APPAREL-INDUSTRY (MERCHANDISING)

      Hello Everyone!!!! I heartly welcome you all to my channel , as of now we have seen an overview of apparel industry how it works , flowchart, some important terms and flowchart. Today we will be going to discuss very important factor in which complete apparel industry is based on . “Merchandising” . In easy words to promote or sale of any kind of product. We will see how merchandising plays a vital role in apparel industry. Lets start….

 Apparel Merchandising

Merchandising -Merchandising involved with trade (buy & sale).

Apparel Merchandising – Apparel merchandising involved in garments trade (goods are bought and apparel sold).

Definition of Merchandising – Merchandising may be defined as: – Person who merchandises the goods, specifically for export purposes. Term Apparel Merchandising means:-

• Order confirmation by negotiation
• Buying raw materials and accessories
• Producing garments
• Maintaining required quality level
• Exporting the garments with in schedule time

From the above definitions, we can say that a person who involved in apparel merchandising needs a wide range of knowledge and skills to perform his/ her job successfully. The job itself is Technical and general as well.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              

MERCHANDISING:

Merchandising may be defined as-Person who merchandises the goods, specifically for export purposes. Element of marketing concerned especially with the sale of goods and services to customers. One aspect of merchandising is advertising, which aims to capture the interest of the segment of the population most likely to buy the product. Merchandising also involves product display; companies provide retailers with display and promotional materials and negotiate shelf space for their products. The development of sales strategies includes the determination of pricing, discounts, and special offers; the invention of sales pitches; and the identification of avenues for sales, including store-based retailing and alternative means such as direct-mail marketing, telemarketing, commercial Web sites, vending machines, and door-to-door sales.

Merchandising, as commonly used in Marketing also means the promotion of merchandise sales, as by coordinating production, marketing and developing advertising, display and sales strategies to increase retail sales. This includes disciplines in pricing and discounting, physical presentation of products and displays, and the decisions about which products should be presented to which customers at what time.

Merchandisers make sure that goods are available in the right stores, at the right time and at the right price. They work closely with buyers to forecast trends, plan stock levels and monitor how well goods are selling. Buyers select the product ranges, while merchandisers aim to maximize profits by deciding which lines will sell, how much to spend on stock, how much to buy and what price to sell at.

SKILLS & KNOWLEDGE REQUIRED FOR APPAREL MERCHANDISER:

Apparel Merchandiser should process the following basic knowledge and skills:

1. Good commend of English and good communication skills in English.

2. Good knowledge of Yarn, Fabric, Dyeing, Printing, Finishing, Dyes, Color Fastness, Garments production, etc.

3. Clear conception of the usual Potential Quality problems and garment manufacturing.

4. Good knowledge of the usual raw materials inspection systems and garments inspection system.

5. Knowledge of quota system and category countries, duty rate, custom regulation, shipping and banking documentation.

 Roles & responsibility of merchandising:

Merchandisers generally perform a very hard responsibility. In order to satisfy customer by delivering specified goods of specified quality on designated date, he has to coordinate with all the concerned departments of manufacturing factory, supplier organization & the buyer. He needs to cut a balance between quality, lead time, delivery schedule & price of the merchandise. He also takes the responsibility of securing order, sourcing materials, follow-up of production, costing quality & delivery schedule under tight deadline.

 When an export order is placed to a merchandiser, he has to schedule the following main functions to execute the export order perfectly in time (schedule):-

• Fabric requirement calculation (consumption, YPD).
• Accessories requirement, calculation (Example, Thread, button, interlining, label, poly bag and cartoon etc).
• Sourcing of fabrics.
• Sourcing of accessories.
• Production follow-up with fabric and accessories, be possible date of arrival of fabric and accessories in garment factory.
• Costing of garments.
• Garment analysis and production planning.
• Performa making, swatch making and distribution to the production unit and quality concern people.
• Pre-shipment inspection schedule.
• Shipment documents
• Have to prepare proper time and action plan
• Arranging shipping documents and final inspection.

EXECUTION PROCESS FOR A GARMENT EXPORT:

• Order inquiry from buyer to factory.
• Approval of order from Buyer, as per the costing given by the Merchandiser.
• Buyer Bank gives master L/C to the factory. Commercial dept deals with the follow up of L/C matters.
• B/B, L/C is given to the suppliers of accessories and fabric, etc.
• Fit sample sent to the Buyer for fit approval.
• Pre-Production sample submitted to Buyer with original accessories and fabric.
• Fabric and trims to be in housed on due time as per time and action plan.
• Pilot production to be started as per time and action plan. (Pilot production or initial production can consist of 100to 200 pcs.)
• Online inspection by buyers Q.C certifies the quality of the garments.
• Bulk production to be started, as per the time and action plan.
• In the main time commercial section, prepare the shipping documents
• Final inspection as per time and action plan (after final inspection ok).
• Goods are made ex factory.
• Goods handed over to the shipping line (Sea shipment)
• Goods will reach to buyer port.
• Cost of fabric is to USA $ mts.

