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Canada is stuck in a strange predicament. As per a recent survey, post pandemic, the country has witnessed renewed demand for locally made goods. Yet, shopping for local products in the country has become more challenging, says a report by Macleans. As per a 2019 report, most clothing purchased in Canada is imported from China, Bangladesh and Vietnam. Though, brands including Roots, Lululemon and Joe Fresh design their clothing in Canada, majority is manufactured elsewhere.
Throughout the 70s and 80s, Canada was home to a vibrant and thriving clothing industry, with homegrown designers like Simon Chang, Leo Chevalier, Pat McDonagh and Vivian Shyu ruling the ramp. The garment and textile industries combined employed 200,000 Canadian citizens. The industry continued to flourish till 1990s, when a whopping 70 percent of the countryâs local demand for textile and clothing products was satisfied by demand production.
Why Isn’t More Clothing Made In Canada?
Buying affordable domestically made clothing isn’t as easy as the “shop local” mantra makes it sound. Here’s how we got here and what it would take for the industry to return to its former glory. Isabel Slone Updated (Illustrations: Anne Cresci)
Midway through 2020, a year in which many people abandoned office attire for the warm embrace of sweatpants, the Toronto-based sustainable fashion label Encircled launched its “comfy dress shirt.” Cut from Modal, a soft, jersey-like fibre made from beechwood pulp, the $134 top represented a happy medium between pre- and post pandemic dressing: relaxed yet still dressy enough to wear for endless Zoom meetings. It sold out in less than 48 hours.
Why isn't more clothing made in Canada? macleans.ca - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from macleans.ca Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.