Alvanon Apparel Sizing, Fit, and Development in Middle East

Alvanon, the global apparel expert, has announced details of the first ever garment sizing, fit and development project carried out in the Middle East.  The project was commissioned by Splash, the Middle East’s largest fashion retailer, in conjunction with its sister label Iconic, both owned by the Landmark Group, one of the biggest retail conglomerates in the Middle East, India and Africa.  Over the course of the two year project Alvanon conducted an empirical size survey with thousands of Splash and Iconic customers in six major retail outlets in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Kuwait, Jeddah, Riyadh and Qatar. As a result of the unique survey, the Splash and Iconic fashion labels have both launched their first “fit” accredited ranges based on new core body standards for their men’s and women’s apparel.  The new Splash and Iconic ranges are available in stores with immediate effect.

Alvanon validated the data from its comprehensive retail survey against official and publicly available medical and heath data from such sources as the World Health Organization. This data enabled Alvanon consultants to identify and quantify the range of different body shapes of men and women found in the Splash and Iconic fashion labels’ target consumer populations. Alvanon consultants then developed and supplied the technical fit mannequins, AlvaForms and pattern templates, AlvaBlocks, to ensure the new core body standards were accurately and consistently implemented and shared across the Landmark Group’s 300 manufacturing suppliers in such geographically diverse locations as China, India, Pakistan and Indonesia. 

As Rohit Nanda, chief operating officer- Iconic, explained: “We wanted a realistic, professional and accurate solution to our sizing and fit challenge for Splash and Iconic. This was a major undertaking. Splash alone retails up to 7,000 styles per season equating to millions of garments per year.”  Daniel Smith, head-quality Splash, added:  “Alvanon worked professionally with customers and store personnel within our stores to collect the data. From this data it has provided us with a fit standard implementation program comprising optimum size-charts, technical fit mannequins, fit models, key grade intervals, size ranges and alpha-numeric size correlations.  Additional tools, such as core pattern blocks were also developed and supplied.”

Ed Gribbin, president of Alvanon, who headed the survey commented: “This has been one of the most exciting and challenging projects we have ever embarked upon and the management teams at Splash and Iconic are to be applauded for their forward thinking and commitment to this project. By understanding the size and shape of their customers they are able to design clothes specifically for those consumers thereby significantly enhancing fit satisfaction while increasing customer loyalty and retail conversion rates.”

About Splash, Iconic and the Landmark Group

Headquartered in Dubai, Splash is the Middle East’s largest fashion retailer and is part of the Landmark Group. Splash was founded in 1993 as a single brand store in Sharjah and has since grown to over 200 stores and 50 brand stores across 13 countries. With a retail area of over 1.3 million square feet it is committed to ongoing growth.  Splash was awarded the ‘Superbrand’ status 2013 which is fourth in a row for the brand and is listed in Forbes Arabia’s ‘Top 40 Arab Brands’.

The first ICONIC fashion lifestyle store in Dubai opened its doors in February 2010. The brand targets the young-at-heart family that is stylish, trendy and outgoing. As part of the Landmark Group, it is respected as a leading one-stop retailer of fashion apparel, footwear, accessories, beauty products, gifts and gadgets for men, women and children.

Founded in 1973 in Bahrain, the Landmark Group has grown into one of the world’s largest and most successful retail and hospitality conglomerates. It operates over 1900 outlets encompassing over 24 million square feet across the Middle East, Africa and the Indian Subcontinent. It has established over 25 home grown and over 40 franchise brands and employs over 50,000 people.

About Alvanon

Founded in 2001, the Alvanon Group of companies is the global leader in providing growth, profitability and supply chain solutions to the apparel industry.  In addition to its head office in New York, European headquarters in London, Asian office in Hong Kong and manufacturing facilities in Donguan and Shenzhen in China, Alvanon has a worldwide team of dedicated apparel strategists and specialists. Alvanon has compiled  the world’s largest database of 400,000 body scans and provides customized fit and product development strategies and tools to the world’s leading fashion brands, retailers, lingerie, swimwear, sportswear, mail order and corporate clothing suppliers.