German Textiles as a Brand

Fabric comes from Germany, but original styles are Lesotho.

In winter, when flu makes the rounds, we go through boxes of Kleenex, but they are not Kleenex. They are soft paper handkerchiefs we use to blow the nose, or wipe tears caused by a broken heart.

But, Kleenex, the brand name has become the common name. Coke is a soft drink made by a company, but it is now a common name for a brown soft drink. Writers seldom say Pepsi in novels.

I laughed when I got to England and saw Vaseline in a chemist. Mama used it on our legs, growing up in Africa. Mothers never say, go to the store and buy petroleum jelly. They say go and get me Vaseline.

Countries can also be brand names. Most African women have never been to Germany but they wear ‘isijalimane’ which means made in Germany.

Germany’s textile industry makes a lot of money in Africa, because it incorporates symbols and fabric colors that depict Africa. Take Lesotho for example. German manufacturers incorporated the Basotho hat, into their designs. You find this symbol everywhere in Lesotho: hotels, tourist places, shops etc.

Germany as a country is highly visible during weddings. Women decide on colours: bride’s party will wear blue isishoeshoe (German print) and bridegroom’s will wear red. Nobody thinks about Germany at a wedding. All they see are the two colours representing bride and groom.

Nigeria, aso-ebi, the uniform for bridesmaids and best men.

It’s even bigger in Nigeria with what is known as aso-ebi. The bride and groom wear the same textile, so do their attendants. What is on display in Nigerian weddings is not the ‘made in Germany’ fabric, but the skill of Nigerian tailors.

‘Isijalimane’ is the African version of a German textile, and an example of how countries become brands in their own right.

By: Nonqaba waka Msimang.