The effectiveness of utilising merchandise planning as a change management strategy in the clothing retail industry in Cape Town

Abstract

Globalisation has resulted in the clothing retail industry being highly complex and clothing retail companies constantly have to deal with ever-changing consumer demands, competitive environment, economic challenges, and pandemics among other challenges. Clothing retail companies in South Africa are no exception to these challenges as the past years have witnessed some companies in the clothing retail industry closing their retail outlets. As a significant number of South African fashion retailers continue to struggle within the retail environment, a proposition was developed for this study as literature acknowledges the benefits of merchandise planning in a retail company. The purpose of this research was to identify how merchandise planning could be used effectively to manage the ever-changing clothing retail industry in a selected fashion retail store in Cape Town. A clothing retail company was purposefully selected, and 12 participants involved in management were also purposively selected. A qualitative approach was used, and interviews were conducted on the selected participants. The study revealed the major challenges faced by the clothing retail company which other studies have also documented. This study also revealed that merchandise planning is being used as a strategy to manage demand effectively. Throughout this study, there has been examination and, where possible, explanation of the intricate relationship between merchandise planning and its ability to adapt to dynamic shifts in supply chains, global market trends, and local external factors, such as load shedding and the over-dependence on non-local manufacturing. The study also established the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the fashion industry as a whole. The study further revealed the merchandise planning strategies used by the clothing retail company, including supply chain management, strategic management, technology and communication. By synthesising the evidence presented in the preceding chapters, meaningful conclusions that shed light on the significance and implications of merchandise planning in the retail business landscape were drawn. This study makes substantial contributions to the field of retail business management, particularly the field of clothing retailing, where there is not much literature available.