Copyright Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Chapter 4 Substance of the Fashion Industry 57
First, the apparel must be designed. Designing
is the process of creating new versions of garments,
accessories, or other items, Figure 4.2. Design ideas
move fashion forward by creating change. The con-
cepts that evolve during the designing process create
demand among consumers to buy the new and dif-
ferent looks.
After going through the designing process, the
fashions move to the manufacturing process. Mass-
production of almost all fashions occurs in factories.
They are cut out of fabric in large numbers. Sewing
occurs along assembly lines. When the fashions are
finished, they move to apparel sales.
Apparel sales involve selling the manufactured
garments in large quantities to retail companies. This
serves as the wholesale sales step in the chain since apparel does not have
a separate wholesale segment the way many other industries do. Most gar- e
ments are sold and shipped directly from manufacturers at a wholesale price
to retailers. The lack of a separate wholesale segment also helps to keep
prices low, since fewer middle-people are involved who would each take some
profi Inexpensive accessories and small, non-fashion products do go through fit.
wholesalers, often referred to as resellers.
The Retail Segment
As you know, retailing is the selling of merchandise directly to consumers.
Stores, mail order catalogs, websites, or other methods are all examples of
retailing. As you look near the bottom, right side of Figure 4.1, retailers buy
finished goods in large amounts from the apparel segment that precedes them
in the pipeline. Retailers pay a wholesale price for this quantity buying of fin- g
ished products. They put these items out on the floor of their stores for sale at r
a retail price, which is higher than the wholesale purchase price they paid for
the items. The markup covers costs of heat, lights, taxes, sales help, and other
expenses. The retail price also includes some profit for the retailer. fi
Retailers do single-item selling of the garments, accessories, and other
goods to consumers. They sell one item at a time directly to the many differ-
ent people who will use the products. Consumers are at the end of the soft
goods chain, but satisfying consumers’ wants and needs is the objective of all
the preceding companies in the pipeline.
The Four-Groups Approach
The four-groups approach is a different way of showing the same flow of
goods from beginning to end. The four-groups approach separates the over-
all fashion industry into four main groups of businesses, which include the
primary group, the secondary group, the retail group, and the auxiliary group.
They are all interrelated, Figure 4.3.
EFI Optitex
Figure 4.2 New apparel designs can be created on a
computer with a digital model, such as PDS Catwalk by EFI
Optitex. Changes are easy to make on the digital pattern
without cutting any fabric.
First, the apparel must be designed. Designing
is the process of creating new versions of garments,
accessories, or other items, Figure 4.2. Design ideas
move fashion forward by creating change. The con-
cepts that evolve during the designing process create
demand among consumers to buy the new and dif-
ferent looks.
After going through the designing process, the
fashions move to the manufacturing process. Mass-
production of almost all fashions occurs in factories.
They are cut out of fabric in large numbers. Sewing
occurs along assembly lines. When the fashions are
finished, they move to apparel sales.
Apparel sales involve selling the manufactured
garments in large quantities to retail companies. This
serves as the wholesale sales step in the chain since apparel does not have
a separate wholesale segment the way many other industries do. Most gar- e
ments are sold and shipped directly from manufacturers at a wholesale price
to retailers. The lack of a separate wholesale segment also helps to keep
prices low, since fewer middle-people are involved who would each take some
profi Inexpensive accessories and small, non-fashion products do go through fit.
wholesalers, often referred to as resellers.
The Retail Segment
As you know, retailing is the selling of merchandise directly to consumers.
Stores, mail order catalogs, websites, or other methods are all examples of
retailing. As you look near the bottom, right side of Figure 4.1, retailers buy
finished goods in large amounts from the apparel segment that precedes them
in the pipeline. Retailers pay a wholesale price for this quantity buying of fin- g
ished products. They put these items out on the floor of their stores for sale at r
a retail price, which is higher than the wholesale purchase price they paid for
the items. The markup covers costs of heat, lights, taxes, sales help, and other
expenses. The retail price also includes some profit for the retailer. fi
Retailers do single-item selling of the garments, accessories, and other
goods to consumers. They sell one item at a time directly to the many differ-
ent people who will use the products. Consumers are at the end of the soft
goods chain, but satisfying consumers’ wants and needs is the objective of all
the preceding companies in the pipeline.
The Four-Groups Approach
The four-groups approach is a different way of showing the same flow of
goods from beginning to end. The four-groups approach separates the over-
all fashion industry into four main groups of businesses, which include the
primary group, the secondary group, the retail group, and the auxiliary group.
They are all interrelated, Figure 4.3.
EFI Optitex
Figure 4.2 New apparel designs can be created on a
computer with a digital model, such as PDS Catwalk by EFI
Optitex. Changes are easy to make on the digital pattern
without cutting any fabric.