By Luis Miranda
Just before the pandemic arrived, changing our habits, the way we relate, communicate, shop, and navigate life, Chilean fashion was experiencing a special effervescence: a developing amalgam, a creative momentum that brought together photographers, designers, stylists, makeup artists, schools, and fashion journalists who formed a small but thriving circle: the nascent Chilean fashion industry.
The pandemic came, and that long road traveled, those slowly built foundations, fell by the wayside; the fusion failed to gel. Fashion gave way to the emergency, and—like any luxury necessity in times of survival—lost prominence and attention. Bankruptcies that affected companies also affected the local fashion industry; the drop in sales also undermined its performance, and uncertainty gripped the area.
Ever since Chile decided to open its doors to the global economy, to trade with countries from all latitudes, the Chilean fashion industry began to falter. That's been going on for several decades now. Ironically, it was a virus that spread rapidly thanks to the ties of a globalized world that dealt another blow to the always-stumbling local fashion industry. After the military regime's trade liberalization, the first symptom was the bankruptcy of local textile companies in the 1970s and 1980s. During this last decade, the emergence of a local jet set allowed the consolidation of some names that stood out in the era of exaggerated shoulder pads and voluminous hair. Rubén Campos, Luciano Brancoli, and José Cardoch are some of the designers who established themselves during that time. Their successful workshops were an exception to the rule, in an era of deepening economic freedom that fostered the rise of malls and the arrival of foreign brands. The year 2000 arrived, and Chile was consolidating its position as one of the most economically open countries in the world, and its retail model was admired and replicated in neighboring countries. With the arrival of a new millennium, renewed momentum took hold of Chilean designers, rendered invisible by a fashion system that essentially depended on retail. Thus emerged GAM (Grupo Anti Mall), a collective of designers openly opposed to mall culture and foreign elements, who began to forge a new local fashion scene. Although they eventually dissolved, they were the first link in what the Chilean fashion industry is today.
What are we talking about when we talk about 'Chilean fashion'?
To write this article, I asked my Instagram followers for their impressions of Chilean fashion. I wanted input from someone with a somewhat average interest in the subject, as I believe my friends and followers on that social media platform are. "What Chilean fashion? There's no local industry," someone replied. And there are quite a few voices who believe there's no system that could be called an industry per se. The scarcity of locally produced raw materials, the lack of skilled labor, and the sales volume of what we call Chilean fashion would make it impossible to classify it as an industry. Add to that the lack of an integrated production chain, a fashion calendar, and limited marketing spaces, and the opinions of those who claim Chilean fashion doesn't exist would gain ground.
While our industry is precarious, it's still an industry after all. Its contribution to the country's GDP is still not significant, and there are still many areas to improve, but many people are contributing from their respective fields to achieve this. If there were no local fashion industry, how would we explain why Mercedes Benz, the promoter of many of the world's most important fashion weeks, has decided to hold several versions of its fashion week in Chile?
To define this analysis, we will understand Chilean fashion as that which is designed in Chile and produced locally, whether on a small or medium scale. Some call it "signature fashion." Personally, I don't like that term. All fashion is authorial; every design has someone behind it, so I find it misleading. If what that term means is the aesthetic particularity that the designer infuses into their creations, I would counter by saying that the aesthetic singularity that "signature fashion" seeks to express is a goal of every fashion brand. The logic of retail and department stores that outsource their clothing production to China doesn't fit into what we call Chilean fashion.
The absence of data.
Another comment that was repeated frequently in the survey I conducted via social media was the lack of state support for Chilean fashion. Perhaps it's not public knowledge, but the Chilean government has been investing in this discipline for some time now. It does so primarily through two public departments: Pro Chile, an organization that seeks to boost the sector's exports, and the Ministry of Culture, which has a division dedicated to design, where it has promoted local fashion through various initiatives. Unfortunately, no data is collected on these initiatives and activations, at least not publicly.
In 2016, a private effort led by Matriz Moda, Modus Sistema Observatorio UDP, and Quinta Trends produced the first figures for this sector. The "Economic Diagnostic Survey of Designer Fashion in Chile" provided valuable data that helped better define what we call Chilean fashion, its needs, strengths, and weaknesses. While the survey was applauded by all of us who work professionally in this field, it was not followed up. There are also no statistics from the sector's trade associations, let alone state data. Making sound decisions requires accurate and reliable information. Without comprehensive statistics for the sector, attempts to position Chilean fashion beyond our borders will be nothing more than activations with cocktails and sparkling wines. Industry players and local designers need qualitative and quantitative input from the experiences of their peers to act accordingly and eliminate uncertainty.
Horizon of solutions.
We could make this article much longer by breaking down the difficulties and diagnosing the Chilean fashion system. However, the recommendations are just as useful as the diagnosis, especially now that we have a renewed perspective after the pandemic.
Associativity: Most brands venturing into this industry are small businesses that formally correspond to small and medium-sized enterprises. In this context, the creation of links results in the reduction of information asymmetry, lower production costs, easier negotiations with suppliers, among many other benefits. Brands must stop viewing themselves with suspicion and see their peers not just as competition, but as potential allies.
Dissemination: Due to the unique nature of fashion, we need the validation of expert voices to reinforce consumption. I've often witnessed how fashion magazines and media outlets exclude local brands and creatives from their advertising, in response to their obligations to their sponsors. While it's plausible that media outlets honor their commercial commitments, it's also important to give local brands with interesting offerings the space they deserve. If not, where's the editorial effort? If not, what's the point of calling my magazine "Chile" if I only feature foreign brands?
Education: Fashion school graduates lack the multidisciplinary training required by today's world and design. A designer must understand patterns, molding, and technique, but they must also understand business. Many of the failed experiences in Chilean fashion have to do with this.
On the other hand, technical education is highly undervalued. We need designers, but we also need people who make what the designer created. I don't know a designer in Chile who doesn't complain about the lack of trained seamstresses.
Deepening digitalization: If we had to highlight a positive effect of the pandemic, it would be that it accelerated the digitalization of the Chilean fashion market. Many brands were forced to implement their online sales channels in response to the emergency. An online presence is no longer an option today; it's a must for any established business or brand. Virtual reality gives us the opportunity to create shopping experiences as memorable as those we can create in person, and at significantly lower costs.
Resilience: It's true that the opening of the economy and markets has done a disservice to local fashion, but it's time to stop crying over spilled milk. For years, I've heard various designers blame the paving stones for the failure of their business models. We must accept that the macroeconomic context is something that won't change anytime soon and that we must adapt to that system. Exploring the synergies that could result from collaborating with a retail brand is better than endlessly complaining. For now, we have a lot to learn from them, in areas such as logistics and distribution, for example.
Although the Chilean fashion industry has several structural flaws, I am convinced that they will be overcome in the medium term. The premise of a sustainable economy that encourages us to consume locally will favor the commercial performance of our Chilean creatives; perhaps the new Constitution will create a slightly more closed economic system that protects local producers from fierce and unfair competition with large conglomerates; new generations will continue to be interested in making fashion a source of employment, and thus, gradually, Chilean fashion will change its styles and colors.
Photography credits: Pasarela Valparaiso