Entrepreneurial Culture in the Schmatta Trade
Categories: Corporate Culture | Entrepreneurialism | Leadership | Family
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Paul Orfalea
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6:14 PM
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Some of the upscale thrift stores along Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles organize their used clothing by decade. Browsing through the racks, one sees that the items from the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s are vibrant, daring, and in surprisingly good condition. They were obviously very well made. One also notes that nearly 100% of these shirts, dresses, skirts, jackets and pants were made in the USA.
Watching HBO's documentary Schmatta: Rags to Riches to Rags, I thought about how lucky I was to grow up in the garment industry in the 1950s and 1960s. The film focuses on New York, but Los Angeles also boasted a world-famous garment district, where my father's company was located.
You wouldn't know it looking at the labels in your clothes today, but not too long ago, the garment industry was one of America's primary economic drivers. The makers of Schmatta present the industry as a microcosm for our nation's overall economic changes.
Producer Daphne Pinkerson said, "I felt that there was no way to really understand what had happened to manufacturing in this country unless you put it in a historical context. ...There was this incredible diversified economy, with sales reps and managers, division heads, designers, craftspeople, small business owners. It wasn't just people bent over sewing machines in sweatshops. ...But you can see in the footage, all these people from small business owner, upper middle class, white-collar positions and down, talking about what an incredible industry it was and how much fun it was."
Growing up in that environment was the best business education I can imagine. There was this Gestalt for us kids of the garment industry: we were raised in an environment where business was exciting, empowering, and completely natural. The industry was a huge network of family businesses, and even though it was fiercely competitive, everyone in the business was still family. Dad treated his coworkers like gold. We always had these fantastic holiday parties, and it was not at all uncommon for his salespeople to call or visit the house at any time. Competition was everywhere, but there was a sense of excitement in the feeling that everyone was out to get you.
Children of the schmatta trade include legendary entrepreneurs Mel and Herb Simon. Sons of a New York tailor, these brothers founded and operated shopping malls all over the country. A story about Mel, who died in September, illustrates how the culture of the garment industry flowed in his veins. According to Mel's New York Times obituary, Forbes asked this real estate titan why he personally took a call from a merchant upset about signs in his parking lot. "Why should he talk to a stranger?" replied Simon.
Laurie Menke remembers accompanying her father Alex, who was in the factoring business (providing credit to the fashion industry), on his visits to the garment district in LA. "We were showered with gifts everywhere we went, because people treated their vendors like family, and they LOVED their products, and wanted to see them on teenage girls like me."
Schmatta director Marc Levin notes irony in the American garment industry's decline: "[Fashion is] about what's in, what's hip. And what became fashionable in the last 30 years was union-bashing; was shopping; consuming, not saving; commodifying everything; not necessarily worrying about quality or craft; speculating, not necessarily investing." In other words, the fashion business went out of fashion.
I like to think that entrepreneurialism never goes out of style, but as the generation of business leaders and entrepreneurs who grew up immersed in the schmatta trade retire over the next few years, I wonder what industry will produce the next great wave of American entrepreneurs.
Comments
Vincent Vo wrote on 11/06/09 6:19 PM
As a 21 year old college student, I can only imagine a time when the garment industry was as large as it was in the US! One company I can think of that has created a unique niche in American clothing is American Apparel, a vertically integrated clothing manufacturer based out of Los Angeles. The company markets to a younger adult demographic and has had success selling "made in the USA" clothing overseas.
My speculation about what the next wave of entrepreneurs will be focused in is alternative energy. Americans will be looking for cheaper and more sustainable solutions to their energy needs as oil become more unattractive.
Chanel Ball wrote on 11/06/09 7:07 PM
I like your point about the quality of clothing made then compared to now. My mom saved some of her clothes from when she was growing up and they are in great shape! And with recent fashion styles being recycled from when she was growing, I have actually worn some of what she saved. I love it not only because no one is wearing the exact same thing as me but because it is better quality than what I will find in the stores now. I have also noticed that there is a mindset of needing to shop and consume a lot. Many people I know, including myself occasionally, will act like there is a need to go shopping and buy more clothes because of the excuse“I don’t have any.” This is completely untrue if you look at all the clothes that my friends and I actually own. Unfortunately with the quality of clothes declining, there is some truth to the increase in consumption. The clothes don’t last very long which makes us consume more. I will sometimes buy something and only get to wear it a few times before it breaks down in the wash. I am trying to revert to the idea of “quality before quantity” and I wish that we all would.
Denise Bono wrote on 11/07/09 9:11 PM
It is very interesting to think about how the fashion industry in this country has lost its appeal. It seems like most companies today are more concerned about spending less money on manufacturing, unlike the days when the garment district was a major hub of clothing production. Only a small fraction of my clothes are made in the USA because companies would rather find the cheapest labor possible in other countries. The value of this industry is decreasing because there is nothing special about mass producing poor quality clothes to feed our society of overconsumption. That is why I have always admired vintage clothes. They seem to tell a story of an exciting time in fashion when people took pride in their craft. These clothes are now collectibles and people buy them like a piece of art. I cannot imagine many people in the future looking to our clothes today and seeing any historical or artistic significance.
Jacki Iwanski wrote on 11/10/09 3:40 AM
Is it challenging to find quality clothes in today's retail shops because everything is made in large quantities and outsourced from locations like China and Taiwan. Not to mention, fads go in and out rather quickly, so designers have to keep thinking of the next big thing. I agree with Denise that clothes are losing historical and artistic significance because they simply don't last as long. It's annoying because most affordable garments are poorly made, so you end up having to spend too much money to purchase long lasting pieces. Vintage clothing is definitely in style due to its unique quality, yet it's hard to determine whether it will continue to be popular. There is entrepreneurial opportunity in producing clothes in the United States since it is so rare, but this may not be a realistic option. The challenge involves producing affordable products when supplies in the US are more expensive than those abroad. American Apparel thrives because its products are plain, easy to produce, and cost a little more since consumers appreciate their quality. However, it may not be feasible to produce more intricate, American-made products like those of the 50s and 60s in today's economy.
Kami Tolar wrote on 11/10/09 6:25 AM
Before I read your blog, I honestly had not realized how much the fashion industry has changed. It is somewhat discouraging to hear how fashion production has shifted from eager business owners to sweatshops in other countries. I think that a product has more value when it is made by a person who takes pride in his or her work. It seems like we are sadly drifting away from clothing that was made with personal ownership to clothing that is mass produced in countries all over the world by under paid workers. It will be interesting to see what happens next to the fashion market.
Lauren Wagner wrote on 11/10/09 11:07 PM
I never really thought about the decline of the fashion industry before reading this, but it's true. No wonder vintage clothes are becoming more popular. Where's the pride in making clothes these days? Everything is mass-produced to meet our excessive consumption needs. And the sad part is, the people working in those sweatshops are hardly benefitting from this mass production. An interesting company is American Apparel. While they do mass-produce everything, they have managed to vertically integrate the entire business. Every part of the business process takes place in LA, and they don't send production work overseas.
I think the next great wave of entrepreneurs will come out of this "green" environmental movement.
Mary Pepper wrote on 11/05/09 5:43 AM
Happy to read your observation on 2nd hand clothing - definitely better made, vibrant colors, clever designs. Something else I've noticed - when trying these 'older' designs, i'm a size 6, when in 'today's clothing I'm a size 4. Have manufacturers applied 'creative sizing' to make use feel 'less fat'???