How local fashion is growing and surviving in Egypt

When we think of locally-designed and manufactured clothes in the 90s in Egypt, an image of a brick-and-mortar florescent-lit store comes to mind. At least that’s the prevalent image from early childhood (we hear you millennials). Older generations would probably remember the good times of ‘Bata’ when they hear ‘local fashion’; the popular, cheap locally-manufactured shoes. Younger generations perhaps remember shoes from Zalat and Lutfy. Some can recall that many Egyptian homes found Malabes El Mahalla (Mahalla Garments), Jil cotton garments, and many other Egyptian brands that gained wide popularity among Egyptians reliable. These local brands were distinguished for high quality and affordable prices at their time.

While ‘local fashion’ as a concept has existed for long decades, in the current era we see that a few things have changed. Local fashion is now sold online, and has a large niche audience that is loyal to several brands that have established themselves over the past few years in the Egyptian market.