Apparel software keeps you competitive in every phase of the fashion industry, from global sourcing, through manufacturing, down to POS apparel software that totes up the final sale.
And apparel software has just begun to remake the industry:
Fashion design software already can show how a design will fit, skipping the traditional step of making a sample.
Some starting points on apparel software:
1. You can choose between vendors that specialize in apparel software or major business software vendors that adapt their products to the fashion business.
2. You can find enterprise resource planning apparel software to automate your entire business or focused products like clothing design software to automate one aspect.
Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done
Apparel design software
Fashion design software brings computer aided design (CAD) into the creative process. Designers can see how garments will look and fit in 3-D, then convert their designs to patterns for manufacture.
I recommend: OptiTex,
Tukatech and
Blue Fox are fashion CAD specialists.
Apparel software for product development and management
In a business driven by style and trends, apparel software can help you get faster and smarter about product development and product lifecycle management (PLM).
I recommend: Business Management Systems,
Enovia,
Gerber Technology,
PTC, and
Yunique offer fashion industry software product solutions, as does giant business software supplier
SAP.
Apparel software for manufacturing and supply chain management
Fashion industry manufacturing runs on global sourcing and quality control that is as complex and sophisticated as any industry. Apparel software covers each link in the chain.
I recommend: Try supply chain management experts
i2 Technologies,
Lawson or manufacturing software giant
Oracle.
RFID is a major concern in the clothing business –
Avery Dennison offers apparel software for tagging and inventory control.
Managing color from design through production is another big issue --
Datacolor makes apparel software that ensures consistent color.
Apparel software at the retail level
Software solutions track sales and inventory both at the cash register and the ecommerce shopping-cart level.
I recommend: Microsoft and
NSB Group offer retail-oriented apparel software; also check Business.com for
point of sale systems that can be adapted to fashion retailing.
Everest Software develops apparel software solutions that cover both brick and mortar stores and online clothing sales.
End-to-end apparel software
Some apparel software vendors offer integrated software suites that cover many sides of the garment industry.
I recommend: Gerber Technology,
LogOn Business Systems,
Frogfish Solutions and
New Generation Computing are end-to-end apparel software vendors.
For more apparel software vendors, try company directories from
ApparelSearch and
Apparel magazine.
Tips & Tactics
Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide
- Fashion software that draws on laser body scans is beginning to change garment size and fit standards which have gone unquestioned for generations.
- Weaving, knitting and embroidering in clothing manufacturing are all now heavily driven by computer aided manufacturing.
The official source of Apparel Software is the Apparel Software page at Business.com
Related Resources from Business.com
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