France -- stability L. Jones

France: Fashion in the Global Market

Whenever one considers the place of fashion as an industry within a specific nation, it is essential to consider several factors. Despite today's globalizing fashion industry (which is following all sectors of industry), individual "country factors," including the relative stability of the country as a whole, the nature of its political organization, administrative structure, as well as its legislative, and judiciary s systems all play a role in the health of the fashion industry within that nation. In the case of France, the country holds a unique place in the collective "imagination" of fashion. Indeed, many consider France to be the epicenter of the industry as a whole. Because of its unique and pivotal position respecting fashion, it is essential to understand the "country factors" of this nation, and how they contribute to the stability of the country.

The political organization of France is composed of a "semi-presidential" republic, headed under the current president Jacques Chirac. Interestingly, the founding of the current "presidential" system in France is relatively new, whereas the appointed "leader" of the nation prior to 1958 (post-revolution of course), was the prime minister. However, even today, the real power within the country continues to be at the hands of the prime minister, Jean-Pierre Raffarin and his elected government (although the president has great power over matters of foreign policy), who wields his power under the guidelines of a "Unitary Republic."

The specific structure of this unitary republic, including its constitutional details, includes several interesting points. First, France's unitary system allows for a kind of fusion between the so called parliamentary system and the presidential system. Specifically, this means that, although the presidential power is balanced by the prime minister and his authority over the Council of Ministers, as well as the majority party within the National Assembly.
The actual workings of the pairing of the prime minister and president as a kind of "dual head of state" system is fairly complex. The real level presidential power is determined by the support of a parliamentary majority. If he has this support, he generally has the support of the prime minister, and thus, a greater level of "real power" within the country, itself. However, if the president does not hold the majority in parliament, the prime minister is still elected from the parliamentary majority. This acts as another kind of "check and balance" in the system.

The constitution of France ensures that the nation, itself, belongs to "the people," and not to the leaders of the country. Like the United States, the citizens of France have the right to vote in elections. An interesting fact concerning the presidential election is that the term under which any individual may hold the office of president is five years, one year longer than the United States. Further, unlike the United States, there is no limit to the number of times a person can be reelected to office.

The "on the ground" administrative structure is not as fragmented as many imagine. Although the concept of a monarchy like "central command" for all internal issues and concerns runs contrary to the goals of the Revolution, the national administration of the country remains fully planted in Paris. Although "reforms introduced in recent decades have transferred some powers to local authorities, but many of France's major policy decisions are still made in the nation's capital." However, this characteristic…