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Since their arrival in the 1960s, Korean immigrants in Argentina have been massively involved in the garment industry. Nevertheless, despite their decades-long concentration in the same sector, over time they have reshaped their motivations and business styles throughout the twists and turns of the host country's junctures.
Applying rigorous immigrant entrepreneurship theories, yet wary of orthodoxies, Kim examines the intriguing paths which Korean entrepreneurs have taken to develop their businesses in the Argentine garment industry amidst complex, frantically volatile social and economic circumstances, and argues for the application of a new approach that combines existing theories with historically contextual perspectives.
This unique case study on Korean immigrant entrepreneurship in Latin America represents a significant milestone in the fields of migration and Korean studies and a substantial contribution to bridging the gap between the North, where such inquiries abound, and the South, where the history, settlement, and current status of Korean immigrants have been notoriously under-examined.
List of contents
1. To the Farthest Country: When and Why Koreans Moved to Argentina
2. The Host Country: Argentina
3. From Agriculture to Apparel: The Entry of Koreans into the Argentine Garment Industry (1960s-1970s)
4. From Production to Distribution: Expansion of the Korean Garment Business (1980s-1990s)
5. The Korean Garment Business in Argentina Today (2000-Present)
6. Opportunities and Challenges for the Korean Garment Business
About the author
Jihye Kim is lecturer of Korean studies in the School of Language and Global Studies at the University of Central Lancashire.
Summary
Based on archival investigation and ethnographic research conducted in Argentina, From Sweatshop to Fashion Shop illustrates the ways that Korean entrepreneurs have availed themselves of opportunities, strategies and resources to develop their businesses in the Argentine garment industry amidst continual social and economic disruptions.
