...➢ Major Facts: Zara is a fashion company based in Europe, the case goes over a lot of different areas of the business. Everything from how they operate differently than their competitors, their outdated IT systems, and where they plan to go in the future. The case shows many strategies Zara has taken in order to become successful in Fashion industry, having a customer’s driven process, agility, retail power, and a successful supply chain. As in the case, managing a supply chain in the fashion industry is extremely difficult. Customers’ wants and trends are constantly changing, and suppliers have to be ready for those changes at anytime in order to work with Zara. Zara, one of the brands of Inditex and most profitable, was established in 1975. It has become well known for their fashion designing and manufacturing efficiencies. The company has developed into the leader of highest profit margins comparing to its competitors, also being one of the most famous fashion companies know by consumers. It’s a Spanish based company, manufacturing all of their products in Europe, later distributing them all across the world to their retail stores. Inditex group has set up strategies for Zara to follow when first creating the company, and now with the operations. Stating that “Through Zara’s business model, we aim to contribute to the sustainable development of society and that of the environment with which we interacts”. For each of their retail store the approach has been focused, “at...
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...Running Head: Zara Case Study Zara – IT for Fast Fashion MGN 562 Team: The Change Agents Drejer Simon ID 315273004 Sharnjeet Kaur ID 315271003 Bilal Khalid ID 315276006 JR Rattaporn Srinok ID 315373001 Zertab Quaderi ID 315276001 Stamford International University, Bangkok February 2016 Table of Contents Abstract 3 Company Overview 4 Current Situation 5 Process Performance Analysis 5 Capacity 7 Efficiency 8 Flexibility 11 Quality 11 Operations Strategy Analysis 15 Root Cause Analysis 16 Cost Benefit Analysis 17 Multi Criteria Decision Making 20 Implementation Strategy 20 Recommendations 22 Conclusions 24 List of references 25 Appendix 26 Team Charter 26 Abstract The case study on Zara is set in August 2003 when the head of IT and the technical lead for the POS system are arguing about whether or not to upgrade the operating system of the POS terminals from DOS. The paper examines the operations management of Zara to see whether an updated IT system should be in place or not. It analyses the operations design and strategy of Zara in detail to justify an upgradation of their IT system. It also examines the areas where an updated IT can add value to the operations and ultimately, to the consumers. Several tools and methods have been applied to arrive at a decision. Recommendations and implementation strategy are outlined for better management decision making. Company Overview Inditex, the holding company of Zara, was founded...
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...company to compare Inditex is The Gap. Although The Gap has much higher revenues than Inditex (almost five times Inditex), it incurred a net loss, as opposed to Inditex, which achieved a 23%, return in investment. This is due to the extremely high costs of good sold for The Gap. This could be caused -at least partially- by the complete outsourcing of the production. They do not have enough control over the production costs. Although The Gap has larger market share than Inditex and has equity almost double that of Inditex, Inditex is much more profitable. 2. How specifically do the distinctive features of Zara business model affect its operating economics? Specifically, compare Zara with an average retailer with similar posted prices. Zara sources fabric, other inputs, and finished products from external suppliers. It has purchasing offices in Barcelona and Hong Kong. This gives Zara a competitive advantage towards the costs of goods sold, as it can purchase from both Europe and Asia according to prices. Buying more from China in the future might reduce even more the costs of goods sold. Inditex fully owns Comditel that managed dyeing, patterning and finishing of grey fabric of Inditex’s chains, and supplied finished fabric to external as well as in-house manufacturers. This...
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...Identify the corporate strategy of the clothing retailer ZARA and discuss how the five operations performance objectives support Zara’s corporate strategy. In addition explain the external benefits of these five objectives. Zara is the clothing retailer the best known as a brand of Spanish holding group Inditex (Industrias de Diseno Textil). First Zara store was opened in 1975,in Spain by Inditex father and founder Amancio Ortegas Gaona. It was first step and strong foundation to his success. Zara became most successful brand in fashion industry and it keeps growing and expanding constantly. There are 1721 Zara stores in 87 countries all over the world. All offer great catwalk fashion clothes for reasonable prices. The triumph of this brand has his root in the business corporate strategy which Inditex group applied and based all operation within a company. ‘Corporate strategy concerns all units of the business, covers its business philosophy and ideology, including a basic set of guidelines regarding its business. This guidelines my take into consideration industries and technologies, product and services, raw materials and employee’s skills , countries and geographical locations, market and customers, quality and prices , margins and value –added profits and cash flow, volume and sizes , governmental regulations and export opportunities, or any operationalization of the corporate vision. (Eli Segev, p4 ) Zara’s strategy represent blend of Old Economy and NewTone...
