Hugo Boss Gets Color Right with Suit Separates

Trendsetter Hugo Boss uses digital color assessment for “Mix & Match” suits

HUGO BOSS’ “Create Your Look” modular mix & match system enables different cuts, styles and sizes to be combined without compromising on fit and quality. The particular challenge with mix & match styles is that the quality and color of every bolt of fabric must perfectly match.

Accurate color measurement with Datacolor Benchtop Spectrophotometer

To ensure this level of color consistency, HUGO BOSS has developed a color evaluation procedure based on numerical color tolerances. The process begins with a 12x12cm standard that is used as a color reference for each bolt. A visual acceptability tolerance is first established in a light booth by evaluating a range of samples under various lighting conditions. That’s where a Datacolor spectrophotometer comes in.

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Time and cost savings for brands

Each color standard and sample is measured with a Spectrophotometer and strict tolerances for dL, da and db are set for each color standard. The HUGO BOSS lab in Metzingen currently uses the Datacolor 800 Spectrophotometer to develop these numerical color tolerances to:

Ensure brand quality with standards that can be communicated digitally

Achieve efficiency with at least 25% reduction in measurement time

Simplify operations, no profiling required with inter-instrument agreement right out-of-the-box

Keep operations running smooth with full backward compatibility with the existing fleet of instruments

“Finally, no more discussions about color appearance based on subjective perception. Moreover, HUGO BOSS is saving time and money by not having to dispatch color samples.”

Anja Sick, Senior Technical Operations Laboratory, Product Division Clothing | HUGO BOSS

Debating color appearance is a thing of the past.

The excellent inter-instrument agreement of the Datacolor 800 enables suppliers to then objectively assess whether their samples are within the specified tolerances, eliminating the need for the subjective visual evaluation.

This has resulted in significant time savings as there is no longer any need for HUGO BOSS colorists to also visually assess samples that have already been instrumentally evaluated by suppliers. Debating the appearance of a color using subjective perception is now a thing of the past.

The importance of high inter-instrument agreement

HUGO BOSS, as well as other well-known brands, requires rigorous color agreement between all instruments in their supply chain. This can only be achieved with a true close-tolerance spectrophotometer such as the DC800 which delivers precision, accuracy and fleet compatibility across their supply chain.

HUGO BOSS has been successfully using Datcolor products since 2008. Given the success of the digital color quality control program – supported by the ease of use and user-friendly design of the Datacolor 800 Spectrophotometer – HUGO BOSS’s priority is to expand its use into other areas.

Learn more about other Datacolor color management solutions for the apparel and textile industry!

Datacolor Spectro 1000 benchtop spectrophotometer.

Spectro 1000 Family

Spectro 1000 delivers the highest precision in Datacolor’s fleet of benchtop Spectrophotometers and is designed for high efficiency and confidence in color formulation and quality control.