2. CONTENTS
INSIDETHISISSUE
5.INTRODUCINGMISMATCHEDMANCHESTER
6&7. TREND INSPIRATION
8&9. MANCHESTER STREETSTYLE
10&11.PRODUCTDEVELOPMENT,SAMPLINGANDPROTOTYPING
12&13. THE PRODUCTION PROCESS & ISSUES FACED
14.THEPRODUCTIONPROCESSFLOWCHART
15.THEPRODUCTIONPROCESSINPICTURES
16&17. MARKETING AND SALES: CREATING A BRAND
16.THEFINALPRODUCT
18&19. THE WEBSITE
20.MISMATCHEDMANCHESTER’SSOCIALMEDIAPRESENCE
21. PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT
24&25.CURRENTRANGEDEVELOPMENT:MANUFACTURINGASHIRTTWINSET
26.CURRENTRANGEDEVELOPMENT:MANUFACTURINGASHIRTDRESS
27.CURRENTRANGEDEVELOPMENT:MANUFACTURINGASHIRTCROPTOP
29. RANGE DEVELOPMENT
3. INTRODUCING...
MISMATCHEDMANCHESTER
As a business, we; Mismatched
Manchester, pride ourselves on being a
fun, quirky, upbeat brand that produces
bespoke shirts for the 18-24 year
old market. We believe that it is the
uniqueness of our products that provides
us with our competitive advantage
(Porter, 1980). Yet we are also aware
that it is this uniqueness that has led
to a series of issues to arise across all
areas of the business. In response to this
we understand that in order to remain
competitive and continue to grow, we
must produce and implement a plan that
will solve all the issues faced.
WithinthismagazineIaimtoillustratethe
growth and development of Mismatched
Manchester by analysing our brand
concept and development. I will focus on
analysing my role in the business: namely
the tasks undertaken by the Director of
Marketing and Sales. Academic theory
is used to illustrate why I chose to
implement certain marketing and sales
strategies in a bid to gain customers
and create a fully rounded brand (Jiang
et. al, 2013). Furthermore, I will critically
evaluate the impact and success of these
strategies whilst providing an insight
into the brands future plans for growth
and diversification.
Alongside critically evaluating
the marketing and sales strategies
implemented by the brand, I
will also illustrate the product
development and production
process followed by Mismatched
Manchester.
Starting with the initial trend I
will demonstrate how this trend
translates into street style, further
developing this to illustrate how
street style has influenced the
Mismatched Manchester product.
I will then continue to analyse
the chosen production methods,
concluding with the businesses
plans for future growth. As with the
analysis of the brands marketing
and sales activity, academic theory
is used to evaluate the product
development phase with the
aim of reflecting on my personal
development. Furthermore I will
provide the reader with a product
based perspective that analyses
Mismatched Manchester’s ability
to diversify and grow.
MISMATCHEDMANCHESTER
CONTACTINFORMATION
INSTAGRAM
@mismatchedmcr
FACEBOOK
/MismatchedManchester
TWITTER
@mismatchedmcr
WEBSITE
www.mismatchedmanchester.
com
E-MAIL
mismatched.manchester@
gmail.com
AMANCHESTERBASEDVINTAGECLOTHINGCOMPANY
“Mismatched
Manchesterisa
fun,unique,upbeat
brandthatproduces
bespokeshirtsfor
the18-24yearold
market”
#5
4. TRENDBOARD
TRENDINSPIRATION
Whilst the 90’s grunge trend has
proven popular on the catwalk
for the last few seasons (WGSN,
2014), fashion forecasting
website WGSN reports that
the demand for 90’s inspired
clothing will continue to grow
(WGSN, 2014). The 90’s trend
and subsequent gap in the
market was highlighted in the
initial market research phase
(Mintel, 20141
). It is this gap
that has provided us with the
opportunity
to create a reclaimed vintage
product that is highly unique
yet wearable. Further analysis of
the 90’s trend led us to discover
that the key garments within
the grunge trend consisted of:
denim accents, catchy slogans
and most importantly plaid
shirts (pinterest.com, 2014;
WGSN, 2014). It was from this
initial assessment that we;
Mismatched Manchester,
began to develop our brand and
product.
