TMD 402H - Globalization in the Textile and Apparel Complex

Fabric & Color Management Around the World

Lauren Keach, Technical Fabric Manager, Victoria's Secret

Summary by Sarah Pratt

As globalization becomes a more common practice among apparel companies, the need to effectively manage fabrics and colors increases. Lauren Keach, of Mast Industries, the production company for Victoria's Secret, explained how raw materials are collected and produced in various countries while being coordinated in the U.S. It is a very detail-oriented process of putting together all the puzzle pieces to form an exquisitely made piece of lingerie. Victoria's Secret is one of the most recognized brands in bras and panties due to their meticulous testing and desire to satisfy the customer.

What is Sexy? was Victoria's Secret's latest collection launch for Holiday 2001. Garments included smooth demi-bras, pushup balconettes, smooth string thongs and lace push ups among others. To get these products to the selling floor, lots must be coordinated around the world. First, Lauren, a fabric manager, must contact the fabric producers and be sure that they can produce the fabrics needed. There are several different manufacturers that Mast uses to produce various types of fabrics. Once a fabric is selected, the manufacturer must meet certain requirements. When using lace for a bra, it is important that the design on a 34B is identical to that on a 40DD. Extensive testing is also done on all the fabrics to evaluate qualities like dimensional change, weight, fiber content, pH and stretch and recovery. Performance testing is done and all results are communicated to Victoria's Secret and the vendor.

The development of color for Victoria's Secret is as critical as fabric production. Using an advanced program, the company is able to develop color standards on the computer. When developing color, both polyester and cotton standards are produced in every color, because the color can vary from fabric to fabric. One of the major challenges of color development is matching all the colors of each component of an item when they are produced and dyed in different factories around the world. They are able to maintain the desired color by communicating via a computer program, Colortalk, and a calibrated color monitor, a spectrophotometer, and "color language." Using these sophisticated machines and standard terminology, they can accurately convey color from country to country.

With factories in China, Sri Lanka, Mexico and the US, it is vital to the success of Victoria's Secret to maintain standards of production, color and communication. By using computers and the Internet, they are able to efficiently communicate their requirements to factories around the world. While some travel is required to solve color problems, since September 11^th, they do the same quality of work with less travel. With last quarter profits being the 30-year record high for Victoria's Secret, it is clear that their practices of testing and communicating are highly effective in this global industry.

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