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Rise of artisanal manufacturing

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  • swami
    Senior Member
    • Jul 2008
    • 809

    Rise of artisanal manufacturing

    This is spot on as I have noticed me & most of our friends have already started to buy less & spend more for a value that we can attribute to the purchase outside of its physical price. Heck half of us have already quit our corporate jobs for something more fulfilling starting with our very own FAUST . Its nice to see that niche manufacturing can be the next industrial revolution ( on a smaller scale of course)

    Theres tons of excellent talent around stateside & now with a standalone mens fashion-week I think good things are due to come our way ...

    Excerpts below ( LINK TO FULL ARTICLE)

    US manufacturing: the rise of the niche manufacturer
    By Kim Gittleson
    BBC business reporter, New York

    At its peak, the Grado factory employed 85 workers - now, its staff has stabilised at around 2 5 employees

    Walk too fast down the street in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, and it's pretty easy to miss Grado Labs amongst the various Vietnamese, Chinese and Thai restaurants that dot the block.

    The rise of the artisan
    Grado is not alone: it's a phenomenon that's happening across the US, with small manufacturers, many of which are headed by young entrepreneurs that focus on unique products, popping up in hubs like Brooklyn, Chicago and Los Angeles.

    "We're starting to see kind of a re-emergence of lots of small niche manufacturers," says Jeff Cornwall, a professor of entrepreneurship at Belmont University.

    This is due to a variety of factors, including changing consumer habits as well as the rising cost of doing business overseas.

    "There's a growing dissatisfaction with the way of the last decade or two which has been - let's just outsource it and rely on large foreign manufacturers to take care of all of our needs,"
  • justin_bridou
    Member
    • Feb 2015
    • 40

    #2
    I don't understand why it should be good news. if we come back to artisanal manufacturing only, we'll be back in the middle age, or at least 100 or 200 years ago: only the upper-middle class will be able to buy clothings and the remainder only able to make two holes in a canvas bag and wear it as a poncho

    Comment

    • Ulf
      Member
      • Apr 2014
      • 54

      #3
      Originally posted by justin_bridou View Post
      I don't understand why it should be good news. if we come back to artisanal manufacturing only, we'll be back in the middle age, or at least 100 or 200 years ago: only the upper-middle class will be able to buy clothings and the remainder only able to make two holes in a canvas bag and wear it as a poncho
      Otoh, many people nowadays buy incredible amounts of cheap sweatshop clothing from H&M and similar places. There is nothing wrong with shifting your priority towards fewer garments of higher quality – this doesn't equate haute couture. It's entirely possible to dress well without spending thousands (or hundreds of thousands) on a single garment.

      Comment

      • NOHSAD
        Senior Member
        • Nov 2014
        • 240

        #4
        Whenever I purchase clothing(which isn't often) the main factor is that the garment will last a long time and is well made (provided you take general care of it). I've had co-workers telling me how they like a shirt of mine and once they find out how much, I get ask why didn't I brought something like that at Zara, Topman or Urban Outfitters and saved money . While mass manufacturing isn't going to become obsolete anything soon, if ever, the concept of "Buy less, but better" is hard for a lot of people to understand and/or accept especially if you're someone who's used to just constantly running to these fast fashion stores every week and buying multiple copied/knockoff garments for 1/3 of the price.
        "Instead of feeling alone in a group, it's better to have real solitude all by yourself"

        ShopDDavis.etsy.com

        IG: @D.__Dvais

        Comment

        • zamb
          Senior Member
          • Nov 2006
          • 5834

          #5
          Originally posted by justin_bridou View Post
          I don’t understand why it should be good news. if we come back to artisanal manufacturing only, we'll be back in the middle age, or at least 100 or 200 years ago: only the upper-middle class will be able to buy clothings and the remainder only able to make two holes in a canvas bag and wear it as a poncho
          I am waging a war here in Sunset Park in Brooklyn NY against misguided statements and perspectives such as these…….
          I am not of the “upper Middle Class”
          I am a Ghetto Boy from Kingston Jamaica now heading up a 10 man “artisanal Squad” here at Zfactorie.
          Our prices are not cheap but you don’t have to be upper middle class to buy what we make……………….

          And as for the menswear fashion week, we are happy it is happening and will be there representing, Ya’heard?

          An now, we are not setting back civilization, we are actually moving it forward.
          “You know,” he says, with a resilient smile, “it is a hard world for poets.”
          .................................................. .......................


          Zam Barrett Spring 2017 Now in stock

          Comment

          • justin_bridou
            Member
            • Feb 2015
            • 40

            #6
            Originally posted by zamb View Post
            I am waging a war here in Sunset Park in Brooklyn NY against misguided statements and perspectives such as these…….
            I am not of the “upper Middle Class”
            I am a Ghetto Boy from Kingston Jamaica now heading up a 10 man “artisanal Squad” here at Zfactorie.
            Our prices are not cheap but you don’t have to be upper middle class to buy what we make……………….