TRENDBOARDORIGINALIMAGESFROMWWW.PINTEREST.COM
5. STREETSTYLE
STREETSTYLE
MANCHESTERSTREETSTYLE
Hall and Jefferson (1976)
compare street style to
that of the class system.
They suggest that the class
system has reemerged
through ‘youth culture’.
Evans (1994) expands this
idea, highlighting how she
also believes that identity is
maintained through a style
of dress. Whilst Evans’ (2009)
views on street style do not
solely categorise it as a form
of power and dominance
as Hall and Jefferson’s do
(1976), her ideas do reiterate
the idea that street style
is related to the image of
a group, opposed to that
of an individual. In recent
years however, the term
‘street style’ has become
associated with “quirky
individuality” (Woodward,
2009) opposed to “dominant
cultures” as suggested by
Hall et. al, (1976). Inline with
this, much of Mismatched
Manchester’s brand identity
has been greatly inspired
by Woodward’s (2009)
interpretation of street style
and the individuality it
emits. Furthermore, in the
initial stages of the brand’s
development we felt it was
important that Mismatched
Manchester offered their
‘youth’ consumer a product
that was 100% unique;
emanating Manchester’s
street style and “quirky
individuality” (Woodward,
2009).
HOWHASSTREETSTYLEINFLUENCEDMISMATCHEDMANCHESTER?
ORIGINALIMAGESFROMWWW.PINTEREST.COM
#9
6. PRODUCTDEVELOPMENT,SAMPLINGANDPROTOTYPING
OURPRODUCT
#10
Due to the uniqueness of the product
it was established in the early
stages that there must be a rigorous
sampling and prototyping phase. As
a brand there were two reasons why
we believed the sampling phase to
be so important: 1) to identify if I
had the skills necessary to produce
shirts that would be perceived as
‘good’ quality (Slack et. al, 2013) and
2) to ascertain if the production of
such a product would be time and
cost sensitive (Moon et. al, 2010).
The initial market research phase
illustrated that in order to be inline
with competitors, the shirts should
be retailed at £22. Therefore, we
believed that it was important that
raw material costs were kept to
a minimum as it was predicted
that a low volume, high variety
(LVHV) sales strategy would be
implemented due to the hand crafted
nature of the product (Slack et. al,
2013). It is important to note that
the LVHV sales strategy was only
a proposal at this stage, as before
the prototype had been constructed,
the unit production time was
unknown. Yet with this being
said, we continued to be margin
conscious as it was assumed that
profit would be generated through
high margins opposed to bulk
sales; reiterating our need for a low
unit cost price (Moon et. al, 2010).
Whilst we intended to bulk buy
the majority of our raw materials
to keep the unit cost price down,
we opted to purchase two singular
shirts from a vintage retailer for the
development phase. As previously
mentioned, we understood that the
raw materials would make up the
largest share of the total production
cost (Moon et. al, 2010). Therefore
in order to remain cost sensitive it
was decided that the raw materials
purchased for the prototype would
be low cost to stay in line with this.
Whilst as a business price was a
predominant factor contributing
to the purchase of the initial raw
materials, I believed colour and
size to be equally as important. The
market research highlighted that
Mismatched Manchester’s target
market thought that the colour
or print of a shirt was one of the
contributing factors that motivated
their purchase. Therefore, when
the two sample shirts we chosen, I
felt it was important that the prints
matched one another. However
upon reflection, I placed too much
emphasis on the aesthetic appeal of
the shirts opposed to selecting shirts
OURPRODUCT
#11
“Increased
manufacturing
experienceledto
fasterproduction
andariseinquality
(Kolb,1984).”
that matched in size. As previously
mentioned, size was another one
of the contributing factors that led
to the purchase of the two sample
shirts. Yet whilst I understood the
need for the shirts to match in size:
allowing for the components to be
swapped in the production phase, it
was apparent that I was too reliant
on the market research which led
me to focus on choosing shirts that
matched in colour opposed to fit.
