Fashion as a tool in poverty eradication in Kampala

Abstract

Fashion, like the styles it portrays, has very many different interpretations. Fashion is “ a prevailing custom or style of dress,” first recorded in the early fifteenth century (Fashion, 2012a); however, it was around 1300 that a sense of the word developed originating from the word modus meaning ‘manner’ (Kawamura, 2005). Furthermore, Kawamura believes that fashion manifested through clothing, primarily associated with dress and adds value to the garments. Fashion is characterized by change which is non-constant (Rovine, 2009). It is difficult to give an exact definition because there are many differing interpretations of the concept as the meaning of fashion has changed with the social customs and habits of different societies over time (Kawamura, 2005). However, I believe fashion refers to something that has been created which I may call trend or a style at a particular time and in a specific context. Today even the idea of fashion as a phenomenon is contested and disagreed upon. Fashion for the purposes of this study will include clothing, jewelry and handbags which are used to adorn the body. As such, it all encompasses a range of other equally justifiable forms such as hairstyles, makeup, body paintings, tattoos and scarification. In this study, fashion will be limited to products primarily produced and purchased for wear on the body. In regards to fashion role in poverty eradication, the most commonly found forms of fashion are clothing, jewelry and handbags which is why the definition will tend to favor these forms as the primary sources for fashion in this study.