Mass Customization Case Study

Annals of Operations Research
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10479-019-03149-7
S.I.: REALCASEOR
Challenges and critical successful factors for apparel mass

customization operations: recent development and case
study
Na Liu1 · Pui‑Sze Chow2 · Hongshan Zhao1
© Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2019
Abstract
Mass customization (MC), which is popular in the fashion industry, is proposed to pro-
vide customers with products with a high degree of adaptation and a price comparable to
a mass product. Both the manufacturer and customers can benefit from it. However, how
to properly apply the MC strategy when facing challenges in the real world needs more
exploration. In this paper, we first review the related operations research literature. Then,
we conduct a real case study of a fashion company adopting MC in China. We highlight
the challenges and critical successful factors for implementing apparel MC. We identify
important technologies in fashion MC systems. We also propose future research opportuni-
ties on MC operations in the fashion industry.
Keywords Mass customization · Literature review · Case study · Personalization · Fashion

industry
1 Introduction
In 1970, Toffler creatively proposed an innovative idea which can meet the specified
requirements of customers with cost close to that of standardized production in “Future
Shock”. A few years later, Davis (1997) named the proposed production mode as mass cus-
tomization (MC) in “Future Perfect”. This is deemed to be the creation of the idea of MC.
Mass production means lower cost and huge production volume, whereas customization
implies a higher degree of fitness and suitable. To reconcile the extremes of the different
sides, MC is proposed to provide the customer with a product with a high degree of adapta-
tion and a price comparable to a mass product.
The nation’s largest living generation in US—millennials—is driving demand for cus-
tomized products. Personalizers, as the YouGov survey calls them, tend to be millennials
* Hongshan Zhao
sxyzhs@bift.edu.cn
1
Business School, Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology, Beijing, China
2
Institute of Textiles and Clothing, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon,
Hong Kong
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(40%), highly educated (30%) and have $1000 or more in monthly disposable income
(31%) (industry week). When it comes to smartphones, tablets, notebooks and cameras,
86% of those we surveyed found customization appealing. Digital is changing the econom-
ics of manufacturing, and of course fashion industry. A Deloitte report noted half of con-
sumers are interested in customized products and would be willing to pay more and wait
longer if they could have an active role in design (Forbes.com), flexible models, analytics,
automation, and adaptive supply chains are opening new doors to personalized manufactur-
ing. According to an April 2018 YouGov survey, 26% of US consumers have personalized
a product. Apparel and footwear (29%) as well as food and beverages (29%) were the most
common categories for buying personalized items (emarketer.com). Nowadays, we are wit-
nessing, across a wide range of domains, MC is no longer a fantasy, and it has become a
reality that can be found in lots of industries especially in fashion. Quite a lot of companies
apply MC as a strategy to attract customers either in bricks and mortar store or in online
store. There are a number of well-known real-world examples, such as General Motors,
Ford, and Toyota in automobile industry, and Nike iD, mi adidas, Puma, Lands’ End, Louis
Vuitton, Burberry and Brooks Brother in fashion industry including luxury brands and
sport wear brands, as well as Proctor and Gamble in fast moving consumer goods (Sella-
durai 2004; Yeung et al. 2010; Liu et al. 2012). Nevertheless, not all MC stories had a
happy ending. Many companies implementing MC failed such like Levi’s (Yeung et al.
2010) while some others are still successful like National Bicycles Industrial Company of
Japan, Hewlett-Packard, Motorola, Benetton, Chryslers, and Dell (Daaboul et al. 2012).
Table 1 lists some well-known MC examples in various industries.
Table 1 Examples of MC programs
Industry Company Name of MC program Product
Footwear Nike Nike ID Shoes