At the beginning of the production
phase I predicted that the quality
and speed of production would
increase over time. Inline with my
predictions,increasedmanufacturing
experience led to faster production
and a rise in quality (Kolb, 1984).
Furthermore, as the sampling phase
developed and my experience was
increased, quicker solutions to
production issues were found. For
example, the aforementioned lack
of attention paid to the size of the
sample shirts resulted in certain
components being too large or small
for the opposite shirt. Initially this
was a problem as I didn’t have the
experience to instantly know how to
make the components fit. However
as I gained experience, I found that
placing a tuck in the fabric would
counteract this issue. Alongside this,
in the initial stages of production
the manufacturing process was
lengthy. This was a concern to both
the team and I. However as I grew
in experience, the time it took me
to manufacture a shirt decreased
(Wright, 1936). With this being said,
production time remained a concern
going into the production phase as
although an increase in experience
was leading to a decrease in
production time, the production
time still remained relatively high.
InlinewithGoworek’s(2010)findings,
the sampling and prototyping phase
highlighted the importance of market
r e s e a r c h
in order
to create
a product
that fulfills
the target
consumer’s
wants and needs (Kremer et. al,
2012). Yet the issues encountered
with incorrect sizing also taught
me to stray away from the market
research in order to create a product
that is aesthetically pleasing
and appropriately sized (Carson,
1989). Furthermore, the final
prototype assured the Mismatched
Manchester team that I had the
necessary skills to create a high
quality product that would fill the
identified gap in the market whilst
highlighting the need to lower
production time. Alongside this, the
sampling stage also confirmed our
predictions that a LVHV strategy
should be implemented; further
emphasising the need for a low unit
7. PRODUCTIONISSUES
THEPRODUCTIONPROCESSANDWhilst I still had concerns in
regard to production time, once the
sampling phase was complete it was
agreed by the team that ‘Mismatched
Manchester’ had the potential to
grow into a fully functional business.
In response to this, the commercial
director purchased our first batch of
raw materials (vintage shirts).
As previously touched upon, the
experience I gained in the sampling
phase resulted in a lowered unit
production time. Yet as we entered
into the production stage I still
believed the lengthy manufacturing
process to be an issue. Nevertheless,
as the production phase developed
and I produced more shirts, I gained
in experience that in turn developed
my sewing and production skills. In
relation to this, as my production
skills developed the time it took to
manufacture each shirt was lowered.
This is illustrated by the production
learning curve on page 15 (Wright,
1936). I perceived the shortened
manufacturing time to be a great
feat as it facilitated the production
of more shirts which in turn led to
increased profitability. Alongside
this, the lowered manufacturing time
also gave the team the confidence
to believe that we could achieve
our desired sales goal: to break
even by December; a goal that we
achieved. Furthermore, if the lengthy
production time had remained
constant opposed to decreasing as
it did, strategically we would have
had to outsource our production:
increasing unit cost and decreasing
our margin. Or, alternatively, we
would have had to rethink our entire
brand concept, wasting both time
and money.
Upon entering the production phase I
was eager to learn from the sampling
process cautious not to make the
same mistakes again (Kolb, 1984).
As previously mentioned, during the
sampling phase I had concentrated
solely on creating an aesthetically
pleasing shirt, overlooking the need
for the shirts to be compatible in size.
This led to a lack of compatibility
between the shirts when the
components had been ‘mismatched’.
By using Argyris and Schön’s (1978;
1996) double loop learning model I
was able to question this oversight.
By questioning my mistake I was
able to reflect on my past experience
with similar problems (Kolb 1984;
Klein, 1993; Northouse, 2012),
recalling that I could insert a dart
or a tuck to make the components
fit. Consequently solving the sizing
issue faced. Once I had solved
this issue I was able to enter the
production phase with a clear
idea of how to approach garment
production, cautious to combine
shirts that were both aesthetically
pleasing and compatible in size.
Furthermore, this process gave me
the skill and experience to solve this
issue should it arise again in the
future (Kolb, 1984).
Whilst the prototyping phase
allowed me to reflect on and resolve
the issues that I faced in regard to
production time and the initial lack of
size compatibility, I still encountered
a certain manufacturing issues as I
entered the production phase. The
primary issue that I encountered
was due to a lack of skilled labours.
