A single bra is comprised of many more pieces than other clothing items, such as shirts or pants, and"without economies of scale, you're paying up for all the components," Cordeiro Grant explained."Within one bra, there's as many as 25 components," such as clasps, straps and adjusters.
"If you're a small company ... you're not going to get the price advantage as if you're running 10,000 or 60,000 units," she added."If you're running just five 34Bs, six 36Bs ... that makes it really expensive."Smaller clothing makers can reach economies of scale more easily if they use a mill that's already making fabric for several different companies.
What's more, big box chains might be able to afford to price bras lower and take the financial loss because they're making it up with other products, according to Harrington.Simply put,"bras take a lot of labor to produce," Harrington said."They're all ... handmade by people sitting in front of sewing machines putting these little pieces together."
While bras may use less fabric than a coat, for example, the process of sewing a bra requires more specialized knowledge and machinery. "The labor, the expertise, the time it takes to make, the fact that there are some bras that have taken years of research and development to produce ... all of that together is what contributes to that final cost," Harrington continued.
Because the world needs more women controlling the design and manufacturing process.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.