Ignatious Joseph: Journey from the Hill Country to top of world’s fashion industry

A man with a heart for fashions who wants to take ‘Made in Sri Lanka’ to world’s top fashion hubs

• There is red tape in every part of the world. Here it is more visible
• I think Sri Lanka’s major problem was the people who were running it
• If we had the qualified people in the right place this would have been a wonderful country 

He was born in Sri Lanka, studied in Switzerland, worked in the hotel industry and stitches some of the most beautiful hand-crafted shirts in Italy and settled in Germany, Ignatious Joseph has come back to his ‘Home’.

Established the IGN Joseph line of luxury shirting and accessories based on Italian artisanal production, for some twenty years Joseph’s hand-sewn collars and courageously classic fabrics have been distinguishing features in the selection of high-end attitude among the best gentlemen’s outfitters worldwide. The Swiss-educated, native Sri Lankan is a veteran of the international hospitality industry. Known from Düsseldorf to Delhi and Manhattan to Moscow for his rare style and hallmark “red shoes”, Mr Joseph is a frequent contributor to discussions of historical and contemporary style. His philosophy of “effortless elegance” is complemented by the simple motto that “there is no self from the shelf.”

When a curious foreign journalist ask about  the  background of this ‘coloured man’ he would answer, “I grew up Catholic in a typical Sri Lankan family: my grandfather was in the tea business, my father was a civil servant and my mother, an English teacher, would wake me at the crack of dawn each morning to pray. My passion was always fashion: as a kid, I’d polish my shoes while sitting through an 8:00 am mass. In high school, I’d take my white tennis shoes and paint them red. In college in Switzerland, I’d wear suits and ties with shorts instead of trousers. People would ask why and I’d tell them because I come from a poor country.” Mr. Joseph who has already planned to bring down his business of making some of the world’s most sort after shirts to Sri Lanka spoke to Daily Mirror.

Q So from where are you going to start?  

At the moment few people seem to be interested about Sri Lanka. This is the problem. So this is what I am thinking. I can’t change everything overnight. I want to invest and open up a small shirt factory to produce European shirts with the tag ‘Made in Sri Lanka’ and not Made in Italy.
If they can say ‘Made in India’ or ‘Made in Italy’ why can’t we say ‘Made in Sri Lanka’. Why cant we do it. Are we not proud. We have got Batik, we have got so many talents. We have got lot of potential...use that potential.  I am trying to do that. I don’t know whether it would be successful or not. But I am willing to take up this challenge. 

Q But we have a garment industry that has created a name ‘Made in Sri Lanka’?

But it is not known, because you are in that low category. I am sorry to say that. We are competing with Bangladesh and we are competing with all third world countries. It is a product that nobody wants. End of the day how much it is going to be? Ten dollars,.. five dollars. Give me it at five dollars because Indian shirt is much more better. If I thought I am a Sri Lankan and I am making shirt in Italy with a Sri Lankan mentality I would not have been successful. I hit them with their own hammer. I went. I changed.
Our people are nice but there is something  missing. There are people at the Colombo Fashion Week but have they represented in Florence at the Exhibition? Nobody....in New York.. nobody. So I am trying to bring a product ‘Made in Sri Lanka’ and try to introduce... because I am an European. I got Italian. I am trying to make a shirt and bring it there and say proudly it is ‘Made in Sri Lanka’. But I have to have their values not Sri Lankan values. Why should I make a cheap shirt in Sri Lanka for what? Are our people not qualified to make a good shirt? They are qualified but you have to tell them how to do it.

Q How did you master yourself to do this?

I don’t know how to stitch. It’s my imagination. I want to make a collar which is not pasted. Like in the 1950s. This was missing in the European market. When I made my shirt they said no we don’t want this shirt. You see your collar is pasted. It is with plastic. But my shirt is not pasted. This is stitched. It is a stitched collar. 
It’s nice with elegance and it is comfortable. It is like classic beautiful style. You can make this shirt in Sri Lanka and you can make it perfectly. This shirt is 250 US dollars, selling price is 250 dollars. Why can’t I make this shirt in Sri Lanka. Pack it in a yellow box with the tag Made in Sri Lanka and export. I have to do it luxury product not cheap one. I am not going to make it for a cheap market. If I am going to do it I’m going to create something very high. 

Q You believe our people can do this?

Definitely. You know our people need motivation. Our people are not motivated. I am critical. I am sorry to say. Every time our people have to fight for their rights. They have to fight for their basic food. Why are we trying to screw our own people? Why I am not going to make a factory, give them lunch and make them happy. Give them a nice meal in the afternoon. I will get a cook to cook for these 10 or 15 people. Tell them I will never show them that I am the boss. This is what missing in Sri Lanka. We have got this British mentality of I am the boss. I am seeing this here. This has to stop. There is nothing like this in Europe. Everyone will be the same in the bar.
So my plan is to bring style to Sri Lanka with elegance and with bit of flamboyance. We have got a beautiful country. We are a touristic country. Having so much experience in Europe bringing my own company here, bringing my own product, travelling right on the world in New York to Paris, to London to Tokyo wherever I went people ask who am I, from where I am coming. They often misunderstand that I am an Indian but I am very proud say I am a Sri Lankan. I could say I am an Indian but for what reason. This was itching in my heart for many many years. I want to go back one day. The time was not right but now I am more matured. 

Q But there are lot of red tapes to be practical? Many don’t want to invest in Sri Lanka? 