Subsequently this resulted in a trade
off between a lengthy production
time; if I was to complete the tasks
alone, or the production of a low
quality garment; if the production
process was a joint effort (Slack,
et. al, 2013). Neither of which I was
happy with. It is important to note
that due to the nature of the issue
faced, I felt that it was essential
that a solution was identified and
acted upon as quickly as possible
so production was not dramatically
affected and goals and targets were
still met (De Wit and Meyer, 2014).
Inline with this, it was apparent that
the team did not have the skills or
knowhowtocompleteessentialtasks
such as pinning and unpicking. This
+
=
&
THE‘MISMATCHED’CONCEPT
#12
THEPRODUCTIONISSUESFACED
#13
Time
Taken
to
Produce
Each
Unit
Number
of
Units
Produced
PRODUCTIONLEARNINGCURVE
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
1. Cuff
2. Sleeve
3. Collar
4. Pocket
5. Front Pannel
6. Buttons
KEY
ABREAKDOWNOFASHIRTSCOMPONENTS
resulted in time being wasted as the
tasks had to be redone. Initially I tried
to rectify this issue by teaching the
team how to correctly complete the
tasks. Whilst this solution resulted
in the team learning how to correctly
unpick the shirts, the problem in
regard to the pinning of the shirts
continued to exist. After a period of
reflection upon my initial goal: to
reduce manufacturing time through
a combined team effort (Argyris
and Schön, 1996), I decided that
strategically, the best way to achieve
this was to complete the pinning
stage of the task myself, whilst
the rest of the team concentrated
on unpicking. Thus, successfully
lowering manufacturing time
through a team effort.
As previously mentioned,
throughout the production process
my manufacturing skills
developed greatly. Due to
this I am now able to be
more creative with the
components that I can
swap and the garments
that I can produce. The
diagram of the shirt below
outlines the components
of the shirt that I am now
able to ‘mismatch’.
Initially my limited
experience and skills
restricted me to only mismatch the
cuffs (1), sleeves (2), collar (3) and
pocket (4). However as my confidence
and ability has grown I am now
able to mismatch the front panels
(5) alongside the ‘button front’ (6).
Furthermore, where I was once only
able to combine two shirts, I have
now developed the skills to combine
three or more. Moreover, I am now
at a stage where I feel that I can
experiment with the development
of different garments and designs
contributing to the current and
future development of Mismatched
Manchester. This process is
discussed further on page 22.
8. THEPRODUCTIONPROCESSINPICTURES
THEPRODUCTIONPROCESSINPICTURES
Shirt 1 Shirt 2
UnpickLayOutLayOut
MismatchPin
SewQualityControl
Final Product
#15
THEPRODUCTIONPROCESSFLOWCHART
#14
Start
Raw Materials – 2x
shirts
Ask: Do they fit
together? Do they
look good together?
Yes
No
Choose, measure and
unpick the components we
wish to swap.
Ask: once unpicked are
you happy with the
quality?
No
Mend any holes or
damages
Pin and tack the
removed components
onto their new
‘body’.
Ask: Are any
alterations (such as
tucks/darts) needed
for the components to
fit?
Yes
No
Yes
Make the appropriate
tucks or darts and
pin and tack these in
place.Yes
Iron and
fold for
sale whilst
completing
one last
quality
check for
holes and
production
error
Using a sewing
machine, sew the
pinned and
tacked
components to
the body of the
shirt.
Ask: Are you
happy with the
final outcome?
Is it made to a
professional
standard?
Review where you
think the
problem lies and
unpick and re-
sew.
No
End
FLOWCHART
9. ONTHESHOOT
Kotler (2000) defines a brand as “a
name, term, sign, symbol or design”
that represents the retailer. However
in recent years it has been suggested
by academics that a brand should be
more than this (Albert, et. al, 2013;
Franklin et. al, 2014). Facilitated by
the increasing number of pure-play
fashion retailers (Mintel, 20142
) it is
suggested that a modern-day brand
must connect with the consumer
on all levels (Edmondson, 2009),
creating an online community to
increase brand loyalty and repeat
purchasing (Franklin et. al, 2014;
Hausman et. al, 2014).
