KARACHI: Pakistan’s largely undocumented fashion industry says it needs government patronage rather than tariffs and taxes to thrive but remains clueless about its worth or the contribution to the national economy.

A multi-million-rupee industry that remains mostly unregulated particularly in sphere of labour, is rife with incidents of harassment of vulnerable new entrants, and identified by experts as one of leading sectors evading taxes.

Over the years, fashion weeks have become a prominent fixture in Pakistan’s mainstream and social media, with the glitzy events getting a lot of press internationally, mostly for defying Taliban threats and presenting a softer image of the country.

With Fashion Pakistan Week Autumn/Winter (FPWAW) 2014, a major industry event, just around the corner, Dawn reached out to designers and other stakeholders to assess the economic potential of fashion weeks and the industry.

Though the designers vehemently denounce the label of ‘cottage industry’, they also shy away from associating with the textile industry.

Take II PR’s Tehmina Khaled says that it will be a while before fashion weeks will translate into money and become an active contributor in the national exchequer “but it should not dissuade us”.

“A fashion week on an average costs around Rs10-15 million now. The first fashion week I did along with Ayesha Tammy Haq and Rizwan Baig was in 2009, but five years on none of the designers received a major order,” she said.

“But look at it realistically. It takes a while to get the buzz around and establish the fashion week. It is taking us longer because of Pakistan’s law and order situation. Not many foreign buyers want to visit Pakistan,” she added.

Questionable contribution

Fashion is a $1.5 trillion-industry globally. The fashion business in New York is worth $98 billion generating nearly $2bn tax revenues annually. The fashion industry and clothing sector in France alone has an estimated turnover of $100bn annually, with Paris Fashion week playing a pivotal role.

The Milan Fashion Week 2014 helped Italy as it struggled to emerge out of recession, with earnings expected to reap revenue of $85.63 million. The London Fashion Week contributes $46 million annually to the city’s economy.

But Pakistan’s fashion industry, which wants tax relief, has no numbers to support its contribution.

Fashion Pakistan Council, the organiser of FPWAW 2014, in a statement to reply Dawn’s queries said that it is a non-profit organisation that has been working for the promotion of fashion and talent. It provides to both upcoming and established designers a broad spectrum of facilities for a fee ranging from Rs75,000 to Rs125,000 against which the they get facilitation of models, makeup, choreographer, backstage support and media coverage across leading TV channels. However, no mention was made of the budget or the revenue it generated.

A number of designers contacted by Dawn declined to comment on how much the local fashion industry is worth but insisted on tax relief and government support.

“Recently the FBR issued a notification to tax fashion designers for their services. So now we have to pay 10 per cent even if we sketch a design, forget about production,” says Deepak Perwani.

“If you start imposing taxes already when it’s just stepped off from its infancy stage, it will stop growing. We are hearing that ‘come March and all these billboards for lawns will be up, there is so much money. There are people who are making money but there are also those people who are trying to understand the market dynamics. Three years ago we had over a 100 lawn brands, this year there were only 60. Give the industry a chance to flourish,” he pleads.

Growth potential

Meanwhile, Secretary TDAP Rabiya Javeri Agha says ‘fashion weeks highlight trend and create future enterprise for exports’. “In fashion weeks you may or may not get the relevant buyers but you do get foreign press which acts as a bridge for future opportunities.”

Summing up, she said: “Most importantly, fashion weeks help domestic commerce. So far, we are moving in the right direction. If we didn’t sell to Bond Street or Oxford Street, we shouldn’t say it’s no good. We have to look at the domestic market where a lot of young people have buying power.”

Published in Dawn, November 23rd, 2014