Sharp Merchant Workshop

The CE Department of IAM organized  "The Sharp Merchant Workshop" on 8'th January , 2011 in it's campus. The workshop was conducted by IAM faculty members Ms Rakhi Manocha & Ms Mridu Vijh Kataria along with a guest industry speaker Ms Poonam Dwivedi , head of sampling in TCNS Limited. Over 23 participants representing various export & buying organizations attended this workshop.

Rationale For The Workshop

Our apparel export industry in the past few years has been grappling with issues like  recession in key markets ,shorter lead times and intense competition from countries like China & Bangladesh. In order to  survive in this competitive environment , factory owners have invested huge sums in upgrading their factories and investing in modern technology. Pre-production  merchandising which forms the backbone of smart order execution is however , still a neglected area in most export organizations . There is however , a growing realization in the industry about the need to train their merchants and improve their skill sets of order execution ,buyer communication etc.
It is being felt that there is a strong need for merchants to develop and hone their key merchandising skills of communication, coordination & follow up.

Workshop module

The training module was designed keeping the above objectives in mind & it  imparted practical insights into routine merchandising activities which a merchant performs.

• How to get samples right & avoid re-sampling
• Minimizing  fit resubmits
• How to correctly order fabric & trims
• How to manage  delivery timelines & avoid air - freights
• Costing tight & right.
• Minimizing wastages during order execution.
• Buyer Communication Skills & Customer Service Orientation
• Organisation , Record Keeping & Filing
• Time Management
• Tips for being an Effective Merchant

The workshop was well received by the participants and we received positive feedback from them.