adidas mi adidas Shoes
Puma Mogolian shoes BBQ Shoes
Vans – Shoes
Apparel Levi’s Original spin Jeans
Lands’ End – Shirts
JC Penney – Trousers
Brooks Brother – Shirts
North Face – Fleece jacket
Ralph Lauren Create your own Polo shirt
Luxury Louis Vuitton Mon monogram Handbag
Bulgari Design Your Love Jewelry
Cartier Customise your watch Watch
Burberry Burberry Bespoke Trench coat
Automobile BMW Build your own Car
Audi Customise your Audi Car
Computer Hewlett-Packard – Computer
Dell – Computer
Electrical equipment Haier COSMOPlat Household
Electric
Appliances
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Both MC product and MC service, are necessary to identify opportunities for customi-
zation that create value for the customer, and achieve a manageable cost for the producer
even though an MC system would increase the manufacturing complexity. Broekhuizen
and Alsem (2002) present factors fostering the introduction and the development of MC
may be divided into internal (which relates to the company’s characteristics) and external
(which includes the customer, the product, the market and the trade). Chandra and Grabis
(2004) classify factors that determine the emergence and the development of MC, i.e., the
customer’s tendency to bear additional costs and involvement in MC process, as well as
the willingness for the longer production and delivery time of MC product; susceptibility
of the product and processes to customization; competitive market characterized by a high
variability of customer requirements; the readiness of companies operating on the ana-
lyzed market to adapt new solutions and undertake competitive struggle, as well as to share
knowledge inside own chains of creating value. Fogliatto et al. (2012) identify six success
factors of MC, including customer’s demand, markets, value chain, technology, Customiz-
able offer, and knowledge. In general, modularization and standardization of product plat-
forms, production postponement strategies, and customer interaction are regarded to the
key success factors.
We aim to address the following research questions in this paper: (1) What are the pre-
sent main research domains in the literature of MC in the fashion industry and what are the
related research findings? (2) How does a fashion manufacturer apply MC and what are the
challenges in practice? (3) What are the important technologies in the fashion MC system?
(4) What are the future research opportunities for applying MC in fashion industry? To
achieve these, we firstly review the related literature and discuss the application of MC
in the literature. Afterwards, we proceed to conduct a case study on Kurtsmart Co., Ltd.
(KM) to investigate the implementation of fashion MC in real practice. We choose KM as
the real case study as it is one of the largest fashion manufacturers adopting MC in China.
The in-depth analysis of KM’s practice could draw a vivid picture of fashion MC adoption.
We would like to know how to determine the best MC strategy or even if such a strategy
should be adopted. The solutions for the most challenging problems can be found to be a
guidance for other companies as well.
To the best of our knowledge, this is the first paper in the literature that focuses on sys-
tematically revealing recent challenges and critical successful factors for apparel mass cus-
tomization operations from the manufacturer’s perspective, consumer’s perspective and the
supply chain’s perspective. Moreover, this paper includes a real MC operations case study
in the fashion industry and the practical challenges of apparel MC systems are examined.
The rest of the paper is as follows. We conduct the comprehensive literature review in
Sect. 2. Section 3 presents the insights derived from the case study on KM. We then dis-
cuss the key factors influencing fashion MC implementation in Sect. 4. Finally, we con-
clude the paper with the future research opportunities in Sect. 5.
2 Literature review
Being a new frontier in business competition for both manufacturing and service industries,
MC can benefit both the manufacturers and the consumers. In the following, we review the
MC-related literature from the perspectives of different supply chain members, namely: the
manufacturer, the consumer, and the MC supply chain.
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2.1 MC from the manufacturer’s perspective
In this sector, we focus on the various MC strategies adopted by the manufacturer, includ-
ing the settings of MC, MC production process and the required technology.
2.1.1 Modularity
Modularity refers to the modules that the product is decomposed to and reassembled as the
final product according to the customers personalized requirements. Product variations in
most industries tend to be numerous and firms often find themselves difficult to determine
the products’ variety and hence modularity level. It is the common cognition in theoretical
literature that modularity is the most crucial factor among the other factors in MC produc-
tion (Modraka et al. 2014; Liu et al. 2012). Based on the study of Chinese manufacturers,
Wang et al. (2014, 2016) empirically explore the relationships among innovation, stand-
ardization (which related to modularity), MC capability, and delivery speed. The results
show that these factors have strong relationships. Modularity has positive effects on inno-
vation, and innovation positively affects MC capability individually and interactively with
modularity. It is indicated from empirical case that modularity or modularization related to
production is the key factor in MC.
Modularity is deemed to have influences on the products and process management. A
large number of works have examined the modularity of products. Tu et al. (2004) study
the relationship between product modularity and MC capability, and proposed a direct
relationship between them. Antonio et al. (2007) propose a relationship between modu-
larity and competitiveness. Ahmad et al. (2010) improve this result, and Inter-functional
design coordination was found mediating the relationship between modularity and MC
capability and is critical in fostering plant competitiveness. Poulin and Montreu (2013)
propose a simulation-based methodology to configure a MC network, which focuses on
the approach to create product models that include personalization details, the generation
of demand profiles, and the creation of generic process routings for MC products. Wang
et al. (2014) examine the effects of modularity in building MC capability, and finds that
modularity mediates effects of customization knowledge utilization and business process
improvement. Suginouchi et al. (2018) propose a decision making method to prepare mod-
ulus satisfying customers’ demands by estimating their needs and establishing a production
schedule with small tardiness.
It is observed that some of the MC programs in industry suddenly stopped or suspend.
The main reason for the failure of majority mass customized applications and projects is
an increasing overall complexity of the system while relevant solutions for the overall pro-
duction complexity reduction are still missing (Bednar and Modrak 2014). Modraka et al.
(2014) investigate the influence of modularity level on complexity of assembly processes,
in the way of considering the base components and optional number of the complementary
components. High level of customer requirements means higher modularity level, and the
production environment will change rapidly, both of them induce complexity. Bednar and
Modrak (2014) present the view that variety could induce complexities in assembly opera-
tions capability, and the impact of assembly variety on performance is also been examined.
Zhang et al. (2017) investigate the effects of MC and product modularity on supply chain
quality integration by conducting empirical research of global manufacturers, the results
show that MC and product modularity improve internal quality integration directly, and
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product modularity also improves internal quality integration indirectly through MC. Usu-
ally, it is hard in MC to identify which features are essential, dispensable, highly required
by other features, or highly in compatible with the remaining features. Heradio et al. (2016)
propose an algorithm that takes into account of a sensitivity parameter to efficiently com-
pute the measures using binary decision diagram
Refer to the process modularity, Modraka and Soltysova (2018) analyse the relationship
between product modularity and process modularity, the results show that management of
process architecture in MC might not be conducted in isolation from management of prod-
uct development, and indicate that the impact of process modularity on effectiveness can
be almost predicted based upon experience with traditional mass production.
2.1.2 Process/framework
Realization of MC requires not only the integration of the design process from an organi-
zational perspective, but also the provision of the necessary contextual framework and the
system integration architecture for product development (Tseng et al. 1996). Feitzinger
et al. (1997) highlight that research and development must redesign the product so that it
can be customized at the most efficient point in the supply network. MC processes can be
divided into four stages, order elicitation, design, manufacturing, and supply chain coordi-
nation (Fogliatto et al. 2012). Ferguson et al. (2014) review references within the process
frameworks of MC and to highlight opportunities for future development in MC, i.e. the
customer’s needs and preference assessment tools, approaches for requirement specifica-
tion and conceptual design, insights from methodologies focused on the development of
durable MC goods and enhancements in information mapping and handling.
Fang et al. (2016) examine the effects of organizational learning on process technology
and operations performance in MC empirically, the results show that team and systems
orientation learning can increase process automation and operations performance, learning
orientation does not affect process technology and operations performance. Zhang et al.
(2014) propose that organizational flatness is antecedence to MC capability and the supply
chain planning and corporation coordination mediates the relationship between organiza-
tional flatness and MC capability. Ellena et al. (2018) propose a design framework for the
custom-fit bicycle helmet models.
2.1.3 Technology
Apart from modularity and customer involvement, technology is a prerequisite for suc-
cessful MC implementation. Been introduced for several decades, the paradigm of MC has
largely not lived up to its promise, due to the technology of both production and infor-
mation. Technology, (for instance, configurators, CAD/CAM, Internet, body scanning, and
product data management), helps coordination, communication, and information transfer
in the MC program (Yeung et al. 2010). Although MC is not a new concept, recent tech-
nological advances in several areas have made it more feasible, including the development
of online marketplaces, mobile devices and platforms, virtual reality, CAD, RFID and 3D
scanning system, body modeling, digital pattern design. RFID-enabled real-time manufac-
turing execution system for MC production is proposed in Zhong et al. (2013), which are
deployed systematically on the shop-floor to track and trace manufacturing objects and col-
lect real-time production data.
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2.1.3.1 CAD In the literature, CAD is cited as a fundamental design technology for MC
implementation (Ninan and Siddique 2006; Nielsen and Cox 2008; Ulrich et al. 2003; Yang
et al. 2007). Bonev et al. (2015) create a consistent and formal approach for the design and
MC of entire product families, which can make decision about a preferred solution (com-
munication, synthesis and documentation) explicit and transparent.
Due to limited production speeds and other technological bottlenecks, 3D production
is mainly applicable to small production volumes, customized products and/or high-value
products (Berman 2012; Hopkinson et al. 2006). The integration of 3D laser scan with
CAD systems received great attention in the MC literature in the past decade (Apeagyei
and Otieno 2007; Au and Ma 2010; Daanen and Hong 2008; Fiore et al. 2003; Istook and
Hwang 2001; Jensen et al. 2007; Luximon et al. 2005; Nielsen and Cox 2008), mainly on
the clothing, garment, and shoes industries for virtual design and/or fit testing. Satam et al.
(2011) study the economic factors leading to MC, and propose a new CAD system of 2D
and 3D computer-aided garment intelligent design systems. Tao et al. (2018) propose a 3D
garment collaborative design process with normalized sensory evaluation on garment fit-
ting effects in a virtual environment, and integrates the interactions between the designer
and the specific consumer and the communications of the concerned actors are enhanced.
2.1.3.2 3D printing Researchers has drawn attention to the large amount of application of
3D printing in industry, and the benefits of 3D printing have been explored in the literature.
Gandhi et al. (2014) imply that 3D printing enables small quantities of customized goods
to be produced at relatively low costs. Parker (2016) discuss the possible application of 3D
printing in fashion. 3D printers could allow retailers to create and deliver products in small
quantities in real time, Attaran (2017) state that 3D printing enables MC at low cost, shorter
design and personalization time, as well as shorter manufacturing lead time.
In the last decades bulky and costly 3D body scanners evolved to inexpensive, accurate,
and easy-to-use devices (Daanen and Psikuta 2018). In the online MC programs, customer
should know the measurements of herself to submit the fit options of MC orders. However,
not all the customers know exactly how to measure human body and hence the inaccu-
rate data will lead to physical fitting impossible and of course many unsatisfied customers.
3D body scanning technology can make a more precise body data for both manufacturer
and consumer, nevertheless, the cost is much higher and the device is usually not portable
and online customers cannot experience it. Recently, research efforts have put a lot on the
2D–3D data transformation, i.e. use a 2D photo copy of customer to derive the real meas-
urements data of the human body.
Many researchers propose reconstructive modeling methods, which uses less informa-
tion to generate more information of the real body shape data. For example, Hilton et al.
(2000) generate whole-body modeling of people from multi-view images, Wang et al.
(2003) create a virtual human modeling from photographs for garment industry, and
Anguelov et al. (2005) use partial scans to estimate the data. Hasler et al. (2009) and Guan
et al. (2010) introduce a method for estimating the real body data by scanning a dressed
human body.
Customer’s cross-sectional 3D shape based on size features extracted from the cus-
tomer’s photos is predicted in Zhu et al. (2013), and 30 subjects with varied body shapes
including male and female have been recruited to verify the model customization method.
Ludwig et al. (2015) present an algorithm for morphing shape reducing the complex 3D
shape and material morph into multiple simpler 2D morphs. Later on, Zhu and Mok (2015)
present an intelligent two-phase method to customize 3D digital human body models based
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on two orthogonal-view photos of the customers, so as to create human body models for
individual customers with precise body measurements and realistic appearance, which
makes the measurement process more convenient for customers.
2.1.3.3 Virtual try‑on system Yang et al. (2014) propose a virtual try-on system in aug-
mented reality using RGB-D cameras for footwear personalization, the users can virtually
try on 3D shoe models in a live video stream in the system. Virtual fitting which relates to
uncertainty and cognitive dissonance can provide more information about the product than
an e-catalog, therefore, virtual fitting can reduce the perceived risk. Consequently, Beck
and Crié (2018) examine the presence of a VFR on a website, and argues that virtual fitting
increases perceptual specific curiosity about the product and increase the online purchase
intention.
Peng et al. (2011) identify four types of IT that potentially support MC capability,
including product configurator IT, new product development IT, manufacturing IT, and
supplier collaboration IT. Zawadzki and Żywicki (2016) try to explore the smart prod-
uct design and production control for effective MC in the industry 4.0 concept, finds that
the system must be capable of processing large amounts of data, which will be subjected
to analysis, and make decisions related to the material flow. Zhang et al. (2015) examine
the relationship between absorptive capacity and MC capability, and the results show that
absorptive capacity significantly improves MCC, plus, knowledge sourced from custom-
ers and suppliers enhances MCC directly and indirectly. From a contingent configurational
perspective, Sandrin et al. (2018) find empirical evidence to leverage high-involvement
human-resource-management practices to develop MC capability, including push power,
information, rewards, and knowledge down to the lowest level of an organization.
2.1.3.4 RFID The advance of mobile technologies, product tracking technologies (e.g.,

