Firm:
Additional inventory
procurement
allowed
Updated demand
Information
Revealed to firm
Before the selling season
Firm:
Remaining inventory
marked down to s
Firm:
Selling price
(p) chosen
Consumers:
Arrive and choose
To purchase now or
wait for the sale
Selling season
(Source: Cachon & Swinney 2011: 784)
3. Implementing QR
strategies in the fashion world –
case studies and researches
Both the perception of the
necessity
and
the
degree
of
implementation of the QR strategies
varies from country to country and from
industry to industry. Moreover, the
research
conducted
in
this
field
highlights important differences in the
SQM partners’ (producers, commercial
intermediates
and
consumers)
understanding of the role and the
importance of QR in the economic
performance. Last but not least, we
should notice a difference in terms of
level
of
implementation
between
companies which activate within the
same field or have similar dimensions.
Irrespective
of
the
degree
of
implementation of the QR strategies, it is
certain that the closing of partnerships
between retailers and suppliers from
various markets, as well as promoting
their own brands (Tyler et al., 2006)
have led to an increase in profits.
The
implementation
of
QR
strategies represented and continues to
represent the subject of numerous
studies in the area. Based on a
documentary research, the previously
2012, Volume 3, Number 2
expressed fact is outlined in the following
table.
With a view to explaining some
similarities and differences in the
applicability of the QR strategies, we will
present, further on, features of these
strategies in the British fashion industry,
as it is considered representative for the
fast-fashion systems, particularities in
the implementation of the QR by the
companies Zara and Benetton, as well as
the results of implementing Quick
Response strategies in the Japanese
fashion world .
3.1.
QR
implementation
strategies in European retail
The QR strategies and the “fast
fashion” system have been successfully
implemented by companies such as Zara,
H&M, Mango, New Look and Top Shop;
the British fashion industry had been
recognized globally for implementing
these
policies
(Barnes
and
LeaGreenwood, 2006). The emergence and
implementation of the QR strategies are
due to the price pressure exerted on the
producers and retailers by the dominant
players, who have had, from the early
stages of the fashion industry, flexible
supply chains (Hines & Bruce, 2001).
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Supply Chain Management Journal
Table 3: Research on the implementation of QR strategies
Research
Purpose of the
research
Results
Quick Response
in the Japanese
Fashion Sector
(Azuma, 2011)
To explore the
status of QR
implementation in
the Japanese
fashion sector
among the
"apparel firm" and
the "SME apparel
manufacturer"
portions of the
supply chain
network.
The "apparel firms" have
achieved more benefits
through their QR programs
than the SME suppliers.
Quick Response
systems in the
Scottish textile
and clothing
industry
(Birtwistle,
Fiorito, Moore,
2006)
To explore the
level at which
suppliers use
automatic
replenishment
systems, quick
response
implementation
(QRI), and
relationships within
the supply chain.
Current QR in
the
Japanese
fashion sector is
driven more by
the
traditional
Positioning of QR as the
trading
survival strategy of domestic relationship and
technical
apparel manufacturing has the
been diluted in the course of excellence of the
the regionalization of the
manufacturers
global economy and this
rather than by a
severely underlines its future conceptual set of
QR
enabling
existence .
technologies.
Less than a third of the
companies surveyed in
Scotland had implemented
AR/QRI systems and many
supply chain members had
not fully understood the
benefits of implementing
information technology (IT)
to support an AR/QRI
strategy. They perceive it
more as a strategy for
retailers than as a virtual
supply chain strategy.
Quick response:
To define and
The information technology is
perceptions of discuss the level of particularly important to the
UK fashion
quick response
large, multiple “own brand”
retailers
(QR)
fashion retailers as it enables
(Birtwistle,
implementation by
the various parties in the
Siddiqui,
fashion retailers.
supply chain to communicate
Fiorito, 2003) Furthermore, their
and to respond to demand.
understanding of
The retailers have not fully
quality response is
understood the benefits of
explored and the
implementing a QR strategy
processes for
and perceive it more as a
replenishments are strategy for internal supply
examined.
chain management rather
than an external supply chain
strategy.
2012, Volume 3, Number 2
Mentions
This study was
limited
to
33
Scottish
suppliers,
findings can only
be used as a
guide for further
research into the
area.
The UK fashion
industry
has
been
widely
acknowledged to
have initiated QR
strategies in the
fashion industry.
The
research
consisted in an
exploratory
study, based on
a
survey
on
fashion retailers
trading in the UK
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Supply Chain Management Journal
Against this background, the need
to survive in a competitive environment
has determined some retailers, such as
New Look and George, to use Eastern
resources for reducing costs, thus
providing the premises for supplying
high level fashion at a low cost on the
throwaway market. Due to the increase
in the distance between members of the
supply
chain,
such
commercial
orientations
have
resulted
in
an
increased complexity of the supply
chains,
in
the
introduction
and
development of the practices and
technologies of JIT and CIM – computer
integrated manufacturing, TQM – total
quality management, with a focus on
shorter supply lines and of the quick
response on the market [Bruce et.al,
2004].
