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...

I am currently working on having some clothing produced using British factories and 100% organic cotton. For a pretty simple cotton midi dress you are looking at costs of around £35 for production alone excluding any costs for sampling, tags, fabric, VAT, shipping etc... People generally just aren’t willing to pay the cost for well manufactured, local clothing. They’d rather pay a couple of pounds for something synthetic that will fall apart to be made for pennies in China and shipped around the world.

@Sipsmith1 - that's so depressing. I'm prepared to pay for something that's good quality and will last, but can't afford more than the top end high st prices, and the quality is either so variable or non-existent altogether. I remember buying from the first range of Next clothes in 1982, and had some really beautiful skirts and shirts from there that washed brilliantly: the range wasn't big, but items were designed to be worn together, so it was easy to buy an outfit and a couple of other items to mix and match, knowing they'd get plenty of wear and still look great. These days, it's a shop I never go in. Ditto Gap - it was my go-to shop in the early 90s, but not bought anything from there in years.

Most of my clothes these days are either old or come from eBay (local charity shops tend to be pretty rubbish). I have some lovely bits from Hobbs from 15 years ago and knitwear from Jigsaw from 10 years ago, but the equivalent now is just rubbish. Get the odd thing from Toast, Baukjen, Arket and the like. A walk down my local High St recently revealed a few shops that have closed down altogether in lockdown - among them Jigsaw & Mistral: the likes of LK Bennett, River Island, Monsoon and Next went a few years ago, soon to be joined by Debenhams. Before long, there just won't be any clothes shops there at all.

@woodhill

Laura Ashley used to have factories in Wales and the quality of clothing in the 80s was amazing

One of my aunts has kept her 1970s and 1980s Laura Ashley dresses - sadly not my style or I’d have nabbed them - and you are quite right. Lined, properly interfaced, nicely finished, proper hems, beautiful thick fabric. We put up with crud now, in comparison!

I worked in the industry for years. No one cares! They just aim at the lower end high fashion. This started with the advent of supermarket fashion.

Very few companies even do proper wash tests, so just put the lowest possible temperature in to keep on the safe side.

The H and M group are better than any other imo. You can tumble dry some H and M clothes which is an impossibility from other high street chains. All the H and am group at the moment are getting it right. They seemed to have filled the ‘quality’ gap. Maybe not H and M itself but it still has some natural fibres.

I don’t waste money in anywhere like Reiss or Hobbs. It’s just shit posh polyester. Still crap. Bobbles mainly come from man made fabrics or low quality natural fibres. The length of the ‘staples’ in natural fibres are what stop bobbling. The shorter they are, the better the quality and the less they bobble.

I mean the longer the staple the higher the quality.

I've had some good quality 100% cotton t-shirts from Esprit.

@ArseInTheCoOpWindow
@sipsmith1

With the demise of the high street chain shops and department stores, do you think there will now be a market for small independents who can cater to this week made, sustainable demand or is that a pipe dream?

My tiny city has so many empty shops but also an older population who don't buy online. I'm hoping for a rebuild of the independent sector.

I don’t think it’s a pipe dream, but they will be expensive. You may be struggling to get a week turnaround unless they have all the fabrics and components in stock. Knitwear would be almost impossible to produce to individual customer demand.

Very little is produced in the U.K. because of this:

In the 1980’s we became a service economy. Manufactured British items became too expensive, and U.K. manufacturers were reluctant to invest in technology, even though ultimately they would lower prices. And l also remember quite clearly that working with U.K. manufacturers was so annoying compared to overseas. They were kind of entitled, so stuff would be late, or not produced and they didn’t seem to care. Overseas were much more on the ball, and were investing in the likes of JIT long before the U.K., so they gained a competitive edge. So production switched to abroad, where they were prepared to invest in technology. And they’ve continued to do so, whilst Britain has slipped further and further behind.

People want goods made in the U.K., but we aren’t set up for it. Not much is made over here. All the big Textile companies that were massive in the U.K. like Tootals, SR Gents and Courtalds have disappeared. And they were huge!

And also your little indie shop would need to specialise in one or two items. They wouldn’t be able to afford the different machinery for all the different types of garments. E.g jeans are made on different machines to t shirts.

@MoMuntervary

Totally agree. I won't buy anything manmade. So much high street stuff just falls apart. Bamboo is a good alternative for some things. It's thick, feels luxurious and washes well bambooclothing.co.uk/?gclid=CjwKCAjw6qqDBhB-EiwACBs6x4ZUrbOuz-tL9i8l4Ii5tJYIJjBnrqkNEBl4dlRI-Dz8xbfmAsrsiRoC_hMQAvD_BwE Range is somewhat limited - no day dresses there! Good undies though. Buying at ethical companies also seems to help with quality. I find Mistral and People Tree both to be pretty good in terms of quality. Rapanui or Howies for basic t-shirts (not bought from either for a while, to be fair, as previous stuff has lasted!) I'm tall, though and none of these places seem to do longer length. I'm a bit stuck as far as trousers go.

There are some incredible yoga poses going on on that website @MoMuntervary . Loving the diversity of the models as well. I won't shop online where there is no diversity of ethnicity, shape or ability Thanks for the suggestion.

