Ethical Shopping - How much of a mark up is 'okay'?

lyn*

One of the things I had wanted to do this year is buy less "sweat shop" made clothing, and to go with more eco friendly, or at least more worker friendly brands.

My go-to brands are made in the UK (London) and Australia... I don't notice that I have to buy too much of a mark up for them, because they are quite well made and I am very happy with all the pieces (and they go into the washing machine!)

Generally, though, how much of a mark up are you willing to pay for something that is ethically sourced?

13 years ago

Shopping

10 replies

Latest reply was from Charmian

Caro in Oz

Veteran

If it is well made I'll pay more but we have sweat shops here in Australia too. So just having "made in Australia" on the tag doesn't always mean it is ethically made.

13 years ago

Thistle

Veteran

I wish I could find more stuff made in USA, but it is tough. And as Caro said, even if it can get the made in USA tag, sometimes the conditions are still abominable.

I was reading a write-up on Made in Italy goods not long ago. Apparantly, they have "labor camps" of immigrants that work in these factories and are sweat shops. As people are looking for Made in XYZ tags, companies are giving it to them without really changing their practices.

Would be interesting to see an expose on truly eco-firnedly and labor friendly businesses.

13 years ago

kkards

Veteran

Do you mean mark up, which is the difference between what the retailer charges the customer and what the wholesaler charges them, or do you mean the difference between what the same item cost if it was made in Canada/US/ London vs something made in china?

13 years ago

Isis

Veteran

How do you figure out the markup between a sweatshop-produced item and an ethically sourced item?

Not sure how to do it.

On the other hand, non of the cost of consignment or thrifted items go toward sweatshop labor, so that might be the way to go.

13 years ago

Jenava

(website)

Veteran

Also, what do you mean by sweatshop? If the workers are treated well but paid very little, do you include that?

ETA - I guess I am thinking of a woman in my business school who had worked in what most would consider a "sweat shop" in China when she was younger, but it helped her pay bills when she didn't really have any other skills.

13 years ago

Isabel

Veteran

This is such a tough question. I have been struggling with this since I read

Overdressed, the shockingly high price of cheap fashion.

http://www.amazon.com/Overdres.....ap+fashion

Have you read it ?

13 years ago

lyn*

(website)

Veteran

Yes; I've read the book...

... hmm, I guess it's probably true that there is some bad stuff going on in the european countries too. Hmm.

Gah. So hard to be a good consumer.

13 years ago

Kalli

Active Member

Seriously, I have the same conundrum too. I think there is a list where some companies are more transparent. The less mainstream/mass market brands the easier to be conscious.

I generally go with a pricepoint I am willing to pay for an item and then look for a brand that was supposed to be more conscious.

I just blatantly don't buy Made in Bangeledesh and Southeast Asia mainly.

Baby steps! That's why I also took up sewing so I could tell quality sewing and make some clothing in a sweatshop called my house. I believe if I can determine better quality and fabric/sewing techique I could be a better shopper and use my money more wisely.

13 years ago

Echo

Veteran

As far as actual mark-up, I would guess percentages are about the same on items regardless of where they are made. For example, I wanted to buy a wooden marble run game for my DS and I checked a local toy store. They had one made in China for under $20 that likely cost them pennies to make. They had one that looked almost identical that was made in Germany that was almost $100. Given the smaller production, higher wages, presumed benefits, etc. the actual mark-up was likely the same; there were just vastly different costs of production.

But we never really know the mark-up on most things, so perhaps the question is what sort of premium are we willing to pay for ethically sourced items. I try to purchase as small and as locally as possible with as many things as possible, but unfortunately with many items we have no way of finding out whether "Made in Italy" actually means what we think it does, or whether everything is assembled in China and then shipped to Italy to have the "Made in" label attached.

13 years ago

Charmian

Veteran

I also wanted to buy my clothing more ethically, but quickly ran into the same issues the ladies here are pointing out.

Ultimately, I chose to dodge the issue as best as I could by stretching my clothing's longevity as long as possible -- after all, I can't buy sweatshop clothing if I'm not buying. My current policy is to wear clothing until it's completely worn out, while simultaneously taking care of it to the best of my ability. So I've been learning about leather care, how to handwash items, etc. Unfortunately, this also means I'll never wear the "trendy" mantle, as even a sweatshop tee will last for years if you never throw it in the dryer.

I actually have a similar issue with the environmental impact of cashmere (ie, desertification), and would love to hear what folks have been able do to lessen their impact on human suffering and the environment.

13 years ago

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