Dior: Analyzing the Impact of Retail Trends - Inquiry Based Learning

This report provides an in-depth analysis of the impact of current retail trends, such as fast fashion, sustainable fashion, and customer-centric approaches, on the operations of Dior, a French luxury fashion house. The study employs both primary data, gathered through semi-structured interviews and surveys, and secondary data from books, online websites, and journals. Internal and external analyses, including SWOT and PESTEL analyses, are conducted to evaluate Dior's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, as well as the political, economic, social, technological, environmental, and legal factors affecting the company. The research investigates how Dior adapts to evolving customer preferences and the increasing importance of sustainability, and it offers recommendations for enhancing the company's strategies in response to these trends. The report concludes by summarizing the key findings and emphasizing the need for Dior to continue innovating and adapting to maintain its competitive edge in the dynamic retail industry. Desklib provides access to this and many other solved assignments.

Inquiry Based
Learning Project

Contents
INTRODUCTION......................................................................................................................................3
Research Question...............................................................................................................................3
Research Objective..............................................................................................................................3
Background..............................................................................................................................................3
Reasons for choosing the theme........................................................................................................5
Aim..........................................................................................................................................................5
Research Question...............................................................................................................................5
How the aim will be achieved..............................................................................................................5
Methodology............................................................................................................................................6
Analysis....................................................................................................................................................6
SWOT Analysis.....................................................................................................................................6
PESTEL Analysis..................................................................................................................................6
Primary Data........................................................................................................................................7
Recommendations...............................................................................................................................14
Conclusion.............................................................................................................................................16
REFERENCES........................................................................................................................................17
Appendix.................................................................................................................................................18

INTRODUCTION
The retail industry is one of the fastest growing industries in the world and has
various organizations operating in it. Luxury brands offer high quality products and
services to the customers (Arsal, 2017). This report is based on Dior, which is a French
luxury fashion house headquartered in Paris, France. The theme of the report is
sustainable fashion. The report includes an explanation about the current retail trends
along with a primary and secondary analysis. Recommendations are also provided to
the respective company.
Research Question
 What is the impact of different trends such as fast fashion of retail industry on the
operations of an organization?
Research Objective
 To analyze the impact of different trends such as fast fashion of retail industry on
the operations of an organization.
Background
The retail industry involves organizations selling products and services to the
customers. The industry is constantly growing and is estimated to grow further in the
coming years. There are different trends within the industry that various companies,
including Dior has implemented in its system. The different trends of the industry are
explained below –
Trend 1: Fast Fashion
Fast fashion can be described as a term that involves the quick movement of
clothing designs from the ramp to the stores so as to meet the new trends of the market.
fast fashion has become an important current trend in fashion retail today, this is
because customers are always looking to buy something new in the market and this
trend is beneficial because customers get a chance to purchase products that are of the
latest trend (Chu and et.al., 2021). Since the overall purchasing power of the customers
has increased, they have access to all the latest trends in the market. one of the

reasons fast fashion has become possible is improvements in the supply chain as well
as an increased number of innovations within the market.
Therefore, it can be said that fast fashion is at bloom and due to constant
introduction of products in the market, the number of customers visiting the fashion
outlets has increased. The respective company, Dior is constantly working towards
promoting fast fashion into the market by innovating its products. It can be said that the
main reason behind this trend is the constantly changing as well as evolving needs and
preferences of the customers. And thus, it has become important for companies to
address the same and innovate their products and services from time to time.
Trend 2: Sustainable Fashion
Sustainable fashion is another important trend that can be defined as a process
that involves fostering change to different fashion products in a way that no harm is
caused to the environment. the trend involves producing high quality products that are
eco-friendly and go on for a longer period of time. A lot of organizations are moving
towards implementing sustainability into their system in order to make sure that their
business is not only profitable, but also sustainable. The main focus of organizations in
the retail industry is to ensure that the overall product lifecycle is improved (Effendi-
Hasibuan and SULISTIYO, 2019). This involves acquiring raw materials to producing
finished products. Also, with changes in the trends in the market every now and then,
companies are now involving in sustainable fashion.
Sustainable fashion has become one of the latest trends in the retail industry
because customers are now increasingly becoming concerned about the environment
and the harm caused to it. Therefore, they prefer buying products that are sustainable
and made from environment-friendly products. Therefore, it is important for
organizations to adapt to the trend if they want to enhance their position in the market
and gain a competitive advantage. A lot of companies within the industry are adopting to
this trend in order to stay ahead of their competitors and attract a greater number of
customers.
Trend 3: More customer-centric