Other
consequences
of
implementing the QR strategies are the
increased diversity of the offer with a
higher fashion profile for clients, the
adding of an intermediate season to the
previous calendar, which had 2 seasons,
reducing the average execution terms of
the models and the production terms – 6
to 12 months – for many international
retailers (Gap, for example).
Apart from the decrease in the
production price, which has represented
a triggering factor for implementing the
QR strategies, and the “demystification”
of the fashion process had decisive role
to this end (Sydney, 2008). The intense
media coverage of the models and styles
presented in the fashion shows and on
the catwalks, starting with 1999, has
drawn the consumers’ attention and
increased their interest in the sense of
the
immediate
availability
of
the
fashionable apparel. In response to these
demands, retailers such as Zara, H&M,
Mango, New Look and Top Shop adopted
these models quickly, in order to attract
consumers and to introduce in the stores
interpretations of the catwalk models in
a short period of time, from three to five
weeks (Barnes & Lea-Greenwood 2006).
The issue of the costs generated
by the rapid adaptation of production to
the consumers’ demands (which is not
2012, Volume 3, Number 2
the topic of this article) is particularly
complex; it is important to underline that
the specialized literature refers to the
need of additional research on the
analysis and the strategy for establishing
a price in the apparel industry. For
example,
even
though
it
was
demonstrated that the fast-fashion
system leads to higher balance sales
price, this does not mean necessarily
that a fast-fashion company (such as
Zara) has higher prices than a company
which
uses
traditional
production
(Cachon,
2011).
Studies
on
the
willingness of consumers to pay more for
ecological and sustainable fast fashion
apparel are also of particular importance
-for example, organic apparel and
organic cotton apparel, sold by Zara şi
H&M (Bhardwaj & Fairhurst, 2010).
Zara,
the
most
important
European retailer, is renowned for its
fast fashion production and for its low
prices, although the majority of its
models are manufactured in European in
North African factories, which are known
as more expensive than the Asian ones.
This is possible due to the use of cheap
fabrics, which leads to the lower quality
products, made to deteriorate after 10
wearings (Ghemwat and Nueno, 2003).
Thus, it is possible to keep both the
consumer base value and the production
cost lower than those of some highquality
competitors
such
as
the
traditional universal shops, in spite of
implementing the fast-fashion production.
Briefly, Zara’s quick response has
the following features:
- Reducing the delivery time, thus
providing more fashionable clothes – the
distribution centres allow the rapid
dispatch of the apparel to shops world
over in only 24 hours for the EU shops
and 48 hours for the North American and
Asian shops (Tokatli, 2007).
- The delivery of the products in smaller
quantities, with a view to meeting the
demands that cover certain styles and
that are related to trends, the frequent
refresh of the products, in the sense of
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Supply Chain Management Journal
supplying fashionable products every two
weeks.
- The on-going monitoring of the stock
levels in the stores, so that it leads to a
permanent correlation between offer and
demand (Ghemawat & Nueno, 2003;
Ferdows et al.,2004).
Benetton, which has been hailed
as the archetypal example of a network
organization, is however bucking this
trend by increasing vertical integration
and ownership of assets in the supply
chain (Camuffo, Romano and Vinelli,
2001). Benetton attaches a particular
importance to fashion events which take
place every season in Europe (Meichtry,
2007) and to a quick identification of the
trends, by using networks that are
empowered to this end in Europe and
Asia.
Briefly, Benetton’s quick response
has the following features:
- While Benetton previously customized
around 20% of its ranges to satisfy
national markets, it has reduced it to
around 5 to 10% in order to impart one
image of Benetton in global markets.
- The company generally would use the
first 5-10% of seasonal sales to apply
the postponement strategy in order to
continue the manufacturing process
during the season. Benetton also began
to use 10% of its production line for
what the company calls the “Flash
Collection”.
- The production of this line is limited,
but
with
the
flexibility
of
the
postponement strategy, these products
can be produced and designed in less
than 5 weeks.
- Manufacturing and shipping take only 1
week.
The QR strategy mechanism at
Benetton
(Simchi-Levi,
2002)
is
presented in the following table:
Table 4: Characteristics of QR strategy mechanism at Benetton
Stage
Content
1.Integrated Information
Systems
- Global EDI network that links agents with
production and inventory information
- EDI order transmission to HQ
- EDI linkage with air carriers
- Data linked to manufacturing
2. Coordinated Planning
- Frequent review allows fast reaction
- Integrated distribution strategy
(Source:Simchi-Levi, 2003)
3.2. Implementing Quick
Response strategies in the Japanese
fashion world
The Japanese fashion industry is
a particular case of QR strategies
implementation; it is a highly segmented
industry, which has developed in a fast
changing environment. With a view to
highlighting these features, we will
present, further on, the emergence and
the evolution of the QR concept and the
2012, Volume 3, Number 2
features of this strategy in Japan. We
will dedicate a special part to the
comparative
analysis
of
the
QR
approaches in Europe, USA and Japan.
