Kalistani Major History

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Sulari and Kaliburg Fashion Houses aim to displace foreign designers
Domestic Designers highlight conservative ensembles for Fall
Sulari, Duchy of Suldanor
October 17, 5510


Del Valle's Fall Line (top) focuses on lines, while DiGioia's new Fall Line (bottom) offers more for those who like colors

The world of fashion rarely reflects popular tastes: Fashion is such because it generally leads popular tastes, reflecting the vision of artists and aestheticians, who practice the philosophy of physical beauty. And this year, both major Sulari fashion houses, the long standing Del Valle house in Sulari and the upstart DiGioia House in Kaliburg, seem to have drawn from the same artistic well. Both Houses take their cues for this Fall's fashion lines from Her Imperial Majesty, the Empress herself, and in doing so, aim to create a specific Kalistani fashion that can not only rival international fashion within the Empire, but can also compete in the world.

The silhouettes of both Fall collections are smooth, professional and conservative. "We really wanted to do something that not only highlights the femininity of those who buy our pieces," said DiGioia founder Maria DiGioia, of Kaliburg, "But we also wanted to present an image of someone who is confident, and really kind of in control of the situation. I also wanted to do something more with colors. My inspiration of course was the fashion of the Empress, who always appears in conservative attire, but she always seems to throw some color in her outfits too, which is very attractive and often reflects a season."

Kalistani fashion houses have maintained a low key presence in the Empire since Del Valle was launched almost 180 years ago. "This is a competitive advantage thing," said Del Valle CEO Reginald Gleeson. "Right next door is the fashion capital of the world, and try as we might, we will have a hard time keeping up with their scale. So it is far easier for our customers to simply import their clothing from Lourenne. But we also know that there is a huge market for regular clothing in Kalistan, and our country does make functional items like jeans and shirts and jackets and such very well. And we obviously have done well enough selling to niche markets of those who prefer to buy domestically and support Kalistani industry and designers. And to date, we've seen growth in not only our fabrication units, but also our design teams. To me, that says that domestic fashion is on the move, and now we are seeing our first serious competition in Kaliburg..."

Whether Kalistani firms will be able to compete internationally is a mystery, however. "I think if we put out a good product that looks smart and pretty, there is a market," said DiGioia. "Our research shows that Kalistan has some minor prestige internationally, and people do consume our culture. But our main competitors are not Lourenne, which dwarfs the entire world and tends to lean more into Haute Couture. We also don't compete with the fast fashion that comes out of some parts of the developing world. Our main equal is Luthori, whose industry, like ours is growing. Placing Kalistani designs in Luthorian stores will take some doing, but with some aggressive marketing, and continually producing new, tantilizing, and practical designs, Kalistan is certainly in a position to give Luthorian Fashion a serious run for their money internationally."

DiGioia says that Kalistani fashion has some specific advantages over international fashion. "Primarily, Kalistani designs are meant to last and be used," said DiGioia. "Practicality and efficiency are often dirty words in the Fashion industry. But Kalistan designs and fabricates clothing that is supposed to last and be considered one's LBD, or fun kind of A-Line. But more so in a way where it is the one thing they own that really stands above and beyond. I think most Kalistani women would consider it a strange thing to have closets full of clothing that has only ever been worn once. But most Kalistani women will also have a specific dress they wear out during different occasions. Clothes that fall apart, or clothes that are so expensive and ornate that they will only ever be worn on extremely special occasions sort of sheers off huge chunks of the market. We want to create clothes that will stand up to wear and tear and live a respectably long and useful life in a woman's personal collection."

In conscious imitation of Her Imperial Majesty's style, most of the fabrics used are either linens or wools, with very few synthetics used. "We feel that natural fibers hold up better," said Del Valle's Gleeson. "are easier to maintain and are generally better for the environment. They take fewer resources to create, and feel much better on the skin. Plus, you will never see Her Imperial Majesty wearing some synthetic fiber. That might be fine for everyday wear, but pressed linen with a tailored, woolen tweed coat not only looks sharp, but it also feels great and is very flattering. We want to make women feel good: it's how we get them to buy our clothing."

With both Del Valle and DiGioia Fashion Houses up and running and holding their own competing fashion shows, there is also news that additional companies that focus on everyday fashion, men's fashion, accessories, and perfumes may be in the works. "We'd like to open a perfume line," said Glesson. "It seems to be the next logical step. We are starting to work with olfactory chemists to crunch some numbers concerning whether or not something like this would be profitable. Branching out seems to be a good idea now." DiGioia concurs. "We'd like to get into some new areas of fashion. Naturally there is a risk there and we aren't part of the public sector, so we bear it all. But it seems like there is a market and a demand for things like accessories, shoes, and different items that make the outfit really stand out. It's something we need to consider for the future."

Right now the word on the street is Conservative, and Kalistani fashion reflects that. With luck and aggressive advertising, other nations in the world will begin adopting not only the same look of our most fashionably dressed women, but also our brands.