Why is the quality of everything so shit?

[Notcontent]

So tired of this. For example, recently bought sine flannel pyjamas from Hush. They arrived and looked lovely and cosy - great, these will last me for years, I thought... I look after my clothes - wash at low temperature, low spin and air dry. I have washed these 3 or 4 times and the fabric has become really rough and slightly bobbled - they look like I have washed and tumble dried them about 100 times.... Same with a jumper I bought in uniqlo.

This did not happen with clothes I bought 20 years ago. I know it’s the quality of the fabric. Grrr...

But Supsmith - why on earth would dvf allow it to leave the factory? Why would any reputable retailer want to sell something high end (to a repeat customer) that had very obviously had corners cut ? It astonishes me

So it's endemic except as some posters have said for men's clothing where you can find quality cotton and it is generally better made.

No wonder the sods can strut into the first shop they come to, get a tshirt/jumper/pair of trousers and get out again, taking no time at all. Damn them!

@Mumsnut the other option is they all go to landfill or are burnt for the sake of a mismatched pattern. The outnet sells dead stock and seconds. Lots of people are quite happy to buy seconds. There are lots of small ethical clothes retailers that just sell dead stock because there is a market for that sort of thing.

H’mmm. Nowhere does the Outnet say they sell seconds. I have bought there since it opened and never had a pure quality issue before .

Massenet originally said she had set up the brand to pick up stock cancelled by retailers to sell it on - is this ‘dead stock’? I do know though that the brand was bought from under her a few years ago so maybe the ethos has changed ?

I've never had a problem with the quality from the Outnet.

The idea that you 'get what you pay for' is seldom true IMO, particularly when it comes to clothes. People think that if they're paying more, the item will be better quality, and sometimes that's true, but usually isn't. I've found that Jigsaw clothes are usually good, but many other high end high street labels simply aren't. I bought a Hush jumper in the January sale. Worn it a couple of times and it looks like a rag, even though I haven't even washed it yet!

I'm always astonished by prices places like Ted Baker and French Connection which sell nasty cheap fabrics at premium prices. I don't understand who buys this stuff.

The idea that you 'get what you pay for' is seldom true IMO
I agree. It's often said that people just want cheap clothes and won't pay a garment's true worth, but I just don't think that's true. I think a lot of people have just become so dissatisfied with the quality almost everywhere that they've decided they might as well buy cheap.

I think 'getting what you pay for' used to be true or at least more true than it is now. That was the deal, if you like. But that deal's been broken, people are beginning to notice it's broken and I think the mid-high end of retail is about to feel the backlash.

Although I do also believe we've completely forgotten what a garment's true worth is. I think even those of us who remember shopping in the 80s and earlier would get get the shock of our lives if we had to pay those prices (in real terms) now.

I agree. I think the top end of the high street used to be good quality but after the crash, it was noticeable that the clothes dropped in quality quite sharply.

I remember when the likes of Reiss, Ted Baker, Mint Velvet and Hush were really good, with quality fabric, precise stitching and finishing and with generous seams.

Not any more.

The whole of the middle market has gone, so we either save up for Celine and MaxMara, or go to Next et al.

@Floisme I agree. I remember buying a a turquoise cotton top and skirt from TopShop in the summer of 1988 and the outfit costing almost a week's wages. Even a trouser suit from a high street shop would be around £40 - £50 - a fortune back then when I earned around £4,000 a year.

Yup Bullfinch I'll spare everyone a repeat of my story about saving up to buy a £40 jumper in the mid 80s, but that was what we did.

I remember desperately wanting the official 1984 Band Aid T shirt but it was £6 or something and I couldn't save enough pocket money. T shirts are £3 now nearly 40 years later!

But they shouldn’t be £3 should they? There isa great need for people to write fashion columns for newspapers and magazines about what well made garments are available. Lecturers like Esme on the Sewing Bee. They know what quality and good construction look like.

I do think there are well made clothes but some of the fabrics are dire!

@PresentingPercy

But they shouldn’t be £3 should they? There isa great need for people to write fashion columns for newspapers and magazines about what well made garments are available. Lecturers like Esme on the Sewing Bee. They know what quality and good construction look like.

I do think there are well made clothes but some of the fabrics are dire!

^ This ^ with bells on.

I'd imagine it's just too expensive to make good quality fabric now, unless you're willing to spend thousands.

Another thing I find is the novelty issue. Most clothes available to us have novelty frills, puffs, balloon sleeves, slits, holes, peplums, glitter, embroidery, sheering, flounces etc. so it becomes a mammoth task just to wade through the novelty to find the normal stuff that will stand the test of time, if it doesnt bobble/fade.

I feel like fashion is going through its own Per Una phase at the moment.

@ArseInTheCoOpWindow

I don’t know what changed but for me it was about 2007

I remember buying a cotton skirt from Next after dd was born in 2007. And that was the last time l saw a cotton skirt in Next. Next shifted downmarket and all the rest followed.

