Suiting yourself: fashion politics in the global marketplace
Professor Parminder Bhachu's research
A chic white woman enters a smart clothing shop in London. She wants to order a salwaar-kameez--a trouser/tunic/scarf ensemble also known as a "suit"--for an upcoming party. She spends an hour with the shop owner, a British woman of Asian descent, co-designing her outfit. The shop owner generates a rough sketch on paper as they talk and advises the customer on fabric choices, embroidery designs, beading, cut, and fit. The result of their consultation is not the traditional salwaar-kameez of northern India, but a suit that fuses a traditional style of clothing with local fashion tastes, according to the wishes of the customer.
How is what we wear affected by a rapidly globalizing economy? Does the global economy threaten our cultural identity? Can we demonstrate our politics through our choice of fashion?
In her recent book, Dangerous Designs, sociology professor Parminder Bhachu illustrates how cultural and gender identities are transformed as different ethnic and racial groups, once separated by geography, increasingly meet and interact as consumers and entrepreneurs in a rapidly globalizing economy. For Bhachu, the traditional salwaar-kameez, as "re-imagined" and now worn by women of all races and ethnicities in the United Kingdom, exemplifies that cultural transformation. The suit economy also serves to illustrate how once marginalized racial and ethnic minorities are able to use and shape the new global economy by drawing on culturally based knowledge and skills, and by taking advantage of new technologies.
Multiple migrants and improvisation
The suit entrepreneurs that Bhachu describes in her book are children of migrant Indian and Pakistani families, many of whom-as "multiple migrants"--have moved more than once. Bhachu observes that, upon moving to a new country, migrant women must continually adapt and improvise to maintain their cultural lifestyles, be it food choice or preparation, clothing design and production, entertainment, or the furnishings necessary for a home. Multiple migrant Indian and Pakistani women place special emphasis on being able to sew garments for their families, in absence of the tailors they would normally rely on in their countries of origin. Such women are continually reshaping their culture of origin based on what is available in their new countries, and as such creating new, hybridized styles.
Customization and the new capitalism
Bhachu notes that this ability to innovate and improvise has made it possible for many multiple migrants to fit easily into the "new capitalism" economy with its emphasis on tailoring products to fit the needs of the individual consumer. Bhachu sees the interaction between suit entrepreneur and customer as a critical component of a "new capitalism" characterized by flexibility, speed of service, and personalized attention. No longer are customers expected to be satisfied with "one size fits all."
From marginalization to empowerment
Bhachu also points out that the negotiation of culture in a global economy can make a political statement. In the early years of Indian and Pakistani migration to London in the 20th century, women wearing the salwaar-kameez were identified as immigrants and subjected to racial slurs and discrimination. By "re-imagining" the salwaar-kameez, British Asian fashion entrepreneurs and their customers have taken a garment that was once stigmatized and turned it into high fashion statement. Such trendsetters as Princess Diana and Cheri Booth, wife of Britain's prime minister, have now worn the suit.
Facilitating cultural interaction
Back in the London clothing shop, the designer finishes the suit sketch after her customer leaves. She then faxes the sketch to her production facility located, not in the UK, but in India. She might also make a brief telephone call to work out details and answer questions. Three weeks later, the completed garment is in her shop, waiting to be retrieved by the customer.
This example illustrates how the new capitalism is not bound to a particular location, but can link materials, services, capital, and customers around the globe. Bhachu's research shows how suit production-and cultural hybridization--is facilitated by communication and transportation technologies like cell phones, fax machines, and overnight delivery services that overcome distance in time and space. These technologies allow a vendor like the suit shop owner to remain "local" to her clientele, while taking advantage of materials and skilled labor located in other countries.
Doing the research
Bhachu, herself ethnically Indian, is also a product of multiple migrant culture. Growing up in London from the age of fourteen, she gradually became aware of the interplay between culture and globalization and decided to study anthropology at university. To gather data for Dangerous Designs, she spent one and one half years interviewing British Asian fashion entrepreneurs, seamstresses, marketers and customers.