radio frequency identification, RFID), cloud computing, social media tools, enterprise sys-
tems, and business analytics applications have changed the way that fashion retailers oper-
ate. Big data is commonly used to describe the case when the amount of data is so massive
that it is impossible for existing computing devices to effectively manipulate (Choi 2018).
Retailers, not only fashion retailers, are now operating in the big data era. The advance of
mobile technologies (Xu et al. 2014), product tracking technologies (e.g., RFID) (Basole
and Nowak 2018), cloud computing (Nohadani et al. 2016), social media tools (Colicev
et al. 2016), enterprise systems (Duan and Xu 2016), and business analytics applications
(Cao et al. 2015) have revolutionized the way fashion retailers operate. Comments from
consumers on the social media platforms (Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Weibo, Wechat,
etc.), which form a set of ‘‘big data” would affect the fashion retailers regarding their beliefs
towards the future demand (Choi 2018). Regarding to the production, manufacturer also
need big data to support the production and operations management (Chan and Bennett
Moses 2016) such as RFID and cloud service (Choi et al. 2017). The cloud service can be
considered as a data warehouse which provides a useful source of data (Chaudhuri et al.
2011; Xu et al. 2009). Zhang et al. (2013) consider a dynamic workload scheduling problem
with the help of big data stored in distributed cloud services. Wireless sensor networks (e.g.,
RFID) can be used to collect useful data ubiquitously (Gaukler 2011).
As applied in MC systems, RFID, cloud, and other technologies are widely observed
(Wahlster 2014). For example, Liu et al. 2004 propose an RFID-Based Distributed Control
System for Mass Customization Manufacturing. Chen et al. (2008) propose a manufactur-
ing control framework based on RFID technology and a distributed information system to
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construct a mass-customization production process in a loosely coupled shop-floor control

environment. Tu et al. (2009) create an agent-based control framework for mass customiza-
tion manufacturing with UHF RFID technology. Duo to the inefficient scheduling caused
by paper-based identification and manual data collection, Zhong et al. (2013) propose an
RFID-enabled real-time manufacturing execution system. RFID devices are deployed sys-
tematically on the shop-floor to track and trace manufacturing objects and collect real-time
production data. Apparel enterprises are transformed into the intelligent enterprises which
can proactively perceive and respond the personalized demands of the large quantity of
consumers, and realize MC by the social manufacture cloud service platform (Shang et al.
2013). Xu et al. (2016) propose a novel integrated solution to realize effective MC for cus-
tomer-oriented product design in an intelligent computerized manner based on big data
mining, in the system, manufacturing enterprises can adjust product design schemes keenly
adapting with the specific requirements of a certain group of customers.
2.1.3.5 Flexible manufacturing and logistic system There is no doubt that the flexible
logistic is important in the MC process. Manufacturing and distribution functions must
coordinate both the supply and the redesign of materials and situate all manufacturing pro-
cesses in the most efficient locations (Feitzinger et al. 1997). MC products are delivered
through combining push and pull strategies to achieve a flexible manufacturing system.
DeVor and Graves (1997) identify the main strategic dimensions of agile manufacturing as
value-based strategies. In MC, the flexible logistics system can respond quickly to market
changes related to customer demands for new products and product features (Da Silveira
et al. 2001). Achieving this goal requires the establishing of reprogrammable, reconfig-
urable and continuously changeable production systems which can operate economically
(Jagdev and Browne 1998). The agile manufacturing system allows customization to be
completed without the associated higher costs, through an efficient use of flexible work
force and virtual alliances (Hormozi 2001). Researchers have done lots of works within
this domain. For instance, Helo et al. (2010) propose an integrated vehicle configuration
system to facilitate customer order processing based on information from multiple domains
in MC, and the model can enhance communications between different stakeholders involved
in the order fulfillment process. Shang et al. (2013) investigate a social manufacturing cloud
service platform for the MC in apparel industry. Liu et al. (2013) study the order allocation
research of a logistics service supply chain in offering MC logistics services.
Table 2 summarizes the literature reviewed above.
2.2 MC from the consumer’s perspective
Many companies launch MC projects in online stores, where the customers can design
their own products by fulfilling the individual requirements, then the manufacturer can
produce to order. MC application attracts the customer’s attention, enhance the sat-
isfaction and increase the intention of purchase. Coletti and Aichner (2011) conduct
a survey to explore the customers’ perceptions to MC. The results show that most of
the customers are willing to possess personalized products, and price, time, and brand
are the main reasons that have influence on consumer’s MC decision. Moreover, as is
showing in the survey that at least half of brand loyalty can be broken by MC compa-
nies provided price and quality remain the same. Park and Yoo (2018) investigate how
benefits, attachment, attitudes, and loyalty intentions differed as a function of involve-
ment and fashion innovativeness by conducting an online survey participated by 290
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Table 2 MC-related literature from the manufacturer’s perspective
Paper Methodology Aspects of MC Details
Modraka et al. (2014) Analytical Modularity Approach to create modules

Liu et al. (2012) Analytical Modularity Optimal decisions of price, return policy and modularity level
Wang et al. (2014) Empirical Modularity Effects of modularity in building MC capability

Wang et al. (2016) Empirical Modularity Relationships among innovation, standardization, MC capability, and delivery speed
Tu et al. (2004) Analytical Modularity Relationship between product modularity and MC capability
Antonio et al. (2007) Analytical Modularity Relationship between modularity and competitiveness
Ahmad et al. (2010) Analytical Modularity Modularity’s influence on MC capability and plant competitiveness
Poulin and Montreu (2013) Analytical Modularity Approach to create product models
Suginouchi et al. (2018) Analytical Modularity A decision-making method to prepare modulus
Bednar and Modrak (2014) Analytical Modularity Complexity measurement and management within assembly processes in MC productions
Zhang et al. (2017) Empirical Modularity Effects of MC and product modularity on supply chain quality integration
Heradio et al. (2016) Analytical Modularity Algorithm with a sensitivity parameter to efficiently compute the measures
Modraka and Soltysova (2018) Analytical Modularity Relationship between product modularity and process modularity
Fogliatto et al. (2012) Review Process MC processes
Fang et al. (2016) Empirical Process Effects of organizational learning on process technology and operations performance in MC
Zhang et al. (2014) Empirical Process Organizational flatness with MC capability
Ellena et al. (2018) Analytical Process Framework design
Peng et al. (2011) Empirical Technology IT types that potentially support MC
Zawadzki and Żywicki (2016) Analytical Technology Smart product design and production control for effective MC in the industry 4.0 concept
Zhang et al. (2015) Empirical Technology Relationship between absorptive capacity and MC capability
Sandrin et al. (2018) Empirical Technology ERP, high-involvement HRM practices to develop MC
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female online shoppers in South Korea. The results show that the perceived benefits
associated with a customized product can lead to greater emotional attachment to that
product, a more positive attitude toward the customization program, and ultimately
high loyalty intentions.
At present, the application of MC has been attributed to the two factors of prefer-
ence that is fit achieved (as high as possible) and design effort (as low as possible).
Franke et al. (2010) induce the factor of the awareness of being the creator of the prod-
uct design, and the result shows that self-designed products generate a significantly
higher willingness for customers to pay. Moreover, this effect is mediated by feelings
of accomplishment and moderated by the outcome of the process as well as the indi-
vidual’s perceived contribution to the self-design process. Collected information from
438 e-commerce customers in Bangkok, Tangchaiburana et al. (2017) investigate the
elements of the MC website that influence the customer’s participation in design pro-
cess. The research shows that customization had a significance effects on customers’
needs to design clothing types and to create co-design tools. Considering that pro-
viding efficient customization is not sufficient to assess the value of MC, Merle et al.
(2010) evaluate the perceived value of the MC product and MC experience for indi-
vidual consumers, the empirical findings show that MC value from a consumer view-
point is polymorphous, and the value derived from the experience of co-design can
have a positive influence on the overall value of MC. Supported by empirical evidence,
Trentin et al. (2014) argue that two benefits (hedonic and creative-achievement ben-
efits) increase as a sales configurator deploys, to a greater extent of the capabilities of
focused navigation, flexible navigation, user-friendly product space description, easy
comparison and benefit–cost communication. Kwon et al. (2017) propose from empiri-
cal evidence that a successful online consumer-customized experience can definitely
increase a consumer’s preference fit. Furthermore, it allows the customer to embed
their sense of self and of course themselves into the customized products during the
customization.
Puligadda et al. (2010) examine the role of idiosyncratic attribute evaluation in
MC by conducting experiments, the results from three experiments show that offering
greater variety in idiosyncratically evaluated attribute options could increase the con-
sumers’ satisfaction. As consumer narcissism is considered, Bellis et al. (2016) show
that the uniqueness of MC products depends on consumer narcissism, consumers those
are higher in trait narcissism should configure more unique products, and state narcis-
sism can be primed via marketing communications to influence product uniqueness.
Product customization potentially yields an increase in customers’ perceived product
value and, thus, higher willingness to pay (Franke and Piller 2004; Franke et al. 2009).
Therefore, firms can charge a price premium.
Social technologies empower customers to broadcast their creations with friends
and strangers online. As MC programs are becoming ever more common among lux-
ury brands, like Louis Vuitton and Burberry, Yoo and Park (2016) seek to identify
and examine the dimensions of consumers’ perceived value in MC through a survey
of female online shoppers in South Korea. The result reveals that hedonic, utilitarian,
creative achievement (which is consistent with Franke et al. 2010), and social value
influenced satisfaction with the customization, which in turn influenced brand loyalty.
Moreover, the relationships between consumer value and satisfaction differed depend-
ing on the consumer’s past loyalty and need for uniqueness.
Table 3 summarizes the related literature reviewed in this sub-section.
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Table 3 MC-related literature from the consumer’s perspective
Paper Approach Industry Aspects explored
Coletti and Aichner (2011) Empirical – Willingness of customers to compromise on the issue of suitability
Park and Yoo (2018) Empirical Fashion Benefits, attachment, attitudes, and loyalty intentions
Franke et al. (2010) Empirical T shirt, scarf, cell phone Awareness of being the product design creator
Kwon et al. (2017) Empirical – Customer’s sense mixed to MC process
Tangchaiburana et al. (2017) Empirical Garment Elements of the MC website
Merle et al. (2010) Empirical Shoes Perceived value of the MC product and MC experience for indi-
vidual consumers
Trentin et al. (2014) Empirical – Hedonic and creative-achievement benefits
Puligadda et al. (2010) Empirical – Variety in idiosyncratically evaluated attribute options
Bellis et al. (2016) Empirical Car configuration Consumer narcissism
Yoo and Park (2016) Empirical Luxury Consumer perceived value, satisfaction, and loyalty
Franke and Piller (2004) Empirical – Willingness to pay for product created by customer himself
Franke et al. (2009) Empirical – Willingness to pay, purchase intention, and attitude toward the
product than standard products
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2.3 MC from the supply chain’s perspective
As one of the core features is modular, another core feature of MC is postponement, which
is defined as “an organizational practice of delaying the timing of the ending production
or service processes, considering customers specific needs or requirements, allowing end
products to assume their specific functionalities, features and identities” (Lee 1998).
2.3.1 Empirical research
In the perspective of MC supply chain, related works are both from empirical and ana-
lytical perspectives. Hong et al. (2010) suggest that lean practices can reasonably predict
MC performance, E-commerce and e-procurement are reasonable predictors of MC perfor-
mance in product manufacturers, while ERP is not. Qualitative study is explored in Brunø
et al. (2013) to explore the links between MC and sustainability, and concluded that MC
is either sustainable or unsustainable, but has indeed the potential to contribute to sus-
tainability. Compared MC with generative customization relative to a consumer’s ability
and willingness to be involved in the conceptualization and fulfillment process, Buffing-
ton (2011) show that a crucial difference between MC and generative customization is the
degree of elasticity regarding consumer involvement and sacrifice, and the degree to which
a consumer’s involvement can be virtually simulated alternatively in a generative design
process. Companies need new supply chain management methods to convert materials
into individually customized products (Smith et al. 2013), where more work is needed on
integrated with mass production volume, cost, and efficiency, i.e. ‘design-to-order’, ‘shared
custom-module’, ‘just-in-time’ and ‘supplier’. Zhang et al. (2014) examine the effects of
organizational flatness, coordination, and product modularity on MC capability, and results
show that product modularity, cross-functional coordination and supply chain coordination
contribute to MC capability development. Employed a stated preference survey and model,
Yao and Xu (2018) provide a production selection strategy in dynamic environment and
find out the most beneficial production strategy. Huang et al. (2010) investigate the role of
organizational structure in facilitating the development of MC capability in various manu-
facturing settings, including flatness, centralization, and employee multi-functionality by
empirical research, the results show that a positive relationship exists between the organic
organizational structure and MC capability, and is moderated by mass customizer’s type
(full MC or partial MC). Liao et al. (2013) analyze the factors that influence Chinese auto-
motive suppliers’ MC capabilities, and suggest that the MC capability of a firm can be
achieved by systematically coordinating suppliers, implementing modularity-based manu-
facturing practices, and postponing key production steps that determine specialized product
features and performance. Theurer et al. (2014) examine the lean control for MC compa-
nies, induces workload control that integrates customer enquiry management, including a
due-date setting rule, with order release control, the results show that workload control can
reduce the percentage of tardy jobs and thus reduce and stabilize workloads. Liu and Deitz
(2011) indicate that MC capabilities are driven by customer-focused product design and
reduced supplier lead times, and these factors are driven by management’s emphasis on
supply chain planning. As uncertainty coherently, Liu et al. (2010) explore the influence of
uncertainty on MC, and identified that individual demand and supply uncertainty manage-
ment mechanisms that are likely to help a company achieve MC ability through reducing
demand and supply uncertainties or their effect.
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2.3.2 Analytical research
Loginova and Wang (2013) develop MC in an endogenous-timing game with vertical

