Disruptive product development for online fast fashion retailers
Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management
ISSN: 1361-2026
Article publication date: 21 April 2020
Issue publication date: 20 August 2020
Abstract
Purpose
This research critically investigates product development in the context of fast fashion online retailers who are developing “own label” fashion clothing. With a focus upon inputs, outputs, planning and management in order to comprehensively map the interplay of people, processes and the procedures of the product development process adopted.
Design/methodology/approach
Qualitative research method was employed. Face-to-face semi structured in depth interviews were conducted with key informants from market leading fast fashion online retailers in the UK.
Findings
The major findings of this research demonstrate the disruptions in the product development process in contemporary and challenging fashion retailing and a new “circular process” model more appropriate and specific to online fast fashion businesses is presented.
Research limitations/implications
The research has implications for the emerging body of theory relating to fashion product development. The research is limited to UK online fashion retailers, although their operations are global.
Practical implications
The findings from this study may be useful for apparel product development for retailers considering an online and fast fashion business model.
Originality/value
The emergent process model in this study may be used as a baseline for further studies to compare product development processes.
Keywords
Citation
Parker-Strak, R., Barnes, L., Studd, R. and Doyle, S. (2020), "Disruptive product development for online fast fashion retailers", Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management, Vol. 24 No. 3, pp. 517-532. https://doi.org/10.1108/JFMM-08-2019-0170
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2020, Emerald Publishing Limited