Fashion Retail Supply Chain Best Practices Course

Introduction

The overall objective of this course is to introduce the delegates to the key challenges facing logisticians in managing an increasingly complex fashion retail supply chain. SCM issues especially in retailing area, the course covers international sourcing, merchandising, planning and forecasting, business models, operating strategies, and design distribution models.

On completion of this course you should be able to: 

• Gain a broad understanding of fashion retailing and cost-effective supply chain management
• Discuss the early growth and changes in the fashion industry, leading up to the drivers of change in today's market.
• Understand how the traditional fashion sector worked to a four-season planning model
• Explore the trends in the fashion market and discuss the supply chain changes in depth with a more detailed discussion on offshore sourcing and outsourcing in the international fashion supply chain.
• Identify a conceptual framework of types of sourcing and outsourcing strategies.
• Determine the different approaches taken by companies, from working through intermediaries to dealing directly with suppliers, with or without international hubs
• Deals with major strategic issues revolving around the social and environmental consequences of offshore production.

Course Outline

The Changing Nature of Fashion Retailing: Implications for Logistics

• Fashion: its role in culture
• The changing fashion retail environment
• The rise of fast fashion
• The luxury sector
• Fast fashion and CSR
• The online revolution
• The supply chain response
• Global dispersion of fashion supply chains
• Online logistical challenges

Off shore sourcing and outsourcing in the international fashion supply chain

• Sourcing strategies
• The nature of outsourcing
• Types of outsourcing
• Offshore sourcing and re-shoring?
• Supply chain relationships and responsiveness by
• product category
• Lean, agile or leagile?

Corporate social Responsibility (CSR) in International Fashion Supply Chains

• Defining CSR and its institutional context
• Strategic CSR
• Implementation of CSR initiatives in global fashion supply chains
• Compromises to CSR in global apparel production
• Case studies of CSR in practice
• Rankings of socially responsible companies
• Sri Lanka and CSR practices in garment manufacture

International Logistics

• Definitions, impact and channels of distribution
• Economic impact of logistics and SCM on channels of distribution
• Fashion retail logistics and SCM
• Globalization
• Logistics and SCM in a global economy
• Global risk, disruption and supply chain security
• International logistics and SCM implications for fashion retailers

In-store Consumer Service

• The national fashion retail supply chain
• Retail logistical systems strategy and design
• In-store consumer service
• Some empirical studies
• Suggestions to improve in-store consumer service

Online Consumer Service

• The online fashion retail supply chain
• The business case for Omni-channel retailing
• Logistical design considerations for Omni-channel fulfillment
• Suggestions to improve online fulfillment service

Luxury Fashion and Supply Chain Management

• Definitions of luxury and luxury branding
• The ‘new’ luxury
• The evolution of the luxury brand
• Gaining control of marketing channels
• Supply chain management in luxury fashion

Sustainable Fashion Retailing and Logistics

• Concepts of sustainability
• Sustainability in logistics and SCM
• Sustainability management and management systems
• Sustainability in the fashion retail sector