The national fabric

the long version

"Through an examination of iconic fashion companies Paul Smith and Mulberry, The National Fabric provides insights into the culture of contemporary fashion and the dilemmas of 'going global'. Alison Goodrum argues that 'Britishness' is characterized less through a particular look than through its ambiguities. She shows how the apparently straightforward and economically-driven process of globalizing British fashion is, in fact, far more culturally nuanced and locally embedded than has previously been suggested. In examining the interplay between fashion and Britishness, Goodrum redresses a longstanding omission in fashion theory, which has been preoccupied with class, gender and race rather than with national identity."--Jacket.