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9.5 Cluster Initiatives The cluster concept is the coalescence of various enterprises that make up the informal clothing sector, including traders, manufacturers, suppliers, and contractors for equipment maintenance (Rogerson, 2000). Clusters can also provide advantages, such as easy accessibility for training and healthcare, which could be done in situ. Local government, NGOs and tour organisations could promote and provide opportunities for tourists to visit these clusters and purchase locally made products. A challenge would be to prevent, or find ways to circumnavigate, the replication of products or saturation of the market. Some researchers of the cluster concept have noted this type of challenge as being typically overlooked, as clusters tend to “focus on the passive benefits” (McCormack, 1998:11, as cited by Gannon, 2002:17). 9.6 The Johannesburg Fashion Cluster The development of the Johannesburg Fashion District is a primary example of fashion development in South Africa. Utilising abandoned office buildings in the inner city the creation and objectives of the Fashion District was not only to promote South African fashion, but also to create opportunities for new designers to enhance their skills, provide space for them to exhibit and sell their products (Rogerson, 2004). Many of the entrepreneurs that took this opportunity were “black South Africans who had started their clothing businesses in a township or the inner-city flatlands of Johannesburg” (Rogerson, 2004: 20). Since 1998, a number of initiatives have taken place to support this cluster of “formal and informal clothing producers and suppliers” (Rogerson, 2004:23). In the study, Rogerson identified the following concerns for new designers entering the fashion business. There was limited support services available to micro-enterprises located in Johannesburg. Serious deficiencies were that few training institutions, either in the formal or informal sector, were available to these enterprises; no business advice or quality control centres existed to provide support. (Rogerson, 2001, cited in Rogerson, 2004:24) Having identified these concerns, the Fashion District found ways to address such issues through the development of SEWAFRICA, which provides training for new designers over a period of one year, thereby providing them with enough practical knowledge to enter 112
formal fashion tertiary institutions to enable the designers to obtain formal qualifications. In 2006, SEWAFRICA was one of the 39 finalists in the 2005 Proudly South African Homegrown Awards. In 2004 the Fashion Shack was developed within the Fashion District as a retail space for new designers, giving access for designers to the various facilities provided within the Fashion District, such as pooled machinery and administrative assistance for a period of two years (Davie, 2004). 9.7 New Fashion Clusters in South Africa A new fashion district is being planned for the eastern side of Johannesburg (Wilson, 2006). Called the ‘Fashion Capital’, R24 million has been allocated to create retail outlets, an outdoor fashion ramp, restaurants and economic links with the 100 CMT operations already existing in this locality. The City of Tshwane’s Economic Development Department has created a new project called Fashion in Africa that assists in the promotion and development of young fashion designers (www.tshwane.gov.za). In Durban, a group of designers and clothing manufacturers have come together to work in conjunction with the Durban Chamber of Business, and have plans to establish a Durban Fashion District called “Freshly Made in Durban”. The aim is to bring all the “various sectors that make up the industry in Durban together. The growth of clusters targeted towards the functional element of design within the clothing and textile industries is an indication of the importance of design to the South African economy. The formulation of clusters is one method of creating a cohesive environment for the growth and promotion of clothing design in South Africa, but it is important that these clusters are operated and managed efficiently, to ensure that they become profitable incubators for the designers and auxiliary service providers necessary for their work. When interviewed about the promotion of Durban-based designers, the Chairperson of the planned Durban Fashion District (Interview, 26/6/06) said that the Durban Board is engaged in talks with the “city fathers” on this concept, and that the estimated cost for the development of the Durban Fashion District would be in the region of R35- to R50- million. The respondent said that the plan, when implemented, would create employment not only for the designers but for the various businesses and individual service providers linked to the clothing and textile industries. The respondent said that the Fashion District 113
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Declaration This study represents t
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Abstract A fundamental change in th
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8.10 Comments on the Clothing Indus
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CHAPTER ONE Introduction A Sicilian
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esearch on the global clothing and
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2.2 The Global Industry - post-2005
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they are starting to go back home,
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Fashion is acknowledged as a vital
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fashion designers cope with these u
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natural fibres: wool and cotton; ot
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By the 1950s, Durban was the specia
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Lu Jean Clothing, closed its operat
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Due to South Africa being a middle-
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pivotal role in sustaining and deve
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This table shows that there are far
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Late in 2004, SACTWU reported that
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Basic Conditions of Employment Act
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environments, the erratic payment o
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A feature that is advantageous to C
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(Mokopanele, 2006). Deputy Minister
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Figure Three Profits before tax R m
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Further import figures collaborate
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share the space, none showed any in
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CHAPTER FIVE The South African Fash
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eiterated the need for local manufa
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women owners of the South African l
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5.4 China’s entry into high-end f
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6.1 Introducing the Value Chain CHA
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developed. Apparel operations can u
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“ripple effects back into manufac
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Page 64 and 65: in their designs. Embellishment als
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Page 70 and 71: critical resource for profiling Dur
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Page 78 and 79: Peter Bosman (Interview: 3/7/06) Bo
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Page 90 and 91: manufactured off-shore and resellin
Page 92 and 93: Iqbal (Interview, 18/7/06) was outr
Page 94 and 95: These events run concurrently betwe
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Page 106 and 107: With regard to suppliers and the ma
Page 108 and 109: divisive environment prevails in th
Page 110 and 111: 9.2 Suppliers Policy Recommendation
Page 114 and 115: would also create business opportun
Page 116 and 117: shackled to either the large retail
Page 118 and 119: Appendix One Letter by the research
Page 120 and 121: endorsement by economic giants such
Page 122 and 123: Primary Interviews with Designers S
Page 124 and 125: "There should also be more engageme
Page 126 and 127: References Ascol, Nina. 2004. The G
Page 128 and 129: Fakude, Gordon. 2000. ‘Informalis
Page 130 and 131: Naidu, Sanusha. 2005. ‘South Afri
Page 132 and 133: Vlok, Etienne. 2006. ‘The Textile
Page 134 and 135: Robbins, Tom. 2006. ‘SA fashion d
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