Suzanne Loker

Dress in the Third Dimension Online Interactivity and Its New Horizons

This article is an analysis of how digital technology and the Internet are changing how we engage in practices of dress and appearance in the 21st century. An exploration of the technologically-assisted ways we see and interact with images of self and the clothing we wear is presented. Applications of body scan images for individuals and businesses to improve fit are examined as well as the interactive technologies being developed that allow individuals to view and dress their own body scans for virtual-try-on, virtual-fit, and virtual-reality applications. Although issues surrounding consumer comfort with, availability of, and profitable business models for these technologies still prevent broad-based adoption, we pose questions about the potential advantages and challenges for the digital, interactive third dimension of dress. Will dress in the third dimension have the same self-defining role that our dress has now in our everyday lives? Will the ability to create imaginary and symbolic virtual worlds affect our relationship to the world where we interact in person with others every day? Will the ability to see ourselves in three dimensions increase acceptance of normal body variations and counteract the popular media images of what constitutes a beautiful body? These are the questions we need to study as interactivity helps us become involved with our dress in new ways.

Female Consumers’ Reactions to Body Scanning

The body scanner is a new technology that has the potential to resolve issues for the apparel industry in fit of clothing and in communication and visualization of apparel fit. The interest consumers have in the scan process, in being scanned, and in allowing retailers and manufacturers to use their scan data is crucial to the commercial success of these applications. Two related studies were conducted. First, 203 female participants aged 35 to 55 were surveyed after they were scanned and viewed their scanned images on the computer monitor and in a movie file. For 22 of these participants, an observer also recorded their verbal and nonverbal responses to the scan process and viewing their scan. Although general acceptance of scanning was very high, women who were married and had over

Mass Customization of Wedding Gowns: Design Involvement on the Internet

100,000 household income were significantly less comfortable with some aspects of the body scan process. Observations of participants’ verbal, facial, and bodily expressions found some participants to be unsettled and unprepared for interactions with the unfamiliar yet personalizing technology.

Mass-customized Target Market Sizing: Extending the Sizing Paradigm for Improved Apparel Fit

After an extensive search of bridal web sites was conducted and categorized in Fabruary and March 2001, a research web site was developed to study mass customization of wedding gowns. It offered choice of design features or components through interactive illustrations and was based on Duray’s conceptual framework of mass customization (Duray, 1997; Duray, Ward, Milligan & Berry, 2000). The site served as the experimental treatment for subjects. Following their visit to the site, the subjects completed a questionnaire that dealt with their experience and personal demographic information. A convenience sample of 100 young women between the ages of 18 and 32 was identified through e-mail recruitment. Results confirmed a high overall interest in involvement with the design of a wedding gown. Yet those subjects who were very interested in design involvement were significantly different than those who were less interested in spending more time or paying more money. Subjects who owned more personal technological devices and spent more time on computers and the Internet were significantly more willing to purchase the designed gown. Four categories of bridal web sites were identified based on site characteristics and strategies: marketing, browsing, advice, and customizing. Involvement in wedding dress design on the Internet is not yet available but appears to hold potential for the bridal industry. Research that studies the identification of potential customers by their high interest in design involvement, evaluation of product type and other interactive opportunities for design involvement, and use of Internet customization strategies with other channels of distribution is recommended.

A model for sustainability education in support of the PRME

Abstract We use a conceptual framework of sizing and fit issues to describe an extended paradigm for sizing and fit, which we call mass-customized target market sizing: that is, a sizing system based on and derived from measurement data exclusively from the people who represent an apparel firms target market. The use of the conceptual framework provides help to expand our thinking to derive innovative solutions for sizing and fit while understanding and addressing all of the issues that must be resolved in creating a new system. Advancing technologies, especially the body scanner, are the tools that make new sizing systems possible through rapid, accurate measurement of populations and development of continuously updated measurement databases that can be sorted by multiple demographic factors. Our central argument for mass-customized target market sizing is that companies that focus on a well-defined target market, that create well designed clothing and sizing systems specifically for this market using anthropometric data, that fit the full range of body types and proportions of this market, that address issues arising from this model regarding design, production and distribution, and that communicate effectively with the market can succeed as a mass-customized business in an increasingly fragmented world. Use of population data, collected and analyzed according to firm-based and consumer-based models, can provide a powerful tool to satisfy target markets and differentiate apparel companies. Target market sizing models can also be expanded to include mass-customized apparel styling models based on the variables proposed within the conceptual framework.

