SaaS Approach Helps Enterprises to Fight Against the Financial Tsunami

Garment World, January 2009

With the global financial tsunami, shortened fashion lifecycle, globalization, labour shortage, wage and material cost increase, and RMB revaluation, the garment industry is facing severe challenges and uncertainties. Governments throughout the world have been trying to address the financial crisis via various ways and inject funds to boost the economy, however, the market situation is still unfavourable. How to find ways out in this tough economic environment?

The key to success goes beyond survival, but how to strategically respond to the situation and turn uncertainties into business opportunities. Under the tough economic climate, only the strong ones will stay. Enterprises should utilize this period to enhance core values, improve management and prepare for the future.

A lot of enterprises recognize that technology information systems can help to enhance management, while at the same time reduce costs and improve information flow to maintain competitiveness. However, traditional ERP management systems normally involve high investment and risk. During the flagging economy, it will only become a corporate liability to spend a great deal of money on purchasing management software. How to apply IT at lost cost and low risk? A new concept in the IT industry, SaaS, can help enterprises to turn around the situation.

What is SaaS?

SaaS means Software as a Service, is an innovative service concept. Through the use of internet, it provides a simpler, faster and more affordable way for businesses to take advantage of powerful technology tools. SaaS is the best way to adopt advanced technology, it eliminates the need for enterprises to purchase, construct and maintain basic facilities as well as software and hardware, all are installed, tested and maintained by the service provider. By paying a fixed monthly fee, the users can get access to the applications and services through the internet.

How SaaS helps apparel enterprises to find the way out?

As a pioneer in the apparel management software industry, with over 20 years experiences in the development of application software, iGarment has been providing professional management system solutions for the apparel industry since 2001. iGarment’s systems meet an enterprise’s needs in a comprehensive manner, increase productivity and enhance competitiveness. Apart from these, the SaaS approach enables real-time information access, accelerates market response and provides quick return. All these help an enterprise to cut cost and create business opportunities.

During the economic recession, cash flow is the key for an enterprise to survive. SaaS reduces the upfront costs of applying IT to a minimum, eliminates the needs to invest in purchasing software, hardware and data center, the only thing required is internet access in order to utilize the application systems. With the savings from software application, enterprises can invest the money into other core businesses, thus reduces opportunity loss. In addition, iGarment’s SaaS approach emphasizes flexibility, there is no long-term binding, users can add or reduce modules and services according to their actual needs. Should enterprises find that the system is not suitable, they are free to terminate the service. This not only greatly reduces the financial impact and risk for an enterprise, but also dramatically accelerates the Return On Investment.

With SaaS, ongoing costs of software upgrading and maintenance, quickly depreciating equipment, recurring IT and support resources are reduced to minimum, resulting in long-term savings. This enables enterprises to better utilize existing resources, avoid extra investment. Through hardware resources sharing among multi-clients, SaaS turns variable costs into a predictable monthly expenditure, eliminates over-budget situations, and facilitates long-term business planning.

Due to the SaaS model’s tremendous economies of scale, customers receive much higher service levels from iGarment than they ever could achieve on their own. iGarment uses far more resources, state-of-art technology, facilities and procedures to ensure high information security, reliability and availability. Besides, customers can benefit from constant upgrading and maintenance service as well as technical support.

SaaS operates via internet, users can access to information anywhere and anytime, perform real-time operation, and respond to market changes quickly. iGarment’s professionalism relieves enterprises from the complexity of IT problems, allows them to concentrate on the development of core business.

In summary, a good IT management system helps enterprises to enhance core competencies and identify new opportunities. iGarment’s professional garment management system coupled with the innovative SaaS approach help enterprises to fully utilize resources, focus on innovative business growth, especially in the tough economic climate.