For years, fashion manufacturing has lagged behind—slow, rigid, and resistant to change. But with the rise of e-commerce and post-COVID shifts in consumer behaviour, the limitations of this outdated system have become increasingly clear. Consumers now shop online, expect variety, and demand quick turnaround, forcing brands to keep up with rapid trend cycles.
Despite this shift, the backend remains stuck, leading to massive inefficiencies. Globally, inventory losses have soared to $160 billion, or nearly 8–10% of all apparel sold. This deep-rooted inefficiency led to the birth of ZYOD. Positioning itself as a new-age, tech-powered manufacturing platform, ZYOD is tackling fashion’s inventory crisis.
In a freewheeling chat with IMAGES Business of Fashion, Ankit Jaipuria, Co-Founder of ZYOD talks about how his company is bringing agility to brands, something which is no longer optional in today’s fashion world.
When was ZYOD launched, and what was the vision behind starting it? What services do you offer?
To give you some context, I come from a textile business family, so I have seen the fashion industry up close since childhood. It’s always been operationally heavy and inefficient, and even today, most of it still functions the same way it did a century ago.
Post-COVID, there was a major shift in consumer behaviour. Earlier, people bought clothes offline. Today, they shop largely online. This shift pushed brands to launch more styles at a much faster rate. Earlier, there were two seasons – summer and winter. Now, brands follow multiple seasons like spring, fall, autumn, and even ‘back to school,’ increasing the number of styles released annually.
However, the backend manufacturing ecosystem had not evolved. It lacked agility and could not keep up with this demand. This resulted in significant inventory losses – about $160 billion annually in the retail apparel market, nearly 8–10% of total production.
That’s why we launched ZYOD in January 2023. The vision was to use technology to modernise fashion manufacturing and make it agile and efficient. Our services focus on three key pillars:
- Faster turnaround time – reducing production cycles from 6 months to 6 weeks.
- Flexible MOQs – offering as low as 100–200 pieces per style, compared to the industry average of 2,000 pieces.
- End-to-end design-to-delivery – providing everything from design services to manufacturing and final delivery to warehouses.
Do you plan to launch a private label?
No, we are a purely B2B company and intend to stay that way. Our goal is to be the ‘railway tracks’ for fashion brands to run their trains on and not become a brand ourselves.
Who are some of your key clients?
We work with clients ranging from startups to major players like Reliance, Aditya Birla, Landmark Group, FirstCry, Rare Rabbit, Satya, Myntra, and NEXT. We are also in talks with global names like Zara and Mango.
How are you integrating technology into your business model? Are you also offering trend forecasting or demand prediction?
Our technology integration is entirely focused on the backend supply chain — from design to delivery. We do not offer demand-side solutions like sales prediction or trend forecasting. Instead, our goal is to make fashion manufacturing agile through three main pillars:
- Design Intelligence:We break down subjective design elements into objective attributes — such as fabric type, garment length, sleeve length, neck type, and colour. This allows us to analyse patterns at a granular level. Using these insights, we provide AI-powered design recommendations to brands. For example, we might suggest that cotton maxi dresses in green animal prints have performed well historically.
- Modular Digital Manufacturing:We have created a modular component library of pre-digitised patterns and garment elements. Instead of starting from scratch, we mix and match ready components, significantly reducing turnaround time and enabling lower MOQs. Our supply chain is digitally connected – from fabrics to patterns – enabling smart, aggregated production planning.
- Factory Operations Optimisation:We use real-time tracking at the labour level to optimise worker productivity and quality. We monitor which workers are performing well, identify recurring quality issues, and improve factory efficiency. This results in faster turnaround times and reduced manufacturing costs.
What sustainable practices do you follow at ZYOD?
Sustainability is at the core of ZYOD’s values, and it starts with our focus on reducing inventory losses. Most textile waste ends up in landfills, and for us, sustainability follows the principle of reduce, reuse, recycle. The first step—reduce—means cutting down on overproduction. This not only helps the environment but also improves our customers’ bottom line.
The second step involves working with sustainable fibres such as organic cotton and recycled polyester. We’re actively launching a range of these products for our customers. To be honest, this is largely driven by brand demand—the more brands ask for it, the more we can scale it. Our responsibility is to provide best-in-class quality at the best cost, so brands can adopt sustainable materials without taking a hit on margins.
Lastly, we ensure that the factories we work with follow strong social and ethical compliances. This includes fair wages, PF and ESIC benefits for workers, and safe working conditions. By focusing on this social and ethical side, we’ve seen a real, positive transformation in the lives of many workers since ZYOD entered their ecosystem.
How do you maintain quality control at scale?
For quality control, we have implemented real-time tracking across every stage of production—not just at the end. Our checks happen in-line, mid-line, and end-line, meaning quality is monitored throughout the production process.
In fact, most issues are addressed early on, even before production begins—during fabric inspection and testing. That alone solves nearly 50% of quality problems.
Once production starts, we use digital quality tracking modules that allow us to take proactive, real-time actions.This data also feeds into a predictive analytics model.
What trends are shaping the apparel manufacturing industry today?
- Inventory Light Strategy:Brands are shifting from high-volume, low-variety to low-volume, high-variety models.
- India’s Manufacturing Rise:With geopolitical shifts in Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, India is emerging as a stable and preferred manufacturing hub. FTAs are also progressing, boosting India’s prospects.
- Digitisation:Manufacturers are now more open to digital tools. There’s a clear shift towards agility and efficiency, driven by platforms like Myntra and Ajio. The message is clear: adapt or risk becoming irrelevant.
What are the biggest logistics challenges in India?
The apparel sector is still labour-intensive. Our challenge is to move faster and capitalise on global demand before it shifts elsewhere. Also, policy clarity is crucial. India needs better PLI schemes and trade agreements. For instance, Bangladesh enjoys duty-free exports to the UK and US, putting India at a disadvantage despite being a textile-rich country.
What is your international footprint?
We have teams and offices in Spain, Tokyo, the UK, and Australia. Today, we serve clients in over 35 countries across the US, Europe, and Asia-Pacific.
Tell us about your expansion plans.
Our goal over the next 3–5 years is to help increase India’s share in global fashion exports from the current 2–3% to around 6–8%. In a trillion-dollar industry, this would position India as a leading global hub for fashion manufacturing.
