Case Studies Women’s Apparel Company Case Study

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	Women’s Apparel Company Case Study

Women’s Apparel Company Case Study

Technology Category	Analytics & Modeling - Predictive Analytics Functional Applications - Inventory Management Systems
Applicable Industries	Apparel Retail
Applicable Functions	Product Research & Development Sales & Marketing
Use Cases	Inventory Management Predictive Replenishment
Services	Data Science Services System Integration
Challenge	A Women’s Apparel Company’s Senior Management Team engaged with First Insight to improve their product development and selection processes. The company had a low forecast accuracy rate of 48% when introducing new dresses, leading to heavy markdowns and slow inventory movement, which negatively impacted margins. The in-store testing method was expensive, time-consuming, and potentially biased, as sales associates pushed new dresses harder than usual, skewing sales forecasts. The company needed a faster, more cost-effective way to accurately test new products to select the right inventory that resonated best with customers, achieving higher full-price sales and reducing markdowns. Read More
About Customer	The customer is a Women’s Apparel Company facing challenges in aligning customer demand with product selection. The company struggled with a low forecast accuracy rate of 48% for new dresses, leading to heavy markdowns and slow inventory movement, which negatively impacted their margins. Their current in-store testing method was expensive, time-consuming, and potentially biased, as sales associates pushed new dresses harder than usual, skewing sales forecasts. The company needed a faster, more cost-effective way to accurately test new products to select the right inventory that resonated best with customers, achieving higher full-price sales and reducing markdowns. Read More
Solution	First Insight provided investment guidance that enabled the Women’s Apparel Company to make more accurate buying decisions based on direct-from-consumer valuation data. The speed and scale at which First Insight could generate preference and pricing information on products showed a measurable improvement over the company’s current testing methods. In as little as 72 hours, the company could gain an accurate, forward-looking view of the most profitable dresses to source and bring to market. This new approach allowed the company to select the right inventory that resonated best with customers, achieving higher full-price sales and reducing the dependency on markdowns. Read More Log in to view content
Contents

Technology Category

Analytics & Modeling - Predictive Analytics

Functional Applications - Inventory Management Systems

Applicable Industries

Apparel

Retail

Applicable Functions

Product Research & Development

Sales & Marketing

Use Cases

Inventory Management

Predictive Replenishment

Services

Data Science Services

System Integration

Challenge

A Women’s Apparel Company’s Senior Management Team engaged with First Insight to improve their product development and selection processes. The company had a low forecast accuracy rate of 48% when introducing new dresses, leading to heavy markdowns and slow inventory movement, which negatively impacted margins. The in-store testing method was expensive, time-consuming, and potentially biased, as sales associates pushed new dresses harder than usual, skewing sales forecasts. The company needed a faster, more cost-effective way to accurately test new products to select the right inventory that resonated best with customers, achieving higher full-price sales and reducing markdowns.

About Customer

The customer is a Women’s Apparel Company facing challenges in aligning customer demand with product selection. The company struggled with a low forecast accuracy rate of 48% for new dresses, leading to heavy markdowns and slow inventory movement, which negatively impacted their margins. Their current in-store testing method was expensive, time-consuming, and potentially biased, as sales associates pushed new dresses harder than usual, skewing sales forecasts. The company needed a faster, more cost-effective way to accurately test new products to select the right inventory that resonated best with customers, achieving higher full-price sales and reducing markdowns.

Solution

First Insight provided investment guidance that enabled the Women’s Apparel Company to make more accurate buying decisions based on direct-from-consumer valuation data. The speed and scale at which First Insight could generate preference and pricing information on products showed a measurable improvement over the company’s current testing methods. In as little as 72 hours, the company could gain an accurate, forward-looking view of the most profitable dresses to source and bring to market. This new approach allowed the company to select the right inventory that resonated best with customers, achieving higher full-price sales and reducing the dependency on markdowns.

Impact #1	Improved test accuracy by 13%, leading to a decrease in markdowns.
Impact #2	Enabled faster and more cost-effective product testing.
Impact #3	Provided a forward-looking view of the most profitable dresses to source and bring to market.

Impact #1

Improved test accuracy by 13%, leading to a decrease in markdowns.

Impact #2

Enabled faster and more cost-effective product testing.

Impact #3

Provided a forward-looking view of the most profitable dresses to source and bring to market.

Benefit #1	Improved forecast accuracy rate by 13%.
Benefit #2	Multi-million dollar value proposition due to decreased markdowns.

Benefit #1

Improved forecast accuracy rate by 13%.

Benefit #2

Multi-million dollar value proposition due to decreased markdowns.

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Overview

Women’s Apparel Company Case Study

Operational Impact

Quantitative Benefit