The growth of supermarket clothes and Matalan around the same time caused a race to the bottom.

Principles went under and they tended to have good quality clothing. So yes l would agree it was around the same time of 2008.

Various cotton harvests failed ( but have since recovered) so cotton became more expensive for a time, and this is when polyester really took off.

However, it seems that once shops realised they could sell shit polyester they stopped even trying to use cotton. The cotton harvests recovered but retainers kept polyester because it was cheaper.

I also think it’s a British thing. Both H and M and Zara use natural fabrics for blouses and dresses. Where else in the U.K. can you find this? ( apart from White stuff which is a very marmite brand, and uses really thin fabrics)

Zara always seems to be a riot of polyester when I go in.

@Floisme

Yup Bullfinch I'll spare everyone a repeat of my story about saving up to buy a £40 jumper in the mid 80s, but that was what we did.

I wasn't alive then but it seems a lot more sensible. I bet people had a fraction of the clothes we have today. I disgusted myself when I moved house recently and struggled to fit 2 seasons of clothing (autumn/winter) into a triple wardrobe. I've decided not to buy anymore clothes or shoes for at least a year. Last time I bought was in January so I've gone 2.5 months so far without thinking or caring about it at all.

Zara always seems to be a riot of polyester when I go in.

I agree. The quality in Zara is probably the worst on the high street where I live. Hideous fabrics, terrible cuts and the and changing rooms are always filthy with about 10 years worth of dust that nobody ever cleans up! I have seen cotton clothes in there occasionally, but the cut is always dreadful and extremely unflattering. Maybe it's because I'm a size 10-12 and Zara only designs with a 6-8 in mind.

H&M is better I think if you're looking for value clothes.

You have to poke around at Zara, but they do have quite a lot of natural fibres. Quality is shit though.

I have a pair of shoes, purchased from a long lost shoe shop, Grants, which sold wonderful shoes. I purchased the shoes, in 1979 for £59.99 - full leather, wonderful styling, a soft mink grey colour, with a sling back and a soft leather over foot strap. That was a week's wages for me then! I still have the shoes, rarely worn, but look like new and interesting would certainly not be out of place style wise. I bought a shorts / tailored jacket suit from M&S, in a navy blue gaberdine, great flattering cut and looked as good at the end of the day, as the beginning for £70 for the two pieces in 1985. Clothes were more expensive and I bought less, but they wore better, looked better and performed better. I didn't ask for a reduction in quality, or go looking to pay less, it happened in the market place to us all and now I struggle with how poorly made items are and no, price and label do not guarantee quality. I saved to buy a winter coat and would choose carefully and often wait for the sales, the real twice a year sales, to buy from brands that were often beyond my purchasing power. Ironically, items I bought from markets in the 1980s would leave items purchased today way behind in terms of quality. I had less clothing than I do today, but it worked harder and cost per wear would certainly be far cheaper.

@PresentingPercy

But they shouldn’t be £3 should they? There isa great need for people to write fashion columns for newspapers and magazines about what well made garments are available. Lecturers like Esme on the Sewing Bee. They know what quality and good construction look like.

I do think there are well made clothes but some of the fabrics are dire!

Yes that was my point. How devalued they must have become in manufacturing and materials to reverse inflation.

About few years ago now, I was queuing in M&S to return something.

At the counter, an elderly gentleman was returning a suit.

"But Sir, the suit is 30 years old!" said the M&S staff member.

The gentlemen replied "Yes, but when I bought it. I was told it would last a lifetime, and it hasn't".

Eventually they led him away, saying he could chose a new suit.

I bet he was very disappointed with the quality of the replacement!

Actually M&S has wool mens’ suits. They are certainly more than ok for the price. Their tweed coats are first class too - for men. Men do not buy as often so they get the decent fabrics. Not to mention their very decent cotton shirts. It is the women who suffer the awful fabrics.

M&S do some very decent staples. Merino pullovers, cashmere and a few other things. Their big problem is quality wool fabrics. They have disappeared. Other stores find it difficult to have wool too but Cos manages it and a handful of others. Few High Street mid range women's’ shops are doing well. It is so difficult to get the quality and price point right.

I shopped at Next when it opened in the 80s. Different and well made. I was never really a Laura Ashley girl! I used to buy Jaeger wool trousers and now they have gone.Their coats were superb.I think they might be in M&S now. At least they were decent wools! You just have to search these things out.

Massimo Dutti do great leather. Ganni and Claudie Pierrot are new brands worth seeking out if you are a bit younger.

Off the back of this thread I've ordered a load of stuff from Cos. You bunch of enabling vipers.

And bloody hell I'm impressed. The quality of the fabrics are amazing.

I can post some knots if you'd like. I'd say exactly the same quality as me&em (triple the price) and much better than Hush and Jigsaw.

You do have to size down when the sizes are xs/s/m/l but the actual sizes e.g a 10 is a true 10.