Zara: It for Fast Fashion – Case Analysis
Part 1: Executive Summary
This case focuses on the Spanish retail giant, Inditex and how its largest retail chain Zara has been so successful through its simple business model of speed, flexibility, and high fashion. As of 2002, Inditex had six separate chains: Zara, Massimo Dutti, Pull & Bear, Bershka, Stradivarius, and Oysho. Each chain operates independently and is responsible for its own strategy, product design, sourcing and manufacturing, distribution, retail. Zara is by far the largest, most profitable, and most internationalized of the chains.
In 2003, Zara's CIO must decide whether to upgrade the retailer's IT infrastructure and capabilities. At the time of the case, the company relies on an out-of-date operating system for its store terminals and has no full-time network in place across stores. The problem to the company is to decide whether it has to upgrade the present system and by doing so, risking the reliability they have with the current system or to continue with the present DOS based system which will not be compatible for future changes or improvements.
Part 2: Issues Identification
In 2003, Salgado, head of IT for Inditex, must decide whether to upgrade their pilot retailer - Zara's IT infrastructure and capabilities. At the time of the case, the company relies on an out-of-date operating system MS-DOS for its store terminals and has no full-time network in place across stores. In the short term, the going MS-DOS based system seems to be working perfectly without any issues since it has been in place for decades, however, in the long run, Salgado has two major concerns:
1. Software - Operation system
Zara’s POS is running on MS-DOS operation system which has no longer being supported by Microsoft Inc. DOS has completely been replaced by Windows when Windows XP was released in early 2001 and since then Microsoft Inc. stopped supporting DOS. This means Microsoft Inc. is no longer updating DOS or releasing any new version. All the
This case focuses on the Spanish retail giant, Inditex and how its largest retail chain Zara has been so successful through its simple business model of speed, flexibility, and high fashion. As of 2002, Inditex had six separate chains: Zara, Massimo Dutti, Pull & Bear, Bershka, Stradivarius, and Oysho. Each chain operates independently and is responsible for its own strategy, product design, sourcing and manufacturing, distribution, retail. Zara is by far the largest, most profitable, and most internationalized of the chains.
In 2003, Zara's CIO must decide whether to upgrade the retailer's IT infrastructure and capabilities. At the time of the case, the company relies on an out-of-date operating system for its store terminals and has no full-time network in place across stores. The problem to the company is to decide whether it has to upgrade the present system and by doing so, risking the reliability they have with the current system or to continue with the present DOS based system which will not be compatible for future changes or improvements.
Part 2: Issues Identification
In 2003, Salgado, head of IT for Inditex, must decide whether to upgrade their pilot retailer - Zara's IT infrastructure and capabilities. At the time of the case, the company relies on an out-of-date operating system MS-DOS for its store terminals and has no full-time network in place across stores. In the short term, the going MS-DOS based system seems to be working perfectly without any issues since it has been in place for decades, however, in the long run, Salgado has two major concerns:
1. Software - Operation system
Zara’s POS is running on MS-DOS operation system which has no longer being supported by Microsoft Inc. DOS has completely been replaced by Windows when Windows XP was released in early 2001 and since then Microsoft Inc. stopped supporting DOS. This means Microsoft Inc. is no longer updating DOS or releasing any new version. All the