• Fashion & Textile Research Journal
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.139-148
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• 2016

There is an expanding global network of free trade agreements (FTA). High-quality, comprehensive free trade agreements play an important role to support global trade liberalization and are explicitly allowed under the World Trade Organization (WTO) rules. An FTA is an international treaty that removes barriers to trade and facilitates stronger trade and commercial ties that contribute to increased economic integration between participating countries. Korea benefits from the global FTA trend; however it has started and developed FTA negotiations later than other countries. Current FTA agreements exist with Chile, Singapore, EFTA, ASIAN, India, EU, Peru, USA, Turkey, Australia, and Canada; in addition, there are ongoing negotiations with China, Colombia, New Zealand, and Vietnam. FTA open up opportunities for the textile/clothing industry to expand businesses into key overseas markets. FTA improve market access across all areas of trade to help maintain and stimulate the competitiveness of textile/clothing firms. This study examines the expansion of free trade agreements in light of changes in the international trade environment and the status of the Korean textile/clothing industry. Korea's textile/clothing export/import products and concession of tariff, country of origin covered under Korea-US/China FTA are investigated to identify problems. This study provides practical and policy implications for the textile/clothing industry in regards to the Korea-US/China FTA.

• Fashion & Textile Research Journal
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.358-363
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• 2013

Due to recent changes in increased life expectancy, economic power and social development, the new senior generation (focusing on people in their fifties) represents a new market power with strong competitiveness. The new senior generation is the generation after the baby boomers, with characteristics that include a high-level of education, increased income, a high-level of consumption, increased assets, self-fulfillment desires and individuality. Demands in the senior fashion industry are expected to gradually increase and the underwear industry that targets the new senior generation is expected to grow rapidly. These demands will require product development for the new senior generation based on emotional and socio-cultural characteristics. The current new senior underwear market is under the process of R&D with a focus on body shape changes; however, there are limited studies on emotional and socio-cultural approaches. This study formulates a basic design plan for different age groups based on an analysis of the situation of bra wear (current inconveniences, demand and needs) by women in their fifties and over. Subsequently, a functional active bra top that considers activity and comfort was proposed for women in their fifties, an all-in-one foundation bra top that shapes the body was proposed for women in their sixties, and comfort bra tops that are comfortable and easy to put on and take off were proposed for women in their seventies and over.

• Fashion & Textile Research Journal
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• v.25 no.5
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• pp.549-559
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• 2023

Along with the transition to the fourth industrial revolution, the possibility of metaverse-based innovation in the fashion field has been confirmed, and various applications are being sought. Therefore, this study performs meaning structure analysis and discusses the prospects of meta fashion using big data. From 2020 to 2022, data including the keyword "metaverse + fashion design" were collected from portal sites (Naver, Daum, and Google), and the results of keyword frequency, N-gram, and TF-IDF analyses were derived using text mining. Furthermore, network visualization and CONCOR analysis were performed using Ucinet 6 to understand the interconnected structure between keywords and their essential meanings. The results were as follows: The main keywords appeared in the following order: fashion, metaverse, design, 3D, platform, apparel, and virtual. In the N-gram analysis, the density between fashion and metaverse words was high, and in the TF-IDF analysis results, the importance of content- and technology-related words such as 3D, apparel, platform, NFT, education, AI, avatar, MCM, and meta-fashion was confirmed. Through network visualization and CONCOR analysis using Ucinet 6, three cluster results were derived from the top emerging words: "metaverse fashion design and industry," "metaverse fashion design and education," and "metaverse fashion design platform." CONCOR analysis was also used to derive differentiated analysis results for middle and lower words. The results of this study provide useful information to strengthen competitiveness in the field of metaverse fashion design.

• Journal of Fashion Business
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• v.13 no.5
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• pp.135-148
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• 2009

The purpose of this research is to examine changes in Japanese fashion design through analysis of the background and characteristics of 'Japanesque Modern'. With the advent of globalization and pressures to enhance international competitiveness, key players in both Japanese government and industry feel an urgent need to establish a distinctive brand for its products. 'Japanesque Modern' was launched in January 2006 as a nationwide campaign through the support of the Japanese Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI). 'Japanesque Modern' strives to be a national movement, enhancing Japan's brand image while promoting continuous industrial innovation. 'Japanesque Modern' unites Japanese culture, design, and aesthetics with advanced technology, bringing traditional concepts to enrich contemporary life styles. In order to exemplify the 'Japanesque Modern' ideal, existing market products and content that reflect the concept were selected for the 'Japanesque Modern Collection' by the Japanesque Modern Council. In making these selections, the Council emphasized criteria based on three Japanese spiritual values: Craftsmanship; Manner; and Hospitality. As a result, three designs concepts have emerged in the 'Japanesque Modern Collection': the 'convergent method'; the 'conversion method'; and the 'emphasis method'. This research will explore these design concepts and their relationship to 'Japanesque Modern'.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Costume
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• v.38
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• pp.193-211
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• 1998

