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7.1 Introduction<br />
CHAPTER SEVEN<br />
Methodology of the Study<br />
Every day, worldwide, consumers aspire to be seen wearing brand-names that<br />
demonstrate their choice of the most fashionable clothing. The desire to emulate iconic<br />
personalities (and, by association, their status in society) by conforming to the trends they<br />
set, is reflected in the clothes worn by individuals from every walk of life. The human desire<br />
to attire oneself in the most up-to-date fashion is driven by marketing directed by the<br />
brand’s companies, fashion magazines and other conduits of social influence.<br />
Consumers who pursue and thereby create demand for fashionable brands and styles that<br />
rapidly change throughout the year, give little thought to the individual producers of these<br />
goods and the economic and developmental complexities behind what hangs in the end-<br />
users’ wardrobes. In South Africa, there is substantial academic research and public<br />
debate through the media focusing on the state of the clothing and textile industries.<br />
However, there has been very little research on the fashion designers themselves, who<br />
contribute in their own various ways to the rise and fall of the clothing and textile industries.<br />
In identifying this lacuna in the research, it was vital for me to provide a definition of the<br />
term “independent fashion designers”. For the purpose of this study, this term refers to the<br />
collective entity made up of those who create, market and sell their own designs - whether<br />
these be haute couture (high fashion) or ready-to-wear collections.<br />
7.2 Focus of the Study<br />
The study recognises that fashion designers do not work in isolation and are not excluded<br />
from the various local and global influences and factors that affect their business. The<br />
result of globalisation and the changes in the clothing and textile industries across the<br />
world have had either a positive or negative impact on designers’ ability to maintain<br />
successful businesses and to contribute to the growth and sustainability of South Africa’s<br />
clothing and textile industries.<br />
There are, however, a number of independent designers who are succeeding, even in the<br />
face of increased global competition. Therefore, the objective of this research is to explore<br />
and assimilate the experiences of some South African designers. Given that there has<br />
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