Customer Perspective on Mass-customized Knitwear

Knit on Demand is a research project at the Swedish School of Textiles in collaboration with the knitwear producer Ivanhoe AB and the fashion retailer SOMconcept. The background to the project is the unpredictable fashion market where garments are often produced on a forecast and not on actual demand. The essence of Knit on Demand is to let the customers themselves design the garments. Sales started in SOMconcept's store in PUB Huset, Stockholm, in September 2009 and ended in December 2010. The aim of this article is to find out what factors are crucial in the customer's experience of buying a mass-customized garment. By interviewing customers about the customization process, analyzing customer orders, and observing the customization process conclusions can be drawn.