Customers are on a constant look out for new and innovative products that are
based on their preferences as well as needs. Customers are one of the most important
assets for the company and therefore, it has adopted various measures in order to
serve its customers in the most effective ways. By being more customer-centric,
companies have been able to reach out to a large number of customers and attract
potential customers as well. the trend involves organizations doing their business by
focusing more on creating a positive as well as seamless experience for the customers.
Customer-centric business value their customers a lot and thus, adopt various
strategies in order to fulfil and satisfy the needs of the customers in an effective manner.
Reasons for choosing the theme
The main reason behind choosing the theme is to enhance overall understanding
about the current trends in the retail industry and how companies such as Dior are
adopting the same (Fernandez, 2017). There is a research on the different trends in the
retail industry as well as an analysis of the company.
Aim
“To analyze the impact of different trends of retail industry on the operations of
an organization. A study on Dior.”
Research Question
What is the impact of different trends such as fast fashion and sustainability of
retail industry on the operations of an organization?
How the aim will be achieved
The aim will be achieved by conducting an internal as well as external analysis of
the respective company, Dior. This will include implementing different theoretical
models in order to determine the strengths as well as weaknesses of the organization.
Apart from this, any external factors in the environment that can impact the overall
operations of the company can also be identified (Husni, 2020). Both primary as well as
secondary research will be conducted by the researcher in order to attain the research
objective.

Methodology
In order to complete this research, both primary as well as secondary methods
have been used to collect data. Semi-structured interviews were conducted in order to
collect primary data on the research topic. On the other hand, for collecting the
secondary information, various books, online websites and journals were referred by the
researcher.
Analysis
Dior is one of the leading brands that offers high-end luxury products to the
customers across different locations of the world.
SWOT Analysis
Strengths – The company has a strong brand recognition as well as presence
across the different geographic locations. Also, the company offers a wide range of
products that are high in quality.
Weaknesses – One of the major weaknesses of the company is that there are
too many brands in its portfolio (SWOT Analysis of Dior, 2020). Also, due to its
international presence, the company is at the risk of facing economic changes that can
affect its overall business operations.
Opportunities – The company has an opportunity of expanding its business to
the developing economies (Mieg, 2019). This will help it in attracting a greater number
of customers.
PESTEL Analysis
Political Factors – Since the company operates across different locations, it is
important for it to take into account the various political factors of different countries. the
different factors can include political instability, elections etc.
Economic Factors – The level of unemployment in the kingdom they have got
their manufacturing plant being setup performs a vital function. Higher unemployment
way greater variety of labors available for one job (Ramnarain and Hlatswayo, 2018).

Thus, the labor cost may be minimized as consistent with the employer needs because
the supply of task if could be very less than its real call for.
Social Factors – Various social factors can also affect the overall operations of
the company. These can include age, gender, preferences of the customers and their
income levels.
Technological Factors – Advancements in technology have made it easier for
the companies to conduct their business effectively. Therefore, Dior should implement
latest technology in order to overcome any challenges.
Environmental Factors – Fashion and luxury merchandise have been under the
grill of superior technology this decade (Silm and et.al., 2017). Be the role of era in
production, deliver chain the use of block chains or improving the exceptional of
manufacturing through automated manufacturing plant life.
Legal Factors - Fashion industry is regulated through a couple of legal
guidelines, which additionally affects Christian Dior. The legal guidelines which contend
with hard work within the paintings force (Tawfik, Hung and Giabbanelli, 2020). The
minimal wage that an exertion is entitled to is determined by the government of that
unique place.
Primary Data
Interview
Q1. In your opinion, how does fashion trends impact Dior?
Discussion - It was found that the majority of the respondents were aware of the trends
and they stated that it is important to stay updated about the trends in the market as this
will allow the company to develop effective strategies.
Q2. What are the latest fashion trends in the market today?
Discussion - It was found that most of the respondents stated that fast fashion as well
as having a customer centric business are the major trends that are relevant in the
market today. But it was also found that the remaining respondents stated that having a
sustainable business is another important trend that is relevant in the market.

