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Rogerson endorses this view thus:
The future prosperity of the local clothing economy lies in value-added
design and manufacturing around certain niche products and markets,
which are viewed as having a real long-term potential to penetrate
specialist local, regional and international markets.
(Rogerson, 2006: 9)
Many of South Africa’s independent designers do not have the same influence in the
value chain as do their counterparts who work for retail outlets or manufacturers of “own
brands”, as the latter work to economies of scale, enjoying the benefits of large marketing
divisions and access to research resources that are used to capture their target markets
(Abecassis-Moedas, 2006: 416). As such, independent designers are reliant on other forms
of marketing and value-chain connections for the development their business, such as
word-of-mouth advertising, using fashion events for marketing and creating stronger ties
with manufacturers within the value chain.
Furthermore, due to the rapid turn-around of fashion trends, and the short lead-time
available (from conception to retail) for designs to be launched, independent designers
struggle to compete with retailers and manufacturers who have a number of designers
working on new ranges and so can turn out newly conceptualised designs faster
(Abecassis-Moedas, 2006). Many independent designers feel that the increasing pace of
the fashion cycle prohibits them from spending time on research, exploring different design
concepts and being fully creative in their production (Atkinson, 2002:117).
Even at the higher-end of the market, consumers are not willing to wait for long periods for
new designs to enter the market; also, with the heightened competition from retailers and
other designers, it is imperative for independent designers to get their products onto the
retailers’ shelves as fast as possible. Hence, it is critical for these designers to take up a
prominent niche in the value chain that underpins their business process, from the point of
creation, through production, to delivery of their made-up designs.
There are opportunities for South African designers to utilise CMTs, but in turn, the CMTs
themselves need to revaluate their business operations to maximise the opportunities
arising for them through the promotion of locally designed content. CMT operators need to
form sound and sustainable business relations – or, indeed, partnerships – with designers,
and focus on improving their production and service points. Current evidence indicates
that CMT operations are not adequately competent in high-end, quality production, and
this is impeding the utilisation of CMTs by local designers.
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