Ding, Wei
(2007)
Mass Custimazation for Clothing Industry on An E-Commerce Environment.
[Dissertation (University of Nottingham only)]
(Unpublished)
Abstract
In the time of the globalization, many industries have changed their operation from old fashion way of mass production. Specialized and customized products have desired increasingly to customers. Wile the internet provides an ideal marketplace for customized, its strategic potential has yet to be fully realized. Mass customization has proposed by many researchers as one of the most favorable strategy to focus on customer requirement. It calls for providing customized products and services to customer on a scale with remaining the benefit of efficiency, productivity, high quality, low costs and rapid response in mass productions.
Currently, the practices of Mass Customization (MC) are mainly in PC industry and auto industry. Clothing industry is perceived as a potential area for implementing MC strategy because all three possible dimensions of customization including fit, functionality and aesthetic design can be addressed. Many companies either big or small in clothing industry have adopted online MC program. However, no studies have clearly identified the exactly options they offer and little is known from customers responses. Thus, the purpose of this study was to classify the existing online MC program provided by variable organizations and analyze key customers attitudes in relations to their experiences.
Both qualitative research method of empirical work and questionnaire and score application were used in this study. Result findings have indicated that current online customization could be classified into high, medium and low levels. High customization program carries higher customer involvement at the earlier design stage of production, while lower customization program allows more general products to be specialized.
Results from survey have also explained that customers have high internet shopping preference and high purchasing intension for customized clothes. Major motivations such as fit consideration, co-design enjoyment, functional usage, and personal desires have been identified for customers to experience online customization. Advanced technologies have made the process even attractive. Negative influences on the other hand have been discussed towards online MC inefficiency, including factors of complexity, risk, security and privacy. Customers attitudes towards bored, impatient and trouble are cased by inefficient shopping experience.
This study supported that online MC still has a huge space to develop according to the overall trend and customers ever-changing desires. It has also suggested that for new business coming into the mass customization market especially the online one, balance between level of customization with advance technology and degree of complexity must to be considered as one of the most important issue. Finally, innovational strategies such as combining multiple customization approach could be of interest for customers to continue shopping with MC program.
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