Q3. Do you have any knowledge of fast fashion?
Discussion - Majority of the respondents were aware about the knowledge of fast
fashion as they had heard it from someone or read it somewhere else. On the other
hand, the remaining respondents stated that they were not aware about the concept.
Q4. How has fashion evolved in the recent years?
Discussion - The respondents stated that fashion has evolved to a great extent over
the last few years. This is because there has been advancements in technology while
the remaining respondents stated that brands are innovating their products as well as
services.
Q5. In your opinion, what are some of the challenges faced by the customers
while making a buying decision?
Discussion – It has been interpreted that some respondents stated that payment
options is one of the challenges that is faced while the remaining stated that if the
products do not match the customers’ preference is one of the major challenges.
By conducting the interview, it has been found that the respondents were aware
of the recent trends in the fashion industry. Many of the respondents stated that the
recent trends within the market such as fast fashion, sustainability etc. can affect the
overall business operations of Dior. This is because if the company fails to implement
these trends in its system, it will start losing its customers to the competitors. As a
result, its overall profitability will get impacted.
Survey
The number of respondents for the study is 30.
Q1. Do you have any knowledge about the trends in the
retail industry?
Frequency
a) Yes 20
b) No 10

a) Yes b) No
0
5
10
15
20
25
20
10
Chart Title
Interpretation – From the above graph, it can be analyzed that out of 30 respondents,
the majority of respondents, i.e., 20 stated that they were aware about the recent trends
within the retail industry. This was because they had read about it either in a book or on
a blog or a website. On the other hand, the remaining 10 respondents stated that they
were not aware about the recent trends within the industry as they did not hear about it
from anyone or read about it somewhere.
Q2. In your opinion, what are the recent trends in the
fashion retail industry?
Frequency
a) Fast Fashion 10
b) Sustainable Fashion 15
c) Customer-centric Fashion 5

a) Fast Fashion b) Sustainable Fashion c) Customer-centric Fashion
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
10
15
5
Chart Title
Interpretation – From the above graph, it can be stated that out of the 30 respondents,
15 believed that sustainable fashion is a major recent trend within the fashion retail
industry. this is because people are increasingly becoming conscious about the
environment as well as the harm that is being caused to it. Therefore, more and more
companies are adopting the trend of sustainable fashion. Out of the remaining
respondents, 10 said that fast fashion is a fashion retail trend that has recently gained
importance. The reason for this is that the preferences as well as choices of the people
keeps on changing. Lastly, the remaining 5 respondents stated that customer-centric
fashion is a recent fashion trend as people look out for brands that offer them with
products and services that are based on their preference.
Q3. What are the benefits of adopting fast fashion for an
organization?
Frequency
a) Increased customer base 12
b) Competitive advantage 8
c) More profits 10

a) Increased customer base b) Competitive advantage c) More profits
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
12
8
10
Chart Title
Interpretation – From the above graph, it can be stated that 12 respondents believed
that adopting fast fashion can help n organization in increase its customer base by
offering them trendy products. 8 respondents stated that the company is able to gain a
competitive advantage and the remaining 10 respondents stated that there is an
increase in the profits and the company is able to attain its goals and objectives
Q4. What are the different external environment factors
that can affect the operations of an organization?
Frequency
a) Political instability 10
b) Technological advancements 10
c) Environmental factors 10