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...ZARA Word count: 3799 Table of Contents Executive summary 2 Zara background 3 External factors and competitive forces 3 PESTEL 3 Porter’s 5 4 Internal factors 6 Resources and capabilities 6 Manufacturing 8 Logistics 8 Public relations crisis and their effect on peformance 8 Evaluation of strategic options and recommendation 10 References 12 Appendixes 13 Executive summary This project aims to provide an in-depth analysis of external and internal factors affecting performance of world leading retailer Zara. First of all, the brief background on Zara is provided in order to familiarise reader with the business model they implement. Secondly, the PESTEL framework is utilised as the base for analysis of external environment and its potential effects on company’s performance. Further, the Porter’s 5 forces are identified in order to assess where the competitive advantage stems from. After assessment of external environment, this paper provides the overview of internal factors which might be crucial for success, as well as drawbacks of Zara’s internal organisation. Assessment of internal environment starts from the evaluation of Zara’s resources and capabilities, followed by the critical analysis of manufacturing and logistics processes. Further discussion of the PR issues and its effects on company performance is provided. In addition, the benefits of corporate socially responsible policies are discussed. Overall conclusions on Zara strategic...
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...highest operating revenues and largest no.1 of store locations worldwide. So when comparing the financial results of Inditex with Gap I find out that: Gap Vs Zara: Gap had achieved stellar growth and profitability in the last ten years; it was one of the largest specialist apparel retailers in the world ahead of Inditex. It owned most of their stores but outsourced all production in contrast with Inditex. Although Gap and Zara follow the same business model, Zara's business model improved overtime, through the incorporation of technology as they have developed about 95% of the software it uses, Zara fast response to market changes gave them a competitive advantage in creating fashion and satisfying customers plus the fact that the company is getting larger and more global than it has been. For instance, Zara did not face the two basic barriers for going globally which are: Costs: that Zara did not incur when entering a new market, as the company does not have extraordinary advertising expenses to create brand recognition. Logistics: which involve being ahead of the curve, volume, SKUs, and delivery points; all are the same in every store which allows the company to take better advantage of real estate opportunities regardless of the market the company is in. That is why gap's operating expenses far exceed that of Zara. 2. How specifically do...
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...Title of the Report: Zara Case Study Report Name: SeJun Lee Executive Summary Zara is one of the largest international fashion companies in the world, and it belongs to Inditex, one of the world‟s largest distribution groups. This study reviews Zara`s external environment and analyses its internal organisation to make recommendations for improving its core competencies against competitors such as H&M and GAP. This study first reviews the Zara enterprise in terms of PEEST environmental factors, Porter‟s Five Forces and the fast fashion industry life cycle (ILC). The liberalisation of European Union import quotas has had a positive political impact on the fast fashion retail industry. However, rapid style changes generate waste. In addition, recent financial crises have made customers more sensitive to price and tending to buy lower priced goods. However, young people and new Asian customers are more attracted to fashionable clothes. Also, new technology is quickly adopted to survive in a fast-moving market. Using Porter‟s competitive analysis of five forces, the threats of new entrants and substitution are low, and customers‟ and suppliers‟ bargaining power are moderate. However, the intensity of competitive rivalry is quite high because similar fashion firms are competing. Fast fashion has a shorter life cycle for products than most industries. This spurs both creativity and product innovation but demands more efficiency and advanced technology to reduce...
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...Personal Website on Marketing Issues Sunday, December 28, 2008 Zara operation management, A business case! 1- Executive Summary Operations management is in regard to all operations within the organization related activities including managing purchases, inventory control, quality control, storage and logistics. A great deal of focus is on efficiency and effectiveness of such processes. An example of successful operations management in retail sector is obvious in Zara business model which is elaborated and discussed here by a team of MBA Strathclyde students. From one shop in La Coruña, the Zara empire has expanded to more 50 countries. While other giants in the business squeeze their profit margins by manufacturing in bulk and lowering prices, Zara understood that most of the customers are willing to pay for clothes if they feel they are getting exclusive and fashionable clothes. The company can design, manufacture and get a piece of clothing on the shelves in almost two weeks. This rapid supply chain allows Zara's copies to be in their stores before designers even have them in theirs. In summary, Zara has closed the loop from manufacturing to customers’ hands. They are obsessive about control. Mr. Ortega the CEO of the Inditex, the parent company of Zara, once said that the secret to retail success is to 'have five fingers touching the factory and five touching the customer'. 2 - Introduction Zara is the flagship brand of the Spanish retail group, Inditex SA...
