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Recipe for Success
Not surprisingly, partnering up with the right manufacturer — namely a company that is technology-savvy — is critical. "We're bringing a very new, very different process to manufacturing," says Holloway. "Producing garments one at a time when you have a choice of millions is a very different process than conventional mass production."

That means, says Luhnow, finding manufacturers with the right mindset, who will embrace the concept wholeheartedly. "It does require some investment on their part up front - they are sharing part of the risk, hoping and assuming this idea will take off and that it will be something that they will be a part of for a long time."

Such an investment includes either setting aside part of a plant or having an entire plant dedicated to single-unit production. "All our manufacturers need to be able to be adept and flexible, and able to learn new technologies fairly rapidly. They need to have automated cutting machines [because] part of what we send them is instructions for these cutting machines, along with all the files that help track the order through the manufacturing process," notes Luhnow.

The information is then stored for re-orders. And, because the data is unique to an individual, Holloway says that files can be rapidly updated for consumers who may have packed on a couple of pounds during the holiday season. "That's what's really revolutionary about this system," he adds. "We know what your last pair of pants was because we made them for you as an individual. As you put in your new data, whether you gained or lost weight and everything else, the second pair is adjusted to fit your new shape."

Eyes Forward
At the moment, Archetype works with two manufacturers that already had established relationships with Lands' End. Since the launch of Lands' End's customized clothing program in October, these manufacturers will now be responsible for producing the retailer's custom-made jeans and chinos. In the future, as Archetype fans out into other product categories and snaps up more retail accounts, Luhnow says the company will broaden its manufacturing base. "What we will do is work with our retail partners to find out if they have any manufacturers that fit the criteria. If not, we will basically scour the regional area to find someone who can do it."

The manufacturer must also house the raw materials, but Luhnow is quick to point out that it's easier and less expensive to stock fabric than finished goods. "What we really have to do is predict how many of each color of each fabric are going to be made rather than how many 36/32s need to be made."

Indeed, customization should help both ends of the apparel business. Making a garment that fits each individual — which the consumer also requested — could help lessen the problem of chargebacks and overflowing inventory levels that haunt many manufacturers. And, retailers may be spared the agony of having to mark down merchandise, or endure lost sales from returns and missed sales because they didn't have the right fashion or the appropriate fit.

Taking It to Market
Of course, at first glance, Archetype's mass customization program would appear ideal for e-tailers and catalogs because consumers are accustomed to waiting for orders placed through these channels. But Holloway says after 18 months of extensive research on the shopping habits of consumers, he sees the system also being implemented at brick-and-mortar stores, via kiosks, computer terminals or special store phones.

"We found a frustration among consumers about spending their Saturday waltzing around different stores and malls to find a garment that fit. Then we started talking to retailers about their frustrations about having consumers coming into their store and not finding anything that fit, and losing that sale," Holloway relates.

Holloway says he is excited about solving those frustrations — and more. "The more we talked to consumers, we found different needs and requirements there, so we'll be looking way beyond the chinos and jeans. We are now looking across different product categories, and we'll be looking globally, as far as Europe, Asia, maybe even Latin America, to go forward. We're bringing technology to a totally new level in apparel.

"Ultimately, what I'm excited about — and what we talk about — is redefining apparel," he continues. "If we can offer this exciting service to millions of consumers across different product categories, across the world, that's a big goal to have. Yet everything we've seen in the last two years leads us to believe we can go there."

Julie McElwain, Bobbin's West Coast contributing editor, has covered the apparel, textile and related industries for Bobbin for more than nine years. She may be reached at tel.: 562-439-4522; e-mail: jmcelwain@aol.com.