10
10
10
Chart Title
a) Political instability b) Technological advancements
c) Environmental factors
Interpretation – From the above graph, it can be stated that 10 respondents said that
political instability is one of the external environment factors that can have an impact on
the overall performance of an organization. On the other hand, 10 respondents out of
the 20 respondents stated that advancements in technology can impact the overall
operations of a company to a great extent. And lastly, the remaining 10 respondents
stated that environmental factors can affect the operations of the organization.
Therefore, it is important for the company to take these factors into account.
Q5. Does your organization keep up with the latest trend
of the industry?
Frequency
a) Yes 25
b) No 5

a) Yes b) No
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
25
5
Chart Title
Interpretation – It can be said that 25 respondents stated that their organization keeps
up with the latest trends within the industry. Whereas the remaining 5 respondents
stated that the organization that they work for does not follows the recent trends.
Q6. What are the challenges of not keeping up with the
latest trends of the industry?
Frequency
a) Decline in profitability 15
b) Impact on performance 5
c) Impact on brand position 10

a) Decline in profitability b) Impact on performance c) Impact on brand position
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16 15
5
10
Chart Title
Interpretation – From the above graph, it can be stated that 15 respondents stated that
one of the challenges of not keeping up with the recent trends is that there is a decline
in profitability. 5 respondents stated that there is an impact on performance and
remaining 10 respondents stated that there is an impact on the brand position.
Recommendations
From the above discussion, it can be concluded that there are different trends in
the fashion market and it has become important for companies to implement the same
in their system so as to ensure that the business operations are run smoothly. Some of
the current trends in the fashion industry are fast fashion, sustainable fashion as well as
building a business that is customer centric. Dior is an international fashion brand that
offers a large variety of high-end products and services. Apart from this, it can also be
concluded that in order to hold a strong position in the market and gain a competitive
advantage, it is important to keep a track of all the latest trends and implement the
same in its system. This is important because if the respective company fails to
implement the same, it will have to deal with the consequences. There are some
recommendations that can be made for the respective company, such as it is
recommended that it should develop strategies in order to expand the business
operations to the developing economies.

The management of Dior want to recognition on improving its customer service.
In its physical shops it's been identified that the offerings offer to customers are not as
much as expectations. The group of workers contributors aren't present to serve the
clients and that they ought to open up extra cash counters with a purpose to provide
speedy services to customers. The customers ought to await too long in strains for path
rooms which is time eating and exhausting elements. Hence Dior control need to take
measures to enhance it and ought to consciousness on providing fast services to its
potential clients. By improving its customers’ experience, the company will be able to
improve its overall performance as well as overall profitability. it is also recommended
that Dior should segregate its product portfolio so that it is easier for the customers to
pick products that are based on their preference as well as needs. Also, by adding new
products to its portfolio will help it in attracting new customers and serving their needs in
an effective manner.
The major competitors of Dior use various sales channels in order to enhance
their sales and reach out to a greater number of customers. Therefore, the respective
company is not only recommended to increase its overall channels of sale but also
strengthen its presence across various social media platforms. This will help it in
increasing overall engagement with the customers and also, attract more customers.
Not only this, the company will be able to create awareness about its products and
services in the market. The organization could make adjustments in its in its seasonal
peaks by way of information the enterprise environment and hence constructing
strategies to boom its sales volume. The height seasons in case of Dior are summer
season income, Black Friday, etc. so by means of expertise the behavior of clients they
could make adjustments in its device for attracting more target audience which includes
via imparting buying vouchers, and so forth. Therefore, these are some of the
recommendations that the respective company is suggested to implement in its system
to ensure smooth operations of the business.

Conclusion
From the above report, it can be concluded that the retail industry is growing at a
very fast pace and it is important for companies to keep up with the trends in order to
stay competitive and ahead of the competition.

