Impact of Product Variety:

Impact of product proliferation can be mapped across two levels- Retailing and Manufacturing.

On Retailing & Sourcing: From a given fabric type, an entire range of apparel S.K.U. can be proliferated, as shown in Exhibit-2. It shows how one type of basic textile product (purple colored fabric) delivered out of textile manufacturer's warehouse gets translated into so many (144 no.) S.K.Us by the time it reaches the retailer's shelf. In addition to this proliferation shown in the exhibit, a retailer may want the goods to be shipped on a hanger or in particular package and may want the manufacturers to mention the price and other details before shipping. Moreover, variability introduced in accessory stage (style of button, calf, collar, zipper etc) will further amplify this diversity at retail level.

Looking into the entire range of variables involved, one can deduce how many thousands of S.K.Us will result at retail level from a given product basket comprising of hundred different varieties of basic textile fabric with respect to colour, design, fabric structure etc! Needless to mention the enormous task of developing and managing this "ocean of S.K.U.s" across globally dispersed supply nodes.