The Corona Virus has affected the lives of people in almost every country in the world. Normal life and everything necessary for life, including educational institutions, industries and businesses, seems to have faded away. The situation is similar in the fashion industry or apparel industries around the world. Well-known fashion brands like Nike, Zara, Puma have suspended their production and marketing.
Buyer companies have stopped or temporarily stopped ordering products from their manufacturing companies and countries. At the same time new orders are not being given. In doing so, on the one hand, the buyer is facing losses, and on the other hand, the manufacturer and the supplier or supplier organization are also facing losses.
The Global fashion industry:
If we consider global fashion, it will be seen that many organizations will face huge financial losses after the Corona epidemic. And many companies will not survive. It is called ‘Fashion’s Darwinian Shakeout’. That is, the companies that can cope with the Corona epidemic will survive, while the rest may be lost.
More or less everyone is under house arrest due to quarantine or lockdown in the country due to coronavirus. Now that he is under house arrest, no one will bother to buy fashion products. Homeless people are reluctant to go shopping without the necessities of life. As a result, it is not possible to market in-stock or inventory products of fashion companies.
But one thing is true in the case of the fashion industry. That is, no matter what the epidemic or whatever, the fashion industry will never be lost. Somehow fashion will survive. Let’s give a small example. At one time jeans were worn by miners. Then it became a manifestation of a treacherous attitude, which some actors wore. Later those jeans became the symbol of nobility. Jeans have now become an almost essential wear of the public. Jeans are the same (although now the meaning has changed), but the fashion has changed many times. This is how fashion survives in one way or another.
On-Demand Manufacturing
There was a time when fashion or apparel was going in a conventional way. Clothing was made targeting the next season. For example, winter clothes were made or are still made in summer and these clothes are released in the market in winter. In the same way summer clothes are made in winter. This method is traditional. But, as modern artisans know, this conventional method is only able to create ‘Casual dress’ in ‘Seasonal way’. But global fashion means not only the production of this casual dress but also.
Now almost every fashion industry has suspended their business completely or temporarily due to Corona. As a result, their losses have to be counted. Again, the amount of goods in stock is the cost of inventory. As a result, the company has to calculate these costs without selling and making a profit. Here the industrialists are gradually focusing on the on-demand manufacturing process.
The on-demand manufacturing process is that there will be no conventional production i.e. seasonal production and there is no need to keep any product in inventory. The manufacturer will produce the product directly when needed. Although this idea has not yet worked out that way. This is due to lack of proper technology and lack of proper direction. However, as a result of the epidemic, factories and industrialists are focusing on on-demand manufacturing.
In other words, the industries are trying to shift the focus from seasonal production to up-to-date methods that will be sustainable. As a result this seasonal production is likely to be lost in the near future. Of course some seasonal production is essential.
There is another advantage of on-demand manufacturing. Usually people’s fashion tastes change after a special event or time. For example, let’s think about the current situation. What people are doing to survive coronavirus; Use face masks, gloves, hand sanitizer or handwash several times a day. Now if clothing is made that is resistant to coronavirus, then people will naturally lean towards it, just like lean towards mask-gloves.
Brazil-based textile company’ssustainabletextile has recently developed a covid-free denim treatment process. This is how more treatments and treated products will be made, which will be covid-free. This is a simple example.
Because the change in the direction of fashion is mainly cantered on a particular event or time. For example, after The Great Depression or after the Second World War, there were many changes in people’s homes, behaviour and fashion. Researchers speculate that the Corona epidemic will be another chapter in these changes.
Local vs. Global Apparel Production Process
Online shopping is booming again. Those who shop online, order and do not want to be too late. Therefore, keeping their words in mind, arrangements are made to make products from the local industry and arrangements are also made for delivery within 2-3 days.
Generally, fashion industries produce products from two types of manufacturing industries – local and global. That is, some products are made from the local manufacturing industry. The advantage of this is that they can be easily entered in the local market.
But this is different in the case of global manufacturing industries. In the case of global manufacturing, buyers from one country place an order in another country’s industry to make products of their brand. In this case, after making the product, it takes a lot of time for shipping. These are offered at general retail outlets. Because in case of online shopping, it will take more time to deliver.
In the present situation, that is, in the state of coronation, there are many problems in importing and exporting goods from other countries. The buyer company has cancelled many orders in whole or in part. But they have to do business. In this case, they are dependent on their local industries. As a result, there is no doubt that the production in the local market will increase comparatively. On the other hand, there will be a loss to the global industry. This condition may be effective for the next few months, or even years.
Online selling and shopping
An important topic of the present time is online buying and selling or e-commerce. Most people prefer to shop for fashion products, such as clothing directly from retail shops. People are relatively less interested in buying fashion products online. According to statistics, 80 percent of transactions in the fashion industry are mainly from the retail market.
But in the Corona situation, almost all retail outlets are closed or open for a limited time. Again, people do not dare or do not want to go shopping in retail shops at the risk of corona. In this case, online shopping is their only hope. People who used to buy products from retail shops are now buying products online.
This has led to two types of incidents. First, brands or companies that have online e-commerce sites, that is, online-based shopping systems, are shopping at less than retail outlets. On the other hand, brands or companies that relied solely on retail outlets have their products stuck in all inventory.
Needless to say, the habit of shopping online will continue to grow at some point in the future. And companies that have not yet built their e-commerce sites will also lean towards e-commerce sites. Once human habits change, many things change.
Although that success is temporarily threatened by the Corona epidemic. But as has been said before, fashion is one such thing that is not completely lost, it comes back in a new form. But that requires the right direction and maximum use of technology.