In every country there is corruption. I am not going to invest millions of dollars. I am going to start small, may be with ten people. Ten machines. Take a small place in somewhere. It is not a big investment. I am not going to approach something big. Then you get into the red tape. If you are investing 10 million dollars you have to give others. Even in Germany it is the same thing. If you want to buy planes from Boeing you have to bribe somebody. It is not visible. Here it is prominent. They always say the third world countries take bribe with naked hands. The European, the white take it with the gloves. I know this.  I am not afraid about this. If I was afraid I would not have started the company in Germany. Germany is very difficult place. There is red tape in every part of the world. Here it is more visible. We have got unfortunately sort of a system which doesn’t function properly. But I am willing to take the challenge. I am a Sri Lankan but I don’t cry. If didn’t do that I would have been an unhappy man. I would have dead an unhappy man.

Q From where did you get that courage?

My mother was a very courageous. We had a big family of seven. And she was the inspiration. I had to get up at 5 o clock and read Shakespeare. And when I went to church I remember I polished my shoes with cardinal polish. That is the way we were brought up in Kandy.   I am rich in my values not in the wealth. Wealth is a thing that will disappear. This is the basic thing that Sri Lankans have to concentrate on the country’s wealth and potential. So I’m ready to take a challenge. I am not afraid. 

Q You are an economist. What happened to Sri Lanka?

I think Sri Lanka’s major problem was the people who were running it. If we had the qualified people in the right place this would have been a wonderful country. As an economist when you have two dollars you cannot invest three dollars. You have to get money from somewhere. But as an economist if I had two dollars I would use one and keep one for a rainy day. This is the major problem in the most of the third world countries. We have been asking for Manna from god for 70 years. We have been always getting aids from all third world countries. Now we are begging. 
What I can say is, we need right people at the right post. If you are having political influence but if you are not having the qualified people... right people at the right post...then the country is going to be in a mess.  Good country can be run by good people. Even if the people are not there country will run automatically. 
Take Singapore for example. That country is running like oil. Investors are coming putting lot of money. Singaporean government is very clever. They are Chinese. They are coming here and investing why? They know what kind of a country this is.  If a country wants to progress people have to be in the right positions. Even in the smallest company.

Q What are the changes that this country needs?

This country has to change. If I want to do something I will be very strict. I will be very European or Western oriented. Pay them good. If you pay them peanuts you get monkeys. Pay them good and demand them the best. 
If this country does that it would be a paradise. Why are we late back. We are the last country. We are late back. Go to Thailand. Even go to Vietnam. Go to Cambodia. Cambodia is booming. That country was far behind Sri Lanka. I was there. Coffee shops are everywhere and beautiful women serving coffee enthusiastically. Why this is not happening in Sri Lanka? 
If I sit I would be asked sir you need some water. This is extra business. Even though you don’t want water you would say yes I need some water. Why are we not doing this. So many things this country can be developed in the tourism industry and service sector.

Q The qualified people are leaving the country right now? 

Yes. With 30 percent tax who is going to stay back. We have to carry our own kettle. We don’t want to go and sell somebody. We have that experience already. Sri Lanka had that colonial experience 500 year ago. Why are we going to sell our country to anybody. We were accommodating this bloody whites for a long time who killed us and who took our country and who destroyed our culture, religions, Tamil. Sinhalese and Muslims. What is this? We are a one nation we are a one country. Now the younger people are recognizing it and it is not too late to change the page. You have to get the qualified people back. Call me back. Mr. Joseph we will give you something. Come back and invest.  There are lot of Sri Lankans who are ready to come back. You know the richest man in Sri Lanka is from the Silicon valley. He is next to Bill Gates. He is a smart guy from somewhere in Galle. He even doesn’t say that he is from Sri Lanka. There are lots of rich people from Sri Lanka. 

Q We hear that there are lot of Sri Lankans- Tamils Sinhalese, Muslims in the diaspora who want to give back to their ‘home’?

Tamils when they left in 1983 they took all the qualified people and they ran away. Now they are bankers in Switzerland. The third generation there are lot of rich people. I bet I can talk to them am sure they would come back. If I tell my sister who is a professor I am sure she would come back. But what this country is doing. They even do not give visa to Sri Lankan people.  We have to pay hundreds of dollars to get an extension of a visa. If there are Sri Lankan Germans or anyone else why don’t they encourage them to come back. 
For 70 years we had no peace in this country. S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike put that germ, Tamils, Muslims and Sinhalese it was taken by Jayawardena, it was taken by Premadasa.  In 1983 Jayawardena just slept didn’t do anything and  most of the Tamil diaspora ran away. Bloodshed and killing field like Vietnam in this country. People were watching from outside and what is going own in  our country. We are killing our own brothers and sister. Just because we were believing in another religion This is not normal. I am a dark person. My beliefs and I eat rice and curry but I don’t talk about it in Italy. For that you should have a broader vision. I think at least 10 to 15 percent of qualified are thinking the way I am thinking. 

Q Do you think that this country needs reconciliation? 

Yes I am willing to forgive and forget. Whatever my religion is and my past is. I am a Sri Lankan I don’t want to have this communal political thing, This was given British or Western part of the world. Let’s put an end to this. 
I am back after 20 years and I see lot of potential. There is hope in this country and there is lot of potential. Let us hope. What we need is hope. The fundamental problem is we are divided. That should be taken off. We should treat every Sri Lankan a Sri Lankan. We have got a diverse huge culture. We have brought all diverse culture here.