MERCHANDISERS WORK USUALLY INVOLVES:

• Understanding quick response for an order proceed
• Planning the range of products to be sold, with the buying team
• Analyzing sales figures and trends
• Forecasting future sales and profits, using computer programmers
• Setting prices and sales targets
• Planning budgets and presenting sales forecasts to managers
• Negotiating prices with suppliers, placing orders and making sure that goods arrive on time
• Controlling stock levels, moving stock and making sure that best-selling products are always available
• Promoting or reducing the prices of slower-selling lines
• Visiting suppliers and stores to discuss how products are selling.

Most merchandisers specialize in a particular type of product, such as apparel merchandiser, Fashion merchandiser etc.

Merchandisers for large retail chains may be known as product managers and deal only with one or two product lines. In smaller companies they may be responsible for both buying and merchandising.

KEY OF APPAREL MERCHANDISING:

To be a merchandiser-

• Good business sense and an understanding of what customers or buyers want
• Good analytical and mathematical skills
• Decision making ability
• Good communication and negotiation skills
• Creative flair
• The ability to work well in a team
• Excellent organizational and planning skills
• The ability to work under pressure
• Good computer skills, especially in using spreadsheets.

 Documentation of merchandising:

Production merchandising process starts once the order / fabric commitment is received and the product development department hands over the file to production merchandiser and ends when the goods reach the buyers. The entire cycle involves all activities directly or indirectly related to procuring of materials, planning and monitoring of the order.

 1. Order confirmation document:

• Copy of master LC.
• Contract sheet:
• Contract no
• Style no
• Shipment date
• A.Q.L
• Order quantity & size Ratio
• Fabric description
• Labels & position
• Buyer’s comments & regarding approved sample.
• Proved trim card.

2 Import document:

• Performa invoice.
• Commercial invoice.
• Packing list.
• Utilization permission.
• PSI (Pre shipment Inspection) Certificate.

 3. Documentation on received of the material at the factory:

• Inventory report.
• Swatches (on received fabric and accessories).

 4. Documentation: Production oriented

• Production Plan.
• Daily production report.
• Daily quantity report.
• Daily production and inspection report

5. Export documentation:

• IC (Final Inspection certificate).
• BL (Bill of lading).
• AB (Airway bill).
• PL (Packing list)
• Certificate of origin.

PROCESS FLOW:

Production merchandising process starts once the order / fabric commitment is received and the product development department hands over the file to production merchandiser and ends when the goods reach the buyers. The entire cycle involves all activities directly or indirectly related to procuring of materials, planning and monitoring of the order.

MERCHAINDIING PROCESS:

  Receipt of order beat:

Receipt of an order means final confirmation of the order from the buyer.

Since, this is the final confirmation it is done by means of a legal document

called a PO (purchase order) or an FC (fabric commitment).

Purchase order:

 This is a legal document stating the quantity, delivery, price, style no, buyer, vendor details. On receipt of a PO it is very important that the merchandiser checks all details and confirms that they are correct like – quantity, delivery date, and price, style no, style description, color no & reference if mentioned, shipment mode, shipment port, vendor address, buyer address.

 Fabric commitment:

Fabric commitment is a legal document confirming that the buyer will be buying the said quantity of a particular fabric. A garment style no need not be mentioned on this document as it is a commitment only for buying fabric. This kind of a legal document is used by the buyer when there are very probable chances of change in the style or the same fabric is being used in a number of styles and the buyer has still not decided on the quantity to be purchased in each of the styles. Hence in such a situation the buyer gives a block booking for fabric.

Once the order is received four different activities are started off simultaneously. These activities are – preparing a detailed T&A, Fabric Ordering, Trim Ordering, fit cycle and sample approvals.

T&A (Time & action):

Preparation of a detailed time and action (T&A) calendar is very essential in production merchandising. The reason being, large no of activities have to be followed up for each order and a merchandised may be handling large number of such orders and hence it is essential that all activities are listed. This minimizes the risk of missing out any of the activities. Hence while preparing a T&A one should list down as many activities as one can think of which are essential in smooth running of the order. A detailed discussion on T&A is done later in this module.

This T&A is prepared by the merchandiser in consultation with all the concerned departments such as – sourcing (fabrics & accessories), production, and quality assurance, logistics.

Once the T&A is finalized the same should be circulated to all concerned departments. Another important aspect of the T&A is fixing the responsibility. Along with finalizing the date by which a particular activity has to be completed, the merchandiser should also mention the name of person who is responsible to complete the activity by that time.

