**5. Discussion**

This study analyses the element of creativity, innovation and Shariah compliance in Muslimah fashion among Malay women entrepreneurs in Selangor, an urban state

of Malaysia. The findings were categorised by the three themes that emerged during the interviews. Each of the findings justified the contributing factors to the Malay entrepreneurs involvement in the Muslim fashion; the importance of creativity and innovation in the Muslim fashion; and the implementation of the Shariah compliance in the Muslim fashion among the Malay entrepreneurs in Selangor.

The findings indicate that five thematic emerging factors have contributed to the participation of the Malay women entrepreneurs in the Muslim fashion industry in Selangor. The study shows that the majority of the Malay entrepreneurs venture into entrepreneurship due to first, religious responsibility for the sake of the Ummah; second, self interest in entrepreneurship; third, family support; fourth, positive attitude towards success; fifth, improving soft skills for survival. These findings are in accordance to the previous studies that revealed on the various factors that lead to the involvement of women entrepreneurs in business [90–92]. The factors are for example, interest, ambition to become an entrepreneur, seeks for job satisfaction and desire to create a working environment suite to their personality. The finding of the study is also consistent with the previous studies that reveal that the combination of entrepreneurial factors has a significant relationship with the success of an entrepreneur. Skill, knowledge, and adaptability in business are the main reasons for women to emerge into business ventures [93].

The findings also indicated that the role of family in particular, the parents are important social segment to inculcate good values and interest in children. The parents are responsible to provide not just the basic physical needs of their children, such as clothing, food and shelter, but most importantly, they need to give more attention to spiritual and religious needs in which these are the crucial facets in the individual development. Many studies have also proved that parental involvement and engagement in the early childhood, education and in making the decision, gave the positive impacts to their children' success in life that shapes their children future prospect [94–101].

According to the report conducted by the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) 2015, the involvement of women in entrepreneurship area are not only contribute for the development of country, but also reduce the level of poverty all over the world [102]. In fact, the involvement of women in entrepreneurship is very important in order to mobilise the economic model whereby it creates more opportunities which is more competitive and profitable [103]. In the Malaysian context, women entrepreneurs enter the business world due family commitment (for rural women & single mothers), personal achievement, independency, and autonomy (for corporate women) which are parallel to the pull theory [89].

All informants of the Malaysian Malay women entrepreneurs understand the concept of creativity, innovation and perceive the Shariah compliance in their designs and collections. They considered and took into account the Shariah compliant as the priority in their designs which signify and reflect their religious obligation and commitment. The conviction to Islam has been the driving force of their career undertakings. Some of Malay women entrepreneurs put preference on their convictions before their profession in business.

Today, creativity and innovation appear more significant than ever before, with these being seen as critical success factors for organisations and companies [104]. For every modern business to succeed in a world marked by competition, technological change, and recurrent crises of post COVID-19 outbreak, innovation has become essential [6]. The understanding of attitudes towards creativity and innovation and promoting of creative thinking within the organisation are pre-requisites to facilitate creativity in all employees [105, 106]. To increase the value of entrepreneurship, for example, creativity and innovation have become essential. In order to improve

*Creativity, Innovation and Shariah Compliance by the Malay Middle Class Women… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109655*

current business practices, creativity is a great asset. Making a procedure that can turn an idea into a more saleable product or service is referred to innovation [14]. Therefore, the need and requirement for creativity and innovation are a key approach in entrepreneurship.

The Muslim fashion industry is rapidly growing worldwide. The sales volumes are raising, and the Muslim fashion companies have been significantly expanded their business empire to the Southeast East Asia, the United States, the Middle East and North Africa regions. Today, Muslim consumers spend a lot of money on dressing as a symbol of faith. The State of the Global Islamic Economy Report 2015/16 conveyed that in comparison to the current combined textile markets of the UK (USD\$107 billion), Germany (USD\$99 billion), and India (USD\$96 billion), Muslim consumers are forecasted to spend USD\$230 billion on clothes, with a projected increase to USD\$327 billion by 2019 [107].

Muslim fashion consumers' and designers' decisions about clothing or other fashion products are influenced by religion [108] and culture [109–111]. While young Muslim women in Malaysia are currently expressing interest in Western design trends, they must also uphold Muslim principles about suitable wear. Therefore, they require reliable resources for fashion tips that reduce the social danger of consuming something illegal or for guidance on this new trend among Muslim consumers.

Based on the findings revealed by Aliman et al. [108], despite the hijab fashion culture being quite widespread in multicultural countries like Malaysia, the majority of Malay Muslim women who wear them do not consider them to be fashionable. They view wearing the hijab as a religious obligation rather than a fashion choice. In order to further strengthen Muslim religious identity and cultural diversity, the hijab is thus used as a powerful tool.