differentiation, the results show that MC by one or both firms occurs only if the qual-
ity difference is sufficiently large. Although the firm with higher quality is more likely
to apply MC, in some circumstances the low quality firm can obtain an advantage by
becoming the first and only firm to adopt MC. Xiao et al. (2016) develop game-theoretic
models to explore the quoted delivery leadtime, price, and channel structure decisions
for a make-to-order duopoly system under three game scenarios, the results show that
decentralization of the supply chain increases quoted leadtime, and both manufactur-
ers may choose different channel structures under symmetric duopoly. Hsu et al. (2014)
propose a theory of competition and customization. When firms allocate their produc-
tion to both custom-made and standardized products, the fraction of sales from the for-
mer will increase in the face of increased competition. Uncertainties are considered
more in MC literature. Liu et al. (2015) establish a multi-objective program scheduling
model of logistics service supply chain that considers the uncertainty of operation time
for functional logistics service providers in an MC service environment. Lalmazloumian
et al. (2016) create a robust optimization model for agile and build-to-order supply
chain planning where uncertainties are considered.
Analyzing and processing information of customer preference, product features and
cost, Xu et al. (2017) derive an MC decision support model to obtain the optimized
production solution with genetic algorithm. Chod et al. (2010) investigate the value of
flexibility in an MC system, including the procurement, assembly, and product pricing,
finds that the effects of demand variability and correlation depend critically on the com-
monality structure the entire product line, and the degree of commonality between two
products affects their optimal prices. Other works study the related problems in MC
supply chain. Chiu and Choi (2016) review the works on supply chain risk analysis with
mean–variance models. Feng et al. (2013) study the coordinated contract decisions in
a MC manufacturing supply chain. In MC, the customers are expected to have a longer
waiting time for the product, since the product is only produced until the order is placed.
However, the long waiting time truly affect the customer’s willing to MC products. Su
et al. (2010) discuss the impact of delayed differentiation in MC system and find that
it offers the potential of reducing the customer’s waiting time. Under some conditions
delayed differentiation results not only in shorter customer waiting time but also lower
cost.
Guo et al. (2018) provide a comprehensive literature review on inventory manage-
ment in MC operations. Mass customization has the potential to improve preference
alignment regarding a specific purchased product, but at the risk of increasing brand
dilution. In case of that, Çil and Pangburn (2017) suggest that the firm can offer reduced
prices to consumers with extreme preferences, with a higher fixed price being offered
to those consumers having more central preferences. Liu et al. (2015) employ a multi-
objective programming approach to explore the problem and suggest that the logistics
service integrator must clearly know what the optimization goal when making the opti-
mal scheduling decision. Paul et al. (2015) study the inventory planning problem for a
modular product family through the multi-product newsvendor model with budget con-
straints. Liu et al. (2017) build a time scheduling analytical model to study the problem
of logistics service supply chain based on the time windows of the functional logistics
service provider’s operation and customer requirement.
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2.3.3 Return and sustainability
Although majority of the MC programs do not offer return policy for customers, since the
product is personalized for individuals and cannot be sold to others. To attract the potential
customers and enhance demand, some brands allow customers to return the MC fashion
product for a full refund minus a service charge, Choi (2013) examine the optimal return
service charging policy for a fashion MC Program into two cases, risk-neutral and risk-
averse MC companies, respectively. The results show that the level of risk aversion affects
the optimal return service charge policy. Liu and Yao (2018) propose a resource evalua-
tion method from a dynamic and integration process-oriented perspective in service MC,
and examine the impacts of service firm’s strategic renewals, as well as the operational
decisions.
Piller and Blazek (2014) state three major strategic capabilities of MC, i.e. solution
space development, robust process design, and choice navigation. Value of MC can be
achieved via design of features, fit and comfort (e.g. 3D scanning), functionality which
related to technical attributes of an offering (e.g. speed, power, and memory), as well as
form and visual aspects (style, aesthetic design, color, style, and flavors). MC has become
a major trend in the consumer goods markets, however, it is still unclear if MC goods have
a positive impact on the environment due to the many influencing factors in comparison
to mass produced goods. In order to draw the shape of the sustainable mass customized
enterprise, Medini et al. (2012) provide insights on crossings between MC and sustain-
ability, that sustainability enablers have impact on MC, and the link between customer
involvement and design for sustainability becomes stronger when it comes to sustainable
mass customized enterprise. Piller and Blazek (2014) examine the core capabilities of sus-
tainable MC, states that configuration systems are playing a crucial role in meeting the
particular demands of each individual customer and addresses the fundamental capabili-
ties of sustainable MC are solution space development, the design of robust processes, and
choice navigation. Trentin et al. (2015) empirically investigate the interconnectedness of
MC and green management on the level of their enabling capabilities by case study, the
results show that overlaps and path dependences exit between MC capabilities and green-
management capabilities.
Guo et al. (2017) take a comprehensive consideration of consumer returns and salvage
value together to study quick response MC supply chains. The authors apply game theory
to study the coordination challenges. Choi and Guo (2018) use the newsvendor model to
explore the value of quick response supply in fashion MC systems with consumer returns.
They show that consumer returns can enhance the value of quick response supply to the
fashion supplier, and quick response supply is also found to be helpful in reducing the envi-
ronmental cost.
Tables 4 and 5 list the MC-related literature from the supply chain’s perspective with
empirical and analytical approaches, respectively.
2.4 MC in the fashion industry
To deal with the challenges of shortened product life cycle, while considering various
trends and changing consumers’ tastes and demands, MC is employed very common in
fashion industry, and several works studies MC in fashion industry and luxury, where most
of the research works put effects on the empirical studies.
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Table 4 MC-related literature from the supply chain’s perspective
Paper Approach Aspects of MC
Hong et al. (2014) Empirical Lean practices with MC performance

