"Norwegian design" - a category of its own?

It seems like the press, our local celebrities, and large parts of the national fashion scene regard Norwegian fashion design as a category of its own. But is not this in reality a way of underestimating it? "I support Norwegian design," they say, but is Norwegian fashion a kind of charity object needing support? Or should it better be able to compete internationally because of talent and market insight instead?

Rich, but small and not so motivated

It is no secret that the Norwegian market is microscopic. All in all we have about 4.5 million people, of whom only a certain part is urbanized, somewhat more affluent than our extensive middle-middle class, and into Norwegian design when it comes to personal preferences. - Designer clothes are costly compared to ready to wear items from the chain stores and shopping malls. Personally, I only started to even consider purchasing Norwegian designer clothes when my income reached 6 cifers, in dollars. How many women actually earn that much? In Norway, only about half of the population is employed at all, while about half of the women are said to work part time, often in low paid jobs. Are many of these married to partners with such incomes, whom are also willing to spend large sums on clothing when international design still aesthetically beat most of it?

Support in front of the cameras

Despite widespread affluence in Norway, taste is also still rather utilitarian and everydayish, while "celebs" run from the red carpet to the social welfare offices and then back again. Especially during the fashion week, they show up in borrowed feather from some of our designers, claiming to "support Norwegian design". Would not actually paying the designers for the outfits be a better support than just any PR? - It is not so certain that the ideal client identifies with young, overexposed people that are wellknown for being ... wellknown. Returning a sweaty, perhaps also damaged garment does not remind of neither respect or support, while a designer demanding money for repair et cetera is considered impolite ...

Sandbox catfights

Some Norwegian designers are so desperate to gain local fame that they supposedly even give away garments for free to this week´s it-girls. Others regard any other designer making clothes for the same sex as potential competition and try f.ex. to steal muses or sabotage the sponsorships of their imagined competitors. Of course such irritations decrease inspiration and concentration, but would it not be better to spend more energy on levelling ones own design and positive marketing instead? Accordingly, a designer publically bragging about the achievents of most often her "competitors" is misunderstoodly regarded as commercial suicide. I hereby say something positive about clothes from Leila Hafzi, Cecilie Melli and Iselin Engan: I think some of their garments are wonderful. I hope this does not ruin me for all future.

Money for nothing?

Fighting over the Norwegian sandbox seems in many cases to be in total vain: According to the financial magazine Kapital ("capital") this spring, less than a handful of Norwegian fashion designers have sufficient income to even support themselves or running their business without intravenous therapy from people that do support them. Otherwise, fashion design here is something to spend ones own money on. - A trade must be regarded truly attractive when one actually pays for conducting it, instead of the opposite!

The receipe of success is not a one size fits all concept

Producing prêt-à-porter garments in Norway is out of the question if margins are considered interesting, and they should. Ready to wear is, however, more suitable for Norwegian preferences than even more expensive and decadent couture. Norwegian brands that succeed financially all make wearable clothes according to Norwegian taste and usage. Thus they can be compared to any chain store, but in a smaller scale. The best current example is Moods of Norway, mentioned in HBR and spreading their business in the U.S, Macy´s included. Yesterday they were appointed ambassadors of Norwegian design by Oslo Fashion Week, certainly a more well deserved prize than giving it to one of ones own sponsors.

But any smaller design house, which is the most common in this vein of the fashion industry, cannot be compared to them, inter alia beacuse of a large difference in styles, type of clothing and business model. On the other hand, practically all of our internationally acknowledged designers are either cross-cultural or based abroad. - A point to ponder in a global economy? Our brightest design stars work internationally for already established luxury brands. Do they in reality have anything to do with "Norwegian design"? Does a birth certificate limit you to a national style, or to a micro market?

Compete internationally!

Norway has many fashion design talents that could function as ambassadors abroad. Please support the talents in reality too, by perhaps being a bit more selective in your homage and encourage what actually has the potential to compete internationally. Only at that moment of time we can brag about "Norwegian design".