As a brand we understood that our
niche product and lack of product
development would hinder repeat
purchases (Kemp, 1998), however as
the marketing director I felt that it
was still important to create a fully
rounded brand that would inspire
customers to purchase our products
(Jiang et. al, 2013). The first step I
took to create the aforementioned
‘fully rounded brand’ was to design
a logo. During the design phase I
felt that it was important that the
logo emanated our brand image
(Machado, 2015), highlighting that
Mismatched Manchester is a fun and
upbeat brand that create handmade
vintage shirts. When I presented the
logos to the Mismatched Manchester
team their favourite was logo 5
(below). Whilst I appreciated that
logo 5 emanated our brand image,
personally, I preferred logo 2 as I
felt that it was quirky yet simplistic.
However after a discussion we
decided upon logo 5 as our logo as
we felt it highlighted the handmade
nature of our products alongside our
“quirky individuality” (Woodward,
2009). Upon reflection logo 5 was the
right choice for our logo as due to the
oversized ‘M’ we are able to use this
as a label inside our shirts.
The second step that I took to
create a fully rounded brand was to
organise and direct a photo-shoot.
I believed it to be important that
alongside our logo the final photos
also communicated our brand
image as they would be used as
promotional material for our social
media channels.
In my eyes the photo-shoot was
a success. The images generated
showed the target market acting
natural and having fun; the look I
was aiming for. Whist I feel that the
final images convey the message
of our brand, if I was to do the
photo-shoot again I would instruct
the models to look at the camera
more in order to capture images
which were natural but engaging
to the audience. Alongside this,
the natural, un-posed nature of
the images resulted in excessive
photoshopping to remove unwanted
models from the background of the
photos. Upon reflection I would be
inclined to organise a second shoot
this time at night to highlight the
versatility of our products.
MARKETINGANDSALES
MARKETINGANDSALES:CREATINGABRAND
Logo 1 Logo 2
Logo3
Logo 4Logo5
Logo 6
THEDEVELOPMENTOFTHEMISMATCHEDMANCHESTERLOGO
10. THEWEBSITE
THEWEBSITEWith the continued growth of
e-commerce (Mintel, 20142
), it
is more important than ever that
Mismatched Manchester create a
compelling and persuasive online
experience that engages visitors
through relevant content and
effective website design (Chaffey et.
al, 2006). Research illustrates that
not only does effective web design
help to attract, sustain and retain
customers (Dennis et. al, 2004), but
it also helps retailers to establish a
strong brand image (Dennis et. al,
2009). It is therefore essential that we
create a strong online presence so
as to entice and satisfy consumers
(Dennis et. al, 2004; Dennis et. al,
2009).
It is important to note that due to
publication costs the Mismatched
Manchester website is not yet live,
however I have designed the page
ready to be published in the future.
When we first started trading I
created a sales forecast that outlined
an estimate of how many shirts we
would sell via each sales channel:
the website, market stalls and
word of mouth. We estimated that
up until now we would have sold
16 shirts via the website. However
we have not completed this goal.
This is due to an oversight on my
part that resulted in the website not
being published. Therefore we have
not sold any shirts via the website.
The mistake that I made which
consequently resulted in the website
not being published was that I
believed that the only cost was the
initial £18 set up fee, however when
I came to publish the site it became
apparent that we would have to pay
a further £10 a month to trade via
this channel. After I had discussed
this issue with the group we felt that
due to our other responsibilities it
would not be worthwhile for us to
open this channel, agreeing to sell
the extra 16 shirts via our other two
sales channels.
The creation of the website had
provided me with a range of skills,
yet there are two predominant
skills I feel that I have developed
throughout this process. Firstly the
need to produce a website has given
me the experience
in designing
and creating a
website using a
software that I
was not familiar
with; a skill that is
applicable to any
future projects
or businesses I
may be involved with. Secondly the
aforementioned oversight led me to
realise that I have a tendency to make
hasty decisions. Upon reflection I
have realised that whilst I have often
made hasty decisions in regard to
the production of our products, these
decisions are informed decisions
as they are based on my previous
experiences (Northouse, 2012). In
contrast to this the hasty decision
that I made when creating the
website was simply down to a lack of
information that led to this oversight.
