This study aims to investigate the relationship between people’s socially and environmentally responsible apparel practices (SERAP) and valuing US made clothing, current…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to investigate the relationship between people’s socially and environmentally responsible apparel practices (SERAP) and valuing US made clothing, current perceptions of US made clothing and factors affecting apparel purchases.
Design/methodology/approach
An online survey was completed by 502 US consumer aged 18-65. Five factors were identified representing responsible apparel practices and US made clothing. Inter-factor correlations were tested. People’s perceptions toward US made clothing were examined through perceived quality, purchase experience and intentions to pay premium prices.
Findings
There was a positive correlation between SERAP and valuing US made clothing. Perceived quality of US apparel influenced both actual purchase and intentions to pay higher prices. Availability and affordability were major purchase factors.
Practical implications
US apparel companies that produce their products domestically may consider developing specific messaging that resonates with customers, taking advantage of the perception of high quality and being transparent with the cost of producing apparel domestically.
Originality/value
This study suggests domestically made apparel purchases as part of a move toward SERAP. Although previous studies have addressed consumer responsibility and sustainable businesses, the connection has been inconclusive. This study provides current data of renewed and growing interest in US made apparel and expands its value.
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Elizabeth Bye and Kira Erickson
This study aims to explore domestic sewn product manufacturing in Minnesota. There is a renewed interest from consumers in products Made in America, thus some manufactures are…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to explore domestic sewn product manufacturing in Minnesota. There is a renewed interest from consumers in products Made in America, thus some manufactures are taking advantage of the opportunities to produce locally.
Design/methodology/approach
Fourteen companies from across the state that ranged in size and product type were interviewed about the motivations, opportunities and challenges they experience with domestic manufacturing. A content analysis was conducted on the qualitative data.
Findings
The themes of personal values and economics emerged under motivations; the local economy, control and uniqueness were revealed as opportunities; and challenges included the themes of manufacturing resources and costs.
Originality/value
This group of Minnesota manufacturers holds strong values that drive them to balance the opportunities and challenges of domestic manufacturing. There is no evidence to determine if sustainability is a concern or a motivating factor.
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Elizabeth Bye, Karen LaBat, Ellen McKinney and Dong‐Eun Kim
To evaluate current apparel industry Misses grading practices in providing good fit and propose grading practices to improve fit.
Abstract
Purpose
To evaluate current apparel industry Misses grading practices in providing good fit and propose grading practices to improve fit.
Design/methodology/approach
Participants representing Misses sizes 6‐20 based on ASTM D 5585 were selected. The fit of garments from traditionally graded patterns was assessed. Garments were fit‐to‐shape on participants. Traditionally graded patterns were compared to fit‐to‐shape patterns using quantitative and qualitative visual analysis.
Findings
Current apparel industry grading practices do not provide good fit for consumers. The greatest variation between the traditionally graded patterns and the fit‐to‐shape patterns occurred between sizes 14 and 16. For size 16 and up, neck and armscye circumferences were too large and bust dart intakes were too small.
Research limitations/implications
This study was limited to a sheath dress in Misses sizes 6‐20. Future research should assess the fit of garments from traditionally graded patterns for other size ranges.
Practical implications
Multiple fit modes are needed in a range of more than five sizes. The fit model should be at the middle of a sizing group that does not range more than two sizes up or down.
Originality/value
There are few studies on apparel grading that test fit of actual garments on the body. The analysis documents the real growth of the body across the size range and suggests that changes in body measurements and shape determine the fit of a garment. These findings impact future research in apparel and the practices of apparel manufacturers.
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Marilyn DeLong, Gozde Goncu-Berk, Elizabeth Bye and Juanjuan Wu
This research takes a bottoms-up approach to sustainable practices of designers within one industry in a specific locale. In researching sustainability in the apparel industry…
Abstract
This research takes a bottoms-up approach to sustainable practices of designers within one industry in a specific locale. In researching sustainability in the apparel industry, one must consider the fashion system in which apparel designers operate. This research examines apparel designers in Minnesota and their perspectives about best practices that will encourage sustainability. Designers from a variety of small to large size businesses are interviewed and the results are analyzed to identify present and future contributions with regards to sustainability in apparel design. Processes that take into account the local context of sustainability enable a shared understanding with potential for mutually acceptable approaches to address the issues.
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Elizabeth Bye and Ellen McKinney
The purpose of this paper is to develop a “good fit” for garments for customer satisfaction, comfort, and functionality as well as a manufacturer's success and reputation.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to develop a “good fit” for garments for customer satisfaction, comfort, and functionality as well as a manufacturer's success and reputation.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper reviews and evaluates garments on a live fit model and makes recommendations for the acceptance or modification of the garment for production. As more manufacturing, product development, and designing responsibilities continue to take place globally, alternatives to the traditional fit analysis are under consideration.
Findings
Fit analysis using live and three‐dimensional scan models as an alternative to the traditional fit analysis are under consideration.
