Custom Made Apparel and Customer Satisfaction

This research proposal aims to analyze the relationship between customer satisfaction and custom made apparel. It explores the history of customization, the advantages of custom made apparel, and the impact of customization on customer satisfaction. The study aims to identify the relevance of customization in the clothing sector, analyze its importance, and recommend ways to enhance customer satisfaction.

Running head: CUSTOM MADE APPAREL AND CUSTOMER SATISFACTION
Research Proposal
CUSTOM MADE APPAREL AND CUSTOMER SATISFACTION
Name of the student
Name of the university
Author note

Table of Contents
Abstract......................................................................................................................................3
Introduction................................................................................................................................4
Rationale of the research............................................................................................................4
Research aims and objectives.....................................................................................................5
Literature review........................................................................................................................5
Customization and consumer: the new era of customization.................................................5
Custom made apparel: the future of fashion industry............................................................8
Custom made apparel and customer satisfaction: gender perspective:................................11
Conclusion................................................................................................................................12
Expected outcomes...................................................................................................................13

Abstract
The aim of the paper is to prepare and present the research proposal for the purpose of
conducting a theoretical research into the issue of customer satisfaction and custom made
apparel. This study is significant from the point of view that customer satisfaction is more
than the choice of products; it is associated with the mental state of the individual. This is
also significant form the point of view that customization of apparel has made number of
significant changes in the apparel industry. This is crucial to understand the link between the
choice of garment and customer satisfaction in case of custom made apparel. This paper will
be undertaking number of theoretical dwellings on the issue of custom made apparel and the
idea of consumer satisfaction. This study is expected to be completed within the period of 24
weeks and it is also expected to make sound understanding of the same.

Introduction
The aim of the paper is to analyse and prepare the proposal on the issue of customer
satisfaction and custom made apparel. This proposal will be looking into the background of
the study and the literature review in detail. It has been observed that the issue of customer
demand and custom made apparel has one of the most important and positive correlation. It
has been observed that the clothing and textile making is one of the event that developed with
different civilisation and time frame (Ahmed et al., 2016). There have great changes in the
pattern and style of cloth making. However what is important is that the demand for custom
made apparel has double within a short period. This can be attributed to the cause of growing
consciousness of people about the way they carry themselves and this sensitivity towards
their own selves have contributed to the development of high demand for custom made
apparel (Deradjat et al 2017). In order to understand the relation between custom made
apparel and satisfaction of customers, it is essential to consider number of factors like the
advantages of this clothing.
With the heightened sense of self people are always following the trend in order to
look sharp and edgy. The uniqueness of custom made apparel is the “fit look” that it offers.
Custom made apparel is the key to flatter the personality of people (Deradjat et al 2017). The
adjustment of clothes is easier for custom made apparel since it is too feasible for the
customers to get clothes of choice.
Rationale of the research
There have been previous researches conducted on the issue of custom made apparel
and it has been observed that the customer satisfaction and custom made apparel has an

intricate relationship since it has been seen that people opt for custom made apparel more
often than the regular apparel (Colaianni et al. 2019). This research will be looking into the
issue of the relationship and the rationale of customers choosing custom made apparel often
than the rest of the regular apparel. This will also be looking into the rationale of
customization of clothes and the difference of personalisation and customisation of clothes.
Hence the rationale of conducting the novel research is to highlight the issue of customization
in relation to customer satisfaction.
Research aims and objectives
The aim of the research is to look into customization and the existing gap between the
traditional forms of clothing with that of the new forms of custom clothing. These researches
have the following objectives like:
 To identify the relevance of customization of the clothing sector and the relationship
with the notion of customer satisfaction
 To analyse the importance and significance of customization of clothing and effective
means of drawing customers towards this new trend
 To recommend the ways in which it cam positively make an impact on elevating
customer satisfaction.
Literature review
The issue of custom made apparel can be traced back to the history of customization.
This part of the analysis will be looking into the issue of customization of clothes and related
it to the concept of customer satisfaction. This is to be noted at this juncture that
customization of products and services leads to higher satisfaction of customers since they

