Closer look at fashion industry

19 Jul, 2020 - 00:07 0 Views

The Sunday Mail

Trade Focus
Allan Majuru

FASHION, which is more than just clothing, has for a long time been considered a status symbol.

It can also be a statement, which shows affiliations, values and ideals that elicit certain perceptions.

Countries around the world are continuously fighting to own the next fashion trend, which guarantees the influence a country has in the global clothing industry.

In a world obsessed with image, being top influencers of fashion trends also ensures that countries increase their exports of clothing and textiles across the world leveraging on areas of competitiveness and materials readily available to them.

The global market for clothing and textile, which is heavily influenced by fashion trends, has been growing over the past few years, from US$925 billion in 2015 to almost US$1 trillion in 2019, according to Trade Map.

Top global exporters of clothing and textile last year were China (US$324 billion), Vietnam (US$68 billion), Italy (US$49 billion), Germany (US$48 billion) and Bangladesh (US$44 billion).

In Africa, the total exports of clothing and textile in 2019, according to Trade Map, were US$18,3 billion.

Dominant countries were Tunisia (US$4,3 billion), Morocco (US$4 billion), Egypt (US$3,2 billion), South Africa (US$1,5 billion and Mauritius (US$687 million).

For Zimbabwe, the total value in exports of clothing and textiles in 2019 was US$62,3 million and concentrated within the regional markets such as South Africa, Mozambique, Zambia, Malawi and Botswana. Of this value, exports of cotton amounted to around US$42 million, while articles of apparel and clothing accessories, which are not knitted or crocheted, were US$12 million.

Although the nature of export markets is not a problem, the export figures show that more needs to be done if the fashion industry is to contribute meaningfully to economic development and national exports.

Figures from Trade Map suggest that the country is exporting more clothing and textile products that are not value-added, which translates to exporting jobs.

The huge contribution of clothing and textiles to national exports of some African countries is an indication of how they have harnessed the potential by developing crucial value chains that make it easy to increase output for exports from their economies.

This is also a result of the realisation that owning the next trending fashion creates a strong narrative for a country, which is an enabler for increased tourism and investment.

Further to this, paying closer attention to the fashion industries has potential to enable all provinces or groupings of people to impact on the global narrative and increase provincial exports.

In 2017, Louis Vuitton partnered with the Basotho tribe in making clothing from their traditional blanket garments, which retail for as much as R33 000 in Europe and other regions. This means that Louis Vuitton successfully turned a R1 000 blanket into a R33 000 high end luxury fashion trend for men.

With such examples, the script is there for Zimbabwean stakeholders in the fashion industry to increase exports and actively contribute to national economic development.

What is required now is to come up with an inclusive framework that can harness potential in all players within the fashion and clothing value chains, leverage on the Zimbabwean diaspora as well as address current challenges affecting the industry.

Currently, the Nigerian agbada (Nigerian robe) and dashiki (colourful pullover garment for men) as well as the aso oke hat (hand-loomed cotton cloth head tie, which originates from the Yoruba people) are slowly penetrating the US and England because of the growing population of Nigerians abroad.

Nigerians living abroad still embrace their ethnic roots and have a desire to wear their original clothes hence pride in their regalia is having a positive influence on the surrounding communities that they dwell in.

The result has been an increase in the desire for Nigerian attires abroad. This is something Zimbabweans need to emulate to grow fashion exports.

However, the starting point in influencing global fashion trends is defining what Zimbabwe will be known for, as part of its contribution to the fashion arena.

There is a need to quickly define the Zimbabwean fashion that can be easily made with locally available resources.

Perhaps the once suggested national dress idea could be re-developed and marketed to the global village especially our diaspora community.

The national style and fashion must be linked to our people and their cultural essence, something indigenous and unique to Zimbabwe as a country.

This allows local producers to control the means of production because communities and local groupings will be owners of the essential raw materials and ingredients for the successful production of that style and form of fashion.

It becomes the unique selling proposition not easily mimicked by competitors. This fair contribution and partition invokes a feeling of ownership to a fashion trend, which is a pre-requisite to a successful fashion statement.

This way, all participants will work under a unified force and create a strong brand that can compete on the export market.

Designers from different companies must collaborate in creating national trends.

Here they need to share information, skills and periodic updates of trends in the fashion industry, which can go a long way in developing enough numbers necessary for changing a global fashion narrative.

Designers must not shy away from using digital media to promote their products online as it is a cheaper and faster way to access a broad spectrum of potential clients.

Once trends and promotion channels are clearly defined, there is need to be deliberate in building local fashion and style brands for export.

Designers should be encouraged to develop brands as opposed to engaging in shift production. A brand is identified as having a greater net worth and its ability to weather economic storms is higher.

These brands must be constantly worked on with a bias towards the unique Zimbabwean selling point that will distinguish them on the international fashion scene.

Currently, ZimTrade, the national trade development and promotion organisation, is developing capacity in local small and medium enterprises in the clothing sector, with the assistance of partners from the Netherlands-based PUM and SES of Germany.

These activities have seen some companies improve their production efficiency, output and quality, which ensures that Zimbabwean products are commensurate with international standards and result in increased confidence and improved export figures.

There is need to develop capacities in young designers and youth-led businesses as they are creative enough to keep up with changing global trends.

Experts have come to realise that young people in the fashion industry of Zimbabwe are hungry for exports and as such, concerted efforts by all stakeholders must be made to nurture start-ups, which could be a remedy to the country’s economic woes in the not-so-distant future.

Further, stakeholders must engage closely and address challenges that continue to affect the fashion industry.

These include retooling as most producers are using obsolete machines which consume more power and raw materials.

A recent capacity development workshop organised by ZimTrade for designers revealed that some local producers are using design software 10 years behind current versions used by competitors in Europe and this makes local products uncompetitive on the export market.

In many companies, the gap between management and shop floor workers is glaringly huge.

This becomes a major bottleneck to progress because workers on the ground may not grasp the company’s vision fully.

There is need to create strong linkages between clothing manufacturers and learning institutions for continuous upgrading of local skills.

There are plans to establish a centre of excellence for the local fashion industry that will assist in improving the competitiveness of local SMEs within the sector. The centre will promote networks and foster co-operation between fashion and textile designers and other creative entrepreneurs, textile entrepreneurs and local mills.

The centre of excellence will be integrated with creative incubators for fashion students and upcoming artists for generation of “cross-over-effects” and learning.

Here, the centre will strive to improve the employability skills of the youth and to facilitate their access to international markets.

Allan Majuru is the chief executive of ZimTrade.

 

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