Buying into design

STYLE

Fashion was never seen as a business to invest in until about the 1990s.

Previously, it was perceived as the language of an older regime, comprising mundane uniforms for the emerging rational elite; and superficial, since it was seen as nothing more than a recreational activity. This is now changing.

Assaulting designers for their lack of simple business sense, the business press has played an overwhelming role in shaping up the new frontier of Indian fashion "" leading the designer to sharpen his or her craft and oil the engine so that it emits nothing more than a balanced financial din.

Discouraged by the unanimous thumbs down that the press gave this profession as an industry, the financial community chose to remain silent. They shelved all paperwork until ideologies changed at the ateliers of the designers.

This time around a more organised, more transparent and, eventually, a more fully industrialised designer will rise from the ashes of the yesteryears.

The newfound amnesty from dictators of global trends and the movement of the business of fashion towards things local will help catapult the designer into the international orbit, coupled with big bucks and positive commerce "" if he or she so chooses.

After the opening up of the markets and national trade shows like the India Fashion Week appropriating the fashion discourse, a plethora of large international companies are policing the backrooms of ritual fashion shows to stumble upon opportunities laden with talent and potential in terms of brand value and profitability.

In a dog eat dog world, one of the biggest advantages international fashion houses are weeding out from the present "fashion" system on domestic grounds is that many "designer brands" are self-created in a rusty, yet self-sufficient method, and radiate a high octane of design for a fraction of the cost as compared to their counterparts in Paris, Milan or New York.

The textile policy too will be caught off guard to the sound of the new drum. The clear distinction between fashion and textile, folkloric costume and fashion, provincial decorum and fashion, uniform and fashion, and importantly, what is just not fashion and fashion, seems to have excited the sector from within.

Soon the chips will fall and set off a wheel of motion where possibly commercially strong and industrially viable blocks will emerge "" that we shall compare as smaller cousins of YSL or Armani.

A French fashion representative recently remarked, "The markings to look for the right designer will be crucial, as Indian designers become the flavour of the month."

Some important characteristics that are the source of their inspiration are: consistency, a global outlook on fashion with a super understanding of the local market and the ability to change and adapt while maintaining the local USP.

A brand that is very well established with an Indian look may get sidelined as the flexibility to grow may be limited, whereas brands with a good noise and less visibility may be a suitable option.

Lastly, it is crucial that all out there comprehend that today's designer with his new business sense has managed to create fashion shows that not only emit artistic expressions of their passion for the craft but also, quite appropriately, emerge as profit-making projects:

(1) A jewellery company introduces a jewellery range;

(2) A designer introduces the jewellery with their collection;

(3) The press praises the jewellery as a trendy idea;

(4) People buy the jewellery with clothes made by the designer because it is trendy to do so.

Today's fashion shows are a partnership between the industrial, the creative and the media that, in turn, makes the fashion industry "investor friendly and healthy."

So the next time you think of buying into design, whichever way it may be "" go for it!

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