That is the factory or workshop.

C) instructions in the pattern or sample with the subcontractor procuring the inputs. The main provisions given by the contractors to the two kinds of establishments (subcontractors) are compared in the following table (Again percentages refer to total quantities and not units o f production.)

Table 8.2 Comparing main provisions from contractors Provisions from contractor Recorded % Unrecorded % A) rolls of fabric 50 70 B) pre-cut pieces 10 25 C) instructions only 40 5

As we can see from table 8.2, the largest percentage o f materials provided by the contractors in both cases comes in the form o f fabric rolls which are completely processed by the subcontractor i.e. both factories and workshops get the bulk o f their jobs through the same means. However, in the case of the factories, 40 percent o f the cloth they used was bought directly from wholesale markets and was not provided by the contractor who only provided instructions and specifications for the job. This contrasts sharply with the case o f the workshops, which got 95 percent o f their cloth from the contractors, and the exact pieces to be produced. This difference could be attributed to the lesser number of workers, especially skilled workers that workshops have, as shown earlier in Chapter Seven.

Both factories and workshops tend to seek relatively long-term contracting relations. The average duration o f the subcontracting relationship was three years for the unrecorded workshops and five years for the recorded factories. In both cases a majority o f owners said they would rather keep working regularly with one contractor than find new customers. The reasons given are summarized in the following table.

T able 8.3 Main reasons given for focusing on one contractor

Reason Recorded

%

Unrecorded %

Distrusting new contractors 60 70

Inability to simultaneously work with several contractors 35 20 Lack of knowledge in finding new contractors 5 10

Table 8.3 shows that trust is a major element in the subcontracting relationship in both the case o f the workshops and the factories. There was no difference in this between the legal establishments (factories), versus the unrecorded ones (workshops), which one would assume to be less protected and consequently emphasize this aspect o f trust. Moreover, both kinds o f establishments did not have major difficulties finding new contractors, i.e. the lack o f a legal status -in the case o f workshops- was not an obstacle for workshops, nor was its presence a source o f major advantage for the factories. Finally, the finding o f the above section, regarding more flexibility o f workshops, as compared to factories, was further confirmed, since only 20 percent o f the earlier were not able to work simultaneously, versus 35 percent of the latter.

In terms o f markets for their finished products, 60 percent o f the sampled workshop owners named Attaba square market in Cairo as a major final destination for their products. There were of course other markets in Shubra and Giza in which their products were sold, but I decided to focus on Attaba, being the largest informal market place in Cairo, and on a national scale, and also because o f the contrasts and contradictions it exposes being located in the very center o f commercial Cairo.

Located between the Opera square in the European commercial center and A1 Azhar square in the traditional commercial center, A1 Attaba square is a complex maze o f markets. There are the established shops on the main high streets o f the square, each block o f shops specializing in a line o f products, thus there is a mall o f electronic equipment, a main street with up market women’s garments, a main street for engineering tools, another for home appliances, and so on. All these shops have proper window displays, pay rent and taxes, and display an array of both legally imported goods and locally produced goods. But all this only forms the borders, the lining surrounding a much bigger ‘informal’ market place on the streets, the alleyways, the public spaces and the gardens that lie between the shops and malls.

The informal market is also divided geographically according types o f merchandise. Tools, ranging from screwdrivers and nails to electric drills are sold in one area, another area specializes in watches, toys, and small electronic gadgets, yet a third area specializes in plastic products from toilet slippers to toilet seats. However the largest

open space in the Attaba area is reserved for garments, women’s accessories and shoes. Hundreds o f vendors crammed next to each other, displaying their merchandise and constantly shouting out prices for items, and thousands o f shoppers, meandering through the narrow walkways between the rows o f vendors looking for the best buy. It is in this market and markets like it across the country that the poor buy most o f their clothes and other requirements. It is here that both workshop produced garments and illegally imported garments are displayed and sold.

The market is completely illegal. Vendors do not have licensing, there are no verification papers for any o f the items on sale, the grounds on which the items are displayed are not legal selling grounds and the vendors have no legal rights to use these grounds nor do they pay any rent or fee. The state’s attitude towards these markets is peculiar. This market is in the center o f Cairo, probably one o f the most heavily policed areas in the world. If they wanted to prevent the market from assembling they could do so with ease. Yet they let this illegal market assemble on a daily basis. If that was the end of the story one would conclude that the benevolent Egyptian state was encouraging such informal markets.

However, on a daily basis, and at random times, usually at peak hours o f the market, an amazing ritual takes place. Without prior warning, screams are heard and the vendors start hastily packing their merchandise into bundles using the cloth on which they place their displays, they throw their bundles on their backs and run as fast as they can into the alleyways surrounding the market place. In a matter o f minutes the cause o f panic becomes apparent. Several police cars appear on the scene and soldiers begin catching those vendors who were too slow or unfortunate to escape. Both these vendors and their merchandise are thrown into the back o f the police cars, which speedily takes around a dozen vendors and their stuff to the Attaba police station. Meanwhile the vendors in the alley ways hide in the building entrances for at least 20 minutes until they are sure that the raid is over, then they slowly return to the market, spread their merchandise again and life returns to normal. The merchandise o f the unfortunate vendors is confiscated and the vendors spend the night in the police station, get slapped around, and are then set free (one wonders what happens to all the confiscated merchandise!)

It seems that the state has realized that it cannot practically put an end to these informal markets, but at the same time it does not want to give them any sense o f permanence and security. The police actions also seem to reflect a sense of insecurity on the part o f the state. These bustling markets, in which absolutely nothing passes through the recorded economy, in which literally nothing has any legal visibility, seem to threaten the state’s sense o f control and planning, and it therefore cannot let it alone, at the same time realizing that it cannot successfully repress it completely.

The following diagram (Diagram 1) provides a simplified summary o f the routes taken by the finished products and the linkages formed in the marketing process o f the garments.

Diagram 1

Garment

factories

Garment

importers

(illegal)

Unrecorded

workshops

fin ish e d

garm ents

Finished im ported

garm ents

Shops

Finished im ported

lents

_Informal

markets

Finished im ported

garm ents

Finished

garm ents

Broker

Garment

traders

However, the most important finding in terms o f marketing channels described in this section is that both factories and workshops depend on subcontracting as the major source o f market provisions and jobs. This is in line with the international trend described earlier in Chapter Five. It also means that both the factories and workshops are equally experiencing the world-wide trends in the garment industry and that unlike the assumption of dual models theories, the recorded sector is not more modem or better linked to the international trends in this industry.