To not want to buy made in china

[Alpacasmum]

Just that really.
For lots of reasons and most are fairly obvious - but it is hard finding clothes and shoes that are affordable and not made in China.

And where was the device you are accessing Mumsnet made?

rslsys - what a silly thing to say.

When my device 'conks out' I 'll do my best to source something with the least possible Chinese ''bits'.

I cannot imagine many households in any country without stuff manufactured in China.
I am talking about clothes and shoes which surely are produced in other countries other than China.

Is that you Donald?

The base ingredients of so many things are made in china. Hundreds of medicines, batteries, components. It's nigh on impossible to avoid things that have parts made in china. It's not even on the label most of the time.

Snozzlemaid - No

Is it not time to change then?

Your choice

Why? Is it just racism? Or something else?

Good Fucking Luck. Is all I can really say.

Hi OP :)

I get what you mean about not wanting to buy from China - there’s ethical issues surrounding working conditions and also the environmental impact of transporting the goods.

My suggestion would be to start fairly small, by using charity shops and such like whilst the products will still most likely have originated in China you won’t be adding any more orders by buying it second hand, if you see what I mean.

Also if you have the time and inclination, learning to sew, crochet and knit can be handy for clothes! I tend to do things for my child, as well as accessories for myself and my husband. Generally speaking you can find out where yarn in particular has originated from fairly easily also.

Thank you Bananaontoast
Your suggestions are very positive.
I do a fair bit of sewing but often the fabric is from China.
I am horrified at the manufacturing stranglehold that China has on the world and am sure I am not alone. As you say start small.

I don’t understand why you are given such a hard time Alpacasmum.

I would recommend Etsy for vintage clothes, vintage fabrics and accessories. I bought some lovely woven straw baskets and hats for summer from a lady in Portugal, beautiful cotton bath mats for my bathroom and some vintage Liberty fabric for my sister who sews. It takes time but it gets easier once you figure out what you need to search for and you can filter your search to narrow it down to buy only from the UK or Europe if you don’t want to pay expensive postage. There are some amazing companies from Lithuania and Latvia that sell gorgeous linen dresses made in Europe. Not my style but they do look lovely. Charity shops, car boot sales and flea markets are great for clothes, bags and home accessories.

I ordered some men’s t-shirts from Rapanui who have their own factory in India and print in the UK. They were really nice and reasonably priced.
rapanuiclothing.com/womens-organic-clothing/

Shoes wise, depends on what you like. Birkenstocks are made in Germany. Castaner that makes espadrilles manufactures in Spain. There is a good list of companies in this blog post www.google.at/amp/s/livinglightlyinireland.com/2017/08/11/ethical-sustainable-shoe-brands/amp/

Don’t get discouraged and give it a go. You will probably need to spend more and buy less.

Power to your elbow. Being an ethical consumer must be worthwhile. The ethical living section isn't easy to find on mumsnet, but maybe it would be a welcome home, for others. I found it by chance

Violetgrey Thank you for all your helpful suggestions.
I am busy working my way through Etsy and will certainly follow up your leads.
It is really quite fun and rather satisfying.
As you say you may have to pay a bit more and have fewer things but maybe we've had it too easy and why so many people have spent the last three months sorting all the rubbish we have all accumulated.

Makes you realise how much manufacturing has gone from the UK though.
Lets hope the tide may turn even just a bit!

It is very satisfying, especially when you find some amazing things. Some of the vintage clothes I bought are beautifully made in lovely fabrics. I was getting sick of wading through polyester and viscose clothes in the shops on the High Street.

There are some amazing brands in the UK that manufacture ethically in India but their style is too boho for me. Beautiful things though.

www.dilligrey.com/

lisa-taylor.co.uk/collections/new-in

Someone recommended this company for clothes made in the UK. It looks nice for basics. I haven’t bought from them.

communityclothing.co.uk/pages/about-us

If you are on Instagram, have a look at Lofty Frocks account. This lady makes dresses from vintage fabrics and sheets. Some of it looks a bit too retro but some of the styles and fabrics look lovely. The Fashion Revolution account on Instagram is really interesting to follow. They have lots of educational info about clothes manufacturing practices.

John Smedley and Brora knitware is made in the UK. Beautiful quality and expensive. I’ve seen some of their things on Ebay but I don’t have the patience for EBay anymore.:-)

Violetgrey
Thank you again, lots of inspiration and fun!

There are already several brands of the similar products our country manufactures, we generally tend to buy the Chinese version because they offer a cheaper version with better products. But, the reality is that they do not provide the quality that the local brand provide. This is because China just looks forward to mass dumping rather then looking for the quality. Whereas the local provider tries to build his brand and so, tends to provide qualitative products. Also, when we purchase a product that is locally manufactured and sold, we are contributing to our national income and growth. So, it is important for all of us to move towards our local brands rather than supporting the mass dumping brands

Sarah - Thank you!
That is how I feel.

the issues with China are that they have very proper worker protection, health and safety, environmental protection. They sell stuff so cheaply because they’re killing/oppressing their people. A lot of the stuff we buy from China comes from their prison and labour camps, which are mostly populated by political dissidents.

It’s not racism at all, it’s choosing what kind of behaviour you want to supportz

I am in.

Why? Is it just racism? Or something else?

Don’t be bloody ridiculous. Why does everything have to come down to this? As a black British woman you are trivialising racism with this crap!

Maybe OP doesn’t approve of their human rights or animal rights records or maybe she just wants to support her local economy, whether that’s her local area or Britain as a whole.

Since lockdown OP I have been making a concerted effort to shop local. I’ve bought local food produce and when I buy from Etsy I whittle down to British only to try and support local artists/producers. I am trying to reduce carbon footprint, support local and yes I am paying more but it’s better quality and I know Susie in my hometown has made that print for my home, not a poor child in a factory.

@Sarah5674 Yes, everything you said!

How are you getting on Alpacasmum?

Here is an article about Chinese factories using forced labor of Uyghur workers to manufacture cheap goods.

www.business-humanrights.org/en/china-83-major-brands-implicated-in-report-on-forced-labour-of-ethnic-minorities-from-xinjiang-assigned-to-factories-across-provinces-includes-company-responses

Hi I know this is an older thread but I'm also on board. Doing little things such as not upgrading my phone also better for the environment . Buying more 2nd hand from either eBay fb or charity shops . And just being a lot more savvy about what I'm buying