Clotheshorse with Amanda Lee McCarty
222 episodes - English - Latest episode: 2 days ago -Host Amanda Lee McCarty (she/they) decodes and demystifies the fashion and retail industries, and takes on topics like consumerism, workers rights, personal style, and why fashion is a case study in capitalism gone awry.
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"If you wear clothes, you need to listen to Clotheshorse." --Elise
"If you are human and live in the world, you need to listen to Clotheshorse." --Individually Wrapped
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Episodes
Episode 18: Copycats (how fast fashion knocks itself off every day)
September 20, 2020 04:00 - 1 hour - 74 MBThis is part one of a three part series with our friend Dani from Picnic. Before she started her own slow fashion brand, she designed sweaters (knitwear) for several fast fashion brands. We already know that fast fashion knocks off everyone, both designers big and small, but did you know that they also knock one another off? Dani explains how this happens and why it is so, so silly. We also discuss what the internal culture of fast fashion brands is really like and why it's hard t...
Episode 17: Copycats (how fast fashion knocks itself off every day)
September 20, 2020 04:00 - 1 hour - 74 MBWe already know that fast fashion knocks off designers (both big and small), but it's constantly copying itself, too. WTF why and how? Dani of Picnic joins us to explain how it happens and why it's so, so silly. We also learn the term "JFDI" and we will never be the same.
Episode 17: Sports Bras, Sweatpants, and Wardrobe Malfunctions: Activewear
September 16, 2020 15:07 - 1 hour - 73.3 MBThe activewear industry is *massive,* expected to exceed $500 billion per year by 2024. The U.S. alone is consuming more than a third of the activewear made globally every year. It's no surprise that fast fashion brands are trying to cash in on this market. The research, development, and design of activewear is a very specific skill set and area of knowledge. Fortunately activewear designer Meghan joins us to talk about the highly technical fabrics and extensive testing require...
Episode 16: The Negligees of Dynasty, Damp Clothes, and Cults: Fabric waste, part II
September 13, 2020 04:00 - 1 hour - 71.7 MBHey! Jenny is back to finish our conversation. We will talk about the challenges of working with salvaged fabrics and why we *should* pay more for our clothing. Let us tell you what we think about the capsule wardrobe. Spoiler: it can be jazzy and pizzazzy!. We will also follow our donated clothes through the Goodwill system. Also! We travel through time to 1985 so we can hear all about why the costume designer for Dynasty is a big time polyester fan. Finally some Hollywood...
Episode 15: 70s Towels, Nellie Oleson, and Unsolved Mysteries: Fabric Waste (and recycling)
September 09, 2020 04:00 - 1 hour - 84 MBOne study has estimated that 15% of fabric used in garment manufacturing is wasted...while other studies estimate that is more like 20-30%! We will talk about how that happens. Jenny of Late to the Party joins to discuss how she finds salvage fabric to use in her own amazing garments, her love of thrifting, and why old episodes of Unsolved Mysteries still hold up. We will also learn about fabric recycling and why cotton is super problematic, both in terms of environmental impacts...
Episode 14: Leisure Suits, Chemistry, and Hemp: Let's talk about fabric
September 07, 2020 01:16 - 1 hour - 95.6 MBWe know that cotton is natural and polyester is synthetic, but what about all of the other names we see on the labels inside our clothing? What is rayon? How does that relate to Cupro and Tencel? It's really challenging to figure out which fabrics are the best for our world and for our lives when we don't know what these words mean! Fabric expert (and professional weaver) Janelle is here to break it all down for us. Janelle is one half of All Roads Design, but before she lived ...
Minisode 3: Tiny Trucker Hats, Cat Clothes, and a Living Wage (Shein, Wish, and their buddies)
September 02, 2020 04:00 - 42 minutes - 38.6 MBIf you've used Facebook or Instagram any time in the last few years, then you have seen ads for Wish and Shein (and all of their other buddies). We're talking $2 necklaces, $10 dresses, and $5.99 Katy Perry cds. DEALS DEALS DEALS. How do they keep their prices so low? And should we give them our money? Amanda will explain how these mysterious online brands function, while also illustrating the disconnect between $2.90 bike shorts and a livable wage for garment workers. You knew i...