Without a solid marketing system in placed, the fashion industry cannot flourish on out-standing design or technology alone. Even though the significance of collecting and analyzing information, merchandising, and retail distribution is recognized, these functions are not firmly rooted or prevalent in our industry. In contrast, Italy which possesses similar demographic traits such as the lack of natural resources and other physical factors has succeed-ed in globalizing its fashion market by responding swiftly and exercising flexiblity to its constantly changing consumer demand. This in turn has earned Italy the competitive edge in the global fashion arena. Italy's unique management skills and operation know-how, along with successful market strategies come into play in bringing competitiveness to Italy's fashion market. Firstly, smaller companies with ability to adopt swiftly to the ever changing market. Secondly, fashion friendly social environment. Thirdly, niche marketing through highly specialized system and differentiation. Fourthly, timeless innovation through intense corporate competition. Lastly, establishment of foundations to support the industry through diverse networking. The alone building blocks have formed a basis for erecting an unparalleled market with a reputation for excellence in design and quality in the global fashion world. This study has examined how Italy's fashion industry has evolved from an underdeveloped textile business into a cutting edge fashion in-dustry. Italy's unique business processes and practices were studied to come up with a collection and merchandising ideas in a niche market. By selecting this venue we are able to continuously grow and develop in a market with diverse consumer needs. To analyze the Italian fashion market, data from 3 institutions were utilized, namely, CIT-ER which has provided consumer trends and sales analysis, SITA,a data service provided statistics from the textile and apparel businesses, and NBI has also furnished valuable data. Italian consumer preference, buying behavior, consumer profile, retail channels and other related data from the above institutions has formed a backbone for market segmentation and target markets, and as a result, we were able to zero in on the type of consumer, produce, pricing and retail channels for our womenswear. Going forward the direction is to elevate product image and pretige, and create syn-ergy between related industries, and at the same note, in order to develop internationally recognized brands such as Max Mara and Benetton. Certain elements such as the specialization of the fashion industry, alon-g with fashion-related data base and systems support, and most importantly experts with acute fashion sense and capacity to analyze pertinent data are in need. I firmly believe that we can achieve Italy's level in the fashion market with support from the government and unrelenting effort within the industry itself, and hope that this report can prove to be useful.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.34 no.5
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• pp.856-865
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• 2010

Many efforts to develop the domestic fashion industry have continued under the influence of a rapidly changing fashion industry environment. The fashion industry has emerged as a future growth industry leading lifestyle and as a core industry for the culture biz. Since the 2000's the markets that combined party and fashion wear as a new cultural trend has grown and an in-depth study of design development for party wear is required. This study presents basic materials for design development for the future domestic woman character casual brand prior to the design development by analyzing design characteristics of domestic female character casual brands. In the research methods, nine brands were selected based on the discussion of ten fashion specialists and then the brand concept, target, configuration of items, price, and design characteristics were analyzed. The following conclusions were drawn from this study. First, each brand concentrated the main focus on establishing a clear and unique brand identity that meets the needs of consumers to enhance competitiveness in the woman's dress market. To enhance competitiveness, many character casual brands targeting women aged 20's and 30's (including BEART) held party wear goods exhibitions as the market for party wear has increased significantly. Second, according to study results of the selected nine brand designs, it was found that the style characteristic of each brand varies depending on concept. However, all nine brand designs developed various styles such as feminine and cute style making use of laces, ruffles, A line silhouette, colorful motifs, and a stylish style that used layers with various materials along with unique decorations based on romantic emotions. Third, seven hundred and thirty eight pictures of nine brands were analyzed by items without identifying brands. According to the result of the analysis, the percentage of items used by brands was as follows: a one-piece dress was 34.5%, jacket 25.7%, skirt and pants 15.5%, blouse and shirt 13.6%, and tops 10.6%. The result showed that one-piece dresses accounted for the highest percentage. Frill accounted for 16.6%, the highest percentage followed by ribbons at 16% in regards to detail and trimming.