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...PAPER ZARA Created By: Anggita Sulisetiasih 1006718706 Kenji Wibawa Junardy 1006718990 Patricia M. A. Adam 1006805694 International Undergraduate Program Faculty of Economics University of Indonesia Depok 2013 TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter 1 4 INTRODUCTION 4 1.1. Company Background 4 1.2. Vision and Mission 4 1.3. Long-term Objectives 5 Chapter 2 6 VISION – MISSION ANALYSIS 6 2.1. Importance (Benefits) of Vision and Mission Statements 6 2.2. Characteristic of a Mission Statement 7 2.3. Mission Statement Components 8 2.4. Vision and Mission Relation: Is It Achievable? 10 Chapter 3 11 EXTERNAL ASSESSMENT 11 3.1 Michael Porter’s Five-Forces Model 11 3.2 External Factor Evaluation (EFE) Matrix 13 3.3 Competitive Profile Matrix 15 Chapter 4 19 INTERNAL ASSESSMENT 19 4.1 Resource-Based View Analysis 19 4.2 The Internal Factor Evaluation (IFE) Matrix 22 4.3 Financial Analysis 27 Chapter 5 33 STRATEGIES IN ACTION 33 5.1 The Strategies 33 5.2 Michael Porter’s Five Generic Strategies 34 Chapter 6 36 STRATEGY ANALYSIS AND CHOICE 36 6.1 The Strengths-Weaknesses-Opportunities-Threats (SWOT) Matrix 36 6.2 The Strategic Position and Action Evaluation (SPACE) Matrix 37 6.3 The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) Matrix 39 6.4 The Internal-External (IE) Matrix 40 6.5 The Grand Strategy Matrix 41 6.6 The Quantitative Strategic Planning Matrix (QSPM) 44 Chapter 7 46 IMPLEMENTING STRATEGIES: MARKETING...
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...PAPER ZARA Created By: Anggita Sulisetiasih 1006718706 Kenji Wibawa Junardy 1006718990 Patricia M. A. Adam 1006805694 International Undergraduate Program Faculty of Economics University of Indonesia Depok 2013 TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter 1 4 INTRODUCTION 4 1.1. Company Background 4 1.2. Vision and Mission 4 1.3. Long-term Objectives 5 Chapter 2 6 VISION – MISSION ANALYSIS 6 2.1. Importance (Benefits) of Vision and Mission Statements 6 2.2. Characteristic of a Mission Statement 7 2.3. Mission Statement Components 8 2.4. Vision and Mission Relation: Is It Achievable? 10 Chapter 3 11 EXTERNAL ASSESSMENT 11 3.1 Michael Porter’s Five-Forces Model 11 3.2 External Factor Evaluation (EFE) Matrix 13 3.3 Competitive Profile Matrix 15 Chapter 4 19 INTERNAL ASSESSMENT 19 4.1 Resource-Based View Analysis 19 4.2 The Internal Factor Evaluation (IFE) Matrix 22 4.3 Financial Analysis 27 Chapter 5 33 STRATEGIES IN ACTION 33 5.1 The Strategies 33 5.2 Michael Porter’s Five Generic Strategies 34 Chapter 6 36 STRATEGY ANALYSIS AND CHOICE 36 6.1 The Strengths-Weaknesses-Opportunities-Threats (SWOT) Matrix 36 6.2 The Strategic Position and Action Evaluation (SPACE) Matrix 37 6.3 The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) Matrix 39 6.4 The Internal-External (IE) Matrix 40 6.5 The Grand Strategy Matrix 41 6.6 The Quantitative Strategic Planning Matrix (QSPM) 44 Chapter 7 46 IMPLEMENTING STRATEGIES: MARKETING...
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...The case of Zara – The Postponement strategy I) Introduction In order to compete in the world of rising globalization and shortening of product life cycle nowadays, firms have to deal with the demand for increasing product variety to meet the diverse needs of customers. Mass customization has become a requirement for many businesses especially in the dynamic, fast-changing industries. However, the more product varieties, the more difficult it is to forecast demand, control inventory and manufacture. Therefore, some innovative companies have integrated “postponement” strategies with their supply chain operations to gain control of product variety proliferation. Zara is one of the most successful fast-fashion chains in the world, which is famous for its ability to keep itself up to date with fashion trends and the incredibly short time to introduce new products. In order to react quickly to fashion changes and consumer demand, Zara maintains extremely efficient supply chain operations. By properly designing the product structure and the manufacturing and supply chain process, Zara can delay the point in which the final products assume their specific characteristics, thus raising the flexibility to handle the changing demand for the multiple products. This is known as the “postponement” approach. In this paper, we will analyze how Zara achieves mass customization through “postponement”, with a particular focus on the supply chain structure, relationship and enabling activities...
