Ermenegildo Zegna is a menswear company rich in history (http://www.zegnagroup.com/storia_e_sviluppo/la_storia/inizi) and one committed to the welfare of its workers. As a family run business, combining craft and vertical integration, it comes close to Scheler’s idea of the estate discussed at V&R Chapter 5. Reaffirming its couture sensibility, but with offerings at a number of price…
My previous post commented upon the habit of Italian fashion houses to defend the heritage not only of their brands but more broadly their country. Regular readers know that Cucinelli tops my list of most ethically managed fashion houses. His company is a fine example of Scheler (see V&R Chapter 5) and Burke’s moral thinking.…
Averse to revolution, Burke famously argues that civilization requires the handing on of its past to the future. Italian fashion houses take this charge very seriously (https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/22/fashion/fendi-sculpture-rome-giuseppe-penone.html?smid=tw-nytfashion&smtyp=cur&_r=0). Italians are leaders in teaching that heritage is not the enemy of the new.
A new blog post of mine over at: http://www.libertylawsite.org/book-review/contesting-the-re-primitivism-of-the-west/
The audacity of the following argument deserves the satirical notice of a Jane Austen: “Are new clothes a right, or a privilege? One of my friends (university-educated, politically and culturally liberal) only ever shops in H&M. Her reasoning: I deserve to look good. But do we? Is access to new clothes a human right?” (http://www.refinery29.uk/2017/04/149877/fast-fashion-social-issue).…
Gucci famously shot itself in the foot with a horrible brand dilution, saturating the market with cheap objects bearing its famous insignia. Manager director Marco Bizzarri is credited with rebuilding the integrity of the brand and did so in part by a Schelerian gesture: relying on the deep heritage of the company, he promoted from…
American Apparel was founded on a moral principle: no sweatshop labour. With clothes made in LA, the company was not exactly localist in its business plan but certainly more so than Under Armour, say. Recently purchased by a Canadian company, no commitment has been made to retain the basic moral character of the company. However,…
Signature design companies are investing in archives: Apple, Jaguar, Bulgari, and Dior are just some of the companies reengaging with their heritage (see http://www.ethicsoffashion.com/apple-bows-burke/). This is a good article about the Dior archive (https://www.businessoffashion.com/articles/bof-exclusive/marking-70-years-of-dior-with-a-new-strategic-archive?utm_source=Subscribers&utm_campaign=a0933ffd51-dior-tktktk-miroslava-duma-s-fashion-tech-lab&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_d2191372b3-a0933ffd51-417297929). Burke — but also Scheler — believes that moral and civilisational development must defer to the established manners of…
Fashion sits atop the moral problem of vanity. As per V&R Chapter 1, sometime in the eighteenth century vanity gained positive moral standing, albeit only in a nuanced way. The core problem of vanity is the over-estimation of self in face of higher and abiding truths: whether our fascination with glamorous refinement (fashion) competes with…
Nidhi Kapur — below — is the founder of Maiden Home, a reasonably priced American furniture company that is operating on localist principles. A discussion of her business, and other US manufacturers realizing the wisdom of Scheler, is here: https://www.fastcompany.com/3068744/moving-the-needle/made-in-america-20