September 12th, 2013

fibre2fashion.com: Ports 1961 Picks Centric PLM to Manage Apparel Collections

LOS GATOS, Calif. Thursday, September 12, 2013 –

Ports 1961 has chosen Centric Software, Inc., for its product lifecycle management (PLM) system.

Ports 1961 will implement the full Centric 8 PLM suite to manage the entire product development process, including concept, design and sourcing. The company will use the patent-pending Centric 8 Collection Book for Fashion iPad app to link its women and men’s ready-to-wear collections from the PLM system to corporate and retail buyers in the showroom through an interactive mobile device.

Presenting collections to buyers quickly and accurately, the iPad app will allow Ports 1961 to update and portray catalogs in real time.

The company will implement the Centric PLM software to support the growth of its fashion-forward luxury collections, according to Enrico Franzoni, chief operating officer of Ports 1961.

“The addition of our recently launched menswear collection means more products to develop each season, with more operations in more locations,” he explains. “The Centric 8 PLM software will help assure the highest-quality products, further strengthening the Ports 1961 position in the luxury segment.”

Ports 1961 selected Centric 8 for its comprehensiveness and mobile strategy, and for Centric’s expertise in the fashion and luxury goods industries, says Franzoni. “Centric’s team and product are sophisticated and innovative,” he states. “Centric clearly is the best partner for Ports 1961.”

“The introduction of its new menswear collection means that Ports 1961 will be bringing more products to market than ever before. Collaborative product development, speed and efficiency— while maintaining the highest levels of quality — are critical to the company’s success,” says Chris Groves, president and CEO of Centric.

“By understanding the value of a comprehensive PLM solution for fashion that incorporates mobile strategies, Ports 1961 is not only fashion-forward. It is operating as a forward-thinking business.”

Ports 1961 is a vertically integrated, global fashion company that designs, manufactures and retails high-end ladies’ and men’s apparel and accessories.