While many of us follow the diktats of fashion pundits or international trends when it comes to purchasing clothes, our culture, values and the social environment play a huge role as well. And for many of the seventeen crore Muslims in India, their choice of wardrobe is led by their faith. So far, discerning Muslims have had to rely on family or friends living in Dubai or make a quick shopping trip to the city themselves for fashionable yet modest garments of superior quality – but that’s about to change.
Mubarak Deals, a Bangalore-based venture, provides vendors catering to the Arab and Muslim diaspora with a common platform to exhibit and sell garments. Retail business will not be restricted to online activity alone; the four founders – Naeem Akhtar, Somashekhar Kanna, Chidannd Hebbale and Padmakar Pratapure – intend to set up almost 50 physical stores based on a franchise model throughout the country by 2017. Indian and foreign brands will join the bandwagon to provide a range of conservative yet trendy clothes and accessories.
The ‘Mipsterz’ or ‘Muslim hipsters’ video on YouTube, with young Muslim women dancing to Jay-Z’s track, “Somewhere in America”, is a clear indication that colourful headscarves, embellished abayas and tights in animal prints is Gen X’s take on following what’s in vogue, without compromising their cultural identity. Fueled by demand from this style conscious segment, the Islamic fashion market is expected to grow worldwide to a staggering $327 billion by 2019!
It’s no wonder then, that Mubarak Deals wants to cash in on the opportunity by bringing together vendors in this largely unorganised sector; not to mention, that India also has an abundance of labour (both skilled and semi-skilled) as well as raw material available at relatively low prices, which makes it the perfect location for a startup of this kind.
For those who believe in conducting their lives within the rules laid down by their ethnicity or religion, this venture is “mubarak” news indeed.
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Featured image source: The Atlantic
Words by Pavi Sagar
