|
 Since the ancient
age, there has been an intimate relationship between clothes and
humans. Clothing reflects the culture and progress of a society
and the personality of individuals. That is why we see diversity
in the design of clothing among different cultures and among
individuals. As the design of clothes is important to consumers
in terms of their taste and cultural orientation, fashion has
appeared as the driving force. But fashion or design is shaped
by dominant cultures as well as economic, environmental,
religious and political forces of the time.
Fashion has also been a global phenomenon long before the term
'globalization' came into being. What happens in the west
trickles into the east and meshes with local flavor and
determines the fashion trend. Only clothes and accessories of
garment and textile manufacturing do not represent the fashion
scenario. In the context of fashion, each decade has seen the
emergence of a new look and before that trend settles down
another appears.
Fashion design is
the applied art dedicated to the design of clothing and
lifestyle accessories created within the cultural and social
fabrics in a given time. Fashion design differs from costume
design due to its core product having a built-in obsolescence. A
season is defined as either autumn/winter or spring/summer. A
Fashion designer should be artistic and creative. They should be
able to express their ideas in sketches. They may not be
brilliant artists but are able to combine colors, shades, and
tones. Designers have the flair and knowledge for creating
fabric and using textiles effectively. Designers need to have
visual imagination and the ability to think in three dimensions.
 Bangladesh is proud
to have a variety of handmade crafts like Jamdani, Rajshahi
silk, Reshmi silk. Perhaps, the most famous yarn from this part
of the subcontinent is Dhaka Muslin, a superfine silk yarn
embellished with intricate hand embroidery. But it is a big
question now whether the brand exists in the market. While
talking to the Cotton Bangladesh designers, garments exporters
of Bangladesh say, “We do have Brand Bangladesh, but the
specialty of Brand Bangladesh for the most part, truly our own.
We weren't able to put up that sort of exposure for
international market.” Most of the designers of Bangladesh
runs their own boutiques and produces not only for a local
clientele but have participated in various international fashion
events. But the fashion design of Bangladesh is struggling to
strengthen its position in the international market. In this
literature, we will try to figure out the reasons of market
challenges of Bangladeshi fashion design and put together the
recommendations of experts to overcome this cataclysm.
The general problem
in Bangladeshi textile production is the small number of
available fashion designers. It is difficult to know how many
there are, as there is no organization for fashion designers.
The lack of fashion designers also means that whenever a
designer, trained in-house, moves to new place leaving the
former with no expert hand In “The buyer model,” the buyer
brings materials and designs, often the patterns, to the
producer. The producers learn how to make one particular design;
but they neither learn anything about the market research and
trend analysis underlie the design nor the actual act of
designing and the design management process.
Product development
makes sense only where there is a defined marketing strategy
based on sound market research. On the other hand, market
research can only answer to the known needs and wishes and has
to be combined with the innovative product development. Thus
designers need to ensure that they are innovating products on
the basis of solid market research.
The international
trade of textiles is highly competitive. Skill, design and
quality are essential. But, equally important is the need to
assess national and international demands and integrate them
into the production process. There is no doubt that very few of
the Bangladeshi designers know the international markets. There
is a unison cry in Bangladesh saying that they need help from
foreign designers to make their products marketable
internationally. This is even more the case if the products are
going to be developed into high-value niche products.
There are very few
designers in the garment industry or in crafts with a degree in
design. The ones that do have a design education are educated
abroad - many in India and some in the West. Some of the
designers working in the craft businesses have an education from
Institute of Fine Arts, University of Dhaka. Although this
educational background in combination with experience from the
craft businesses, in many cases seem to work well, some say that
a lot of people in the trade do not understand the difference
between an artist and a designer, “Design is planning step by
step and the artists do not know how to do that.” Others say
that the creativity exists, but the understanding of the market
is lacking.
 Designers, of whatever level of training, who can work for a
domestic market, are undoubtedly in advantageous position. The
practice of trial and error is certainly of value and a lot less
costly. The exposure to shifting trends allows a designer to
develop a sense of the market and, in time, the ability to
predict market trends and design with confidence to meet the
demands.
If a designer is
required to design for a foreign rather than local market, then
certain skills are not able to develop in a full and relevant
way. The problem is the same for designers either in industry or
crafts. In many respects, they are being asked to design for
'virtual' situations only. After all, very few of the designers
in these businesses will ever get the chance to visit the
markets they design for, let alone be able to spend time enough
in them to really develop an understanding of the nuances of a
situation. Accordingly, western designers can best help with the
designs for the export markets of Bangladesh. However, as the
local market is changing rapidly due to increased buying power
of internationally-oriented middle class, the products designed
for the export market may very well have a future in the local
market.
