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In the highly competitive business landscape, manufacturing firms need to adopt an effective manufacturing strategy to attain a successful world-class manufacturing status. Over the past few decades, the lean manufacturing (LM) approach has gained recognition as one of the foremost strategies for enhancing performance. However, the implementation of LM poses significant challenges due to several barriers. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the primary barriers to lean implementation within the apparel industry.

This paper used an exploratory study approach, using a three-part structured questionnaire to assess the level of agreement on different lean barriers. The measurement of these barriers was conducted using a five-point Likert scale. Empirical data were collected from 177 apparel companies located in Bangladesh.

The findings of the research highlight that the primary obstacles to implementing LI include a lack of understanding of the lean manufacturing system (LMS), the manufacturing process, the company culture and resistance from employees.

This paper could potentially limit the generalizability of this research, as it exclusively examines a single manufacturing sector – the apparel industry.

This paper will help practitioners in finding solutions to resolve discrepancies between current manufacturing practices and the LMS.

This paper fulfills an identified need to examine the extent of lean adoption within the apparel industry of Bangladesh.

Many research findings demonstrate the benefits of lean manufacturing implementation. However, the impact of lean manufacturing on organizational performance in developing countries like Bangladesh remains unexplored. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of lean manufacturing system (LMS) on the organizational performance of the apparel industry in Bangladesh.

Empirical data were collected from 227 apparel manufacturing firms using a close-ended structured questionnaire. The causal relationships between the independent and dependent variables are examined by structural equation modeling using AMOS 20.0 software.

The results reveal significant evidence that the implementation of LMS has a direct impact on organizational performance in terms of operational and business performance.

The findings of this study will create a substantial interest among the practitioners of the apparel industry to implement LMS. This study will also explore the opportunities to develop lean implementation framework and identify the benefits that will enhance the competitive advantages.

This paper explores the causal relationships and argues based on the empirical data in the context of the apparel industry in Bangladesh.

The purpose of this paper is to explore an empirical investigation of the linkage between total productive maintenance (TPM), people management (PEM) and organizational performance in the apparel industry of Bangladesh. This study also explores the direct and mediating effect of TPM on organizational performance.

Empirical data were collected using a close-ended structured questionnaire from 227 small, medium and large-scale garment manufacturing industries. The causal relationships between PEM, TPM and organizational performance were examined using structural equation modeling.

The findings of this study have provided significant evidence that the PEM has both direct and indirect impact (through TPM) on organizational performance. The results of the analysis also indicated that TPM has direct and mediating effects on operational performance.

Data for measuring PEM practices and organizational performance were collected from the same source, assuming that PEM practices are uniform across the organization. Therefore, response bias is not unexpected.

This study explores the interdimensional linkage between PEM, TPM and organizational performance and argues based on the empirical data in the context of the apparel industry in Bangladesh. The apparel industry is a complex manufacturing system synchronizing man, machine and material. The findings provide empirical evidence that employee engagement and practice of TPM will enhance the operational performance of the apparel industries.

Visual merchandising has a direct impact on shopping experience, making it pertinent for the retailers to ensure that their store environment has an effective design. This study blends fuzzy numbers and Analytical Hierarchy Process to create a fuzzy evaluation model prioritizing the relative weights of visual merchandising dimensions of online fashion apparel store. This study will help the fashion retailers in creating more engaging and informative online stores leading to subsequent increase in online retail sales.

Visual merchandising dimensions and sub dimensions used by retailers for online stores were identified through review of literature and discussion with experts. Twenty experts were interviewed and their responses captured. The responses were analyzed using Fuzzy AHP technique resulting in prioritizing the dimensions according to the weight. For testing the stability of the results, sensitivity analysis was conducted.

Four key dimensions and sixteen sub dimensions were extracted. Weights were calculated using FAHP. “Pictorial Presentation” has the highest weight followed closely by “Product Information” dimension. Amongst the sub-dimensions “Number of Product Images” scored highest followed by “Product Presentation mode”. “Alterable Background” scored the least weight.

Previous studies have identified Online Visual Merchandising dimensions and have also studied the impact of some of these dimensions on consumer buying behavior, but the relative significance has not been determined yet. This study fills the gap.