Product Development

1
Product Development

• Where the rubber meets the road
• Karen M. Videtic
• Virginia Commonwealth University
• Department of Fashion Design and Merchandising

2
Step One Define your customer.

• Demographics
• Average age of purchaser
• Income
• Psychographics
• Fashion attitude or buying behaviors
• VALS and GeoVALS
• Average purchase of apparel in both units and
  dollars.
• Cultural Influences or implications

3
Chicos

• Who is their target customer?
• 35 -55 years old
• Feels young
• Active
• Travels a lot
• Doesnt want to wear her daughters clothes
• Casual and a little funky or has attitude

4
Step 2 industry research

• Market trends vs. fashion trends
• Scope and Size of your segment of the industry
• Trade Shows
• Key brands and your competition
• Wholesale price points and retail price points
• Product Expectations quality, fabrication, fit,
  craftsmanship, labeling or branding.

5
More research

• Sales trends
• Technological trends for your market
• Leading manufacturers of textiles and location
• Market condition for labor
• Newest finishes, colors, treatments.
• Newest styles and preferences
• Product requirements fit, price constraints,
  celebrity endorsement.

6
Step 3 Theme and Inspiration Boards

• Lets begin here
• Review the research into your decade
• Review the forecasts for the fall 08 season
• Determine how you might interpret the future.
• Only uses images
• Do not draw images yet
• Just get your inspiration.
• You could also use a movie from the same decade.
• For the workshop, just tell us about your
  inspiration.

7
Heres my inspiration

• 1940s
• Audrey Hepburns Breakfast at Tiffanys
• A little punk bug with pearls and diamonds
• The graphic look of the glove.

8
Step 4 Design and Concepts Board

• Transition from the inspiration to the product
  line concept.
• Beginning of the visualization or blueprints.
• Remember that your customer should be the center
  of your focus.
• Sketches or flats would be included.
• Think details, price points, fabrication and
  details.

9
Step 5 Choosing the best fabrication, findings
and trim

• If this was a classroom project with more time
• Shop for fabric swatches and learn the names and
  properties
• Find special finishes like denim
• Shop for buttons and trim
• Discuss sourcing and the import laws.
• Look at labor costs and discuss fair labor wage.

10
Step 6 Develop a Spec Sheet

• Time to make a calendar so students can see the
  time involved in planning and developing a line.
• Students can pull apart a garment and measure all
  of the pieces and record the measurements.
• Deconstruction helps students understand the
  parts and pieces and sizing of a garment.

11
Specification sheets
12
Step 7 Costing Sheets and Size Spec

• Labor costs
• Fabrication, findings, finishes, etc.
• Grade each garment for a size run.
• Freight and landed costs
• Labeling
• Hangtags
• SAMPLE
• Testing for quality control issues

13
Cost Sheet
14
Labor Costs
15
Pre-Production and Production

• Quality Control
• Laundry, strength, durability,
• Ethical and responsible manufacturing
• Scheduling production
• Meeting deadlines
• Follow-up

16
Detail and Size Spec Sheet
17
Marketing the new line

• Product, Place, Price Promotion
• Public Relations
• Advertising
• Art Department
• Visual Merchandising
• Trade Shows
• Sales