Making Eid clothes: A tradition that does not escape digitalization

As the last days of Ramadan continue, each day of the week is “the last that we will fast this year”, Moroccan families (re) begin to prepare for the celebration of Eid El Fitr. It is obviously a question of knowing who we will spend the party with, what we will have to prepare for meals, but above all what everyone will wear. If some privileged families have time to have their Eid clothes prepared a long time in advance, the vast majority will wait until the last moment to do so.

“The orders we receive are obviously different and depending on the complexity of the work to be done as well as the availability of materials, an order will need 24 hours to be ready as it can sometimes require several days,” explains Si Omar Yousfi, tailor in Meknes. Working alone during the year, the period of Ramadan requires the artisan to recruit other small hands to help him.

Ramadan rush

“I have loyal customers for whom I regularly make clothes according to the occasions and requests they have. Generally, orders are prepared in advance, but I also receive orders during the holy month, sometimes with last minute requests,” specifies d’artisan, adding that Eid El Fitr is an occasion that allows couturiers and stores specialized in traditional clothing to make a significant percentage of their annual turnover. “Unlike weddings and family celebrations, religious festivals can be prepared in advance.

We have an idea of ​​the demands and expectations of our customers so we try to anticipate them and prepare products that they can adopt,” explains a ready-to-wear clothing seller, pointing to a small section of traditional clothing. for children. “Not all clothes during Eid have necessarily been tailor-made. There are several ready-to-wear models that are also used, especially for the little ones,” explains the merchant.

Marketing evolution

Despite the traditional nature of the festive clothing market, artisans have not failed to follow the new wave of web marketing. This is how, in addition to the essential word of mouth, the dedicated pages on TikTok, Facebook or Instagram abound and redouble their ideas and efforts to be the most attractive. “Our page is not linked to a single merchant or craftsman, but rather offers a catalog of products and services in several cities.

Our business model is to create several pages dedicated to various types of products, and choose the merchants we will advertise for a fee agreed in advance,” the administrator of a page dedicated to the sale of traditional clothing tells us. . “Some merchants prefer to manage their presence on the web themselves, but it is a full-time job to run a page, manage its community and prepare its content,” believes our interlocutor.

Inflation and influencer

Looking around social networks, it is obvious that digitalization has not missed the sector of making festive and traditional clothes. Brands and artisans who are on the rise do not hesitate to call on influencers to promote their products. On closer inspection, the prices they display seem a little higher than usual. “Our field involves several price categories for a single type of product. This is how everyone will be able to find an offer that suits their budget. It is however true that prices have increased slightly this year due to the simple fact that there is a national economic context which does not escape inflation,” concedes Si Omar Yousfi.

Once we showed the prices of certain brands promoted by influencers on Instagram, the artisan Meknassi seemed slightly surprised: “There is a bit of exaggeration in these prices. But I imagine that these brands must amortize their costs on two fronts: inflation and influence,” concludes the artisan with a mischievous smile.

3 questions to professor lahlou abdelati

Making Eid clothes: A tradition that does not escape digitalization [FULL]

“Considering that the djellaba is an exclusively religious garment is a fallacious and erroneous interpretation”

Anthropologist affiliated with the National Institute of Archeology and Heritage Sciences (INSAP), Professor Lahlou Abdelati answers our questions on the clothing tradition festive in Morocco.

 Why are some holidays or occasions marked by a special dress tradition?

– All peoples and communities that have a great tradition experience milestones in the cycle of their life, during which the celebration is done with particular attention to clothing. This allows you to enhance this festive time and present yourself in the best possible light. For the case of celebrating Eid El Fitr in Morocco, this also involves showing respect to others and to oneself. There is also an identity dimension to this pageantry since we return to our origins by showing our attachment to traditional clothing.

Is there not also a dimension that highlights social status through clothing?

– Indeed, dressing as a Bzioui, for example, is not given to everyone. Doing so therefore adds a certain social distinction. The most important thing is that this clothing tradition is attached to the values ​​of authenticity since the work by hand and the original cultural components are respected and valued. This does not prevent the professions behind this tradition from continuing to evolve. We can see new colors appear, new weaving technologies, but the Djellaba for example is always the same.

 In fact, a foreign school established in Morocco recently considered the Djellaba as non-civilian clothing. Can we reduce Djellaba to its religious dimension alone?

– Absolutely not. The proof is that many people dress in djellaba on occasions that have no connection with religion. It’s a costume like any other and it’s above all a traditional costume. We must distinguish between culture and religion. Considering that the djellaba is an exclusively religious garment or sign is a fallacious and completely erroneous interpretation.