Managerial and Industry 4.0 solutions for fashion supply chains

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present a structured framework whose objectives are to identify, analyse and eliminate fashion-luxury supply chains inefficiencies.Design/methodology/approachA Lean Manufacturing tool, the 5-Whys Analysis, has been used to find out the root causes associated with the problem identified from a data analysis of production orders of a fashion-luxury company. A case study, which explains the methodology and illustrates the capability of the tool, is provided.FindingsThis tool can be considered a suitable instrument to identify the causal factors of inefficiencies within luxury supply chains, suggesting potential countermeasures able to eliminate the problems previously highlighted. In addition, enabling technologies that deal with Industry 4.0 are associated with the root causes to enable further improvement of the supply chain.Practical implicationsThe effectiveness and practicality of the tool are illustrated using an industrial case study concerning an international Italian signature in the world of fashion-luxury footwear sector.Originality/valueThis framework provides practitioners with an operative tool useful to highlight where the major inefficiencies of fashion-luxury supply chains take place and, at the same time, individuates both the root causes of inefficiencies and the corresponding corrective actions, even considering Industry 4.0 enabling technologies.

The power of 4th industrial revolution in the fashion industry: what, why, and how has the industry changed?

“…Prior research on consumer and retailing has examined the role of convenience across the consumer shopping journey, including product search (e.g., Shim et al, 2001 ), payment (e.g., de Kerviler et al, 2016 ), and multichannel experience (e.g., Dholakia et al, 2010 ). In recent years, there is a growing interest in enhancing productivity via 4IR technologies, such as augmented reality and artificial intelligence, both in manufacturing (e.g., Braglia et al, 2020 ) and the consumer shopping experience (e.g., Grewal et al, 2020 ). The next section illustrates what the 4IR technologies are and how they are deployed to address the three prime goals with company cases.…”

“…Prior research has primarily focused on a single technology, whether it be robotics and intelligent manufacturing (Acaccia et al, 2003 ; Michelini & Razzoli, 2013 ), 3D printing (Perry, 2018 ; Sun & Zhao, 2017 ; Vanderploeg et al, 2017 ), virtual and augmented reality (Kim & Forsythe, 2008 ; Park et al, 2018 ; Shim & Lee, 2011 ), or artificial intelligence (Guo et al, 2011 ; Liang et al, 2019 ). While there are a few studies that offer a comprehensive overview of the technology’s implications for the fashion industry, they are still limited in scope (Bertola & Teunissen, 2018 ; Braglia et al, 2020 ). They mainly discuss benefits for companies as opposed to consumers, such as improving efficiency in the supply chain and staff training (Braglia et al, 2020 ), or lack a thorough discussion on the role of business models (Bertola & Teunissen, 2018 ), despite their central role in determining the commercial value of a technology (Chesbrough, 2010 ).…”

“…While there are a few studies that offer a comprehensive overview of the technology’s implications for the fashion industry, they are still limited in scope (Bertola & Teunissen, 2018 ; Braglia et al, 2020 ). They mainly discuss benefits for companies as opposed to consumers, such as improving efficiency in the supply chain and staff training (Braglia et al, 2020 ), or lack a thorough discussion on the role of business models (Bertola & Teunissen, 2018 ), despite their central role in determining the commercial value of a technology (Chesbrough, 2010 ).…”

Luxury supply chain management: a framework proposal based on a systematic literature review

“…they have high importance to main critical success factors across all luxury levels but with different scopes. In general, a common challenge in quality is looking for suppliers that meet quality requirements and can deliver relatively large volumes, for accessible luxury, or specific and intricate raw materials that are either found only in a few geographic regions or are in limited supply, as in the case of precious stones, for aspirational and absolute luxury supply chains (Luzzini and Ronchi, 2010;Caniato et al, 2011;Braglia et al, 2020).…”

“…One of the most usual costs in luxury supply chain management is the inventory cost (Brun et al, 2008(Brun et al, , 2017cCaniato et al, 2009;Sapra et al, 2010;Castelli and Sianesi, 2015;D'Avolio et al, 2015;Lucci et al, 2016;Respen et al, 2017;Agrawal et al, 2020). In a luxury market, which is characterised by high demand volatility and a large variety of products, luxury brands regularly deal with obsolescence risks, even in make to order environments (Brun et al, 2008;Sapra et al, 2010;Caniato et al, 2011;D'Avolio et al, 2015;Braglia et al, 2020). With regard to labour costs, a relevant aspect involves the use of a specialised workforce, which is expensive but necessary in order to impute style and design elements in the product (Brun et al, 2008;Caniato et al, 2013;Castelli and Sianesi, 2015;D'Avolio et al, 2015).…”