Consequently, I have learnt from this
mistake and I am now aware that I
must take care to make informed
decisions in the future.
“Iamnowaware
thatIneedto
makeinformed
decisionsinthe
future.”
#18
THEWEBSITE
#19
11. #21
PERSONALDEVELOPMENT
PERSONALDEVELOPMENT
#20
SOCIALMEDIA
MISMATCHEDMANCHESTER’SSOCIAL
MEDIAPRESENCE
TOTALPAGELIKESONEWEEK
FROMLAUNCH
POSTREACH
TOTALREACHINCLUSIVEOFPOSTS,
LIKES,TAGSANDCHECKIN’S.
FACEBOOKSTATS
“Socialmediacanhelp
youtocreateeasier,faster
andmoreconvenient
connections”(Longenecker
et.al,2013)
Whilst the Belbin personality test has
been complimented by some academics
(Aritzeta et. al, 2007), others question its
accuracy (Furnham et. al, 1993). Inline
with this, the Mismatched Manchester
team took the Belbin personality
test at the beginning of the brand
development phase to identify which
job role would compliment each team
members personality and skill set. The
result of my test was that I identified
as a shaper. Whilst I agree that I have
certain traits related to a shaper such as
I enjoy energising others, questioning
standards, and finding the best
approaches for solving problems (Belbin,
1981), I feel that my personality traits
are more inline with that of a specialist.
The specialist traits that I relate to are as
follows; I am passionate about learning,
have a high level of concentration and I
constantly strive to improve.
The role of marketing and sales director
was very design focused as it included
the design and creation of professional
marketing material that would publicly
represent the brand. Inline with this,
the specialist traits that I possess
complimented this role as I am the only
team member who has the skill and
knowledge of Adobe Photoshop and
Illustrator that is needed to create the
brands promotional material. However
under different circumstances, if
another team member knew how to
work the software necessary to create
the promotional material, I feel that I
would have enjoyed undertaking the role
of commercial manager. As I undertook
the role of a buyers assistant on my
placement year, I believe that I have
the skills, knowledge and experience to
have undertaken this role. Furthermore I
feel that the role of commercial director
is more integrated with the production
of our products than the marketing and
sales director. Concluding that it would
have been logical for me to both source
and produce the products. Yet with this
being said, I have greatly enjoyed the
role of marketing and sales director as
I have had the opportunity to create a
website and a social media presence for
the brand. This challenged me as I had
little experience in either area.
Due to my previous experience of
manufacturing garments, alongside the
time that I spent working alongside
the garment technologist during my
placement year, I was placed in charge
of the production of our garments
(Northouse, 2012). I greatly enjoyed
this role as it pushed me to develop my
existing production skills to a much
higher level. The specialist traits that I
believe I possess are also applicable to
thisroleasthroughouttheproductionand
development of our product I constantly
aimed to create a higher-quality product.
The production of our products was
essential to the success of our business.
As I was the only team member who
had the skills to produce the garments,
production was a necessary task for me
to complete. However upon reflection I
let my marketing and sales tasks falter
as I was too focused on creating our
products opposed to strengthening our
online brand presence (belbin.com, 2015).
In hindsight I should have suggested
at the beginning of the process that I
would have liked the role of commercial
director as I believe that if I had held this
role alongside the role of manufacturer
they would have complimented each
other, leading to not only an increase in
confidence, skills and experience, but an
improved product also.
