Fashion education in Sri Lanka: the nexus between formal and informal education

For the past 15 years, the Sri Lankan apparel industry has been upgrading from apparel assembly to providing design and product development services. The country’s fashion education developed in response to the industry’s need for design professionals. The purpose of this study is to explore how fashion designer competencies are developed within Sri Lanka. This study adopts a qualitative approach using semi-structured interviews conducted with 28 fashion and product development professionals, selected through purposive sampling. The development of fashion designer competencies within SL in this context are analysed and discussed. The study proposes a ‘fashion education ecosystem’ that has emerged from the nexus between formal fashion education and training and professional development within the industry, supporting the upgrading of the industry through the enhancement of designer skills. Sri Lanka, as a small country that depends heavily on the apparel industry for employment and economic development, provides a model for other developing countries seeking industrial upgrading from apparel assembly to design and product development services through the fashion education ecosystem.