It is a good sign
for Bangladesh that The Fashion Designing profession has
recently emerged as one of the most demandable careers among the
youth. These young folks have their own creative style of
dressing and belief in setting a trend rather than following a
trend set by others. A career in fashion design not only
involves meeting glamorous people and interacting with rich and
famous but also gives an impetus to the creative flair of the
people who possess a sense of style. But still Bangladesh is
struggling to establish a standard in fashion design for
international market.
There are several
findings, which will explain the reasons why Bangladesh is
struggling in international market with their fashion design.
There is small number of qualified product designers available
in RMG sector.
“Non-qualified” designers having experience with product design
learn through trial and error and provide the
design services.
The concept of purchasing designs for manufacture has not
developed in Bangladesh.
The service providers have, in general, designers who do not
have any relevant training and education.
They are generally with 10-12 years of general education and
learn designing while in job.
Designers with art college background join the designing firms
but leave after few years. After then, they normally
set up their own businesses or work individually as freelance
designers
There is little creativity as the customer normally comes with
his/her own idea about the design
The designers are usually low-paid, as there is more competition
and cost-cutting. Many service providers have
closed down their ventures in the last few years
The clients bring their own design concepts but are not much
concerned about the quality of design. There is,
therefore, no demand of quality design work. The demand is
mainly for cheaper work. This is the reason why
designers with fine arts background do not stay in the same
designing house. They receive salaries lower than their
expectations.
The export market is buyer/buying house dependent. They bring in
their own designs for the production in Bangladesh.
To overcome this situation several tasks should be undertaken by
companies using design effectively. The tasks include
responsibilities such as:
Submitting proposals based on market research at a management
level on how design can be integrated into the
company's aims and objectives,
Thinking and planning strategically how design can be placed
within the company's structure to ensure optimum
interaction,
Recommending the use of design as business resource to generate
revenue and encourage cost reductions to benefit
the
company,
Assessing the risk factors in new design ventures and managing
innovation,
Actively seeking appropriate opportunities to use designers'
skills within the company,
Giving guidance to designers and others when necessary on design
practice in relation to the overall design strategy.
 The list mentioned is not exhaustive but does show some of the
crucial points, which can be put to good effect in the context
of businesses in countries like Bangladesh. Certain resources,
however, are required in order to encourage these kinds of
practices, most notably the trained designers who are able to
manage design. This use of design as a resource in business is a
long way off in Bangladesh. Many say that to be a full-pledged
professional designer, it is necessary to knock the door of
Design Institutes. A good institute will ensure that along with
the requisite theoretical inputs. A person will get adequate
practical exposure to the entire gamut of processes right from
the formation of textiles and fabrics to the most elaborate
design elements.
Several institutes
like BIFT, Shanto-Mariam University of Creative technology,
National Institute of Fashion Design, Pearl Fashion Institute,
Design and Technology Center, Lankan institute of fashion &
technology have started giving training of several kinds, like
merchandising, knitwear Design & Technology, apparel
manufacturing, marketing and merchandizing. Exporters say that
these institutions are not only very young but also very weak.
There are many warning voices being heard in Bangladesh as far
as cooperating with “non-established” institutions that may be
too weak to survive. On the other hand, the weaknesses also make
a need for support very obvious. But the academics are claiming
that the exporters are not cooperating with the institutions by
providing internship options for the upcoming designers from the
institutes. The students from these institutes are blaming the
exporters for not providing sufficient job opportunities for
them. The upcoming designers think that media can play an active
role in this sector. There is a large gap between the needs of
the textile and clothing industry and the supply of graduates,
be it in textile technology and/or in design. It
 should
also be mentioned that no institution in Bangladesh offers
master's level education or the opportunity of MPhil or PhD
research works in the field. Experts think that the teachers
from these institutes need further education, either through
higher education abroad or entering internships in (fashion)
companies. As far as student exchange programs can be developed,
this would most probably have positive effects both in industry
and in the partner design institutions.
The future of the
Bangladeshi textile production lies in the development of
high-value-added products, suitable for long-term export markets
and for the local market in short-term. In order to develop such
products, Bangladesh needs strengthening of its design
potential. This should mainly be done through training
Bangladeshi designers with the help of the foreign designers.
This way, product development and training in the workplace will
be combined, giving both short term and longer-term effects.
This is a large sector; supporting the newly established schools
through training the designers for this industry should be
considered as important investment for market sustainability.
Outfit design : Bibi Russell
Photo
Courtesy: Bibi Production |