Brunø et al. (2013) Empirical Links between MC and sustainability
Buffington (2011) Empirical Difference between MC and generative customization
Zhang et al. (2014) Empirical Effects of organizational flatness, coordination, and product modularity on MC capability
Yao and Xu (2018) Empirical Production selection strategy in dynamic environment
Huang et al. (2010) Empirical Role of organizational structure in facilitating the development of MC capability
Liao et al. (2013) Empirical Factors that influence Chinese automotive suppliers’ MC capabilities
Theurer et al. (2014) Empirical Lean control for MC companies
Liu and Deitz (2011) Empirical MC capabilities driven by customer-focused product design and reduced supplier lead times
Liu et al. (2010) Empirical Influence of uncertainty on MC
Piller and Blazek (2014) Review Core capabilities of sustainable MC
Medini et al. (2012) Review Links between customer involvement and design for sustainability
Trentin et al. (2015) Empirical Interconnectedness of MC and green management
Loginova and Wang (2013) Analytical Product vertical differentiation
Xiao et al. (2016) Analytical Quoted delivery leadtime, price, and channel structure decisions for a make-to-order duopoly
system under three game scenarios
Hsu et al. (2014) Analytical A theory of competition and customization
Liu et al. (2015) Analytical A multi-objective program scheduling model of logistics service supply chain
Xu et al. (2017) Analytical MC decision support model to obtain the optimized production solution
Chod et al. (2010) Analytical Value of flexibility in MC
Feng et al. (2013) Analytical Coordinated contract decisions in MC manufacturing
Su et al. (2010) Analytical Impact of delayed differentiation in MC system
Choi (2013) Analytical Return service charging policy for risk neutral and risk averse manufacturer
Liu and Yao (2018) Analytical A resource evaluation method from a dynamic and integration process-oriented in service MC
Piller and Blazek (2014) Analytical Core capabilities of sustainable MC
Çil and Pangburn (2017) Analytical Portfolio design and pricing models
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Table 5 MC-related literature from the supply chain’s perspective with analytical approach
Paper Objective Channel agent(s) Period Decision variable(s) Objective function Key parameters Risk concern?
involved
Loginova and Wang Profit maximization 2M Double Product variety, price Profit Product variety, Risk neutral manufac-
(2013) quality turer
Xiao et al. (2016) Profit maximization 2M, 2R Double Delivery lead time, Profit Lead time, price, Risk neutral manufac-
price production cost turer, Risk neutral
retailer
Hsu et al. (2014) Profit maximization Multiple M Multiple Customization scope, Profit Price, cost Risk neutral manufac-
price turer
Liu et al. (2015) Total expected time 1M, multiple R Double Expected time Cost, time, satisfac- Service cost, punish- Risk neutral manufac-
minimization tion ment cost, expected turer, Risk neutral
time retailer
Xu et al. (2017) Profit maximization 1M Single Price, quantity Profit Customer preference, Risk neutral manufac-
product features, turer
cost
Chod et al. (2010) Profit maximization 1M Double Component quantity, Profit Component quantity, Risk neutral manufac-
component inven- turer
tory
Feng et al. (2013) Profit maximization 1M, multiple R Double Spot sales, produc- Profit Price, production Risk neutral manufac-
tion quantity, cost, turer, Risk neutral
retailer
Su et al. (2010) Utility maximization 1M Double Waiting time, cost Utility of waiting Waiting time, cost Risk neutral manufac-
time and cost turer
M manufacturer, R retailer
Design, fabrication, fit, feature, and postproduction, as defined as the critical points
of apparel MC programs in Senanayake and Little (2010), it is suggested that the success
and the capability of apparel MC depend on how effectively a company can combine the
defined points of customization and their extent of customization in pre-production, pro-
duction and post-production of the apparel product. Satam et al. (2011) study the economic
factors leading to MC and propose a new CAD system of 2D and 3D computer-aided gar-
ment intelligent design systems ways to facilitate the design personalization in the entire
process of apparel MC, thus provides a versatile selection of styles and fits for apparel
production processes, and the efficiency of MC can be improved in the apparel industry.
Mpampa et al. (2010) derive a methodology for the development of sizing systems for
garments MC system to control MC degree and the corresponding number of garment
sizes, and to reach a balance between the number of sizes and the percentage satisfaction
of consumers. The proposed methodology has been successfully applied for MC of male
shirts, coats and trousers with respect to in Greece. Zhang and Luximon (2013) design a
shoe-last for MC footwear. Mok et al. (2016) create a fashion skirt design MC system using
evolutionary algorithms and fuzzy set theory. Pan (2016) propose a smart system model to
improve customer choice, and the model is tested by a British small and medium enterprise
ethical and sustainable fashion designer/retailer. The author finds that it can increase and
improve customer choice while reducing environmental waste significantly.
The well-established retailers Land’s End, and Brooks Brothers once implemented MC
for men’s shirts for several years. However both brands do not offer online MC right now.
The possible reason is that men’s shirt is a basic item and customers can find thousands
kinds of ready-to-wear shirts (different fabric, different pattern, different design, etc.) in
the existing market, they do not have the patience to wait for a longer time (most of the
programs need 3 or 4 weeks to deliver the MC product) to get an MC shirt. Another reason
is that, although the price of the MC product is higher than the normal product, most of the
companies do not earn more money from the program. Despite the fact that MC companies
can learn more about their customers from customers reaction in the MC program, which
will be beneficial to the product development in the future. For other similar companies
doing MC for gentleman shirts under the made-to-measure schemes, we find that there are
several firms still providing MC products, such as Ownonly and Tailorism. However, to the
best of our knowledge, KC company should be one of the biggest companies which launch
production under made-to-measure schemes. The reason explaining why there are very few
companies applying MC is that the MC program needs a total transformation of the busi-
ness operations system, which will cost a lot of money to develop. Moreover, this system
is also difficult and time consuming for the managers and especially for the workers on the
assembling line to accept (Table 6).
3 Industrial case: Kutesmart Co., Ltd
3.1 Company background
Founded in 1995, Kutesmart Co., Ltd. (hereafter referred as KM) is one of the largest MC
apparel manufacturers in China. Targeting young professional working class of age between
28 and 38, the product categories of KM include menswear and ladies’ wear in four main
series, namely: formal business, casual business, dress, and mix & match. As of 2018, KM
has more than 3000 employees and operates three manufacturing plants for production of
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Table 6 MC-related literature under the context of the fashion industry

Paper Approach Product category Aspects of MC
Senanayake and Little (2010) Empirical Garment Success and the