have the option to choose and customise anything according to their choices. The purpose of
this literature review is to understand the history of customization and the nuances of
different existing concepts of the same.
Customization and consumer: the new era of customization
One of the studies developed by Festinger has observed that people generally have
higher sense of satisfaction in case of clothing when they are given the choice of choosing
their body fit and style in their own (Colaianni et al. 2019). This has also been found out
through the study that the idea of body cathexis is based on the idea of body image and
wearing clothing that is suited to the body type (Seo et al. 2019). Hence this has been
deducted from the research that body image and personality is shaped by the type of clothing
one chooses to wear. The idea of custom made apparel is based on the idea of developing self
esteem of the person as it i expected to boost the confidence of the person (Seo et al. 2019).
The trend of the new generation has been to opt for customization in all possible means. This
is to be observed that the history of customization goes back long in history. The theoretical
concept as provide by the scholars explains that the process of customization is
individualisation of one’s own ideas and information in a way it is desired (Colaianni et al.
2019). This is designed to meet the customer’s needs and preferences in the way it is desired.
This is the process of modifying and rebuilding what already exists (Deradjat et al 2017).
Modification is the process of customization that leads to the changes. The process of
customization of apparel gives the freedoms to the individuals to make choices of one’s own.
The history of customization of apparel is not clearly known since wearing of clothes is the
basic characteristics and there is no mention of when people started using clothes. However
this is to be noted that the idea of customization of clothing can be dated back to the Middle
East long time ago. The process of customization has taken different forms and shapes

through ages and in the age of marketing and technological revolution, customization has
becomes easier and accessible than ever before (Gupta et al. 2018). The apparel industry has
undergone significant changes in the last few years in terms of the massive changes and
modification of the fashion trends. With the advent of the digital age, mass customization
has become the new trend since it has becomes easier to target the market with the click of a
mouse (Hatfield et al. 2019). This is also crucial to understand the fact that the apparel
industry has undergone form the process of mass production of clothing to the mass
customization of clothing in cheaper process that is made for the right customers in right
price. This is also crucial to note that the apparel industry is undergoing a sea change in terms
of manufacturing of clothes. One of the reasons behind the change in the way apparel is
accepted and used by consumer is the adaptation of the new designs at a lower cost and
feasible way (Gupta et al. 2018). The change has led to the process of mass customisation by
adapting it to the new tastes of the customers at a minimal cost. This is the process of “en –
mass” production of all standard designs which can be used and adopted by people in the way
it is desired (Yang et al. 2015). This is one of the advantages of the new apparel trends that
leave options for all to procure and consume the desired clothing in all sizes and designs.
Hence it becomes crucial to consider the fact that customer satisfaction and demand has
doubled in past few years with the change in the apparel industry. According to the previews
researches, this has been highlighted that over 50% of the total consumer express their
interest in buying customised products and services (Yang et al. 2015). This is also important
to consider the fact that with the help if technology it has been easier to understand the
demand of the customers (Gupta et al. 2018). The use of technology has been a boon for the
fashion brands since it has been possible to identify the desires of the customers. With the
application of artificial intelligence, choices and demands of the customers have been able to
derive even the choice of colours and patterns are easier to derive. This has been one of the

advantages of the apparel industry that can easily understand the texture, colour and style
preferences of the customers in order to target better. This is the new age of AI that has
become the digital designer to product the fashion trends and choices of people. This is
significant digital changes have accelerated the growth of online platforms in terms of
selling customised clothes (Yang et al. 2015). It can be therefore concluded from the above
discussion that the issue of body image and the desire for cloth that can suit the body type and
provide perfect fit is desired by every sensitive customer. The issue of custom made apparel
is based on the idea of perfect fit for everyone. Hence it can be related to the idea of perfect
fit and perfect size. The level of customer satisfaction is higher when the customers are given
due consideration of their choices. From the point of the retailers, it is essential to note that
to reduce the cost of extra manufacturing and the reduce cost of labour since the clothes that
are manufactured are made in accordance with the perfect size and style of the customers
based on the choice and preferences.

