As sustainability becomes a greater concern in all businesses, it is crucial to discuss how the fashion industry in Egypt may contribute to shaping a better world. During the Creative Industry Summit, an event that was held from September 23rd to September 25th, Manal Saleh, CEO of the Egyptian Clothing Bank and Almah, and Norhan El Sakkout, Founder and Creative Director of Saqhoute, shared valuable insights about the future of sustainable fashion in Egypt.
Sakkout, Founder of a luxury, sustainable fashion brand of the same name, elaborated on what it is like to be an owner of a slow fashion brand in a fast, demanding community like Egypt’s. As a brand, Saqhoute focuses more on craft and authenticity. That includes the kinds of fabrics used, the designs, and most importantly, the hours of work spent behind hand-making the piece of clothing. Taking all of that into consideration, Saqhoute became the luxury brand it is today. However, Sakkout clarifies that there are other ways to achieve sustainability in fashion on a bigger scale and a more available pricing.
One of those ways is upcycling. The importance of reusing discarded and excess material to produce a new product is one way to slow down the fast, mass production of fashion items that put the planet under more danger. When asked about what fabrics are sustainable and which are not, Sakkout mentioned cotton and linen as better options than what is found in almost every fashion store nowadays. Most manufacturers are using polyester and nylon, which are not only derived from fossil fuels but also release substances that are damaging to the environment. This act is mainly led by the consumer’s behaviour towards needing cheap and available pieces to always “keep up with the trend”.
This is why Sakkout encourages consumers to seek uniqueness in what they choose, buy, and wear.
As for Saleh, her vision is more directed towards what the Egyptian community as a whole can do to control, and hopefully stop, clothing waste. The CEO of Almah, a project of an NGO, states that her project has closely seen how significant the amount of waste that the fashion industry is responsible for. Saleh, echoing Sakkout’s words, reminds everyone of how Egypt is a highly consuming country, a highly producing country, and a highly importing country. Thus, Saleh reports that the Egyptian Clothing Bank received a call six years ago from a very well-known import clothing brand in Egypt asking them to take on 250,000 pieces of clothes without even considering it.
In addition to the tons of unnecessarily discarded pieces of clothing that meet their fate at the bottom of the Nile River, or burned, or even thrown away into the waters of remote living areas, causing their inhabitants a number of serious diseases. All of this illustrates how wasteful fast fashion is, and how vital it is for us as consumers to combat this behavior out of existence.
Instead, Saleh strongly encourages individuals to donate their unneeded clothes to the Egyptian Clothing Bank where they could circle back to someone else who might need them. Egypt is a 60% poverty rated country, and there are millions out there in need of clothes to do as minimal daily habits as going to university, to work, or even go out with friends looking presentable enough. If more people commit to practicing this, Saleh expects for most fast fashion stores to be out of business by 2030.
