The dust has settled and the pre-launch excitement has died down a bit in the back offices here at AskOkey. Now the hard work starts fulfilling the four-score preorders and ensuring that the MTM production line can coast along in fifth gear.
Some commenters have suggested that MTM is simply a ticked-up version of Ready to Wear, with minimal inputs from the design and tailoring side: while MTM is a factory operation, reflected first in the price and second in the absence of the trial fitting stage of the process, design, tailor involvement and human intervention are all still critical to making it work for the customer.
First, the AI measurement tool does its job perfectly, pulling over 80 data points from each customer’s photos. However, what AI does not understand, at least not yet, is the need for allowances. To apply the signature AskOkey style, body measurements are not sufficient: we need to make manual adjustments to each set before we start drafting and cutting. Tim, our head of clothing, is responsible for this and spends most of his time right now doing just that – manually checking everyone’s measurements.
Second, the signature AskOkey styles for jackets and trousers cannot be dreamed into a programmed cutting tool and then left to AI and its robot servants. The entire process has to be reconfigured to ensure that the collar, shoulders and chest are shaped correctly, and accommodate the preferences of each customer. Remember, made to measure means coordinating an industrial process around individual customisation.
Third, pushing a button and going to sleep does not guarantee that the next morning you will find row on row of AskOkey garments all perfectly made, lined up for boxing and shipping. Each product has to be checked at various stages during the process so that by the time it pops out at the other end, it does not have to be sent back to the beginning for reworking. Humans, and very experienced, observant humans are required to do this.
Enough said? Probably. When you order your first AskOkey MTM garment, you can be confident that we are not pushing a button and turning out the lights prior to a long, restful slumber. Your product, essential to us to keep our business going, and ensuring that you are pleased with it, gets as much human attention as possible, all the way from purchase to delivery.