The Japanese market has known QR
specific approaches, previously to the
adoption of this concept by the American
and European managers (Fernie, 1994);
it is important that, even today, many
companies
use
the
QR
concept
occasionally, without being aware if this
fact, as the appetite for variety of the
54
Supply Chain Management Journal
Japanese apparel market is a “must” for
the members of the supply chain, who
aim at providing frequent orders, with a
variety of apparel.
Officially, QR concepts were launched in
the Japanese fashion industry in 1994;
according to the classic definition, it
represents a time-based strategy of
survival of the domestic apparel market
(Stalk & Hout, 1990), faced with the lowpriced imported apparel (Finnie 1992).
In time, as a consequence of the
regionalisation of the global economy
and of the industrial development of the
foreign markets (Gereffi, 1999), the
goals
and
even
the
competitive
advantages
conferred
by
the
implementation of these strategies on
the Japanese market have diversified.
Thus, the objective of the QR strategy,
of obtaining advantages from drawing
close to the US (domestic) market, by
decreasing the production terms and by
increasing flexibility (Finnie, 1992) is no
longer a central goal of the QR practices
in Japan; at present, an important
advantage of this strategy is the supply
from domestic resources. Moreover, as a
consequence
of the
regionalization
process of the global fashion industry
(Gereffi, 1999), the QR programs in
other countries/regions have become
more and more viable, thus diluting the
original proposal brought by the QR
concept.
The features of the QR strategies
in Japan are generated mainly by the
following factors: the prevalence of the
creation and marketing functions in the
Japanese
apparel
companies,
the
opportunities conferred by the use of QR,
following the prospect of the economic
development on the Pacific Coast and
the creation of a market which is similar
to the Japanese one (Azuma, 2011).
A comparative analysis of the QR
approaches in Europe, USA and Japan
reflects differences in terms of priority
destination of the production, the control
over the supply chain and the nature of
its members, who are mainly interested
in implementing the QR strategies,
2012, Volume 3, Number 2
priority competitive elements. We will
approach these aspects further on.
Unlike the US, the Japanese QR
strategy
is
not
built
on
a
simplified/consolidated
textile-apparelretailers supply chain and on the
standardized
technologies.
Another
difference is that the US fashion industry
produces,
in
particular,
for
the
international market, which is controlled
by the large retailers, the true promoters
and the main members of the supply
chain who take advantage of QR (Scarso
1997; Taplin & Ordovensky 1995),
whereas in Japan the main beneficiaries
of the QR strategies are the apparel
companies. Unlike the Europe and the
US, the “super QR” examples, referring
to the reduction of the execution terms
and modifying the products with a short
life cycle are noticed in particular at the
level
of
large
wholesale
apparel
producers and of retailers in the SPA
category – Specialty Store Retailer of
Private Label Apparel- (Fortune 1998;
Abernathy et al. 1999). Last but not
least,
the
proprietary
competitive
advantage provided by the QR strategies
in the USA consists in the costs in the
basis segment of fashion, while in Japan
it resembles the Italian one, as practice
a bridge type of fashion, between the
exclusive one and the high fashion.
Conclusions
The analysis of the QR strategies
in this article was based on specialised
literature sources and the research
conducted in this field, with a view to
gaining a proper understanding of the
importance, content and applicability of
this strategy. Although there are
differences in terms of perception of the
place of these strategies based on
standardised technologies in the SCM, of
the
manner
and
degree
of
implementation,
depending
on
the
country/field/company, the QR strategies
are, essentially, a competitive advantage.
Reducing the execution terms of the
orders and deliveries, increasing the
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Supply Chain Management Journal
pace of stock building at the retailers’
level, with various fashionable products,
are major advantages of the QR and
fast/fashion systems.
In our future research, we will
exceed the scope of this article, by
looking into the degree of awareness and
implementation of the QR strategies in
the Romanian fashion industry. Although
a preliminary investigation conducted to
this end had highlighted a low degree of
knowledge of these practices, at least at
theoretical level, ever since the mid 90’s
regionalisation of production, given the
cheap workforce had an impact in
Romania as well, by involving small
apparel companies in the production for
export.
We will conclude by underlining,
once more, the impact of the receptivity
and the flexibility of the supply chain
operations on satisfying the demands of
the fashion consumers, against the
background of the active cooperation
among its members.
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