• Journal of the Korean Home Economics Association
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• v.44 no.10
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• pp.9-20
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• 2006

Due the globalization trends of industry environment, not only fashion companies of the developed countries but also those of NICs and the developing countries are pursuing to globalize their businesses. This study was conducted (i) to identify the characteristics of international marketing mix of Korean fashion companies operating in oversea fashion markets and (ii) to analyze the performance of Korean fashion companies related to international marketing mix. The data were collected from inter-Korean fashion enterprises. A questionnaire was distributed to a person in charge of international division/international trade division who doing business in domestic market and a person in charge of a local subsidiary in oversea market. The methods of analysis used in this study were factor analysis, cluster analysis, and one-way ANOVA. The results of this study are as follows: First, according to factor analysis and cluser analysis, Korean fashion companies were classified in four (4) clusters. The fashion companies in Cluster I put their priority on price. The companies in Cluster II are traditional fashion companies which have relatively low power of product and price. The companies in Cluster III put their priority on product, and the companies in Cluster IV put their priority on local market. Second, according to ANOVA, a growth rate of sales make significant difference among 4 clusters and Clusters II and III were comparatively high in performance.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Costume
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• v.64 no.2
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• pp.84-97
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• 2014

This research aimed to explore strategies to develop the cashmere industry in Mongolia. Questionnaire consisted of questions regarding the necessity of development in different sectors in the cashmere industry, and areas of necessary competition for the development of Mongolian cashmere industry. In addition, characteristics of respondents and their companies were questioned. Surveys were distributed to people working in cashmere manufacturing companies in Ulaanbaator, Mongolia between July 25th, 2012 to September 3rd, 2012, and a total of 79 questionnaires were included in the final analysis using descriptive analysis, t-test, one-way ANOVA, and Duncan test. Results showed that respondents perceived design as the sector that needed the most improvement, and product related strategies such as product quality, product differentiation, and design were more important than distribution or promotion related strategies. The perceptions on the development strategies differed according to company size and their target markets (domestic vs. export). Overall, respondents working in smaller companies showed greater concern for most sectors, and also felt technology, product quality and design were more important than those in working in larger companies. Companies that targeted the domestic market showed greater concern for herding and scouring sector than companies that exported, while the latter evaluated government policy, network, distribution/export channels more importantly than the former in developing the Mongolian cashmere industry.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.30 no.7 s.155
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• pp.1001-1011
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• 2006

In the fashion enterprises of today, there are many kind of inter- enterprises' collaborations which are related to the strategic management for reinforcing their competitiveness in various fields. These inter- enterprises' collaborations, which began to increase in 2000, will increase even more in the near future. This study carries out the findings between collaborating companies' and their partners' characteristics and the actual conditions of collaborations through the responses of fashion enterprises' key employees. A questionnaire was answered by 194 key employees of the fashion enterprises in Korea and the analysis was completed by frequency analysis, cross tabulation analysis. The results of this study are the following; 1. Most of the enterprises of the same fashion categories collaborated with the promotion companies as their partners. The enterprises of different fashion categories collaborated strongly with the distribution companies as their partners. The strongest reason of the collaboration was for rapid product supplying to the market. 2. With regard to the management resources, the relationship between the collaborated companies and their partners had been formed by mutual assistance. Also, there were positive relationships between the collaborating companies and the partners concerning business reputation. The results of this study generated some valuable information that can be used in the fashion industry.

• Journal of the Korea Fashion and Costume Design Association
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.115-132
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• 2023

The globalization of Korean culture has spurred a steady increase in the participation of domestic fashion designers in global performance art. This study analyzes the formal elements of stage costume designs by fashion designers, and further evaluates the impact of these designers' aesthetic philosophies on overall performance. This analysis seeks to provide a foundation for the development of new directionality in performance art, with an enhanced competitiveness derived from diversity and creativity. The scope of this research spans 15 performances and eight fashion designers' works in the post-2010s era. These performances are characterized by their break from traditional artistic norms, illustrating the modernization of the performing arts and reflecting the designers' aesthetic philosophies. This modernization incorporates inspirations drawn from a diverse selection of movements, such as fusion, culture clash, kitsch, and minimal avant-garde. As a result, in combination with a pure reflection of the designers' aesthetics, these designs heighten overall performance, suggest a new direction for traditional performance art, tap into a popular sensibility to expand communication to a wider audience, and push the boundaries of tradition through artistic innovation.