Fashion Industry discussion, review, analysis, news, and information

Don't worry, it's not Target going upmarket, clothing is much more expensive here in Australia. When I was in the U.S. a few years ago, clothing cost the same as I'd pay here after I'd taken the exchange rate into account (at the time, AU$1 was worth US$0.50c!) -- and the clothes were better quality there! Australia's fashion industry tries hard, but we're not on a par with the U.S. yet.

To give you an idea of the prices we pay for things here...

This is a super-cheap fashion retailer that markets mostly to teens:
http://www.supre.com.au/ ($50 for a dress)

This is aimed at the slightly older but still very trendy market:
http://www.sportsgirl.com.au/ ($90-170 for a dress)

And this is classic stuff for the older, more discerning customer:
http://www.countryroad.com.au/ ($250 dresses)

This is all chain store stuff too, designer labels are more expensive again -- and even then, the quality is rarely fantastic.

I don't mean to be negative about Australian fashion, it's a fledgling industry that's already produced some very solid high-fashion talent (e.g. Colette Dinnigan, Martin Grant, Akira Isogawa) and our surfwear designers have had a big international influence, so we're doing really well for such relative newcomers. But we're on the opposite side (ass end? :) of the world and things are very different here.

Also, Target here isn't the same as Target there, the name's licensed to a big retail conglomerate called Coles Myer that's in a bit of financial trouble atm. But that's a whole other story!