Custom made apparel: the future of fashion industry
This has been observed that the demand for the custom made apparel has led to the
process of higher accessibility to the customers where some of the prominent brands of the
fashion apparel has seen boom in the sell and production. Companies like suitkits, Careste
and Red Thread has launched their made to measure clothing which has seen significant
growth in the production and manufacture of the custom-made apparel (Yang et al. 2015).
This is also interesting to note that the use of 3D models for the measurement and choice of
colours have made positive growth in enhancing their sell in the last few years (Mackey et al.
2017). This is where the question of customer satisfaction becomes extremely crucial. This is
significant to note as the author mentions that the level of satisfaction has been reflected in

the heightened number of sells for these fashion brands. Some of the advantages of the
custom made apparel have been highlighted as the following:
It is made for the perfect fir which helps to get the perfect shape. This helps the
customer feel good about the apparel which is uniquely tailored for the individual. In addition
to this, the choice of quality and fabric helps the customers to get the cloth of their choice.
This is extremely crucial for enhancement of individual satisfaction for the choice of their
apparel (Yang et al. 2015). Secondly, custom made apparel has the advantages of assuring the
high quality of cloth since it is one of the things that the customer can get prior knowledge of.
Moreover the choice of custom made apparel has become more affordable than before due to
the large number of competitors in the market; this has become one of the issues of
competitions for the fashion apparel companies to get more customers (Makopo et al. 2016).
According to the research conducted by Deloitte, it has been found that one in every three
customers have interest in personalised clothing which is a boon for the companies in the
fashion. This is also noticed that 71% of the total consumers are willing to pay the amount
higher than the regular price in case of the custom made apparel and this is one of the areas
that has attracted the fashion apparel companies to enhance their custom base(Makopo et al.
2016). This is also to be noted that the custom made luxury clothing is one of the areas where
the customers are willing to pay the higher amount in case of higher quality and the product
of their choice. Hence it can be argued that the demand of personalised clothing has seen a
positive growth in the last years. The fashion industry based companies have jointly agreed
to the idea that customization is the new era of clothing and it is the need of the companies
to take care of the customers demand in order to reach to the market with greater
accessibility. Considering the new demand on the market it has been observed that some of
the prominent brands in the market have adopted number of customisation initiatives in the
market in order to reach out to the demand of the customers. companies like the Farfetch has

initiated one of their programs for the customised knitwear within four hours which has
fetched number of customers within the shorter period of time since it is lucrative to have
choice of one’s own within a short period (Makopo et al. 2016). According to the Deloitte
research, it has been argued that the companies which have not been include the system of
customisation within their marketing strategies have failed to fetch higher number of
customers than those who have been able to do so (Pal et al. 2018). Companies like Amazon
has come up with one of their initiated that has started with custom made blazers only after
the customer places the order through their online platform. In case of customer satisfaction,
this has been observed that the female customers have higher expectations in terms of the
custom-made apparel. In this regard, it is crucial to consider the fact higher customer
satisfaction would mean higher profitability and higher sales for the company. This can be
derived by uderstaadning the customer’s demand (Pal et al. 2018). The company might have
negative impact on the customer loyalty, customer retention in case of its failure to
understand the customer’s demand. In case of the expected satisfaction of the customers, this
has been observed that there are number of researches discussing the issue of satisfaction of
the customers of the in case of luxury brands clothing as it leaves options for the choice of
fabric and materials, however, there are not many researches that highlights the issue of
customer satisfaction and their positive relation with custom made apparel. This study will be
focusing on the issue of satisfaction of the customers in terms of gender in order to found out
the level and extent of satisfaction for custom made apparel. There are number of studies that
have discussed the issue of dissatisfied customers who have blamed the poor performance of
one of their chosen brands due to the fact that they have failed to cater to demand of the
customers in making the right choices (Makopo et al. 2016). In many situations, this has been
observed that the dissatisfied customers have contacted their fashion brands in order to
redress their demand in order to make keeping in mind the customer’s choice and desires

