Quick response and multi-skilling
Small clothing company: coping with change by moving to quick response and multi-skilling - learning from and with customers
The company is a family business set up in 1978 and is the UK’s largest manufacturer of football scarves. Email is the company’s main form of communication because it allows for the quick exchange of ideas about artwork between client and designer, facilitating a ‘quick response time’.
The company’s work force is now much smaller. Previously, each employee would have a single task in the factory and a single skill they used to discharge it. Now, due to increased competition, all employees have to be multi-skilled and able to perform a variety of tasks. Thus one individual might able to print, knit, pack and do design work. The company does not hold stock for customers, because of the risk of going bankrupt. Looking to the future, the company needs to maintain its niche in the market, come up with new products and ensure that it chases payments from clients.