REFERENCES
Books & Journals
Arsal, Z., 2017. The impact of inquiry-based learning on the critical thinking dispositions
of pre-service science teachers. International Journal of Science Education,
39(10), pp.1326-1338.
Chu, S. K. W. and et.al., 2021. 21st century skills development through inquiry-based
learning from theory to practice. Springer International Publishing.
Effendi-Hasibuan, M. H. and SULISTIYO, U., 2019. Inquiry-based learning in Indonesia:
Portraying supports, situational beliefs, and chemistry teachers’ adoptions.
Journal of Turkish Science Education, 16(4), pp.538-553.
Fernandez, F. B., 2017. Action research in the physics classroom: the impact of
authentic, inquiry based learning or instruction on the learning of thermal physics.
Asia-Pacific Science Education, 3(1), pp.1-20.
Husni, H., 2020. The Effect of Inquiry-based Learning on Religious Subjects Learning
Activities: An Experimental Study in High Schools. Jurnal Penelitian Pendidikan
Islam, 8(1), pp.43-54.
Laksana, D. N. L., 2017. The effectiveness of inquiry based learning for natural science
learning in elementary school. Journal of Education Technology, 1(1), pp.1-5.
Mieg, H. A., 2019. Inquiry-Based Learning-Undergraduate Research: The German
Multidisciplinary Experience (p. 406). Springer Nature.
Ramnarain, U. and Hlatswayo, M., 2018. Teacher beliefs and attitudes about inquiry-
based learning in a rural school district in South Africa. South African Journal of
Education, 38(1).
Silm, G. and et.al., 2017. Teachers' Readiness to Use Inquiry-Based Learning: An
Investigation of Teachers' Sense of Efficacy and Attitudes toward Inquiry-Based
Learning. Science Education International, 28(4), pp.315-325.
Tawfik, A. A., Hung, W. and Giabbanelli, P. J., 2020. Comparing How Different Inquiry-
Based Approaches Impact Learning Outcomes. Interdisciplinary Journal of
Problem-Based Learning, 14(1), p.n1.
Online
SWOT Analysis of Dior. 2020. [Online]. Available through:<
https://www.marketing91.com/swot-analysis-dior/ >.

Appendix
Survey Interview
Q1. In your opinion, how does fashion trends impact Dior?
Being an international brand, it is important for the respective company to keep a
track of and stay up to date about the latest trends of the fashion industry. If the
company fails to do so, it will lose out its position in the market.
Q2. What are the latest fashion trends in the market today?
The major fashion trends include fast fashion, building a customer-centric
business and sustainable fashion (Chu and et.al., 2021). These trends have helped
many brands to stand out against their competition along with improving their
performance.
Q3. Do you have any knowledge of fast fashion?
Yes, Fast fashion is a trend used to describe a surprisingly profitable commercial
enterprise version based on replicating catwalk traits and high-style designs, and mass-
generating them at low fee. The time period 'speedy fashion' is likewise used to
generically describe the goods of the short style business model.
Q4. How has fashion evolved in the recent years?
I believe that fashion has evolved to a great extent over the last few years with
new trends coming in. People are always looking for new as well as innovative products
and services in the market (Husni, 2020). Therefore, fashion brands are innovating their
products and offering the same in the market in order to attract the customers. I think
that fashion trends are one of the main reasons for the evolution of fashion in the recent
years.
Q5. In your opinion, what are some of the challenges faced by the customers
while making a buying decision?

In my view, some of the challenges that the customers face while making a
purchase decision is payment options as well as the products available in the market
that do not match the preferences or needs of the customers.

Questionnaire
Q1. Do you have any knowledge about the trends in the retail industry?
a) Yes
b) No
Q2. In your opinion, what are the recent fashion trends in the retail industry?
a) Fast Fashion
b) Sustainable Fashion
c) Customer-centric Fashion
Q3. What are the benefits of adopting fast fashion for an organization?
a) Increased customer base
b) Competitive advantage
c) More profits
Q4. What are the different external environment factors that can affect the
operations of an organization?
a) Political instability
b) Technological advancements
c) Environmental factors
Q5. Does your organization keep up with the latest trend of the industry?
a) Yes
b) No
Q6. What are the challenges of not keeping up with the latest trends of the
industry?
a) Decline in profitability
b) Impact on performance
c) Impact on brand position
Q7. Any recommendations or suggestions