(Guo et al. 2017). Hence it can be argued that this study will not be helpful for understanding
the new trends in choice of customers for the clothing of their choice, it will also be helpful
in understanding the nuances and challenges faced by the company failing to meet these
standards. The behavioural aspects of the customers are equally important to understand in
order to make mark in the market and gain competitive advantages.
Custom made apparel and customer satisfaction: gender perspective:
Customer satisfaction is broad aspects of marketing since it makes positive and
negative impact on the company’s sale, purchase and marketing. This has been observed that
the issue of customer satisfaction is relatable to the aspects of their gender (Guo et al. 2017).
In case of delivery of service this has been observed that gender play an important role.
Considering the fact that customer’s have higher bargaining power in case of choosing their
services and a product, the issue of gender is important to consider. Gender leads to the
process of differential choices of services (Guo et al. 2017). In case of choosing the fashion
garments, females have higher satisfaction when they are given the choice of making their
own clothes in accordance with their fit, style and fabric. In one of the studies, it has been
observed that 57% of the female population do not fit into the sizes that are offered by the
traditional garments providers (Hirakubo et al. 2015). The issue of custom made clothing
helps them gain more confidence in their clothing since it provides them choices of picking
their own fit. This has been further observed that difficulty in finding the right fit for the body
type is one of the cause of the reduced level of satisfaction for the customers. The problem
of fir is what has been observed after the observation has found that women shoppers tend to
avoid shopping at the store soon after their rejection of number of clothes goes unfit for their
body fit. This can be argued from the above discussion that consumers get uncomfortable feel
if their clothes are not available in their size (Nayak et al. 2015). However in case of the

custom made apparel it is apparent that people especially the women shoppers find higher
satisfaction for finding their right fit and choice of their colour and fabric. There have been
number of studies conducted in this regard that discuses number of factors that contribute to
the development of their choice of one type of clothes: however there are less number of
theoretical studies that can contribute to the understanding of the gender specific choice of
garments and the satisfaction attached to the custom made apparel(Guo et al. 2017) . Hence
it can be argued from the above discussion that the relation between the gender specific
satisfaction and custom made apparel remains a grey area of research. Hence it is to be
argued that there is a positive correlation between the mental state of the customers and their
shopping pattern Hence it can be argued that the perspective of gender might be having other
implication in case of customer satisfaction when it comes to customisation of clothing. Since
customisation of clothing has undergone significant changes, it can be argued that customer
satisfaction has enhanced is one of the requirement for the fashion companies in order to
survive for the market competition.
From the above discussion, numbers of issues are to be derived:
In case of higher satisfaction custom made apparel seems to make better results since it has
been number of benefits in terms of higher sales and production for the fashion garments
companies. This is also to be noted that in case of fit, quality and comfort, custom made
apparel makes positive impact on the heightened level of satisfaction. There are number of
factors that contributes to the development of satisfaction for the customer, even through t
the previous researches focuses on the marketing aspect, the aim of this study is to look into
the issue of customization of clothing and its relation with the development of customer
satisfaction.

Expected outcomes
This study is expected to provide the expected outcomes:
 This will be highlighting the issue of relevance of customisation by dwelling into the
theoretical aspects of the issues.
 This will also be highlighting the impact of customer satisfaction and customisation
if clothing in order to look into the positive an negative aspects of the issue
 Lastly, this study is expected to provide the desired understanding of the gender
perspective of customer satisfaction in case of custom made apparel.
Conclusion
This paper made an analysis of the significance of customisation of clothing and its
relation with customer satisfaction. Some of the key issues are: Customisation leads to higher
demand for products since it has been observed that the choice of clothing has higher
satisfaction when the customers are given the choice of picking out from the large number of
options. This has also been noticed that in case of gender, the issue of customer satisfaction
changes according to the body type and image that people have. This is been observed that
choice of clothing leads to higher confidence of the self. Hence this paper will be highlighting
the co relation between the above mentioned factors.
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Literature review   
Analysis and
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Conclusion of the study 
Formation of draft  
Submission of final
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Gantt chart
Created by the author

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