The need for inclusivity in the Indonesian fashion industry

Written by Ilman Ramadhanu | Read in Indonesian

Fashion has historically been an industry that relies on exclusionary practices. Because of this, many marginalised communities have not been considered a top priority by the fashion industry, particularly the disability community.

“I sometimes wish that clothes don’t have too many buttons on them,” said Ilma, a 26-year-old project assistant with cerebral palsy and a wheelchair user when asked about her experience when shopping for clothes. “Because I have problems with my motoric skills, it's harder for me to do the buttons and it takes me a long time to do them.”

Button is only one of the issues she finds in clothing as she further described her clothing options to be limited, specifically because many brands and retailers still haven’t incorporated the needs of people with disabilities into their designs.

“Sometimes I would see a cute dress, but then I see the zipper is in the back and that makes it harder for me to wear because I couldn’t reach it. Also, as someone who uses a wheelchair, sometimes the issue is the clothes are too tight and that makes it harder for me to put them on and take them off, so I usually just find clothes that are easy for me to wear,” she explained.

These are also experienced by other people with disabilities. Ilma told the story of her deaf friend who struggles to find hijabs with fabrics that would not impair her hearing aid. “Perhaps it is because the fabric is too thick, so she always has to find a way to shape the hijab in a way that it won't disturb her hearing aid.”

The global fashion industry makes room for adaptive fashion

In recent years, these concerns have slowly been addressed by the global fashion industry as it embraces the emergence of adaptive fashion. It is an idea that refers to the modification of an existing clothing design to make dressing more comfortable for people with disabilities.

Tommy Hilfiger was one of the first major retailers that incorporated adaptive designs in their clothing when they debuted their adaptive fashion line back in 2016. In an interview with Vogue Business, Hilfiger mentioned how their approach to adaptive fashion is by finding a way to relieve various dressing challenges of people with disabilities

In their website, the products are sorted based on the solutions, such as the easy closures category for clothing with magnetic buttons or one-handed zippers, and the seated-wear or prosthetic-friendly category which consists of clothing with stretchy materials, adjustable features and expanded openings.

There is also a comfort-wear category which refers to clothes made using sensory-friendly fabrics, such as cotton, linen, or bamboo, which Ilma noted as something that is important for her to have due to her skin sensitivity from having cerebral palsy.

Other major global retailers in the likes of Asos, Zalando and Nike have since followed in Hilfiger’s footsteps with their own adaptive line.

Back in 2021, Nike made headlines after they released the “Go Flyease”, a series of sneakers that requires no shoe laces or velcro to wear. Wearers could just easily step into the sneakers as the sneakers are kept intact by a giant rubber band called the tensioner and a hinge that is placed at the sole that makes it turn from an open to a closed position.

The creation process behind the “Go Flyease” was not as easy as wearing them. In a video series titled “behind the design”, the designers behind the sneaker explained how the biggest challenge when creating the sneakers was creating a solid base and balancing the tensioner while keeping it visually appealing which required complex mathematical equations to perfect.

How technology influences the development of adaptive fashion

Science and technology are also a major influence in the development of adaptive fashion in the global fashion industry as it moves forward the approach to adaptive fashion beyond just providing comfortable clothing options for people with disabilities, but also turns fashion into somewhat of an assistance in everyday life.

In 2021, Japanese tech company Ontenna collaborated with fashion label Anrealage to create jewelleries that also function as a hearing aid device that translates auditory information into visual and sensory information.

When it detects sounds, it flickers and a light travels through the architectural maze that these jewelries have taken form in.

The jewelleries come in three different types, namely a headpiece, a pair of earrings and a necklace, that are made using optical fibres that allow them to emit lights. Kunihiko Morinaga, the designer behind Anrealage, explained in a video series titled “True Colours: The Future is Now” that these fibres are coiled over threads before they are woven together until they turn into a paper-thin lace-like fabric and subsequently moulded into its avant-garde form.

London-based fashion label CuteCircuit used a similar concept to create a high-tech jacket called “the soundshirt” that allows deaf people to experience music through sensations. The jacket gives the wearer bodily sensations to the tune of music they hear.

It is made using multiple sensors with haptic technology that are embedded into the fabric. While having sensors attached to your clothes might sound uncomfortable, Hermon and Heroda Berhane, designers behind the label, told Reuters that the sensors in the jacket are connected to a smart fabric with a microelectronic system which allows it to remain soft, stretchy and comfortable.

A call for inclusivity in Indonesian fashion

The global market for adaptive fashion has grown exponentially and it is reported to reach $300 million by 2028. However, amidst all these global developments, the Indonesian fashion industry seems to be left behind with the existence of adaptive fashion in the Indonesian market being close to zero.

The adaptive fashion market in Indonesia is still categorically niche as it is represented by only a few fashion labels, such as Adaptive Clothing Indonesia. However, consumers like Ilma claim that it is still hard to find Indonesian fashion labels with adaptive designs. “I don’t think it exists just yet in Indonesia. I don’t think people even know about adaptive fashion because there is no awareness to it,” she said.

With over 7 million people with disabilities actively working in Indonesia as of 2021, it makes the Indonesian disability community an untapped market that the Indonesian fashion industry urgently needs to pay more attention to.

Ilma feels that in order for the Indonesian fashion industry to be more inclusive towards people with disabilities, it needs to first increase its disability awareness. “Because the awareness regarding disability in Indonesia is so low, we have to increase the disability awareness first before we get to a point where the fashion could accommodate our needs.”

As Ilma calls for the fashion industry to ramp up its effort for more inclusivity, she also encourages the disability community in Indonesia to make their voices heard, “people with disabilities should also advocate for themselves and make our voices heard by the fashion industry that we need adaptive fashion to exist here.”