“uponreflectionIlet
mymarketingand
salestaskfalterasI
wastoofocusedon
creatingourproducts”
PERSONALITYTRAITS
SHAPER
-Ienjoyenergisingothers
-Questioningstandards
-Findingthebestapproaches
forsolvingproblems
SPECIALIST
-Passionateaboutlearning
-Haveahighlevelof
concentration
-Constantlystrivetoimprove
13. As my production skills developed, I grew in confidence that in turn led me to
experiment with the production new ‘mismatched’ designs (Kolb, 1984). This
increased skill set and confidence led me to develop a Mismatched Manchester
twin set. The Mismatched Manchester twin set was inspired by two factors. Firstly,
the initial market research indicated that our competitors were selling reworked
shirt twin sets. In order to remain competitive (Porter, 1980), we chose to diversify
our original range by producing a similar item. An example of a competitors twin
set is shown in the image below. Secondly, after the initial production stage we
were left with excess stock that was deemed unsuitable for the first range due to
sizing issues. Therefore, not only were we able to diversify our range through the
creation of a twin set, but utilise our excess stock; preventing the waste of raw
materials.
ThefirsttwinsetIproducedwasanexperimentasIhad
no prior experience of making these garments. With
this being said, I drew upon my previous production
experience to form a plan of how to construct such
a garment (Kolb, 1984). Whilst a few sewing related
production issues arose, the production of the twin
set was considered a success by the team, resulting
in a garment that was perceived to be high quality
and subsequently sold by the brand. Alongside this,
I originally predicted that the production of a twin
set would be lengthy and time consuming. However
in reality, the time it takes to manufacture a twin set
is far less than the time it takes to manufacture an
original Mismatched shirt as there is no unpicking
and re-pinning involved. Instead of unpicking and re-
pinning, the production of a twin set solely consists
of pinning, cutting and sewing, all of which are
much less time consuming.
The production of the top of the twin set was a success with no issues faced. Once
the shirt had been cut in half, I created a ‘hem tunnel’ that I then fed a piece of
elastic through to create a roshe effect. Whilst the production of the shirt went
to plan, the manufacture of the skirt took a few attempts to perfect. Originally I
followed the same technique as I had with the shirt: creating a ‘hem tunnel’ that
I fed the elastic through. However it was apparent after the skirts completion that
the drape of the skirt was not right. To correct this, I unpicked the hem and used
an existing H&v skirt as a pattern. Firstly I pinned the ‘pattern’ to the shirt fabric,
secondly I cut out the three panels and finally I pinned and sewed the three panels
together to create the skirt. I had Originally planned to create a waistband that
would be attached to the top of the skirt, however after I had sewed the panels
together to make the skirt I felt that a simple hem at the top of the skirt would
suffice. This method of production was a success and is now used to produce
all of Mismatched Manchester’s twin sets. Following on from this I started to
experiment with new designs. Page 24 illustrates a suggested range plan for the
growth of the brand alongside the development of a shirt-dress and top.
#24
CURRENTPRODUCTDEVELOPMENT
CURRENTRANGEDEVELOPMENT:
Pina2.5cmhem
Measure, pin and cut
Sew
Thread the elastic
INSPIRATION
#25
MANUFACTURINGASHIRTTWINSET
Pin the ‘pattern’The skirt Cut the ‘pattern’
CutfrontpanelsCheckpositioning
Cut back panelSew panels
Hemtopandbottom
Mismatched twin set
16. REFERENCELISTAlbert, N. and Merunka, D. (2013). The role of brand love in consumer‐brand relationships. Journal of
Consumer Marketing, 30(3), pp.258-266.
Argyris, C. and Schön, D. (1978). Organizational learning. Reading, Mass.: Addison-Wesley Pub. Co.
Argyris, C. and Schon, D.A. (1996), Organizational Learning II: Theory, Method and Practice, Addison‐
Wesley, Reading, MA.
Aritzeta, A., Swailes, S. and Senior, B. (2007). Belbin’s Team Role Model: Development, Validity and
Applications for Team Building. Journal of Management Studies, 44(1), pp.96-118.
Belbin, R. (1981). Management teams. New York: Wiley.
Belbin.com, (2015). Team Role Theory - Belbin Team Roles. [online] Available at: http://www.belbin.com/rte.
asp?id=8 [Accessed 6 May 2015].
Carson, D. (1989). Trends of Marketing Research. Marketing Intelligence & Plan, 7(9/10), pp.17-24.
Chaffey, D. and Smith, P. (2006). Emarketing excellence. Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann.
De Wit, B. and Meyer, R. (2014). Strategy Synthesis: Managing Strategy Paradoxes to Create Competitive
Advantage. 4th ed. Andover: Cengage Learning UK.
