Conjoint analysis of consumer preferences for dress design
International Journal of Clothing Science and Technology
ISSN: 0955-6222
Article publication date: 18 June 2019
Issue publication date: 9 March 2020
Abstract
Purpose
In the process of designing new clothes, designers should identify specific user groups’ preferences and attitudes toward certain types of design, ascertain the design elements that make clothes popular in the market, and combine these elements to devise the best clothing design scheme. The purpose of this paper is to discover which design elements influence dress purchases and how age affects consumers’ choices in regard to these elements.
Design/methodology/approach
This study uses conjoint analysis in dress design to provide an effective method for designers to identify consumers’ preferences. First, the important attributes and attribute levels of dress design were determined. Next, the experimental samples for the attitude measurement chart were generated by orthogonal design. Finally, the data of 318 samples were analyzed by conjoint analysis to determine consumers’ preferences.
Findings
The results revealed that the “silhouette” attribute is the most important decision criterion for dress purchase, followed by the “dress length” attribute. In contrast, the “waistline height” attribute is perceived as least important. The study also identified the dress design features’ preferences of consumers of different ages. According to the results of the analysis, user groups’ preferences and acceptability regarding different design features were revealed, and the favorite dress design portfolio for age-specific consumers was obtained.
Originality/value
Currently, there is little information in the literature about consumers’ preferences regarding dress design. In this study, the use of conjoint analysis reveals and visualizes complex statistical results. This research approach is also applicable to the design and decision-making processes used for other apparel, and it can help designers better incorporate different users’ needs into clothing design.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
This work was supported by MOE (Ministry of Education in China) Project of Humanities and Social Sciences (No. 18YJCZH272), Project of Philosophy and Social Science Research Foundation of Jiangsu Provincial Universities (No. 2017SJB0861).
Citation
Zhou, X. and Xu, Y. (2020), "Conjoint analysis of consumer preferences for dress design", International Journal of Clothing Science and Technology, Vol. 32 No. 1, pp. 73-84. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJCST-02-2019-0024
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2019, Emerald Publishing Limited