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Faculty of Management Sciences

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    The use of Instagram as a communication tool in the Durban fashion industry
    (2023) Ngcobo, Thandeka; Madondo, Elvis
    Over the years, social media has become an imperative platform in the fashion industry for testing new marketing strategies and monitoring trends. There are thousands of luxury and high street fashion brands around the world that are present online. Despite the fact that fashion brands have unilaterally set their polished brand images through traditional media such as television channels and magazines, social media serves as a very powerful tool for promoting and sharing fashion information to both industry and people (Ha, Kwon, Cha and Joo 2017:418). Undeniably, Instagram is not only used as any other social media platform, but also as a marketing tool for local fashion brands. There are numerous phenomena of Instagram marketing. However, there is still a lack of clarification as to why these phenomena occurred. The aim of this study was to determine the use of Instagram as a communication tool in the Durban Fashion industry. The primary objective of the research was to examine the influence of Instagram as a communication tool in the Durban Fashion industry. The study followed a quantitative research method in order to accomplish the set objectives. Non-probability sampling was used in recruiting participants. Purposive sampling technique was utilised to generate the sample population. Fashion brand owners in Durban who use Instagram as a communication tool were the population targeted by this study. The researcher was able to get a 91.5% response rate as 119 questionnaires out of 130 were collected. The study used the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 24.0 for Windows to analyse the data. The study revealed that Instagram is an effective communication tool that fashion business owners can benefit from, if used strategically. Furthermore, the findings revealed that Instagram is giving fashion business owners a platform to showcase their best offerings; communicate with their target audience; and increase brand awareness. One of the recommendations was that fashion businesses who are not using Instagram as a communication tool to start using this social media platform. Communication through the use of pictures and videos seems to be a new strategy for marketing. The study also recommended that it is important for fashion owners to prioritise engagement with their target audience on Instagram in order to build friendly relationships and increase the number of followers.
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    Service quality at selected fashion retail stores in the Greater Durban Area
    (2020-09) Magoso, Ntombikayise Princess; Pillay, Magalingam Atheeshey; Veerasamy, Dayaneethie
    The interest of service quality in the fashion industry has grown over the last decade due to increasing competition, new fashion trends and new designs. This has led managers to finding ways of improving profitability. One area of interest is service quality and how it affects customer satisfaction and its impact on the bottom line, which is why ascertaining service quality at selected fashion retail stores in the Greater Durban Area is significant. The purpose of this study is to examine the expectations and perceptions of customers in the selected fashion retail stores in the Greater Durban Area. The focus of the study is based on the measurement of the service quality dimensions and the effect of service quality on customer satisfaction in order to generate quality models of the Selected Fashion Retail Stores. This study focuses on the determination of customers’ expectations and perceptions of service quality in the SFRS in the Greater Durban Area. The main objective is to ascertain the level of service quality in the selected retail fashion stores in the Greater Durban Area. The study was descriptive, quantitative and cross-sectional in nature, probing the effect of service quality on customers’ satisfaction. From the findings of this study, the fashion retail stores can identify specific failures in their service quality and seek to improve them. Service quality dimensions that appear to be good predictors of service quality for customers of the SFRS offering have been related to factors such as the “Tangibility”, Reliability”, “Responsiveness”, “Assurance” and “Empathy”. It is hoped that the results obtained from this study will aid these fashion stores in adopting practical customer service quality measures that will assist them to succeed in the highly competitive fashion industry.
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    Ecommerce adoption by small medium enterprises in fashion : the case of Durban fashion fair designers
    (2021) Nhuvira, Chiedza Elizabeth; Dorasamy, Nirmala
    Small Medium Enterprises are one of the country’s engineers for transformation through economic growth, innovation and employment creation. The fashion industry is rated the second largest manufacturing curbing unemployment for both formal and informal sectors of fashion through providing one of the human basic needs. Due to the low entry barriers, the competition is rife both locally (other fashion designers) and internationally (imports) which has led to initiatives such as ‘fast fashion’ which represents the process of selling designs showcased on the catwalk in stores in the shortest possible. However, this is a challenge without the right platforms to advertise and sell the clothing. Initiatives such as Durban fashion fair have been good in providing the Durban designers with a local platform to showcase but Small Medium Enterprises greatest challenge is that Durban market is flooded despite designers offering niche products because it’s the same customers with limited income to buy the offerings, such that customer acquisition beyond the confines of the Durban is a necessity for business sustenance. Durban fashion designers are creative business people, knowledgeable in the fashion industry, however with the challenges that they are facing, there is limited research of their use of ecommerce in solving the stated problems. Ecommerce is perceived as an innovation that has transformed Small Medium Enterprises is developed nations such as China and America however the case is unknown for developing nations such as South Africa. The purpose of the case study is to determine how far the fashion designers have used ecommerce in their businesses and the factors that influence them to adopt taking into account the benefits and challenges that they face. The case study encourages multiple sources and techniques to gather data. Mixed method approach was conducted for data collection, for the Durban fashion fair designers quantitative study was undertaken while the Durban fashion fair management were interviewed. The data was analysed using statistical method SPSS and use of thematic analysis for quantitative. Results from the study supported the literature while other results revealed gaps for further research. The study revealed the following results, that the majority of fashion SMMES are cognisant that the South African population is moving to online buying and that there are business opportunities to be exploited online. Secondly, the challenges hindering the fashion SMMEs was the low profits and internet fraud. The findings revealed that the greater percentages of fashion SMME are survivalist entities earning profits of less than 50 000 rand annually. The low profit margin affects the acquisition of gadgets and infrastructure is deemed costly; moreover the SMMEs lack the financial collateral security to borrow from the banks. The other challenge mentioned was that internet fraud was the lack of digital training literacy and training such that fashion SMME perception of internet fraud was exaggerated. Thirdly, the results highlighted that the management benefited from the adoption by making better decisions. The better decisions can be attributed to knowledge of customer, the promptness of making decisions and the management’s previous online experience. Fashion SMME highlighted the benefits accrued from implementation of effective ecommerce practices, were increase in sales despite the number of years the business has been trading. The use of ecommerce, the results indicate that the fashion designers use free applications available since their profitability margins are low. Most of the SMME advertise on the social media Facebook and Instagram, they also use the social platforms for product research and prevailing trends too. And lastly they use banking applications to make payments to suppliers as well as receive payments from customers. The fashions SMME have not adopted ecommerce by using second parties such as paid second party sites.