Key Characteristics of Luxury Fashion Supply Chain and Impact on Operational Performance: A Qualitative Study

Many companies are spearheading digital transformation initiatives, supported by the implementation of Operational Excellence (OpEx) tools, with the aim of enhancing production efficiency, minimizing lead times, and ensuring product quality. However, the luxury fashion supply chain (SC) presents unique characteristics and has not followed this general trend with the same pace or intensity. Specifically, this sector exhibits a slower adoption of OpEx and digital technologies compared to other industries. This study aims to conduct a qualitative analysis based on a series of interviews with three luxury fashion companies operating in France and Italy. The objective is to gain a deeper understanding of the distinctive characteristics of the luxury fashion SC before identifying the core performance dimensions it pursues. Key findings highlight the importance of prototyping, production processes, the imbalance between automation and craftsmanship, production strategies, brand desirability and the way they influence performance outcomes in terms of cost, lead time, quality, and flexibility. These insights provide the foundation for the development of a structured performance framework adapted to the luxury SC, with the potential for further refinement through the integration of performance metrics aligned with the Supply Chain Operations Reference (SCOR) model. This research target to contribute to bridging sector-specific characteristics with performance measurement, Lean practices, and Industry 4.0 technologies opening a path toward a comprehensive and adaptive performance management model for the luxury fashion SC.