Co-creation vs. mass customization in fashion industry

: understanding new shoppers’ differential perceived value and preferences

Abstract

Emerging literature highlights the importance of implementing user innovation in existing new product development as the offline fashion industry is stagnating. Co-creation and mass customization, denoted as an active collaboration process between fashion retailers and consumers, are user innovative concepts. There is little known how different shopper types embrace the final product outcomes of both concepts. Therefore, this research study aims to examine the differential effects on perceptions and preferences different shopper groups have towards user innovative fashion concepts. Shoppers’ perceptions were measured by quality innovativeness, and social status, whereas preferences were assessed by attractiveness and purchase intentions. Factor and Cluster analysis was conducted to identify a new shopper typology of six heterogeneous shopper types coupled with their shopping behaviour. In this between-subject research, each shopper’s perceptions and preferences on mass customized and co-created products have been assessed by using the two-way ANOVA technique. In general, it revealed that the personalized and risk-averse shopper tends towards co-creation in fashion, whereas the price-conscious one tends towards mass customization. The convenience and conventional as well as the individual shopper might not be appropriate target segments for fashion retailers. By understanding the outcomes of this study, fashion retailers can extent their product portfolio and adapt their positioning strategies to accelerate business with the help of user innovation concepts. Limitations and opportunities for further research are also discussed.

Date of Award	3 Nov 2015
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Cláudia Isabel de Sousa Costa (Supervisor)