John A. Darsey Jr.
AATCC’s Concept to Consumer (C2C)
Summary by Jessica Dworman
John A. Darsey Jr. is Vice-President and founder of Color Solutions International and the immediate past president of the AATCC. “Change is the only constant in today’s world” Darsey stated. In order to stay current, pursuing your interests, reading, networking and continuing your education, are all imperative activities that should be explored. In addition, Darsey stressed that “you can’t be afraid to fail”. Some of the best solutions come out of failure, acknowledging it, and using what you learned to try once again.
Darsey elaborated on the American Association of Textile Colorists and Chemists (AATCC), noting its most recent addition, “Concept 2 Consumer”. This program was created in order to link the creative side of textiles (designers and merchandisers) with the technical side (colorists and manufacturers) in order to deal with the common miscommunications between the two branches. Online the AATCC offers a color communications handbook, electronic digital color spectra and more. The AATCC also holds special workshops and a yearly symposia, as well as conference activities.
Darsey elaborated on the fact that on the side of the dyers, their materials have not changed over the past 50 or so years. In fact, their resources have decreased due to products being taken off the market because of containing carcinogenic chemicals. This highlights one of the major conflicts that Concept 2 Consumer is trying to eliminate; designers have modern “palettes”, while the dyers are “locked in the last century”. In addition, the mills/factories are no longer in the southern United States; they are now in non-English speaking countries on the other side of the world, like China, Japan, and India etc. All of these changes add to the pressure of the manufacturers who are dealing with incorporating the last minute decisions by the designers/merchandisers on color choices for the lines (in order to limit waste). “Inspect what you expect” Darsey said, quoting Zig Zeigler. The merchandisers need to know what they are ordering, and Concept 2 Consumer is aiding in reducing the number of errors that occur.
Aside from problems with coordinating the dyes between the two branches that merge to create the final product, color is a very important trait for drawing in the consumer. Department stores are bringing in their private lines, changing the determining factor to where you will shop, from price to color! According to Darsey, “95% of people are attracted by color—then fashion kicks in, cut, style, cloth, quality.” Furthermore, color palettes are becoming extremely important. For example, Wal-Mart wants to control its color palettes all the way down to the icing colors used for the cakes in the bakery department.
Yet with all of the issues involving color, come issues that involve lighting. Color is a reflection of light off of the object, so the type of lighting used is imperative. This is an extremely important factor when different portions of clothing items are being dyed in different places or with different techniques. However with a company like Darsey’s, “Color Solutions International”, the percentage of errors is greatly reduced. They take the guesswork out by producing a color sample then making a standard footprint electronically and physically that can be used by all parties. Darsey’s company has greatly reduced the number of un-sellable products in the market today.