Hugo Boss

Summary

Hugo Boss’ Director of Global Bodywear and Hosiery, Katja Ruth and its Head of Operations and Procurement, Constantine Moros, agreed that the SCO Initiative conducted on various SKUs or stock keeping units was a success however they were not convinced that this success would translate to other items. Ruth was due to present her assessment to Boss’ COO and needed to determine the project’s financial feasibility as well as the products to be included.

Hugo Boss was founded in 1923 and became known for its high-quality men’s and women’s fashion apparel, shoes, and accessories” (Raman, Dehoratius, Kanji pg.1). Though Boss started as an exclusive purveyor of men’s business wear, lifestyle clothing was eventually incorporated and as recently as 2006 accounted for an equal proportion of Boss’ total sales most of which was conducted in Europe. Hugo Boss found distinction amongst its peers as a company comprised of numerous designers assigned to realize the designer needs of various customer types compared to single designers for the other top design leaders. Boss used this distinction to allow it to accurately fulfill retail orders within 48 hours.

This ability to fulfill orders was used to its fullest potential as the designer fashion industry experienced significant obstacles such as reliance on shifting demands and preferences of the consumer market. Another trend that contributed to market fluctuation was the emergence of chain stores such as Hennes & Mauritz who sold luxury items at affordable prices (Raman, Dehoratius, Kanji pg.2). Couple these obstacles with those of any retailer who faces the need to keep large-scale inventory systems as well as the possibility of a designer line failing and it becomes evident that accurate demand forecasting becomes increasingly difficult.

Two distinct brands comprise the Hugo Boss brand, HUGO and BOSS, and they were then divided into five subsidiary product lines; HUGO, Boss Black, Boss Green, Boss Orange,...