capability of
apparel MC
Satam et al. (2011) Empirical Garment CAD system
Mpampa et al. (2010) Analytical Garment Sizing systems
Zhang and Luximon (2013) Analytical Footwear Shoe-last system
Mok et al. (2016) Analytical Fashion skirt MC system
Pan (2016) Empirical Fashion outlet MC system
suits, shirts and casual pants, respectively. KM produces over one million customized apparels
annually and customers cover a wide range of industries such as finance, media, sports, fash-
ion models, internet industry.
KM started as a traditional apparel manufacturer that provided original equipment manu-
facturing (OEM) and original design manufacturing (ODM). In light of the vicious price com-
petition and excess inventory issues, the company began to explore the possibility to trans-
form its business model to apparel customization in 2003. A new company was established
in 2007 based on the original one. At the beginning, the company observed many drawbacks
in traditional customization such as low efficiency, high cost relative to mass production and
the dependence on worker’s measuring skill and sewing technology. In order to solve these
problems, the company began to consider to use MC as a means to make personalized clothes.
After more than 10 years’ research and development, hundreds of millions of funds have been
invested and the company has successfully developed a MC system that had become a case
example in China. Moreover, it also provides consultation and personalized customization ser-
vices for dozens of corporations from different industries, including clothing, shoes and hats,
electronic products, motorcycles, bicycles, and cosmetics.
Being one of the largest MC apparel manufacturers in China, KM produces over 4000 cus-
tomized apparels daily through 308 production processes with the production lead time from
seven to ten working days after order receipt. The production efficiency of KM is higher than
the average in the industry. Upon receipt of the customer’s personalized needs, its MC system
starts to provide a complete solution for the whole process of clothing customization. The
system is more suitable for small batch production, e.g. shorter delivery time, more timely
replenishment, more stable quality and stronger technological satisfaction.
KM accepts orders from both the apparel enterprises and individual end consumers. For
corporate clients, KM provides a complete supply chain solution from design, material pur-
chasing, production, logistics, to customer services. Currently, KM has developed a mobile
application (APP) Cotte Yolan with which individual end consumers can place orders for cus-
tomized formal menswear. The following sub-section presents the MC process for orders from
individual end consumers.
3.2 The MC process in KM
Body measurements are essential information for apparel customization. To order for a
personalized men’s suit for the first time, a customer must register in KM’s mobile APP
and schedule appointments for body data measurement. KM provides two alternatives
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for body data collection, namely: a customer can either go to the designated brick-and-
mortar stores of KM, or he can make a reservation for door-to-door body measurement
service online or by phone. The customer can also choose whether to be measured by
3D scanning or by hand. In either way, the responsible measurement staff will help the
customer to collect body measurements and input into the information system of KM.
The body measurements are saved under the customer’s personal profile in KM’s system
and can be extracted for future use whenever the customer login the system.
With the body measurements available in KM’s system, the customer can design
his desirable suits using KM’s mobile APP. Apart from the suit style, a customer can
also decide on his favorite pattern version, fabric, color, embroidery personalization,
buttons, pockets and other details. The number of options available for customization
exceed 100. Based on the chosen options, a 3D virtue model is displayed for the cus-
tomer to review and finalize his design. After the customer has confirmed his design and
placed the order through the mobile APP, the order details are saved and transmitted to
the company’s factory order platform for further process.
Based on the order details received, the manufacturing execution system of KM com-
piles the customer’s body measurements into from its intelligent database, and then
automatically generates the personalized pattern version for the customer. The database
covers millions of different type’s body data, and it makes the accurate personalized suit
pattern than the experienced craftsman. When the order data enters the system which
contains process database, style database and raw material database, the C2M system
decomposes the task at the production node. And then it transforms the order infor-
mation into production task by way of pushing instruction, and then decomposes and
pushes it to each workstation.
When the pattern is confirmed, the system will cut the parts of all the customization
details of the suit and arrange the order sequence automatically in the system. First, the
work needs to observe the orders in real time and check more than 50 customized details
in each order. Different from the traditional production process, each part is attached with
an RFID card in the whole process of production, in which records the personalization
details of this clothing part. The RFID card records all of the data, and it’s the electronic
identity card of the suit parts, with the required material, it is automatically transferred to
the corresponding work station using the hanging system. And then the personalized suit is
produced. In each working station, it has a dedicated terminal device to download and read
order information from the Internet cloud. The worker should scan the RFID card first to
check the personalization information, and then act accordingly. In each work position, the
worker has different kinds of sewing thread or buttons with him in order to fulfill the dif-
ferent personalization requirements. This is different from the traditional factory, where the
worker only has one kind sewing thread because the products are all the same. However, in
this production process, the workers have different threads to match the different fabrics of
the personalized suits. It is noted that each worker can only see the data required in his own
duties, and the irrelevant data is automatically concealed by the system.
Finishing the product, the workers will double check the product. The total inspect
includes 25 processes. The inspector will examine the details of the order according to the
data set after scanning the RFID card, to check whether the size and data are correct. Nor-
mally the personalized apparels are delivered within seven to ten working days.
Through the intelligent logistics system, intelligent reclaiming system, intelligent cut-
ting system, etc., the production line of personalized products is realized. Based on the
technology of internet of things, the data of multiple information systems are shared
and transmitted. It enables multiple production units and enterprises from upstream and
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•The customer makes a measurement (3D scaning or hand measure) from the online
Step 1 booking system or by phone.
•The customer places an order in the system by choosing the personalizaon details like
Step 2 paern, style, technique, materials, etc.
•The informaon system generates the digital paern of the personlized suit.
Step 3
•The system cuts the parts of the suit, and arrange the order sequence automacally in the
Step 4 system. Each parts has an RFID card to record the details of the customizaon.
•The workers in each work staon scan the RFID card first to check the personalizaon
Step 5 informaon, and then act accordingly to finish the producon.
•Inspect the products by scaning the RFID card and double check the detailed informaon
Step 6
•Packing with the right suit and pants of the same order
Step 7
•Delivery
Step 8
Fig. 1 The apparel MC process of KM
downstream to transfer and share data through information systems, and realizes the col-
laborative production of the entire industrial chain (Fig. 1).
3.3 Technology adopted in MC system
With the integration of traditional clothing production and modern information technology,
KM constructs an apparel MC platform using 3D scanning system, CAD system, big data,
RFID, and intelligent production system. It has made the full customization of clothing
which is personalized, differentiated, and digitized to be feasible.
3.3.1 3D scanning
The company employs 3D scanning system for customers’ body measurements. It helps
the system to extract the body data and enhances the efficiency and accuracy for the meas-
urements process. In traditional, when a customer wants to make a personalized suit, the
craftsman will help the customer to measure his body, and it is always operated by hand.
Thus, it highly depends on the craftsman’s measuring skill. Most of the time it is also sub-
jectively, due to the craftsman’s working habit is different. However, adopt with 3D scan-
ning system, 22 body data of 19 body parts is obtained by the system objectively and it is
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not affected by human. Moreover, the data is collected by the machine very fast, just within
2 s, compared with more than 10 min of the hand measuring. In the current system, the
customer should wear tight clothes to be scanned, which makes the process inconveniently.
3.3.2 CAD
Customer’s order is made by himself in APP and sometimes, the order is a bit weird con-
trast to the normal products. For example, some of the customers make the suit with differ-
ent fabrics of the front part and back part or choose different buttons for the suit. Mostly,
that kind of design is not allowed in mass production, but in this system, the customer can
design his suit whatever he wants to show.
Pattern making is a crucial process in garment production, and it is related to the final
performance of the whole garment. In the traditional fashion customization, an experienced
can only make two sets of suit patterns without rest. In order to achieve the efficiency of
industrialization and meet the needs of MC, it is impossible to use the traditional pattern
making method, which is time-consuming and effortless. In KM, the pattern of the per-
sonalized suit is automatically generated by the CAD system, and double checked by the
experienced pattern makers, if not perfect then amend it.
After the completion of the pattern matching, the data system will automatically trans-
mit the information to the fabric department. According to the length and width of the fab-
ric, the most economical cutting arrangement method of the suit for the fabric is calculated.
According to the fabric requirements of each piece of clothing displayed on the system,
the worker only needs to put the reserved fabric on the cutting bed. After the confirmation,
the fabric will be automatically tailored by laser positioning. After the cutting, the workers
put the fabric and lining on the top of the work station, and the RFID labels attached to the
customer information will be hanging together.
The CAD patterning and cutting machine not only make it possible for the computer to
make pattern automatically, the efficiency is also greatly improved, and the accuracy can be
compared with those old tailors who has decades of experiences.
3.3.3 Big data and information system
Generating the pattern of the suit automatically by industrial intelligent manufacturing pro-
cess and big data system, is the crucial part to accomplish MC of clothing.
In early days, when the customer placed an order in the stores, when the staff found
from the system that the fabric is sufficient, but after the order is placed, the staff may find
that the fabric is not enough, because the same fabric is booking in the other stores at the
same time. This means that the customers should amend his order otherwise he cannot get
his suits on time. The system cannot handle the conflict orders, therefore, the complaints
from the customers come. In the producing process, the company had tried to use paper or
cloth to record the customers’ data information, however it always makes the workers con-
fused and lead to reproduction.
After exploration for years, KM has built the data base concluding the pattern, style,
technique and material bills. Currently, the system can help the customers to make their
own orders by millions of modeling combination, thus, to fulfill the personalized demands.
The pattern data base can generate the pattern of the suit automatically according to the
body data of the customer, no matter the figure of the customer is normal or abnormal. For
those whose figure is not normal, for example, too fat in belly or too strong in arms, they
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cannot find suitable suit in the department stores, however, in KM, they can make their
personalized suit without paying too expensively. Usually in mass production, the product
can only have limited sizes (e.g. S, M, L), but in database, a suit can have more than 9000
models, from 1.3 to 2.5 m, fat to thin, the system can generate all kinds of figures. If the
customers do not want to spend too much time on the choices, the system, which consti-
tutes of more than 20 subsystems, can also help them to manage all of the materials in an
integrated way, i.e. match the fabric, buttons, lines, threads and so on.
To the company, the cost is also reduced. The pattern maker plays a crucial role in suit
producing no matter in customization or mass production, and the payment is much high
especially for those has decades of experiences. Nevertheless, under the MC system of
KM, the pattern maker just works as the inspector. The experts’ experiences have been
transferred into the data base, and the data base is growing time to time. The number of the
pattern maker could be highly reduced and thus the cost is cut rapidly. Moreover, the speed
for the process is speed up, and at present, the company can produce 4000 suits every day.
The core technology is big data, which drives the pipeline with data and makes the per-
sonalized products. The data base can monitor the working efficiency and skill evaluation
of each worker in each work station and match the suitable work process and push to him.
The intelligent system makes the workers working more efficiently, the total production
efficiency is increasingly higher. For the workers, owning to the more and more suitable
works for him, he can earn more money than before. For the company, the reproduction
rate is very low as well. When the equipment is damaged, the system can get the signal
automatically, and determine the compatibility of equipment according to the repair time,
number of times and other data. Orders, materials, garments and other data interact with
each other to ensure the continuous supply of materials. The system will calculate how to
match or cut the materials will be the most reasonable and economically. Therefore, the
inventory is almost zero, and the total production cost is reduced as well.
Through application of the big data system, the company does not have human resources
office and finance office, and the production is automatically continued. The staffs’ job is
monitoring the system in real time (for example, the revenue, the stage of certain order,
the performance of certain staff, etc.) and all of the data can be extracted whenever it is
needed.
3.3.4 RFID technology
In the very beginning, the company did not use RFID card for information transmission
and tracking, just using handwriting in paper or fabric. However, in the real production, the
paper will be tear up or the words will be indistinct after several production process. Some-
times it will lead to the production mistake. Therefore, the company used RFID quickly.
The application of RFID technology plays an important role in the distribution of work
flow in KM. It can be seen as a form of data flow. After the customer’s body data collec-
tion is completed, it will be transmitted to the company’s data platform, and the RFID card
maker inputs the full data into this tag. Thereafter, the tag, like an ID card, will follow the
corresponding garment pieces throughout the whole production process. The workers in
each process get a piece of clothing, they should first swipe the card in the system, com-
plete the work such as cutting, button nailing, embroidery and other specific operations
according to the translated code. And the small screen in front of them is used to show the
translated code implies what instructions each garment should carry out.
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3.4 Supply chain management
3.4.1 Changes for cooperation with suppliers
The relationships with suppliers have been changing since KM transformed to apparel MC,
and the changes can be classified into three phases. In the first phase, the company bought
materials from the suppliers. And so, the demand forecasting was needed in this period.
The company forecast the materials demand based on the historical data which might devi-
ate significantly from the actual demand. Such situation lasted for about 8 years, and KM
had to dedicate a large amount of cash flow for excessive material inventory. After years of
operations, the accuracy of the company’s forecasting had been improved, and the relation-
ship between KM and its suppliers was transited to the second phase. In this phase, KM
and its suppliers had come up with an agreement to better manage the material inventory.
To be specific, the suppliers shipped the materials in the warehouse of KM according to the
company’s forecast, but KM were allowed to pay the suppliers based on the actual amount
that had been used. Recently, KM’s relationship with its suppliers had shifted to the third
phase, a new platform for material management has been constructed with which KM can
reach minimum cost in the industry. In this platform, KM assembles a large amount of the
fashion materials suppliers, including different kinds of fabrics and materials (like wool,
button, lining, lace, and etc.) from different countries in the world. And, all of the materials
are open to other companies in the platform. The other companies can find the materials
they required from this platform and do not need to looking for materials overseas. Nowa-
days, this platform has become profitable.
The system can automatically manage the stock of raw materials. When an end con-
sumer orders from KM’s mobile APP, the material that needs to be consumed will be
recorded in stock in real time. Once the stock of a certain type of raw material is lower than
the pre-set threshold, the system will automatically order from the supplier. By applying
MC, the supply chain of KM has been changed. KM does not need retailers or wholesalers
to reach end consumers and its supply chain could also accommodate customer-to-manu-
facturer (C2M) business mode.
3.4.2 Benefits of MC
KM has benefited a lot from its MC system. Firstly, the approach of MC has brought about
good financial performance. Whereas the production cost is 10% higher than traditional
customization, the profit margin is doubled the traditional mass production company. Sec-
ondly, MC has also shrunk the production lead time of KM significantly from 3 months to
10 days. Thirdly, owing to the make-to-order nature of MC, the inventory of KM has been
reduced to zero. Inventory management has always been a challenge to fashion compa-
nies adopting mass production as the inventory (holding and stock-out) cost can constitute
30–50% of the cost on average and be a fatal problem. Having zero inventory level has
improved the cash flow and financial performance of KM. Fourthly, the fitting and product
quality of customized apparel are enhanced under the MC system of KM. The experiences
of measuring staff and pattern craftsman play crucial roles in tradition garment customiza-
tion. The uncertainties caused by human experience could affect the fitting accuracy and
outfit of the tailor-made apparels greatly. By contrast, under the MC system of KM, body
measurement and pattern making are undertaken objectively with minimal bias (Table 7).
13
Table 7 Production Before (mass production) Present (MC)

