Tailoring shrinks as ready-made clothes get more popular

By Baburam Karki,Barahkshetra, July 7: The profession of tailoring is gradually fading away as fewer people choose to get their clothes stitched. With the rising popularity of ready-made clothes in the market, people who have been earning a living by stitching clothes in villages are losing their customers, causing this traditional occupation to recede.

Khadga Darji, 59, a tailor from Rajabas, a rural area in northern Sunsari, has been making a living by stitching clothes for the past three decades. However, he said the number of people getting clothes stitched has decreased as ready-made clothes for all seasons are easily available in the market.

“I used to manage all household expenses, including my children's education, by stitching clothes. But now, there are hardly any customers, so the income is not the same,” he said. Darji represents many other tailors in the village whose income is also declining.

In the past, during festivals or fairs, people would buy fabric and have clothes stitched to their measurements. From summer and winter clothes to special occasion wear and even casual clothes worn at home, people preferred buying the fabric and getting it stitched. During festivals, weddings and other special ceremonies, tailors would be extremely busy.

Earlier, most people would buy fabric and take it to the tailor for stitching. Men’s traditional clothes like daura suruwal, shirts and trousers, as well as women’s maxis, kurta suruwals, t-shirts, trousers, cholos and other outfits were commonly stitched. There was so much demand that tailors struggled to keep pace.

Both types of customers, those who paid in cash and those who paid in kind (bartering with crops), were common. But now, the tradition of paying with crops has completely vanished, and even cash-paying customers have decreased, said Kajiman Pariyar of Prakashpur.

“My youth passed by stitching clothes. Now, there are hardly any people who get their clothes stitched. Even my own family prefers ready-made clothes,” he shared.

With the development of technology, companies now produce ready-made clothes in bulk. As a result, the number of people getting their clothes stitched has declined significantly. Nearly everyone prefers ready-made clothes these days, reducing both the demand for tailors and their employment opportunities.

The biggest blow has come from the introduction of ready-made school uniforms, including T-shirts and trousers, further reducing the number of people who get clothes stitched.

As new fashion trends reach villages, more and more people prefer fashionable, ready-made clothes, leading to increased spending on imported clothes. Traders said the demand for branded and fashionable clothes is rising daily.

Over the past decade, the import of ready-made clothes into Nepal has grown rapidly. Billions of rupees are spent annually on such imports, mainly from India and China as well as other countries.