Barinova, O. (2017). Launching and operating a fast fashion brand in Russia [Master Thesis, Technische Universität Wien; Wirtschaftsuniversität Wien]. reposiTUm. https://doi.org/10.34726/hss.2017.45866
Fast fashion has become one of the most important industry phenomena of the past decades. Developed in the 1990s and fueled by globalization, fast fashion has now entered in a new era and is facing new challenges. In this paper, I am focusing on Russian fast fashion market. Is it different from international market? What hurdles are there and what drives the industry forward? How should Russian fast fashion companies shape their operations and adjust strategy in order to survive and to succeed? This thesis is aimed to analyze the specific conditions that Russian fast fashion companies are experiencing. In order to come up with relevant practical solutions, various types of research including top fast fashion managers interviews, available data analysis and own experience are analyzed. Being incredibly dynamic industry, fashion market is quickly adjusting to new economy conditions and companies are seeking for ways to survive in post-turbulence period. While international fast fashion retailers tend to use recession to grow their chains and gain presence, many Russian players are busy optimizing processes and are mostly downsizing. So how should fast fashion behave in the eye of the storm? This study suggests that recession can be beneficial for some retailers. By focusing on identifying consumer needs and adjusting all business process to better serve them, fast fashion companies can gain long-term competitive advantage. Some of the big trends in Russian fast fashion retail include aggressive off-price marketing, online market winning shares from offline, shifting consumer preferences towards price-driven behavior. Companies who are willing to decrease their profit margins to keep their consumers and to reconsider their marketing mix and pricing strategies are proving themselves to be more efficient and winning market shares even in tough economic situation.