improvements experienced by
KM after MC adoption
Production cost 100 110
Design cost 100 5
Production lead time More than 12 days Less than 7 days
Product inventory 100 0
Material inventory 100 0
3.4.3 Customer involvement
In the MC system of KM, when an end customer makes an order through the company’s
mobile APP, he has to specify his design options. The options were originally created by
the company, and the modularity level related to the options is higher compared with the
mass-produced garment. As a result, the availability of a wide range of customized options
makes customers happy and enhances customer satisfaction. Additionally, some of the cus-
tomers, who are creative and have good taste of fashion, can produce some good options.
By saving these creative options into the system, on the one hand, KM can expand the
database and makes it more attractive to other end consumers. On the other hand, custom-
ers who had their design options kept in KM’s database could feel that they had become
a designer and this makes the consuming experience much more memorable, and in turn
their satisfaction level with KM is increased.
3.5 Challenges and future direction for KM
To KM, the key challenge to MC adoption is the difficulty to change its employees’ mind-
sets to adapt to the MC approach. Factory workers are familiar with the conventional way
of mass garment production under which the manufacturing process and design of indi-
vidual garments are nearly the same. Proficient workers in general could simply work by
instinct. Thus, it could be imagined the workers’ reluctance to accept the MC approach.
Especially, when the workers have to swipe the RFID tags and check the design details,
and even change the threads for each piece of clothing, they consider the work too complex
than before and they do not like to change. Besides, the wages of factory workers of KM
are paid piecemeal. At the very beginning of MC adoption, factory workers were slow in
production and stagnation in output lowered their wages and in turn affected their work-
ing enthusiasm. The managerial staff do not like MC as well, because their job functions
and work procedures have been changed. To resolve employees’ negative responses to MC
implementation, KM has been providing various training workshops and discussions regu-
larly to better equip its employees to adapt to the MC business model.
In the future, KM intends to export its experience in apparel MC and provide solutions
for enterprises in different industries. Since its MC system started to work, KM had already
planned to extend to e-commerce with some large-scale platforms like other clothing com-
panies had been doing. However, the company found that the operation logic of the exist-
ing e-commerce platforms did not support mass customization while it was infeasible for
those platforms to develop a portal specifically for it. As a result, the company has devoted
to developing the MC system by itself. With the success in its MC system, KM decided to
build an intelligent ecosystem, in which a large number of enterprises can be cooperate in
13
the ecosystem and customers can buy personalized products from different companies in
different industries. As of now, more than 60 traditional manufacturing enterprises from
local and Germany, across a wide range of industries such as chemical, bicycle, furniture,
textile and other industries, have established a cooperative relationship with KM.
4 Antecedents for successful apparel MC
On the basis of the case study of KM and the review of MC-related literature, a number of
factors are identified that are critical to successful implementation of apparel MC, namely:
data-driven production process, integrated data infrastructure, supporting technology, con-
sumer involvement, and relationship with other supply chain agents. We discuss these fac-
tors one by one in details as follows.
4.1 Data‑driven production process
As remarked by KM, production of customized apparels in massive volume efficiently

within a short period of lead time is a fundamental challenge to its adoption of apparel
MC. Unlike the conventional mode for mass production under which apparels are relatively
homogenous for the same batch of orders, MC targets at manufacturing of a large quantity
of customized apparels that are different from each other in many aspects from the fab-
rics and materials required, fitting to design details. This increases tremendous complex-
ity in the manufacturing process, which is acknowledged in the literature (e.g. Bednar and
Modrak 2014; Modraka et al. 2014). A primary obstacle to apparel MC is how to automate
the pattern making process for large amount of customized apparels. Efficient pipeline
management in the factory floor is another hurdle for apparel MC. In particular, factory
workers are accustomed to standardized sewing procedures under the convention mass pro-
duction mode and their ability to work according to ever-changing sewing procedures for
different customized apparels determines the productivity of the MC system. To respond
to these challenges, KM re-engineered its manufacturing process to be completely data-
driven. The processes of pattern making and fabric cutting are undertaken automatically
upon receipt of customer orders. The detailed garment sewing procedures for individual
customized apparels are stored in RFID tags to guide factory workers and ensure custom-
ers’ specified design requirements are fulfilled. KM’s data-driven production approach
illustrate the upcoming trend of the use of cloud services and big data in production and
operations management (e.g. Chan and Bennett Moses 2016; Choi et al. 2017).
4.1.1 Integrated data infrastructure
A well-developed integrated data infrastructure across different production units is a pre-

requisite to make data-driven production process feasible. From the above case study,
KM has put heavy investments in the development of different databases for suit patterns,
styles, techniques, and clothing materials. It also took years for the company to modify
the databases and establish data retrieval and compilation during different phases of the
MC manufacturing process. As commented by Zawadzki and Żywicki (2016), an effective
MC system should be capable of processing huge volume of data for analysis and deci-
sion making. The integrated data infrastructure can streamline data exchange cross the MC
13
system and accelerate the manufacturing process. With all possible data available, the MC
system can also increase modularity level and offer more variety and possibility for MC.
4.2 Facilitated technology
The case of KM has demonstrated application of a wide variety of technology in apparel

