Indian fashion designers are making waves globally, helped by a diaspora market as well as Western consumers’ growing appreciation for Asian heritage clothing.
Brands such as Kartik Research — which in June became the first Indian label to make it to the official calendar at Paris Men’s Fashion Week — and 11.11, the debut Indian brand sold by online retail behemoth YOOX Net-a-Porter’s Mr Porter site, are “having a moment,” the Financial Times said.
Yet they face multiple challenges, from trade barriers to price points: “When people hear it’s made in India, they often ask why it’s so expensive,” one designer said. “What they don’t realize is that our country has the finest fabrics.”