The Facts: History

Today, while on my current small writing break (as in I’m not posting at my usual pace here), I figured I need to pop in and share a quick story that has been on my mind a bit lately. Best way to get that off my head so I can continue all the other things I have to do, is to share it with you all.

So, thank you for your patience. Really appreciate that. Regular postings will soon resume. Now, for the facts.

Years ago, I got a new job. It was a change of career and industry. What I wore needed a desperate upgrade. Not because what I had couldn’t work at all, in fact, the upgrade was more about me feeling better about this particular change in my life.

What does one fella do when a massive change requires a new wardrobe? You ask the ladies in your life for advice and pull out the old shopping playbook. No self-respecting guy (at that time) spends a long time window shopping. I knew what I wanted. A more updated version of what I already do.

The Experience.

According to my old playbook, there was this store (which will remain nameless) that offered great discounts and superior quality clothing. Some of my longest lasting suits came from that place. I could wear an affordable (low low price) suit for a decade or more without thinking twice.

By a decade of service, I mean a lot of service. Interviews. Church functions. Weddings. One suit often took me from a performance gig to the volleyball court where I played in said suit. They held up to the testing I gave them. I loved all my suits from that company. Very very high quality items for a college student budget.

Now, a new job coming, a modestly bigger budget, it was time to get several suits at a bargain but slightly more up-market. I was thrilled. Excited.

Two hours later, I came out with several thousand dollars worth of suits, shirts, pants, blazers, and accessories to have a solid new closet. This included tailor measurements for each. Negotiation on pricing. Feeling excited about my modern look.

If it was up to my wife, I could have done a bit more window shopping to make sure I got the best price. Trust me, one can’t beat these prices very easily. Plus they had a price guarantee also. Which I took advantage of for one suit and saved even more. I was a very happy customer.

To make matters even more impressive for me, the customer service of the place had greatly improved from the decade prior. It was really nice then. Now it was even better.

If you’re not getting the message that I was very very happy, you’re not reading this post well enough. However, the post is not done.

More facts about “fast fashion”.

Many companies have adopted the principle of fast fashion. In some circles, it just means the rapid iteration of design to runway to store shelves. To me, fast fashion is kind of like fashion casual. Pieces designed to be viral for a few days before being outdated. That’s what I think of when I hear the expression fast fashion. confirmed by a few Google searches

At the time, I was not aware that men’s fashion had gone the route of fast fashion either. Many of the heavily discounted pieces I was looking at… were designed to be that affordable. There had been a business decision that I missed. The store needed to cut their cost to stay viable. Many other competitors had vanished from that area.

The other darker side of fast fashion, the items are literally designed for limited use with the understanding you’re going to replace them very very soon. Why then make a sturdy strong durable shirt when you can make it last just a few wears before it is tossed. If the consumer is going to only wear it a few times, there is no need to build it to last longer. Keeps prices low. Keeps people buying new items. Keeps fashion moving quickly off the shelves.