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SECTION III
CONSUMERISM, WORK AND EDUCATION
MADE IN MIAMI: THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE SPORTSWEAR INDUSTRY IN SOUTH FLORIDA, 1900–1960
| By Deirdre Clemente |
Carnegie Mellon University |
| While a number of scholars have examined the history of the textile industry in the South, the emergence of South Florida as a major locus of the production of clothing, particularly sportswear, has received limited empirical attention. Specifically, in the span of 50 years (1910–1960), sportswear in South Florida evolved from the idiosyncratic day wear of elite Northerners vacationing in Palm Beach to a nationally visible industry and a key element in the expansion of American consumerism. Following World War II, South Florida became a center of mass production for sportswear, the nation's third largest producer behind New York City and the state of California. Ironically, the industry was managed and manned (or womanned) by the very groups the original Miami Beach founder sought to exclude—Jews and minorities. |
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South Florida marched onto the sportswear scene swiftly and decisively. When B. S. Kahn set up his garment shop in Miami Beach in 1923, he employed 15 people. By the end of the 1950s, Miami claimed more than 160 garment manufacturers, most of whom specialized in sportswear and employed nearly 7,000 Miamians. Whether it was golf garb by Serbin, swimsuits by Ceeb, or Capri pants by Daisy, the industry had matured with the label "Made in Miami."1 |
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The present analysis sits at the nexus of three increasingly significant fields of study: (1) clothing as a source of social and cultural history2 (2) the popularization of sports in the first half of the twentieth century and its influence on gender identity—an interplay that has recently received attention from historians of sport and historians of gender3 and (3) the history of tourism in the United States, a vibrant and expanding field of research.4 In addition, the study of Florida has become a lively specialty among local and regional historians. While many studies of the history of tourism in the first half of the twentieth century focus on the American West, Florida was a much more viable option for many Americans, as it was both affordable and geographically accessible. These southbound tourists, as Gary R. Mormino has suggested, ushered in a sea change that occurred in the American mindset between the wars. By World War II, "A vacation in Florida signified both a democratic right and a republican virtue."5 |
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Using scholarship from these disciplines, in conjunction with sportswear company archives, women's and fashion magazines, newspaper coverage, and trendforecasting reports from the period studied, three stages of the evolution of the sportswear industry in South Florida can be delineated. The first stage (c.1900–1920) relates to the emergence of Palm Beach; its wealthy Winter inhabitants provided an essential audience for Paris-based couture houses to further market the same sportswear they sold for Deauville or Biarritz. Both men's and women's wardrobes were expanded to include less physically restrictive, lightweight clothing to be worn for the outdoor activities popular in Palm Beach.6 |
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The second stage (c. 1920–1945) explores how a conjuncture of economic, social and cultural trends following World War I spurred rapid growth in Miami, which quickly became the premier locale for spotting emerging sportswear trends. In fact, by the mid-1930s, shoe, swimwear, dress and accessories manufacturers commonly used the area's glamorous resorts to "test drive" models to be sold to men, women and children at varying price points around the country for the Spring and Summer season. |
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