Luxury and social value in contemporary Sri Lanka a case study of Barefoot

Abstract

In this research project I explore the relationship between luxury and social value in response to a growing argument, in both academic and marketing discourse, that luxury production can create social value, particularly in increasing the well-being of individuals and communities. Proponents of this position argue that certain common qualities of luxury production create social value, particularly in contrast to the mass manufacture of low-cost and -quality commodities that fulfil the same utilitarian purpose. I hone in on one particular facet of this argument, that as luxury production frequently involves handicraft technique, it creates social value for the producer as an enjoyable process. However this line of argument lacks empirical grounding and critical engagement with the complexity of social value creation. In order to explore the potential for luxury production involving handicraft technique to create social value, I undertook an in-depth, mixed methodology case study of Barefoot, a handloom weaving social enterprise in Sri Lanka. A prestigious brand name in Sri Lanka, Barefoot produces luxury commodities for the local market alongside a significant export market. In operating as a social enterprise, the company primarily intends to create social value in improving the well-being of employees, many of whom are women in rural Sri Lankan communities. Barefoot was selected as an appropriate case study for this thesis due to the fact that it purposefully utilises and has retained handicraft production for this purpose. The data set confirms that luxury production at Barefoot improves the wellbeing of employees, and thus creates social value, in two crucial ways: firstly, as a means of nurturing economic security that can subsequently improve well-being; and, secondly, in utilising handicraft production to ensure that the process of labour is enjoyable. However, the data set also demonstrates the importance of Barefoot’s commitment to operate as a social enterprise, in that if Barefoot were not operating in this way, its potential to create social value would be significantly reduced. In light of these findings, I propose the term ‘precious’, rather than luxurious, as a potential way to conceptualise the product of social enterprise in the luxury sector. This concept is intended to differentiate the product of instances of purpose-driven luxury production, such as Barefoot, from traditional profit-driven activity that may unintentionally create social value in ultimately marginal ways.

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Identifiers

ORCID for Lucy, Ann Hitchcock: orcid.org/0000-0002-9515-2570

ORCID for Joanne Roberts: orcid.org/0000-0001-5337-1698

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