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SOUTH AFRICA FASHION WEEK
THE BUSINESS OF FASHION
Fashion has the power to bring about changes that
can have a substantial impact on our economic and
social lives. A key element in the success of the Creative Fashion Design Industry within a country is the
“luxury, ready-to-wear” collections created by designers. This creates wealth and employment for the full
value chain, from the textile designer right through to
the service sector.
We need to recognise the myriad of ways in which the
fashion industry impacts both society and the economy. The support and development of local designers
and manufacturers forms a crucial step in the development of an industry that plays a noteworthy role in
the economy at large.
In the Creative Fashion Industry all designers must invent their own work and at the same time their own
enterprise. They must design and create clothes for
everyday life and not only for important occasions
which are increasingly few and far between.
Highlighting the impact that fashion industries have on
economies across the globe, Giorgio Armani, one of
the most affluent designers, has amassed a fortune of
$ 9.9 billion with the Armani brand. Ralph Lauren is
currently positioned at $ 7 Billion, and Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana at $ 1, 65 billion each.
The German textile merchant, Karl Albrecht and his
family have accumulated the worth of $ 19.3 billion
through the platform of fashion and retail. Even as a
relatively “unknown” merchant to industry-outsiders,
it is evident that the magnitude of scope within the
industry is huge, and the affect it has on a country’s
economy is significant.
Primarily, we need to create a culture of excellence,
whereby design reflects the wellbeing of the wearer,
and the high-quality in each garment cultivates the
quality of everyday life. Vivienne Westwood, renowned British Designer and outspoken advocate of
conscious consumption and human rights,
embraces a mantra which SA Fashion Week identifies
with – “buy less, choose well.” It is this sentiment that
raises awareness for the environment and encourages
consumers to select well-made, high quality pieces
that last a lifetime.
We are living in an age when needs have been dispensed with. In all aspects of life, we are confronted
with multiple choices. This means that we must be
more discerning when it comes to choosing quality,
and in doing so, engaging with our surroundings
through understanding and knowledge.
South African designers are talented and capable, and
as such have the right to a place in the history of culture and fashion.
This talent, however, exists in a “single clientoriented” way and that is what we need to turn
around – designers need to become aware of the
power of the middle luxury market, and how they
can tap into that without losing their individuality
and originality.
We need to learn that a precise, unbiased and inquisitive eye is just as important as breaking with
the past to create something new. Designing a specific product, creating new identities constantly
season by season is becoming more and more important. After all, brands need continuity, while
fashion means constant change.
Designers have the power to not only lead the
country in Fashion Design but to create thousands
of jobs. Designers need to take responsibility for
their own future and succeed their businesses.
Lucilla Booyzen