The Devil Almost Wore ‘Praba’
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Zaire - Very few people know it, but there exists a very lucrative textile industry in the sleepy country of Zaire. Many of the fashion industry’s haute couture creations are actually fabricated in the small town of Likasi. Here, where girl-child education is tragically undervalued, if not non-existent, a major fashion calamity nearly took place because of that very social injustice.
“We were embroidering the gift bags for ‘The Devil Wears Prada’ for the movie’s premiere,” recounts Lishan Munis, the warehouses manager. “As you know, many of the girls can’t read, but we were so rushed that we just shouted for them hurry and sew Prada bags.”
What ensued next was a total nightmare. By the time quality control got on the scene, 50 ‘Praba’ bags had been produced. Production was forced to come to a grinding halt.
“We were very lucky that we caught the problem when she did,” said Ms. Munis.
Peter Gabriel, the Belgium plant owner shared her positive view on the outcome.
“We are also fortunate that Africa has a thriving second-hand and damaged good trade. We merely flooded the West African market with the ‘Praba’ bags, and sold them to particular government minister’s wives. Many of these ladies are uneducated village girls themselves. We described the bags with words like “special” and ‘exclusive” and they were all sold within a week for profit. It was a win for Africa.”
A female dignitary in the Gambia has already begun production of a television and radio campaign revolving around her new purse. The recurring theme (set to music) displays her shrilly shouting “I have Praba, and you don’t!”
Mr. Gabriel has not made any plans to educate his staff on the international fashion industry and the labels that service the fashion elite. He instead promises to “severely lash anyone else who misspells and wastes precious materials.” He seemed certain that this would avert any future crises.