            And as for the menswear fashion week, we are happy it is happening and will be there representing, Ya’heard?

            An now, we are not setting back civilization, we are actually moving it forward.
            we don't live in the same world. numbers.
            I'm french, basic salary here is approx 1100 euros/month ("SMIC"). most people earn that, often less.
            your pants: between 500$ and 1200$, let say average price of 800$: 1 month of work= 1.5 pair of pants.
            So I repeat it: only upper-middle class can buy some of your stuff man, would you agree and being offended or not!

            industrialization has allowed that more and more people are able to afford basics and food. Maybe you are not from the upper-middle class, but now, you are clearly targeting it

            edit - and don't get me wrong, what you're doing is fine, offering quality clothing and blablabla, but thinking this can be generalized to the whole population is certainly wrong
            Originally posted by zamb View Post
            And as for the menswear fashion week, we are happy it is happening and will be there representing, Ya’heard?
            ???
            Last edited by justin_bridou; 02-24-2015, 05:59 AM.

            Comment

            • swami
              Senior Member
              • Jul 2008
              • 809

              #7
              Originally posted by justin_bridou View Post
              we don't live in the same world. numbers.
              I'm french, basic salary here is approx 1100 euros/month ("SMIC"). most people earn that, often less.
              your pants: between 500$ and 1200$, let say average price of 800$: 1 month of work= 1.5 pair of pants.
              So I repeat it: only upper-middle class can buy some of your stuff man, would you agree and being offended or not!

              industrialization has allowed that more and more people are able to afford basics and food. Maybe you are not from the upper-middle class, but now, you are clearly targeting it

              edit - and don't get me wrong, what you're doing is fine, offering quality clothing and blablabla, but thinking this can be generalized to the whole population is certainly wrong

              ???
              This is a good thing … NO a Great thing on many levels!

              Happiness
              Most of these artisanal business be it a bakery , clothing , tech company , beer , Wine maker whatever come out from a labor of love so to speak you are immediately improving the quality of ones own life by not only getting job satisfaction & autonomy but by creating something you translate some of that energy to your environment , neighborhood etc.

              Economy
              Now that you have started a small artisanal business you hire locals , give them jobs a better work option than say your next Walmart can offer you! You source raw material yada yada , hire skilled technicians , part time jobs to local kids who can make extra cash ! At the end of the day this motivates employees to excel themselves to dream towards their own enterprise, instead being stuck at a dead end job with kills your ambition!

              Better product
              Finally as a consumer you have more options catered to your niche & tastes & you can choose to support the said artisan based on your whim & your preference. More choices , more healthy competition A better product for you!


              Most wealthy people buy because they can , whilst most middle class folks buy because they love . At the end of the day even the lowest wage earning person finds a way to save $S to get something that might resonate to them , it can be something as small as a hand rolled cigar or tequila whatever. The point is that money does not dictate taste but taste dictates drive to do better to get better. Now your Walmarts & your H&ms are not going to go anywhere but instead of them taking 95% market share they can settle for 75% & see the rise of the artisanal manufacturer !

              Comment

              • Arkady
                Senior Member
                • Apr 2011
                • 957

                #8
                Originally posted by justin_bridou View Post
                we don't live in the same world. numbers.
                I'm french, basic salary here is approx 1100 euros/month ("SMIC"). most people earn that, often less.
                your pants: between 500$ and 1200$, let say average price of 800$: 1 month of work= 1.5 pair of pants.
                So I repeat it: only upper-middle class can buy some of your stuff man, would you agree and being offended or not!

                industrialization has allowed that more and more people are able to afford basics and food. Maybe you are not from the upper-middle class, but now, you are clearly targeting it

                edit - and don't get me wrong, what you're doing is fine, offering quality clothing and blablabla, but thinking this can be generalized to the whole population is certainly wrong

                ???
                Zam also puts his entire stock on 60% sale every season to account for this -- I'm nowhere near NYC upper middle class and buy from him often.

                By the way your math is beyond fucked, let's talk about your world of numbers -- you mean to tell me most people in France make $14,316 USD annually? You know gross average wage in France is $41,464 USD, net adjusted $31,365 USD? At $2,613 USD a month you can easily afford to buy a quality pair of jeans for $250 on occasion, and considering the retail price is set with sales in mind your point is moot. OECD household net-adjusted disposable income per capita in france is $29,322 USD a year. There are other ways to cut the data as well and it's all at least double what you're suggesting.
                Last edited by Arkady; 03-06-2015, 12:31 PM.