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...Executive Summery The Zara case study is a case of the fundamental of whether or not to upgrade an IT system which already works, in this case a POS operating system that uses DOS, to more modern operating systems that includes more functionality to meet new demands. Zara is a chain fashion store around Europe, Middle East, Africa, and South America that was founded by Amancio Ortega, in 1975. The first store and main headquarters was found in La Cournia, Spain. Mr. Ortega believed and implemented his business model that: Retailing and manufacturing needed to be closely linked. This created the backbone for Zara’s everyday functionality to have all the stores communicate with the main distributors and distribution centers (DCs) which in turn communicated directly to the manufactures. As a result, supply was meet with demand with ease and little latency. This was all made possible through the use of technology and Zara’s IT department. Salgado Badas, the head of the IT, along with Bruno Sanchez Ocampo, were the main decision makers and brains behind the IT of Zara. For the past decade, Zara has implemented POS systems in each store that would have a direct connection via modem to the main headquarters in La Coruna. Managers on a daily basis transmit comprehensive sales information and other data back to La Coruna. In 2003, PDA’s were also used for ordering and also for tasks such as handling garment returns to DCs and transmitting information from headquarters to all...
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...Vertical integration is the expansion within a company to grow its business areas at different points along the same production and sales path. Vertical integration can help companies reduce their costs while improving efficiency and flexibility. Zara, founded in 1975 by Amancia Ortega, is the world’s largest fast fashion flagship chain retailer owned by Inditex Group and is vertically integrated in all aspects of its business. Zara, according to Ferdows et al (2002), has a decentralized communication and decision making process based on an autonomous ordering of clothing and fulfillment method. Zara’s vertically integrated structure of owning everything from the processes of manufacturing and design of its products to the individual stores is due to the fact they produce more of their products in-house, with only forty percent of its activities outsourced. The outsourced activities include the simpler labour intensive quick turnaround activities such as sewing and basic clothing designs while in-house activities are the more complex, complicated and trendy designs for their clothing. Zara’s top management’s opinion on the concept of most products produced in-house is it increases flexibility and speed as the products have a short cycle time. Zara also produces roughly half of its products within their own factories located in different regions around the world. Zara’s governance structure for gaining access to assets is continuous as they leverage their own assets, keeping their supply...
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...Zara: IT for Fast Fashion This case is part of the course Managing in the Information Age (MIA) at Harvard Business School. [pic] Managing in Information Age IT Categories |IT Category |Definition |Example | |Function IT (FIT) |IT that assists execution of discrete function |Simulators | | |or task |Spreadsheets | | | |CAD/CAM software | | | |Statistical software | |Enterprise IT (EIT) |IT that integrates multiple functions by |Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems | | |imposing new work structure |Supply chain management (SCM) systems | | | |Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems | | | |Sourcing/procurement software ...
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...Running head: Zara Case Paper Analysis 1 Zara: IT for Fast Fashion Case Analysis Sonal Bhagwat University of Houston-Victoria MGMT 6352-2011FA-25125 November 2011 Zara Case Paper Analysis Table of Contents: • • • • o • • • 2 Abstract Case Description Goals and Strategy Speed and Decision-making Marketing, Merchandising, and Advertising Information Technology Problem Analysis Firm-based-value chain model Model Application Implementation Opportunity Analysis Evaluation of IS Implementation Tangible Costs Analysis Tangible Benefits Intangible Costs Analysis Intangible Benefits Conclusion for Evaluation of IT Implementation Conclusion and Recommendations References 3 4 5 5 6 6 7 7 7 9 12 12 13 14 15 16 16 19 Zara Case Paper Analysis Abstract This case paper presents the business analysis of Zara, the leading and the profitable brand of Inditex. The case paper’s objective is to discuss whether to update the current DOS/IT infrastructure and evaluate the effects of the upgrade. By using the Michael Porter’s value chain analysis, we can understand Zara’s core business model of vertical integration and assess the areas where IS will add value to the system. The case paper also presents the IS implementation opportunities and evaluating the effectiveness of the implementation. The case paper concludes by providing recommendations for updating the current OS along with its advantages. 3 Zara Case Paper Analysis Case Description Zara is one of the largest...
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