 Fabric ordering:

This activity involves ordering of fabric with the mill. The important points to be taken care of during this activity are:

• Accurate computation of the requirement. This is essential to ensure that during bulk production the materials do not fall short nor are they in access and there are leftovers after the order is shipped. An accurate calculation of material requirement can be done if the BOM (bill of materials) as provided by the buyer in the specification sheet is studied thoroughly.  Apart from just ensuring that the quantity is correct the BOM also helps in checking that all materials required in completion of the order are ordered and nothing has been missed out.

• Selecting the best vendor for the materials in terms of quality, price and delivery.
• The fabric order is places by the merchandiser by means of a purchase order. The purchase order should list down the following very clearly:

• Name & Reference no of the article
• Quality description of the article
• Quantity
• Price
• Delivery date
• Quality parameters as required by the buyer
• Payment terms
• Pilot yardage requirements if any

• The mill sends a PI (Performa invoice) confirming the details as mentioned in the PO. In case of any changes required in the PO the same are also mentioned in the PI. The mill also provides its bank details on the PI so that the factory can work out the payments.
• There can be various kinds of payment term agreements between the buying and the selling parties as below.
• Some % of payment in advance, the balance at sight. Example, 20% advance, 80% at sight. This means that 20% of the total value of goods is paid in advance, the balance 80% is pain once the goods are received by the buyer (factory). This payment can be done by means of DD (demand draft), check or TT (telegraphic transfer)

 LC (letter of credit):

In this payment mode the banks of both parties are involved. The buying party (factory in case of fabric) opens up a LC with its bank and the same is transferred to the mills bank. On acceptance of the LC by the mills bank, this becomes a legal contract between the two parties. Once the goods are dispatched the mill submits the dispatch details (Invoice, packing list and Air way bill details) in its bank and gets the payment for the goods. The mills bank then approaches the factories bank and gets its payment from the same. The factories bank then gets the payment from the factory. The LC once made, a copy of the same should be called in by the merchandiser and studied to make sure all details as mentioned are correct.

The details to be looked at are:

• Name & Reference no of the article.
• Quality description of the article.
• Quantity
• Price
• Delivery date
• LC expiry date

MERCHANDISER WORLFLOW IN PRODUCTION PROCESS  

Merchandiser is the key person in the garment industry. Each merchandiser is liable to carry out an individual order. Most of the time, they have to work in a team to get better performance. Thus they have to do some particular task again and again whenever they get any bulk order. Please find some narrative writings to get a sound idea regarding this topic.

1) After Order Receive:

1.      Inform planning to fix Ex-factory and then create Order instruction with our number

2.      Sample analyze deeply, work with pattern maker and then prepare BOM

3.      Make one piece construction sample with available materials to check pattern

4.      Then go ahead to make fit sample with available materials and send it to buyer for their review

5.      Keep communicating with buyer for their update comments, spec sheet and start sample development to go ahead to get approval of fabric, accessories, printing, embroidery, zip puller, metal logo, care label, hang tag etc.

6.      Send swatch Board and trim Card to buyer for Approval

7.      Request buyer to issue LC

8.      Collect PP sample materials to proceed PP sample

9.      Proceed to make PP Sample with all actual materials

10.  Check BOM and make MPR then issue PRS for material purchasing

11.  Review BOM, MPR, PRS again to find out errors

12.  Keep touch with supply chain and monitor order placement

2) Before and after Material Receiving:

1.      Make material tracking file to ensure material on board timely and find out shortage quantity quickly

2.      Deliver master Trim Card to MCD to make duplicate copy

3.      Check MCD quality report and solve quality issues along with purchase team to do smooth production

4.      Work with finishing in-charge to fix carton dimension, folding method etc.

5.      Insist production team to proceed size set sample making

6.      Attend PP meeting with approved PP sample and deliver all relevant information to start production

7.      Production floor visit every day to watch measurement, poor workmanship, negligence, material placement, decoration stitch etc. and review 1st production

8.      Check quality and cutting defect report to solve shading problem, accessories defect etc.

9.      Keep touch with Purchase team to get replacement of quality defect & shortage materials.

3) Before and after packaging:

1.      Deliver packing instruction to finishing team at PP meeting

2.      Review packing method with packing guy

3.      Collect daily production report and send it to buyer

4.      Arrange inline inspection through buyer quality if required

5.      Collect Shipping Sample after quality checking and send it to buyer before 7 days of shipment

4) Before Shipment:

1.      Give booking information to commercial team

2.      Offer final inspection to buyer and take initiative

3.      After final inspection assist commercial team to do ex-factory

4.      Close Order file by keeping all relevant papers

5) After Shipment:

If arise any quality related issue please check production sample and work with management to solve the issue promptly.

THE END