Technology usage intent among apparel retail employees

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present innovative strategies to promote sustainability‐focused education, in a case study of a multi‐institutional program designed to prepare students for management positions in global apparel and footwear companies. The program is unique in focusing upon management education occurring outside the business school, extension of faculty resources through inter‐institutional collaborations, and use of the internet for course delivery.Design/methodology/approach – Faculty from three institutions collaborated to develop ten 1‐credit web‐based graduate courses and delivered them inter‐institutionally. Through collaboration with global companies and other stakeholders and through field research, the faculty built a shared vision of sustainability education, identified learning outcomes, developed practical and applied learning experiences and created tools to assess learning.Findings – Industry experts agreed that the courses and learning outcomes were important and a...

People and Technology Management in Flexible Manufacturing: An Apparel Industry Case Study

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify variables important to acceptance and use of advanced technologies by apparel retail employees and to recommend management strategies for effective technology integration in retail stores. Design/methodology/approach – Current or past retail employees (N=71) were introduced to and given time to use three technologies – a 3D body scanner, product configurator, and social networking – in a laboratory setting using a within subjects design. A questionnaire measured participants’ perceptions of each technology in terms of usefulness, enjoyment, ease of use, task importance, technology self-efficacy – overall participant confidence in using new technology – and usage intent. Findings – Results showed that employees perceived usefulness of technology was a mediating influence on usage intent for all three technology types. Enjoyment also emerged as a significant mediator for 3D body scanning technology usage intent. Employees’ high self-efficacy scores corresp...

Trying on the Future: Exploring Apparel Retail Employees’ Perspectives on Advanced In-Store Technologies

Interviews were conducted with senior and middle managers, sales and marketing staff, and production employees who worked in teams at a small apparel manufacturing plant in the northeastern United States. The input of technology management was incorporated into Bailey’s model of high-performance work systems (i.e., flexible manufacturing) and used as a conceptual framework to organize and analyze the case study. Interviews focused on technology management, employee involvement, technical and people skills, and employee discretionary effort. Interrelationships among people and technology created greater organizational capacity. Employees at all levels in the firm described their opportunities for involvement, technical and soft skill development, and the discretionary efforts by employees that these opportunities promoted. The results support implementation of flexible or high-performance work systems that focus on technology management, skill development, and employee involvement through team organization. Additional quantitative and qualitative research is recommended to evaluate the performance effects of these work systems and clarify the relationships among these variables.

Investing in the Future: ACPTC Northeastern Subregion Takes Stock

Abstract Technology use in apparel retail stores is on the rise and is changing the way that employees work and customers shop. In spite of increased use, advanced technology deployed within apparel retail stores has yet to match the rapid pace of growth for technologies adopted by apparel consumers enabled by mobile devices and sophisticated digital applications. The goal of this research was to explore the perspectives of apparel retail store employees on technology use and its relationship to effectively carrying out current and future (innovative) job responsibilities. Three technologies traditionally not found within US apparel retail stores, but emerging as part of the retail store environment, were examined by apparel retail employees in a lab setting. The technologies included a 3D body scanner, product configurator software, and social media. Seven themes emerged from the analysis and reflected how employees envisioned using these advanced technologies in their work. Themes included: (1) communication and relationship building, (2) creativity, (3) customization and personalization, (4) efficiency and accuracy, (5) engagement and experience, (6) fun and interest, and (7) sizing and fit. Concluding recommendations provide insights into how these themes could benefit the employee‒customer interaction, as well as offer direct benefits to employee job satisfaction, retailer profitability, and customer loyalty.

Consumer satisfaction with a mass customized Internet apparel shopping site

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