*People want goods made in the U.K., but we aren’t set up for it. Not much is made over here. All the big Textile companies that were massive in the U.K. like Tootals, SR Gents and Courtalds have disappeared. And they were huge!
I remember those companies and agree with your whole post Arse, particularly the part about how the UK chose not to invest in manufacturing and skills (and yes attitudes too) in the 80s.
What really makes me cross is that the public money to do it - aka North Sea oil - was there. As I remember (and I accept other people may recall it differently) we literally had our own magic money tree but pissed it away in tax cuts. We lost our industries, skills, jobs, communities and, if you ask me, it's a big reason why so many former manufacturing towns voted for Brexit.

Which all sounds a long way from why knitwear bobbles, but it's been a long and winding path to this situation and I'm not sure how we can ever go back.

It's true manufacturing is very down scaled in the Uk. Where I live in the East Midlands it used to be the heartland of the textile industry. I could once literally buy M&S knitwear from the factory shop down the road. It's a housing estate now. I think British made will always be a bit of a niche but it would be good if it was part of a range where better, more sustainably made imported clothing was a choice too.

You almost want a one-for-the-price-of-five model - one T shirt or blouse guaranteed to last 5 years with less environmental impact than even one cheap one.

I have used Rapanui but found that the print on the front peels off after a while. Wouldn't be a problem with their plain basics though. My t-shirt from there is still quite light weight though, not heavy cotton. I had a wool jumper from there a few years back which has worn well - does bobble a bit - but they don't seem to sell them anymore. I am currently wearing a lambswool jumper from The Croft House is Scotland. Definitely a luxury purchase though. It does still bobble wear my arms rub along my body but it is nothing on the cashmere blend m&s men's jumper I have which is a gorgeous colour but the bobbles! Needs regular debobbling and still doesn't look right now it's a few years old. Thanks to this thread I now know that must be to do with the fibre lengths.

I have got into buying Scottish brands for wool products. Though even then the company I get recycled wool blankets from makes them in India not Scotland. It is very hard.

My next winter jumper will be from here. Shetland Wool and price is reasonable

www.shetlandknitwear.com/product/crew-neck-jumper-mooskit/

These colours are a bit more interesting

www.shetlandknitwear.com/product/chunky-crew-neck-jumper-sheala/

For me H&M, Primark and Monsoon offer the best quality in terms of wear. Primark basics will last years and are usually made from natural materials too but, here’s the catch, you should spend at least £10 there. I still have a cashmere jumper I bought at Primark and despite it being half the price of a Uniqlo one 6 years later it hasn’t bubbled while the Uniqlo one had to be binned.

Why is the quality of everything so shit ?
Simple answer.
Companies want more profit so cut costs- both production, labour and materials cost.

@GrumpyHoonMain there is quite a large human and environmental cost behind shopping at Primark though

Baukjen are still pretty good, but the prices make me wince.
I miss the French Connection and Reiss of 20-25 years ago, all great style and quality.

mmm Primark and quality aren't two words I tend to put together ...

We need to stop buying too much in terms of quantity and buying less but better made clothing.

[quote sipsmith1]@GrumpyHoonMain there is quite a large human and environmental cost behind shopping at Primark though[/quote]
Just because Primark is cheap doesn’t mean it’s worse ethically or environmentally. There are plenty below Primark on the Fashion Transparency Index www.fashionrevolution.org/about/transparency/
including some designer brands such as Versace and Steve Madden etc. I’m not suggesting we all shop in Primark, because you’re right, there is a huge human and environmental cost. But don’t think spending more negates the impact the fashion industry has on the above.

[quote sipsmith1]@GrumpyHoonMain there is quite a large human and environmental cost behind shopping at Primark though[/quote]
Primark makes stuff in Bangladesh alongside a lot of big name brands including some very high end designer names. Difference is they are working with asos to invest in cotton and other materials that use less water and don’t rely in exploitation. Don’t assume that just because Primark or Asos are budget brands they’re somehow worse than expensive brands. Even Baukjen has a factory in China.

It’s a shame because as all the brands move online, the quality goes down and they all become the same. I’ve got a couple of skirts and dresses that I bought in Warehouse about 6/7 years ago and they are still look good. However I won’t buy from their online store now as I know the quality has really gone downhill. I wonder where I’m going to buy my clothes now?

I had a Primark coat that looked good and lasted me about 10 years. I recently replaced it with a Mint Velvet wool coat which was reduced from £200 to £50 in the sale. I hardly wear it as it bobbles so badly I have to shave off the bobbles very time I wear it.

@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...

You are absolutely correct. I am a charity shop volunteer and regularly see all sorts of clothes from various eras.

There is just no comparison between current high street labels and 1980s/1990s labels. We regularly see labels like St Michael (M&S), Clockhouse (C&A) or Richards Shops which haven't been around for at least 20 years and the garment quality is so much better. Better quality fabric. Better finish. Better made. Just... better.

But I was a teenager in the 80s and shopped in places like Chelsea Girl and Clockhouse - they weren't cheap. My favourite shirt EVER I bought in Chelsea Girl in about 1986 for £9.99. That's pretty much what you'd pay for a shirt now in New Look or similar, despite inflation.

Part of the reason why vintage clothing sells so well is the quality.

Primark and Quality😂

They are the only company not to have a QC dept