                Comment

                • justin_bridou
                  Member
                  • Feb 2015
                  • 40

                  #9
                  Originally posted by Arkady View Post
                  By the way your math is beyond fucked, let's talk about your world of numbers -- you mean to tell me most people in France make $14,316 USD annually? You know gross average wage in France is $41,464 USD, net adjusted $31,365 USD?
                  I love that Arkady... (statistics for dummies):

                  an average is just an average and it does not say a lot of things, and certainly anything about the dispersion and the variance of the concerned data. Maybe you've heard about what is called "inequalities" ? That being said, maybe you should be a bit more gentle when talking about things you don't master... my two cents...

                  dispersion: an accurate repartition of salary in France can be found on any serious study on the web. 2 simple numbers (more accurate than my previous estimations, as you seem to be concerned by accuracy...I apologize for my previous inaccuracy):
                  1) half of the population earn less than 1700 euros/month
                  2) only 10% earn more than 3000 euros/month

                  amazing isn't it ? so "my world of number" was not that far from reality, and certainly less than yours my friend

                  Originally posted by Arkady View Post
                  Zam also puts his entire stock on 60% sale every season to account for this -- I'm nowhere near NYC upper middle class and buy from him often.
                  i'm not sure that it is the price he'd like to sell the stuff he patiently had made with his hands, and I'm not sure that his business would be healthy enough to hire all his staff if he really sells all his stock at 60%. But maybe I'm wrong.

                  Originally posted by Arkady View Post
                  At $2,613 USD a month you can easily afford to buy a quality pair of jeans for $250 on occasion
                  certainly yes, but it only concerns a bit more than 20% of the population (isn't it what we call usualy upper middle class?) and I don't see the link with the above discussion. this second hand jeans won't help the artisans we're talking about

                  And for the previous post of swami: I think it is a very naive view of the economy mechanisms...but it's just my POV... it would be great if artisans can rise their sale to 25%, as you're suggesting. But it would only be the upper middle class concerned
                  Last edited by justin_bridou; 03-06-2015, 01:01 PM.

                  Comment

                  • Arkady
                    Senior Member
                    • Apr 2011
                    • 957

                    #10
                    Sure, accounting for variance, if it concerns 20% of the population but 10% earn above 48K euro annually in France then this is not very good targeting to the Upper Middle Class demo. To be fair, France enjoys income inequality to rival even that of our United States so this is perhaps not the best way to evaluate the affordability of the brand.

                    Point being, while Zam has to release his work at a comparatively high price point the sale price is anticipated when his margins calculated so he is doing precisely what he said -- avoiding catering solely to one demographic by keeping his stock affordable. There are plenty of brands that do not allow their output to be sold below 70% of MSRP, and plenty that don't allow their output to be put on sale period.

                    I suppose the other consideration here is that while everyone deserves dignity for themselves as they envision it, there are probably more important expenditures at a HHI below 1,700 euro a month than interesting pants.

                    Comment

                    • tepogcyy
                      Junior Member
                      • Apr 2015
                      • 1

                      #11
                      Thanks for the post...
                      Geordie Shore Season 10 | Geordie Shore Season 10 Episode 1

                      Comment

                      • nvsnli
                        Senior Member
                        • Mar 2013
                        • 197

                        #12
                        Average in Saudi-Arabia is 31 300 USD.

                        When two guys bank a billion and you share that with thousand people it seems everyone is a millionaire in Saudi-Arabia.
                        Not really the case is it?

                        Comment

                        • wildinthewoods
                          Senior Member
                          • Feb 2014
                          • 101

                          #13
                          I hate when people act like lower to middle class people are not allowed to have any taste.

                          I am staunchly middle class and always have been. I grew up in a super poor country and I chose my career out of passion and I don't always get paid very well. But I choose to spend my disposable income on the finer things in life that I love. I will save for three months to go to a Michelin starred restaurant, or to buy a nice bottle of scotch, or to buy a pair of Guidis. I manage to do this on my income because I limit what I buy on day to day life. I don't need the latest iphone, I don't wear makeup, I am thrifty, I cut my own hair, I walk my own dog, cook my own meals, etc. In the end I own less things, and consume less, but the things I own last longer and make me happier.

                          The rise of artisans is way overdue. And it's idiotic to say that the only people who will benefit from this are the wealthy.

                          Comment

                          • matglenn
                            Member
                            • Jun 2016
                            • 90

                            #14
                            Originally posted by wildinthewoods View Post
                            I hate when people act like lower to middle class people are not allowed to have any taste.

                            I am staunchly middle class and always have been. I grew up in a super poor country and I chose my career out of passion and I don't always get paid very well. But I choose to spend my disposable income on the finer things in life that I love. I will save for three months to go to a Michelin starred restaurant, or to buy a nice bottle of scotch, or to buy a pair of Guidis. I manage to do this on my income because I limit what I buy on day to day life. I don't need the latest iphone, I don't wear makeup, I am thrifty, I cut my own hair, I walk my own dog, cook my own meals, etc. In the end I own less things, and consume less, but the things I own last longer and make me happier.

                            The rise of artisans is way overdue. And it's idiotic to say that the only people who will benefit from this are the wealthy.
                            I couldn't agree more, very well put.

                            Comment

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