Leiden University Student Repository

Hoogerbrugge, A. (2012)

Trust in Mitumba: Trade relationships in the Kenyan second-hand clothing market

Master thesis | Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology (MSc)

The mitumba trade of second-hand clothing in Kenya has been growing rapidly the last twenty years, making the street vendors selling from huge piles of second-hand clothing very familiar in the street view. The complexity of this network behind the import, unpacking, distribution, adjusting, selling and buying of second-hand clothes, has been examined through a three month field study in Mombasa, the biggest harbor city of Kenya. By taking this chain of relationships as departure, trust and distrust have been uncovered as mechanisms which create tensions, chooses, manipulations, commitments and expectations for second-hand clothing traders. Trying to make a living in this trade requires the strategic use of reputation, social connections and information, making the complexity and applications of trust in this value chain of key importance for the study of the second-hand clothing market.

Kenya

second-hand clothing

supply chain

trust

stereotypes

Author

Hoogerbrugge, A.

Faculty

Faculty of Social & Behavioural Sciences

Specialisation

Global Connections

Supervisors

Bähre, E.

ECTS Credits

15

Language

en