Yup, I been hearing on this forum, Prada has been selling made in China items in the boutiques, not just their outlets.
Prada Bags: Now Made in China for Italian Made Prices."
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Yup, I been hearing on this forum, Prada has been selling made in China items in the boutiques, not just their outlets.
Does anyone know what percentage an item must be made in a certain country in order for the label to read "Made in ---"? I know a lot of designers outsource some/all of the labor.
BTW, it is very disheartening to hear Prada, this premier Italian designer, start selling Made in China in their boutiques.
BTW, it is very disheartening to hear Prada, this premier Italian designer, start selling Made in China in their boutiques.
I wish the EU would make it mandatory to inform buyers exactly where
and how much of an item is made in Italy or France .
But NOPE
It's not by percentage. The last addition to the product that makes a "substantial change" to its nature determines what country is in the "made in" slot. If you read Dana Thomas' book, she mentions bags made in China that get their handles attached in Europe, thus producing a "substantial change" so that the whole thing can be branded as being made in Europe.
It sounds like there is a lot of room for deception- I think most would assume when a tag says made in Europe that the bag or whatever was made mostly there. So now Prada is not going to even bother tweaking their bags to get the Euro tag?
I wonder why- this seems like a pretty big loophole Euro designers can exploit to incorporate cheap labor into their goods while appearing to use scale artisans and craftspeople to the outside.
I'm sure a lot of these politicians are in the pockets of Bernard Arnault and the like, not the kind of people who care about fine craftsmanship.
Give this gal a brownie and a gold star! This is exactly why it's being done, the end result being the bottom line: More Profit, More Profit, More Profit and More Profit.
All of this being why I began boycotting Prada, in spite of my longstanding screen name. Miuccia can get richer off someone else's money. I'll stick to the secondary market where the items are infinitely better quality, actually Italian made and a heck of a LOT cheaper.
Give this gal a brownie and a gold star! This is exactly why it's being done, the end result being the bottom line: More Profit, More Profit, More Profit and More Profit.
All of this being why I began boycotting Prada, in spite of my longstanding screen name. Miuccia can get richer off someone else's money. I'll stick to the secondary market where the items are infinitely better quality, actually Italian made and a heck of a LOT cheaper.
All this!!!!
Give this gal a brownie and a gold star! This is exactly why it's being done, the end result being the bottom line: More Profit, More Profit, More Profit and More Profit.
All of this being why I began boycotting Prada, in spite of my longstanding screen name. Miuccia can get richer off someone else's money. I'll stick to the secondary market where the items are infinitely better quality, actually Italian made and a heck of a LOT cheaper.
Merci- I could use a brownie right about now
I have to admit it has been a while since I bought Prada (and Miu Miu for that matter) and I was always impressed with the quality and the styling. This trend is obviously not unique to just Prada. It seems like there should be intervention at a governmental level for consumer protection and transparency. There should be strict published guidelines as to what qualifies as a bag made in a certain country. It makes me cringe to think a bag that says Made in Italy or France was actually made mostly in China. Also, who is to say offshore labor is fair and legal (age, #hours, conditions, etc.) just because it is cheap? I want no part of it. I am right there with you boycotting most designer goods- my spending habits have changed drastically. I am no longer willing to line corporate billionaire pockets.
That's a really good question about the percentages. I wonder why we care so much about where something is made. Chinese people are as skilled as Italians. There's an assumption that there will be a reduction in quality if the manufacturing. Time will tell if that's true or not.
Time has already told...they've been doing this since 2006/7. The quality of their leathergoods, in particular the saffiano totes, is appalling. The saffy fakes are better than the authentic item in many cases.
If you had been here as long as PP and I you would have read the entire thread as it progressed. Nothing that anyone says on this thread these days is news. It's just surprising how many people express shock and surprise when they trip over the thread and read it.
Wake up people.....it's been going on for close to 10 years now, with increasing amounts of Prada product coming from China every year. By 2020 there will be no Italian input (other than PERHAPS design) into any Prada item.
Because Prada is successful due to it's heritage of being an ITALIAN BRAND .
People buy Prada to own a piece of ITALIAN HISTORY, Italian WORKMANSHIP .
I feel the same about Louis Vuitton being made in the USA .
NOT all brands are attached to the history of the countries they started in
BUT . many are .. and it is THOSE brands Prada, Chanel, and Louis Vuitton
that people purchase to own a part of that HISTORY ..
and it is VERY unfortunate but, when Prada started manufacturing in China
the quality did suffer a great deal ..
There are some brands, I don't care where they are made
BUT LV, Chanel and Prada USE these countries as their marketing tool
saying that when you buy these luxury item, you are buying a piece of
French or Italian HISTORY ..
having them mass produced in China damages that brand mystique .
by the way I don't want my Cloisonné made in Sweden either
SOME things are just attached to a countries heritage.. there is nothing wrong with that
If a brand is going to use their countries heritage as their marketing tool,
then it should be made in that country .. It is really that simple
Give this gal a brownie and a gold star! This is exactly why it's being done, the end result being the bottom line: More Profit, More Profit, More Profit and More Profit.
All of this being why I began boycotting Prada, in spite of my longstanding screen name. Miuccia can get richer off someone else's money. I'll stick to the secondary market where the items are infinitely better quality, actually Italian made and a heck of a LOT cheaper.
I could not agree MORE ..