PUBLISHED
May 17, 2026

KARACHI:

Imagine going to a shopping mall to find ready-to-wear outfits for routine wear, going shop to shop for hours, and still, at the end, ending up with nothing in your bag, all because all the options fell short of a basic modest criteria. This is a struggle almost every Pakistani woman faces, struggling to find even one outfit that does not have short sleeves, short trousers, see-through fabrics, or deep necklines– something they can wear when they pray, without worrying about their skin showing.

Mariam, a 24-year-old office-going woman from Islamabad, claims that the task of picking out a decent outfit has become unnecessarily complicated. She says many outfits are made from extremely sheer materials, are sleeveless, and have short trousers, which are far from modest. A lot of ready-made options fall short, quite literally, in her experience and for many others just like her.

These problems force women to either shift entirely to tailor-made clothes, or to get tailors to cover up cut-outs and add sleeves and linings, etc. It is highly unfair that even after spending so much money and many hours on shopping, women end up at tailors, asking them to make up for the shortcomings of the ready-to-wear clothes, wasting even more money and time. Mariam says, “Solving this problem means extra effort and cost just to make them wearable. You end up having to dye fabric to match what you bought and get proper sleeve lining stitched, turning a ready-to-wear outfit into a mini tailoring project,” about sheer sleeves. She expresses her frustration at having added tasks to her already busy schedule, just to be able to wear modest clothes.

This leads women to question exactly who these brands are designing clothes for. Are they targeting overseas Pakistanis or just the upper-middle class, because they are not fulfilling the requirements of the majority of the women in a Muslim country. Aysha, who is doing her master’s degree in Germany, says, “[Pakistani brands] definitely don’t understand modest consumers. They follow fashion trends. Labelling a collection ‘modest’ is just performative inclusivity. I would like the brands to have a better understanding of our needs and desires. A modest outfit is one that feels fashionable without having to show skin or wear figure-hugging fabric or design.” Many other women may resonate with her statement, feeling as though brands are ignoring the socio-cultural norms surrounding clothes in Pakistan.

To dive deeper into why shelves are filled with sheer fabrics or sleeveless outfits, despite the continuous demand for modest wear, we spoke to Hasan Arshad, a marketing and brand growth specialist working in the retail and fashion sector. He has worked at leading fashion brands in Pakistan. The conversation revealed that the whole process is a tug of war between cultural or religious values and budgets, involving complex decisions regarding fabric economics, and modest drops.

“In Pakistan, modesty is something that is highly subjective and exists on a spectrum.” says Hasan. The definition of modesty differs at different levels. Customers, like Marium for instance, view it as high necklines or no see-through fabric, meanwhile the industry sees it through the lens of versatility. He further explains that though there is high demand for modest wear, particularly in the 35-44 age bracket and for 45 and above age bracket, this demand has already been met by the unstitched fabric market, where customers have full control over silhouette and styling options. While the mainstream brands are focusing more on what is called “fusion aesthetic”, the gap is just beginning to be filled by niche brands that focus mainly on abaya style or flowy shirts with less fitted silhouettes.

When asked about why brands focus more on shorter lengths or fitted clothes even when women are complaining, and do brands actually incorporate customers’ feedback in their decisions, Hasan said, “Production is a balancing act between social media trends, historical sales data, and of course fabric economics.” He added, “Customers definitely request more modest options, and some brands do listen as well, but each brand is a business at the end of the day, and they listen to wallet-votes over comments. A brand might get 1,000 comments asking for longer sleeves but if their data shows that the sleeveless version was sold out within a week while the modest version sat on the shelf for a month and later had to be put on some promotional offer, the customer feedback won’t change the next production cycle. A business always needs profits and quick inventory turnover.”

While mentioning the challenges faced by the industry when producing modest wear, Hasan dives deeper into fabric economics and says, “When you are producing thousands of units, that extra yardage used in either longer sleeves or loose silhouettes significantly impacts the final retail price to the customer. There is also a lingering perception within the market that modest designs might have a slower turnover on the racks compared to highly trending cuts, be it sleeveless or shorter lengths.”

The professional also pointed out an important element in the industry which is marketing, how a product is being portrayed. “RTW [pret or ready-to-wear] is often marketed toward a younger, urban audience that prefers fusion or modern clothing, often mixing eastern and western elements. These cuts then allow for unique layering and styling options. From a brand’s perspective, we feel that these silhouettes often appear more modern and vibrant in studio shoots or campaigns as they portray stronger storytelling, which further helps with digital engagement and click through rates, and, ultimately, sales.”

Despite all these hurdles, consumers like Mariam may still find a glimmer of hope. The industry is starting to see the “professionalisation” of modest fashion options.

“We are seeing a shift toward intentionality,” Hasan highlights. “Consumers are moving towards specialised modest wear brands that focus primarily on abayas, co-ord sets, hijabs, kaftaans, etc. Mainstream brands have definitely started to notice this and are occasionally jumping on the bandwagon introducing ‘modest drops’ or specific lines to retain this niche within their own loyalty circle.”

Many women deserve the right to wear good designs that do not compromise their modesty. Despite the culturally accepted norm of Muslim wear, most brands are selling clothes in design and fabric that are essentially “immodest”. It gets increasingly hard to maintain one’s modesty standards in a society where peer pressure is heavily influential. This peer pressure leads to brands catering to the growing demand of “revealing” clothes. Is Pakistan’s fashion industry slowly starting to realise that a woman in Pakistan can be both a fashionista and culturally modest at the same time? The multiple tailor visits, just to make a brand new shirt wearable, might decrease in the upcoming days. Until then, many of us will continue to shop, hoping that maybe one day, ready to wear will finally be what they say and what we exactly want.

All facts and information are the sole responsibility of the writers