Originality/value
This paper evaluates garments on a live fit model and makes recommendations for the acceptance or modification of the garment for production.
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Katherine Celia Greder, Jie Pei and Jooyoung Shin
The purpose of this study was to create a corset—understructure as well as fabric covering—using only computational, 3D approaches to fashion design. The process incorporated 3D…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study was to create a corset—understructure as well as fabric covering—using only computational, 3D approaches to fashion design. The process incorporated 3D body scan data, parametric methods for the 3D-printed design, and algorithmic methods for the automated, custom-fit fabric pattern.
Design/methodology/approach
The methods or protocol-based framework that nucleated this design project (see Figure 1) enabled more concentrated research into the iterative step-by-step procedure and the computational techniques used herein.
Findings
The 3D computational methods in this study demonstrated a new way of rendering the body-to-pattern relationship through the use of multiple software platforms. Using body scan data and computer coding, the computational construction methods in this study showed a pliant and sustainable method of clothing design where designers were able to manipulate the X, Y, and Z coordinates of the points on the scan surface.
Research limitations/implications
A study of algorithmic methods is inherently a study of limitation. The iterative process of design was defined and refined through the particularity of an algorithm, which required thoughtful manipulation to inform the outcome of this research.
Practical implications
This study sought to illustrate the use and limitations of algorithm-driven computer programming to advance creative design practices.
Social implications
As body scan data and biometric information become increasingly common components of computational fashion design practices, the need for more research on the use of these techniques is pressing. Moreover, computational techniques serve as a catalyst for discussions about the use of biometric information in design and data modeling.
Originality/value
The process of designing in 3D allowed for the dynamic capability to manipulate proportion and form using parametric design techniques.
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Wow! It was about this time of year – but about sixteen years ago – that we held our first Research on Managing Groups and Teams conference. The first one was held at Stanford but…
Abstract
Wow! It was about this time of year – but about sixteen years ago – that we held our first Research on Managing Groups and Teams conference. The first one was held at Stanford but we moved the location between the East and West coasts for 14 years. As homage to where we met and as the touchstone to where so many of the participants in our conferences and the authors in our volumes were trained, taught, or visited, we returned to the Kellogg School of Management, our intellectual spawning ground. With generous and facilitating support from the Kellogg dean Sally Blount (who, not coincidentally, was the thematic editor of the RMGT Volume 5: Time in Groups), about 60 of us convened to present our ideas, engage in good-natured roasting of our colleagues, and remember how we and the field had changed – and the part that we all have played in that transformation. When Beta and I said our last good-byes at the conference, we left Evanston, not with sadness at the ending of the conferences, but with a sense of accomplishment and collegiality. We have watched young assistant professors transform into leaders in the field. We had seen our own research fortunes, responsibilities, and accomplishments ebb and flow over the 16 years. And now – we move on to new adventures, new horizons, and, with luck, a few more successes.
Elizabeth Anne Weigle and Laura McAndrews
The purpose of this paper is to investigate Generation Z's physical expectations of being pregnant and their outlook for maternity wear shopping.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate Generation Z's physical expectations of being pregnant and their outlook for maternity wear shopping.
Design/methodology/approach
Females in this cohort (n = 207) participated in an online survey that included questions about perceptions of pregnancy, physical self-concept and forecasted shopping behaviors.
Findings
Results indicated that this group is concerned with physical changes of pregnancy and expect to treat each area of the body in a different way. Women's expected physical concerns of pregnancy predict how much they anticipate accentuating their pregnant body. Gen Z anticipates wearing loose maternity garments and they envision a thoughtful, in-store shopping experience for styles that are equally fashionable and comfortable, such as dresses.
Research limitations/implications
This study should be extended to future generational cohorts like Generation Alpha, along with Gen Z outside of the United States and women in the United States who are non-white. Further studies should take a longitudinal approach to gauge changes in this cohort's expectations as they progress through pregnancy.
Practical implications
This paper provides maternity wear retail brands and designers a foundation for product development and marketing geared toward this large cohort.
Originality/value
The study is the first to inquire about Gen Z's outlook on pregnancy, specifically their envisioned changes to each body area and the role of maternity garments to fulfill needs and concerns.
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THE Fifty‐First Conference of the Library Association takes place in the most modern type of British town. Blackpool is a typical growth of the past fifty years or so, rising from…
Abstract
THE Fifty‐First Conference of the Library Association takes place in the most modern type of British town. Blackpool is a typical growth of the past fifty years or so, rising from the greater value placed upon the recreations of the people in recent decades. It has the name of the pleasure city of the north, a huge caravansary into which the large industrial cities empty themselves at the holiday seasons. But Blackpool is more than that; it is a town with a vibrating local life of its own; it has its intellectual side even if the casual visitor does not always see it as readily as he does the attractions of the front. A week can be spent profitably there even by the mere intellectualist.