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Who is ripping us off when we buy underwear?

Why are bras available from less than $10 from China and yet the same one in the USA is likely to be over $30?

Posted - September 21, 2016

Responses


  • 3191

    Goods are cheaper when produced in China or other countries.  American-made goods reflect higher wages and more regulation.  Additionally, since the majority of our goods are now produced overseas, manufacturers here no longer have the economies of scale that result in lower per-item costs because of the large production volume.  We cannot have it both ways.  We cannot demand high wages and regulation of business and get American-made products for prices comparable to goods produced overseas for low wages where companies do not have to meet standards required here.  No one is ripping us off.  The buying public made a choice to buy cheaper products produced overseas rather than support their fellow Americans that used to make the majority of the goods sold here. 

      September 21, 2016 11:18 AM MDT
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  • 1615

    The over the shoulder bolder holders are better made here that's why.

      September 21, 2016 12:45 PM MDT
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  • 5354

    Probably China. A great many products from there still have very low quality and durability.

      September 21, 2016 12:54 PM MDT
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  • 7919

    36% of the Chinese population lives on less than 2$ per day and are forced to work in sweatshops. There are approximately 150 million internal migrant workers in China who endure working conditions such as excessive and forced overtime, denial of social security rights and failure to provide employment contracts. These workers work under poor conditions where they are exposed to severe health risks. There are barely any unions in China that can regulate the working conditions and worker’s rights which allows the multinational corporations all around the world to take advantage of the anti-union place as the workers are also not aware of their own rights and the Chinese government chooses to ignore the issue of abuse in these sweatshops. https://www.buzzfeed.com/kagesansri/sweatshop-labour-1h3dc 

    If you need more info, there's a delightful little piece in the New York Times called "In Chinese Factories, Lost Fingers and Low Pay" as well. It's older, but things haven't improved much. Some facilities are better than others... if you're going to compare sweatshops, but a whole lot of them are unsafe, unsanitary, pay unlivable wages, use child labor, etc. If you're cool with this business model, by all means, enjoy your rock bottom prices for underwear. As far as some brands being cheaper in some countries versus others, selling the same exact product- see above. They typically make them in sweatshops and then charge what the local market will bear. True bargains don't exist. Somebody always pays. In these cases, it's the workers. 

      September 21, 2016 2:56 PM MDT
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  • 46117

    I don't get ripped off because I don't wear any.

    I have had some ripped off me before.

      September 21, 2016 2:57 PM MDT
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  • 3934

    While this isn't directly on topic it is related and somewhat interesting.

    In his book, The Wal-Mart Effect, author Charles Fishman describes an interview with a major US underwear manufacturer whose largest customer was/is Wal-Mart (true for many major manufacturers of consumer goods). Given that underwear is a pretty much a staple item which people consistently use, companies in the underwear business know about how long their products last and how often people buy new ones.

    After Wal-Mart insisted the aforementioned underwear producer make super-bonus packs for Wal-Mart (more underwear, lower price), the manufacturer noted a curious trend. Because of the Wal-Mart super-bonus packs, people were buying significantly more underwear than they needed. Spurred by the low price, people bought underwear in greater volumes than the statisitically established volume of underwear disposal.

    In other words, people were literally taking money out of the bank accounts and stuffing it in their underwear storage furniture (by converting it from currency to unused underwear).

      September 21, 2016 3:13 PM MDT
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  • And the bra?

      September 21, 2016 5:55 PM MDT
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  • Because Chinese women have smaller breasts.

    Sad, actually.

    VOTE NOT TRUMP!

      September 21, 2016 5:56 PM MDT
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  • 52905

    :)

      September 21, 2016 8:56 PM MDT
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  • 52905

      September 21, 2016 9:07 PM MDT
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  • 52905

    You're shocked that products from China cost less than their counterparts from the USA?  This can't be your first day on the planet.

      September 21, 2016 9:09 PM MDT
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  • See this is why I don't wear underwear...problem solved :-)

      September 21, 2016 11:41 PM MDT
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  • 5835

    If you import anything, you have to sell it for three times what it cost you just to pay shipping, customs, and bookkeeping.

      September 22, 2016 3:19 AM MDT
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  • 52905
    Then the locally-made product would cost less than the foreign-made one, right?
    ~
      September 22, 2016 6:55 AM MDT
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  • 52905
    :)
      September 22, 2016 6:55 AM MDT
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  • Are you talking about you butt again?
    That's sad, Believe me.
    VOTE NOT TRUMP!

      September 22, 2016 7:29 AM MDT
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