Comments on: Mind The Gap

By: whatsername

whatsername — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 04:33:05 +0000

This one: “making ”ethically-conscious” choices about mainstream clothing is basically impossible.”

But I try to do what I can anyway… I almost never buy new clothes anymore. I opt instead for “Plato’s Closet” and such places.

By: Antigone

Antigone — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 00:17:09 +0000

MarilynJean

Short answer: no.

Long answer: Target pays their employees more, better benefits, no gender discrimination class action lawsuits, more organic food, and less contribution to urban sprawl. They still suck quite a lot, but they are no where NEAR Wal-Mart level suck.

By: exholt

exholt — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 19:39:26 +0000

Just wanted to echo the commenters who said they have difficulties shopping ethically due to economic, access, and time constraints.

Up until I started working, nearly all of my clothing were hand-me-downs from older cousins. After graduation, I just had enough time to move and to figure out which clothing stores had good quality at the lowest prices so I can buy professionally appropriate clothing for employment. Afterwards, I would try to have my clothes last as long as possible before replacement. Saved the worn college clothes for the evenings and weekends until they were on the edge of falling apart and i earned enough to start replacing them.

By: Luna

Luna — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 18:17:56 +0000

I’m in Canada, so my situation is slightly different (there’s no Gap in my city, for example). I try to buy thrift store stuff, but have a hard time finding anything that fits and isn’t ugly (what is with “Plus Size” clothing and butt-ugliness?). Also, I shop with a toddler, so good luck taking time to do it properly.

I’m oddly shaped (I have a “second ass”, right above my normal ass – don’t ask), so mail order is out of the question. Even regular stores are difficult for me. Lately, I’ve taken to shopping at Superstore (a grocery chain that has a clothing line), because it’s cheap, and the clothes seem to fit reasonably well. It’s frustrating though, because I hate the idea of children making my clothes! Hate.

By: MarilynJean

MarilynJean — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 17:33:10 +0000

I agree with the challenge of shopping ethically, while maintaining a tight budget. My only gripe is that people say that won’t shop at Wal-Mart, but they’ll go to Target. Isn’t Target just as bad as Wal-Mart?

By: Impetrix

Impetrix — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 17:13:32 +0000

One thing that’s always struck me is… in an industry with bad PR as far as contributing to poor conditions in developing countries, who the bloody hell gave the name “Banana Republic” the green light??

By: Felicia

Felicia — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 15:48:35 +0000

Out of all the things that are important to me, shopping ethically isn’t. Not because it’s a bad idea, but because (as other posters pointed out) it is impractical. I don’t have time to go thrift store shopping, so I shop at places like Old Navy, the Fashion Bug, and Macy’s. I respect them because they have good products at affordable prices. I think the best way to support more ethical practices is to use your vote, and support political candidates whose ideologies align with your own. There’s only so much we can do when companies lie about their practices.

By: Laurie

Laurie — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 15:47:21 +0000

Thrift stores/consignment shops rule, period. But the caveat there is that you have to check often to see what they have, hence a time issue. Although that may be something of a wash depending on how much time you spend shopping anywhere else. I personally tend to hate shopping, so I spend VERY little time doing it. I recently went into a thrift store looking for a pair of brown pants (the only ones I’ve seen so far this fall have been either Land’s End or LL Bean, I forget which, and mail order, which does not work for my butt), and came out with 4 shirts, a pair of Haflinger shoes (kind of like Birkenstock, but not), and paperback book for $31.69 — less than one pair of pants at retail pricing. But no pants! :( Still, thrift shopping does keep the stuff from going into a landfill and the thrift store I shop with is associated with ARC, so a percentage of the profits go to benefit developmentally delayed individuals. Now I just need to get to ARC’s actual store….

I also sew, and try to sew as much as I can for myself. However, as the (slightly fractured) saying goes, “the costumer always goes naked”. ;) It can be tough for me to find time to work on my own stuff. But when I do get to sew, I can at least pick natural fiber fabrics, buy from small/independant shops, etc. I’m looking for a good source for organic cotton — any suggestions?

And a question for those of you are more aware — is Hong Kong any better than China? I know that a lot of really, really talented stitchers/tailors come to the US from Hong Kong, but I don’t know what the business practices are like there, and I’m at a bit of a loss as to where to look to find out. Any thoughts are appreciated.

By: Jill

Jill — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 12:59:52 +0000

Agreed that ethical shopping is extremely difficult. Because I’m perpetually broke (yay grad school), I end up buying a lot of my clothes from places like H&M, Zara and Forever 21 — not exactly beacons of ethical clothing production. If I could afford it, I’d shop exclusively at little boutiques where the clothing is hand-made, but right now that isn’t an option. And I’ve plugged her before, but my friend Kate runs an awesome store in NY called AuH2O, where she hand-makes all of the clothing — everything is recycled, sweatshop-free, etc. I buy a decent amount of stuff from her, and I wish there were more designers like her.

And Aulelia, thanks for the guest-blogging!

By: Elaine Vigneault

Elaine Vigneault — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 12:16:33 +0000

I try to shop ethically for clothing, but it’s not always possible and it’s not the only thing I think about.
I won’t wear leather or fur; it’s a lot easier to find out clothing contents than whether or not they were made in a sweatshop.