Supply Chain Strategies in the Global FA Industry

Fashion markets are synonymous with rapid change. The industry is characterized by a number of factors, namely short lifecycle, high volatility, low predictability and high impulse purchase (Christopher, Lowson & Peck 2004; Fernie 2004). As a result, commercial success or failure of a company in the fashion industry is largely determined by the organization’s flexibility and responsiveness to changes. In the last two decades, many models and supply chain strategies were proposed for this particular industry with an aim to enabling more flexible and synchronized supply chain management. The evolution began with internal supply chain optimization focusing on ‘one-size-fits-all’ solutions. In this regard, many classic examples could be referred to (see Table 2). They include (Fisher 1997) product classification, paradigm of push-pull strategy (Levy, Weitz & Beitelspacher 1992), logistics practice of quick response (Bruce & Daly 2006; Lowson 2002), just-in-time (JIT) principle (Choi 2011), and lean, agile or leagile strategies (Ben Naylor, Naim & Berry 1999; Christopher & Towill 2001). With the rapid development of fast fashion industry in recent years, these conventional models, which focus more on ‘insular’ or ‘self-contained’ supply solutions, are not enough to cope with the increasingly dynamic market demand  (Ericsson 2011; Esper et al. 2010; Hilletofth & Hilmola 2010; Rainbird 2004). More integrative solutions relying on network collaboration have been presented (Castelli & Brun 2010; Gattorna 2012; Hilletofth 2012). These approaches stand on a broader basis of alignment by linking supply chain operation with market/demand management to provide more flexible supply solutions. They include the concept of collaborative planning, forecasting and replenishment (CPFR) under the demand chain management (DCM) background (Jacobs 2006), demand and supply chain management (DSCM) (Hilletofth 2011; Jüttner, Christopher & Godsell 2010), and portfolio model design for different value streams under an aligned business setting (Brun & Castelli 2008). These approaches are largely developed on the basis of contingency and alignment theories to account for what have been practiced in the business world (Chorn 1991; Gattorna 2009). (Ivanov and Sokolov, 2010 books of supply chain management courses).
 From the perspective of business management research, the change in nomenclature from SCM, DCM to DSCM reflects the progressive evolution from a single-focus strategy to a multi-discipline approach integrating the entire demand and supply network. The supply chain solutions created for the FA industry could be traced historically starting from a few decades ago emphasizing internal supply capability.

According to many supply chain institutes who are offering supply chain management degree program risk is the most important factor in supply chain cycle if organisation neglects risk factor then there will 80% chances of loss or damage.  improvement to the modern time focusing on total optimization. Table 2 summarizes the representative supply chain research in the literature relating to the FA industry.