If you look at a random item of clothing in your closet, there's a large chance you’ll see it was made in another country. You’ll likely see a tag saying “Made in China”, for example. This appearance, however, is not random at all. Many big companies in the fashion industry, such as Forever 21 and H&M, have tags like these due to outsourcing.
According to Cambridge University, outsourcing is “a situation in which a company employs another organization to do some of its work.” Most outsourcing organizations are from Asian countries, especially China, India, and Myanmar. But why do so many companies in the fashion industry use it?
Companies that produce fashion in mass often use it for one reason: cheap labor. Most of the places the third-party organizations are in don’t have labor laws as strict as the United States, which means that it costs less for a company to get the third party to produce more goods in less time. For example, in Myanmar, as found by Chapman University, “the minimum monthly wage was only $63, with 6-day work weeks, meaning workers made only around $2.63 a day.” This allows clothing and other fashion items to be cheaper when you buy it.
Many of these outsourcing organizations are skilled in their field. According to Reevoy, it is incorrect to believe that the fashion industry mostly uses unskilled labor from the country where outsourcing is done. The tradition and history of fabric production are common among nations that excel in the fashion industry. These extensive histories produce expert work.
Next time you see a tag on your clothing saying “Made in __” and wonder why, remember that the fashion industry is a globally connected network, using techniques like outsourcing to increase profits. Nevertheless, enjoy your globally-made fashion item.
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