Lectra hosted companies from around the world at its Lectra Fashion Seminar in Bordeaux-Cestas (France).
The event welcomed 70 delegates representing 40 fashion and apparel companies from Europe, North America, Africa and Asia at Lectra's International Advanced Technology & Conference Center, in Bordeaux, France.
This seminar explored how businesses can use best practice expertise and technology to improve the fashion and apparel development cycle and optimize workflows.
Lectra's Design to Cost approach was presented in addition to a host of other solutions such as design, Product Lifecycle Management (PLM), pre-production and production, which are applied according to a customer's specific process. Attendees benefited from live demonstrations of Lectra's end-to-end approach. Yet it was also Lectra's industry knowledge, R&D investment and range of professional services, which made a real impression on delegates.
"The conference did an excellent job of showing us how we, at Ralph Rucci, can partner with Lectra. In particular, Lectra provides a path for fashion firms to be strategic in their operational decisions and process. While the products themselves are strong, the service is what differentiates Lectra. They provide more than just solutions; Lectra provides thought-partnership," testifies Cornelia Moore, Strategy Lead at US brand Ralph Rucci.
Delegates were given food-for-thought as Lectra specialists presented the changing landscape of the fashion market and the increasing urgency to align front-end process with pre-production and production to increase design and style options, understand costs and generate substantial material savings. In addition to areas of bottom-line improvement, demonstrations also provided a look at how design, 3D and collection management technologies can be leveraged to create top line growth opportunities.
"By better controlling product development, the engine of most apparel companies and the heart of a brand's DNA, shortening time to market and increasing design options are made possible. This puts companies in a better position to attack growth strategies such as adding additional product lines, targeting new regions, or even launching new brands," says Anastasia Charbin, Fashion Marketing Director, Lectra.
"The devil is in the details" was an oft-repeated phrase and delegates were both amused and impressed to see how simple changes to business under a lean methodology could have a big impact on both short and long term success.
"I have really enjoyed the event. We are really focused on production efficiency in our factory and we already use lots of Lectra solutions. The idea of a PLM is really interesting for us, so it is good to see everything united and how the solutions are used. The Lectra people know our industry well and what is currently happening within this industry," concludes Steve Blanchette, President of Canadian company Vêtements Cookshire.
The two-day event finished on a high note as Daniel Harari, Lectra CEO roused the audience saying, "Projects are what motivate us. We love good challenges, as this is how we progress."
