Press Release - INSIDE OUT

Inside-Out: South African Fashion Designers Sewing Success has been published by Just Done Productions – Publishing.

This book explores the relatively uncharted but growing fashion sector and the contribution of indigenous designers to South Africa’s clothing and textile sector.

 

The author investigates the experiences of and problems faced by local designers in producing garments with a uniquely home-grown signature, meeting consumer demand in terms of price and volume, and being competitive in the current context of the global and local market. Despite enormous challenges, numerous South African designers are achieving success in different ways and in so doing, have established viable business operations through perseverance and creativity in a highly competitive environment.

 

The research into this subject offers a comprehensive view and assessment of two large and important fashion events in South Africa – the Durban Fashion Week and the Durban Designer Collection. This study, along with the views expressed by the participant designers, articulates a profound need for more – rather than fewer - fashion events, and argues for greater collaboration and mobilisation around this area of enterprise. In so doing, the findings deepen the debate prevailing in the industry as to the significance of the role played by designers and the ways in which a broader spectrum of marketing platforms could strengthen the economic growth of this sector.

 

The author presents a tableau of an apparently fragmented realm of business, characterised by the tension between individuals’ ambition for status and the collective imperative for sustainable solutions, in an industry under threat from cheap imports and the obstacles posed by a globalised economy.   

 

Inside–Out is a valuable resource for academics, business practitioners, development specialists, marketing and media analysts and policy-makers with an interest in fashion design and the wider context of clothing and textile manufacture and beneficiation.

 

“The study is an interesting read, and the story Palmi tells resembles what many people and firms across the globe, today and in the past, have experienced. The China-link in my opinion is interesting.”

Professor Patrik Aspers, Stockholm University.

 

“An informative and an interesting read in terms of the current state that the industry is in.”

Gavin Rajah – South African Fashion Designer

 

Renato Palmi has a MA in Development Studies from the University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, diplomas in marketing and production management, and has many years’ experience in commerce and NGO work. He lectures on Fair Trade and ethical approaches for consumer consciousness within the context of the global and local clothing industries, as well as on fashion marketing and brand creation.

 

Price: R140 discounted to R95

Purchase from http://www.justdone.co.za or for those who do not have internet access contact us

via fax 086 505 2478

or John 083 3888 290

International buyers may order on http://www.Lulu.com/justdone