Episode 13: Kriss Kross, Flashdance, and Planetary Boundaries: Denim part III
August 30, 2020 04:00 - 1 hour - 64 MBIt's the third episode in our miniseries about denim. Michelle is back to discuss how technology is making your jeans more sustainable. It's all about lasers and ozone! Sounds so futuristic, right? She will also discuss ways we can make better choices with our own denim purchases. Amanda will also try to untangle the meaning of the world "sustainability." It's so complicated! We'll discuss the nine planetary boundaries (spoiler: it has nothing to do with astrology). And we'll ...
Episode 12: The Amazing Square Butt Jeans: Denim part II
August 26, 2020 01:04 - 1 hour - 79.8 MBOur conversation with denim expert Michelle was three hours long...and while we thought we could edit it down to two episodes, we just didn't want you to miss anything! So this is part two of three! In this episode we will be comparing premium denim to less expensive jeans, why Michelle prefers rigid denim to stretch, and how Uniqlo beats the system by using more premium denim (but washing it less). We will also dig into the lack of plus size jeans offered by premium denim brands. ...
Episode 11: Blue Butts, Blue Legs, and Blue Office Chairs: Denim Part I
August 23, 2020 01:12 - 1 hour - 77.3 MBWe dive into the HIGHLY problematic world of the denim industry, with special guest and mega denim expert Michelle. "Am I profiting off of someone else's misery?" Michelle said this during our conversation and it has stuck with us since we recorded this weeks ago. Denim is the All-American fabric and jeans are the quintessential uniform of Americana, yet the denim industry is one of the most environmentally devastating parts of the overall fashion industry. We will dig into the pr...
Episode 10: Pallets of Tiny Cardboard Boxes (The world of off-price retailers, part II)
August 20, 2020 03:10 - 1 hour - 72.6 MBSalisha is back for the second half of our conversation about off-price. We will discuss the off-price world's role in the #payup movement. It's infuriating! Salisha will detail her own experiences creating and selling product to these retailers. The episode begins with a review of the Rana Plaza factory collapse in Bangladesh in 2013. How did we get there? Who was to blame? How do we prevent this from happening again? Our info relies pretty heavily on this paper by Ian M. Taplin...
Episode 9: Infused Olive Oils and Space Jam Tees: The world of off-price retailers, part I
August 16, 2020 04:00 - 1 hour - 73.7 MBOff-price retailers like TJ Maxx, Ross, and Nordstrom Rack are huge businesses, experiencing growth when the rest of retail is declining. In fact, 75% of apparel purchased each year in the U.S. is from these off-price stores. Guest Salisha joins us as we dissect the business model of these retailers. What's the secret? How is it different from "regular" shopping? And what's the deal with all the food they sell? Also, TWO special reports from Amanda: the history of outlets and...
Minisode 2: Chokers, AIM, gURLs, and Snail Mail: The Rise + Fall of Delia's
August 12, 2020 14:21 - 1 hour - 59.2 MBWe follow the rise and fall of iconic 90s catalog/brand Delia's. This brand set the precedent for how brands engage and sell to us in the 21st century, yet it could not survive the e-commerce era. What happened? Amanda gets to the bottom of it, setting the context by explaining the life of a teenager in the 90s. We will learn a little bit more about the art of collecting addresses of potential customers, the origins of Delia's famous font, and how Alloy (almost) saved the day. ...
Episode 8: A Conveyor Belt Pooping Out Clothing (Even more tales of excess inventory)
August 09, 2020 04:00 - 1 hour - 92.6 MBBrands like Burberry and H+M have come under fire (pun intended) in the past few years for incinerating millions and millions of dollars in unsold inventory. In fact, this practice of destroying product is widespread, practiced by most luxury and mass brands in one way or another. How do they get there? Why is destruction so wide spread? In this episode, Janine joins us again to discuss the path to widespread destruction, with a few stops along the way for DEALS DEALS DEALS and ...
