Pacific Brands

Aussie Icon Condemned or Congratulated

The Truth about the Bra Industry

There has been so much controversy recently regarding Pacific Brands shipping their production to China. But should we be condemning or congratulating them?

Here is the truth about the Bra Industry…..

For years now the majority of intimate apparel has been made in China. Now this is no shock to anybody.

The truth is Pacific Brands were the last company to make the switch to China quoting CEO Sue Morphet “It will help protect another 7000 Australian jobs.”

Now we are all in agreement that the 1850 people who lost their jobs is horrible and you wouldn’t wish it on anybody and of course wish them well.

But before we say anything else about Sue Morphet and Pacific Brands hear this:

The leading Australian Intimate Apparel outlet who has their own label which is also made in China buys their average bra for $2; now they sell them for an average of $49.99. THAT IS A MARK UP OF 2400%.

They also stock less of the other brands opting to have their own label, why?
They have to go through a wholesaler therefore it becomes more expensive.
So instead of costing them $2 per bra it becomes $25 per bra which is still a respectable 50% mark up which is normal for any business. Not quite as attractive as a 2400% mark up and quality is pretty poor.
In their defense their service is usually good and their bra fitting assistants are usually quite good as well.

The leading department stores that have a huge variety of lingerie source their lingerie via wholesalers which is again a respectable 50% mark up which is crucial for business growth, all of which is made in China but has the backing of their big name brands; Quality is average to above average.
On the down side their service is not so good and has no fitting specialists.

I will only make one comment on the bras from the department stores from the lower entry level.
Really what do you expect for $20 do you really think that is going to offer you the comfort and support you need? But least they aren’t deluding you to fact that they obviously don’t pay too much for them, therefore not having a ridiculous mark up.

Then you have your small business they don’t have the monopoly of the industry. They can’t afford to buy crazy amounts of stock to lower the cost. They would love to have a 50% mark up but often have to lower it just to compete with the giants. The quality is always better and the service is fantastic as well.

When you go online what can you expect? Great quality lingerie sourced usually from USA or UK. The price is normally really good as they have little overheads and being imported a lot of it depends on the strength of the AU$. But for the quality you get, it’s worth it.
Look for a well laid out and researched size guide and you can’t go wrong.

The downside is you can’t try on a bra before you buy but you can usually return. This is where the above mentioned informative size guide comes in.

Upside the quality is better and you aren’t bombarded with a huge lingerie selection. This is good for both guys and girls.

So……..
Is Pacific Brands so bad? Time will tell, if the quality is sacrificed but the price is still high then yes I would recommend looking around and re thinking what you buy.

Do you feel more ripped off knowing that for years you have been paying good money for a bra when it only costs $2 to make?

Ask yourself now where you would buy your lingerie from?