Modelling and Analysing Product Development Processes in the Textile and Clothing Industry

The textile and clothing industry is one of the most important sectors in the Portuguese economy, operating in a market that is increasingly competitive, globalized and characterized by short lifecycles and consumer volatility. This leads to an increased need for agility and speed by manufacturers, in order to respond to the market demands. Thus, it becomes important to companies in the sector to understand and diagnose its product development processes in order to identify opportunities for improvement, potentially changing the organisation conventional routines This work adopted a case study research strategy to critically analyse and discuss the product development process of a major player in the fashion retail sector. For that goal, processes were mapped using business process modelling tools such as Business Process Model and Notation, highlighting the problems and opportunities in the development of new products in the textile and clothing industry, and providing context for the consideration of new measures to enhance its efficiency.