I’ve been shopping for underwear lately. And somehow, I got it in my head that I was going to buy American made underwear. See, I’ve been working on a piece about a sporting goods company that outsourced their manufacturing to China. And a few days ago, I talked to one of the smaller players in the industry who told me that it’s not so much that this big player has outsourced, but that we don’t make anything in America anymore and this is not sustainable.
With this in mind I went looking and found ONE, count them, ONE manufacturer of women’s undergarments here in the US. They were a little expensive. And I was confronted with a dilemma. See, I am kind of a cheapskate, I like a good deal. Who doesn’t, right? Plus, in spite of my seemingly glam lifestyle, I live pretty low to the ground and supporting a glam lifestyle when you are, oh, work averse, requires some serious planning. That serious planning includes shopping for things that are reasonably priced.
Just because I am a cheapskate does not mean I do not appreciate well made things. So I was also looking at Swiss underwear which is supposed to be pretty high quality and also, available here in the US for not very much money. But it’s not made in Switzerland, it’s made in Hungary. Here’s where I started to get confused.
Is buying stuff that’s made in Hungary for a Swiss company worse than buying stuff that’s made in China for an American company? Is it better? Or is it exactly the same?
While I was lying awake in the middle of the night last night pondering this (and many other stupid things that run through your head when you can’t sleep) I listened to a BBC report about Wal-Mart’s store in China. (You gotta listen to this just to hear the crazy team motivating cheer session in Chinese.) And I was wondering this: From a jobs perspective, is it bad for the Chinese to buy Chinese made stuff in a Chinese Wal-Mart? I get that it’s better for them to shop local, but given that Wal-Mart is in China and the Chinese are making stuff for Wal-Mart, who is hiring Chinese workers, who are shopping there as well as working there, well, you get where I’m going with this.
The bottom line is that I’m confused, really confused. I don’t know if I’m supposed to buy Hungarian made Swiss underwear or not. I get that I shouldn’t shop at Wal-Mart because of their terrible employment policies and the way they bully their suppliers, but is it really better to buy my Indonesian made or Costa Rican made clothing at Target? I would like to buy American but this is turning out to be much harder than I thought it would be. I’m not adverse to paying a little more for an American made product, but 300% more?
What’s a thoughtful consumer to do? I don’t HAVE to buy underwear right now, I’m delaying that decision. But you know what? I need a garbage can for under the kitchen sink. Now what?
“American Apparel” is cheaper than blue canoe and more stylish but 12 dollars a pair is still hard to spend… google american apparel
hmm Wal-Mart is such a powerful company, imagine the pressure it does to its suppliers =I
As someone who spends much too much time thinking about his underwear, I feel your pain.
I was going to suggest American Apparel as well, but RC beat me to it. I will add that American Apparel is about to go bankrupt. That speaks volumes about the industry.
These underwear are made in the US! http://www.under-tec.com/gasEaters.php
I tend to give my blessing to anything Patagonia makes as well. Although, they are far from perfect, they make an effort.
Also, it’s better to go with a big brand (GAP, NIKE) than some off brand at a department store.
My favorite off brand label is the apropos “Fade Glory” label at WalMart. To be clear, I love the irony not the product.