Made in France: myth or reality

Tomatoes that seem to be identical to one another have lost their eternal appeal to the public, who now search for tasty tomatoes grown closer to home, even if they are more expensive. Children need to learn once more that milk comes from cows and not from supermarkets. The veggie and health food trend has

become tantamount to local production. Now it's high time that the fashion sector follows in suit. But do we still have the knowledge and technological possibilities for local production? Can we make jeans in Europe, produce bags and purses and knit sweaters? And where? In this series FashionUnited investigates garment production in six European countries: Spain, the UK, The Netherlands, Germany, Italy and France - to shed light on the production possibilities that lie within our backyard.

In 1977, the clothing sector accounted for 650,000 jobs in France. By 1997 this number had dropped to 250,000, and in 2010 to 90,000. Brands have, to a certain degree, relocated their production due to the hourly cost of labour, which is about 30 euros in France according to the Coe-Rexecode observation centre. That amount competes against the hourly wage of 21 euros in southern Italy, 3 euros in Morocco and 0.3 in Bangladesh.

Although some higher-end clothing brands have relocated their production, a number of them have decided to continue producing in France. This rings particularly true for a many French luxury brands that require local expertise. It is also the case that certain brands see it as a question of patriotism. We remember Agnès B's call, launched in 2011, advocating the safeguarding of French "savoir-faire"; a call strongly echoed in pre-election period.

At times (this being a fairly new development) certain brands decide to return to France and, despite the costs that may be involved, only see advantages to local production; the famous triptych "quality, reactivity and creativity".

The president of Repetto, Jean-Marc Gaucher, is one of those who has repatriated his manufacturing to France. When he took over the head of the famous dance shoe brand, he confessed to having been inspired by the model provided by major chains like H&M and Zara: "key to the success of these brands, apart from the price, is the constant updating of the collections; each time the customer visits the store they are sure to find new items. I used this recipe for Repetto: the level of reactivity imposed by the tight deadlines between each collection, and Repetto's own level of quality and creativity, made the "made in France" option a natural choice". The CEO has no regrets; under his leadership this once declining brand has, over the last few years, been experiencing considerable and undeniable success.

An example that is increasingly being followed by the younger generation of designers, as shown in the operation "Designers Apartment", has been initiated by the French Federation of Couture. During Paris fashion week, "Designers Apartment" hosted the collections of twelve designers, who all manufacture under the "made in France" label, in a vast showroom. Needless to say, all the designers are enjoying success among buyers. Sylvie Maysonnave, artistic director of the show "Made in France", explains how the "made in France" label for young designers is "not about arrogance and much less about ethnocentrism; in fact, many designers working in Paris come from around the world, from Chile, China, Belgium. In fact, it's just another way of seeing fashion designers who tell the world: let's return to the artisanal value of our trade. It is a good opportunity to remember that the very essence of Paris, its appeal, its purpose perhaps, is the style, the spirit, but also the "savoir-faire" of workshops rich in history, culture and intelligence of the hand."

A major problem; training

Although the wave of low-cost country labour is not as predominant and some major market players have succeeded in diffusing into minds the importance and interest of "made in France," it remains true that the sector, as a whole, has to face up to a very real and major challenge; training. When Fleur Pellerin, delegate minister for SMEs and innovation, visited the show "Made in France," she could see for herself that this was one of the main concerns of the exhibitors. "There are no schools to train for the trades that we need," they lamented, "More needs to be done to communicate the attractiveness of our trades." The same story was echoed at the recent round tables held during the latest fashion festival in Hyères. Sidney Toledano had asked the State at that time to defend the luxury sector and increase its assistance to schools, emphasizing the need to invest more in training and fashion design. Fleur Pellerin has since recognized that the brands that are making efforts to communicate with vocational schools and colleges should be supported.

Another problem is transparency concerning the origin of "made in"; a product manufactured abroad but simply finalized in France can benefit from the label "made in France". It is still insoluble problem: on the one hand, Brussels wants to avoid everything that could be likened to protectionism, and on the other hand, many brands want to be able to retain some flexibility of movement. The latter problem does not however appear to be diminishing the power of attraction of "made in France"; 90 percent of "made in France" clothing products are exported worldwide.