Episode 7: TEN THOUSAND STRAW FEDORAS! (tales of excess inventory)
August 05, 2020 04:00 - 1 hour - 76.9 MBEvery year 15 billion garments head to the landfill pre-consumer. These are garments that either never made it to the store or were marked down aggressively and still did not sell. H+M made headlines by burning $4.3 billion worth of unsold clothing. How does this happen? Clotheshorse all-star guest Janine is back to unpack this with us. It’s an exciting story, filled with hubris, despair, and straw hats that are really made of paper, with a bad zipper thrown in as a twist. Als...
Episode 6: Stretchy Jeans and DEALS DEALS DEALS
August 02, 2020 04:00 - 1 hour - 67.9 MBKim is back to finish our discussion about e-commerce! First, we will tackle the environmental impact of buying stuff online. Spoiler: it's a mixed bag! We will talk about the devastating impact of returns and touch on ways to buy smarter (and return less). Also, we'll engage in some "industry gossip," talking about our own experiences as buyers. Lastly, a "special report" on shopping holidays like Cyber Monday and Black Friday. Questions, comments, episode suggestions? Please...
Episode 5: Clown Cakes, Defective Bathing Suits, and Delia's, or WTF is E-commerce?!
July 29, 2020 04:00 - 1 hour - 85.2 MBE-commerce--aka the buying and selling of stuff online--is no joke. In 2019, we spent as much money shopping online as we did eating at restaurants and drinking in bars. Wowza! In this episode will be discussing the wild world of e-commerce with Kim, a long time buyer and expert in all things related to buying stuff off the internet. As always, we will be digging into all the details, from the Columbia House Music Club to the catalog shopping era of Delia's and J. Crew and onwar...
Episode 4: I Guess We're All Just Patriotic (or something)
July 26, 2020 04:00 - 1 hour - 63 MBIn the 1960's, 95% of Americans' clothing was made in the USA. Today, 95% of our clothing is imported. Production expert Amy is back to discuss what happened and how that may (or may not) change in the future. We'll also be discussing the concept of vertical manufacturing. And you can't talk about Made in the USA without talking about American Apparel, and therefore, Dov Charney. Just a content warning: in the middle of the episode, we will be talking for a few minutes about th...
Episode 3: Cheap, Fast, or Good (You can only pick two)
July 22, 2020 04:00 - 1 hour - 93.8 MBWTF is Production? That's a job? Learn all about the essential role that Production plays in the world of fashion, with our special guest, production expert Amy. We will talk about the design process, the concessions brands make to bring in product faster and faster, and how cancellations affect everyone from the people sewing your clothes to the employees in the button factory. And we will find out why t-shirts are just so crappy and sheer these days! We will also be introduced to...
Minisode 1: Pink Whisks + Hot Deals on Tang
July 19, 2020 04:00 - 33 minutes - 30.5 MB"A portion of the sales from this item will benefit XYZ Charity." We have all seen this kind of thing all over our social media feeds. This practice of selling items with a give-back is called "cause marketing." In 1983, American Express was one of the first brands to embrace cause marketing by donating 1 cent for every time the card was used to a fund to restore the Statue of Liberty. Sounds great, right? The customer gets to feel like they are doing something good every time th...
Episode 2: Tiny Satin Ribbon Bows, or Somehow We Talked About Walmart Twice
July 15, 2020 20:04 - 1 hour - 92.8 MBIt's the thrilling sequel to episode 1! Janine is back to discuss margin--it's a really big deal in the world of making and buying stuff. We will also talk about why sustainable/ethical clothing *should* be more expensive...and then the less exciting reasons that it actually is. And we are going to read some listener comments about the cheap trims and embellishments that drive them crazy! We are also going to dig in to the dollars and cents behind a pair of Nike sneakers. And t...
Episode 1: Romper Drama and Useless Safety Pins, or It's a Cents Game
July 12, 2020 18:05 - 1 hour - 67.8 MBWelcome to our very first episode! Janine joins us from San Francisco via the magic of technology. Her extensive career in merchandise planning at both large retailers and smaller startups makes her the perfect guest for discussing why we pay what we pay for what we buy. We break it all down for you: the sinister synthetic invasion, how the rise of fast fashion changed the entire fashion industry, and the real truth about factories. Questions, comments, corrections? Contact us ...