MC such as 3D scanning system for body measurement detection, CAD system for auto-
mated pattern creation, and RFID technology for MC requirement and order tracking. In
fact, cost reduction, shorten design and personalization time are some of the merits of the
integrated use of 3D scanning and CAD systems (e.g. Apeagyei and Otieno 2007; Satam
et al. 2011; Tao et al. 2018). The fitting of a customized apparel is large attributed to accu-
rate body measurements and in turn precise pattern making. For traditional apparel cus-
tomization, obtaining accurate body measurements depends on the experience and the skill
of the tailor. The process of pattern making is also time-consuming and do not facilitate
repetition to other styles. Now with the assistance of 3D scanning system, collection of
customers’ body measurements can be done within a short period of time. Since measure-
ments are collected by standardized procedures, measurement error can be controlled at
the minimal level. Besides, data are stored digitally in the system. This can expedite data
transfer to other systems like the CAD system for pattern making. The measurement data
can also be retrieved easily for repeated use and encourage customers’ patronage. On the
other hand, RFID technology supports real-time efficient product and procedure tracking
(Chan and Bennett Moses 2016). It also serves as an assistance and monitoring tool to
guide factory workers to compliant with the design requirements of customized apparels,
which enhance the productivity of the apparel MC system.
4.3 Consumer involvement
A number of literatures advocate the positive effect of consumers’ co-design experience on

purchase willingness and perceived value of customized products (e.g. Franke et al. 2010;
Merle et al. 2010; Kwon et al. 2017). Accordingly, a high level of consumer involvement
is a definite asset of an apparel MC program. For the case of KM, the mobile APP Cotte
Yolan offers a new channel for the company to reach potential end consumers directly.
Through the mobile APP, individual end consumers can decide on their preferred design
details of the customized apparels. Involving customers directly in the design process can
enhance their purchase experience with KM. Their designs are stored in the company’s
information systems and could provide useful information for the company for fashion
trend forecast and more style design variety.
4.4 Relationship with supply chain agents
Through its case KM has shared the continuous change of relationships with its suppli-
ers during different phases of apparel MC implementation. Whereas apparel MC results
in better demand forecast and minimum inventory for materials, KM also has to obtain
cooperation from its suppliers to enjoy cost saving and effective inventory management
brought by MC adoption. Specifically, KM has come to an agreement with its supplier to
have flexible materials inventory management. In the literature, a number of works exam-
ine optimal pricing and production policies in MC supply chains (e.g. Liu et al. 2012; Choi
13
et al. 2013) while few are devoted to supply chain coordination of make-to-order systems
(e.g. Sahin and Robinson 2005; Feng et al. 2013). Whereas contractual agreements ensure
profitability, maintenance of good and long-term relationships with suppliers could defi-
nitely improve the performance of an apparel MC systems. As demonstrated by the case of
KM, collaboration with suppliers plays a significant role in the smooth transformation of
the company’s business model from traditional mass production to apparel MC.
5 Conclusion, insights and future research directions
5.1 Summary and managerial insights
With the comprehensive literature review and the case study on KM, we have identified
different types of MC implemented in fashion industry. Integrating with the literature
review and the findings of the case study on KM, we have identified a list of key factors
that affecting the success of MC in fashion industry, including the important technology
and the operation managerial strategies.
The managerial insights for answering the research questions proposed at the beginning
are summarized as the conclusion for this paper.
1. The present main research domains in the literature of MC in the fashion industry and
what are the related research findings. The research works fall to several aspects, includ-
ing the modularity, process and technology in MC, consumers behavior research, MC
supply chain management, and MC application in fashion.
2. MC application for fashion manufacturer and the challenges in practice.
Management of process architecture in MC might not be conducted in isolation from
management of product development (this is consistent with what we find in CY com-
pany’s case study that production of MC will bring big change to management archi-
tecture)
3. The important technologies in the fashion MC system. Big data technology seems to
be the most important technology in the production system and order system. Big data
analysis system helps the company to learn the customers’ habits and extract the useful
data to facilitate the MC production system.
5.2 Limitations and future research opportunities
Though the study provides comprehensive implications for MC application in fashion

industry, the paper suffers some limitations. First, our case study only focuses on a single
MC fashion company, and the results of the case study may lack generalizability. Due to
the resource limitations, we only can concentrate on a limited number of informants for
the interview. Besides, personal bias may avoidably occur during the process of selecting
paper and conducting the case study.
According to the findings derived from literature review and case study, future research
directions are summarized as follows. (1) New technologies adopted in fashion MC. As we
can observe from industry, technology is developing intensively fast, and new technologies
are continuously been employed. Not only include the production technology like 3D print-
ing, internet of things like big data, but also include the try on technologies like virtual try
on mirror etc. (2) Consumers behavior in MC. In the literature, we find near all the works
13
are empirical research. In the future, the more analytical works are needed. (3) The MC
operations management. Most of the MC works focused on the supply chain management
and the production process. However, as changed by the production process, the operations
consequently change a bit or even turn to another way, which requires more attention.
Acknowledgements The authors would like to thank Ms. Yunlan Zhang, the President of Kutesmart Co.,
Ltd., for her valuable support and assistance for the case study. This paper is supported by Beijing Higher
Education Young Elite Teacher Project of Beijing Municipal Commission of Education in China with the
account code of CIT&TCD201804043.
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Annals of Operations Research

Challenges and critical successful factors for apparel mass

Na Liu1 · Pui‑Sze Chow2 · Hongshan Zhao1

© Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2019

Keywords Mass customization · Literature review · Case study · Personalization · Fashion

Footwear Nike Nike ID Shoes

2.1 MC from the manufacturer’s perspective

2.1.3.4 RFID The advance of mobile technologies, product tracking technologies (e.g.,

construct a mass-customization production process in a loosely coupled shop-floor control

2.2 MC from the consumer’s perspective

Modraka et al. (2014) Analytical Modularity Approach to create modules

Wang et al. (2014) Empirical Modularity Effects of modularity in building MC capability

Paper Approach Industry Aspects explored

2.3 MC from the supply chain’s perspective

Loginova and Wang (2013) develop MC in an endogenous-timing game with vertical

2.4 MC in the fashion industry

Hong et al. (2014) Empirical Lean practices with MC performance

3 Industrial case: Kutesmart Co., Ltd

Table 6 MC-related literature under the context of the fashion industry

Senanayake and Little (2010) Empirical Garment Success and the

3.2 The MC process in KM

Fig. 1 The apparel MC process of KM

3.3 Technology adopted in MC system

3.3.3 Big data and information system

3.4 Supply chain management

3.4.1 Changes for cooperation with suppliers

Table 7 Production Before (mass production) Present (MC)

3.5 Challenges and future direction for KM

4 Antecedents for successful apparel MC

4.1 Data‑driven production process

As remarked by KM, production of customized apparels in massive volume efficiently

4.1.1 Integrated data infrastructure

A well-developed integrated data infrastructure across different production units is a pre-

The case of KM has demonstrated application of a wide variety of technology in apparel

A number of literatures advocate the positive effect of consumers’ co-design experience on

4.4 Relationship with supply chain agents

5 Conclusion, insights and future research directions

5.1 Summary and managerial insights

5.2 Limitations and future research opportunities

Though the study provides comprehensive implications for MC application in fashion

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2.1 MC from the manufacturer’s perspective

2.2 MC from the consumer’s perspective

2.3 MC from the supply chain’s perspective

2.4 MC in the fashion industry

3 Industrial case: Kutesmart Co., Ltd

Table 6 MC-related literature under the context of the fashion industry

3.2 The MC process in KM

Fig. 1 The apparel MC process of KM

3.3 Technology adopted in MC system

3.3.3 Big data and information system

3.4 Supply chain management

3.4.1 Changes for cooperation with suppliers

Table 7 Production Before (mass production) Present (MC)

3.5 Challenges and future direction for KM

4 Antecedents for successful apparel MC

4.1 Data‑driven production process

4.1.1 Integrated data infrastructure

4.4 Relationship with supply chain agents

5 Conclusion, insights and future research directions

5.1 Summary and managerial insights

5.2 Limitations and future research opportunities