Dennis, C. Merrilees, B. Jayawardhena, C. and Wright, T. N. (2009) e-consumer behaviour’, European Journal
of Marketing, 43(9/10), pp/1121-1139.
Dennis, V. (2004). Electronic commerce. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson/Prentice Hall.
Edmondson, V., Gupte, G., Draman, R. and Oliver, N. (2009). “Focusing on communication strategy to
enhance diversity climates.” Journal of Communication Management, 13(1), pp.6--20.
Franklin, J., Mainelli, M. and Pay, R. (2014). “Measuring the value of online communities”. Journal of Business
Strategy, 35(1), pp.29--42.
Furnham, A., Steele, H. and Pendleton, D. (1993). A psychometric assessment of the Belbin Team-Role Self-
Perception Inventory. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 66(3), pp.245-257.
Goworek, H. (2010). An investigation into product development processes for UK fashion retailers. Journal of
Fashion Marketing and Management: An International Journal, 14(4), pp.648-662.
Hall, S. and Jefferson, T. (1976). Resistance through rituals. London: Hutchinson.
Hausman, D., Cummins, S., W. Peltier, J., A. Schibrowsky, J. and Nill, A. (2014). “Consumer behavior in the
online context.” Journal of Research in Interactive Marketing, 8(3), pp.169--202.
Jiang, L., Yang, Z. and Jun, M. (2013). “Measuring consumer perceptions of online shopping convenience.”
Journal of Service Management, 24(2), pp.191--214.
Kemp, R., Schot, J. and Hoogma, R. (1998). Regime shifts to sustainability through processes of niche
formation: The approach of strategic niche management. Technology Analysis & Strategic Management, 10(2),
pp.175-198.
Klein, G. (1993). Decision making in action. Norwood, N.J: Ablex Pub.
Kolb, D. (1984). Experiential learning. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall.
Kotler, P. (2000). Marketing management. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall.
Kremer, F. and Viot, C. (2012). How store brands build retailer brand image. International Journal of Retail &
Distribution Management, 40(7), pp.528-543.
Ledford, J., Tyler, M. and Teixeira, J. (2010). Google Analytics. Indianapolis, Ind.: Wiley.
Longenecker, J., Petty, J., Hoy, F. and Palich, L. (2013). Small business management.
Machado, J., de Carvalho, L., Torres, A. and Costa, P. (2015). Brand logo design: examining consumer
response to naturalness. Jnl of Product & Brand Mgt, 24(1), pp.78-87.
Mintel.com, (20141) Toy Retailing – UK – March 2014 [online] Available at: http://academic.mintel.com/
display/699335/?highlight#hit1 [Accessed: 29 Apr. 2015]
Mintel.com, (20142). E-Commerce – UK – July 2014. [online] Available at: http://academic.mintel.com/
display/709241/?highlight#hit1 [Accessed 12 Oct. 2014].
Moon, K. and Ngai, E. (2010). R&D framework for an intelligent fabric sample management system.
International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 30(7), pp.721-743.
Northouse, P. (2012). Leadership: Theory and practice. 4th edn. California: Sage Publications
Pinterest.com, (2014). [online] Available at: https://www.pinterest.com/search/pins/?q=90’s+grunge
[Accessed 29 Apr. 2015].
Porter, M. E. (1980) Competitive Strategy. Techniques for Analyzing Industries and Competitors, Free Press,
New York.
Slack, N., Chambers, S. and Johnston, R. (2013). Operations management. 7th ed. Harlow, England: Financial
Times Prentice Hall.
WGSN, (2015). 90’s Casual. [online] Available at: http://www.wgsn.com/content/search/#/90s [Accessed 29
Apr. 2015].
Woodward, S. (2009). The Myth of Street Style. Fashion Theory: The Journal of Dress, Body & Culture, 13(1),
pp.83-102.
Wright, T. P. (1936) ‘Factors Affecting the Cost of Airplanes’, Journal of the Aeronautical Sciences (Institute of
the Aeronautical Sciences), 3(4), pp.122-128.
