The movie The Devil Wears Prada was brought a lot of attention to the issue of designer clothing lately. Most of us enjoy seeing the latest styles and fashions in the magazines and on the movie stars, but in reality most of us can’t afford to purchase designer clothing. Some of the outfits they offer cost more than my entire wardrobe, shoes and all! I wouldn’t want to spend that much on an outfit anyway as quickly as the styles change in our society.

Designer clothing is known for its great quality. However, it has also become a status issue in our society more than the quality of the clothing. Let’s face it, most people who were designer clothing don’t wear an outfit enough times for it to see any wear and tear anyway so of course it is going to stand up to the elements. It is amazing how much that name on a pair of jeans or their logo on a sweatshirt inflates the cost of the item.

For those of us living in the real world, you can get clothing that looks like designer clothing from retail stores such as Burlington Coat Factory, Ross, and Gordman’s. If you still want the real thing, consider purchasing it online at auction sites like Ebay and Yahoo Auctions. This is a great way to purchase designer clothing at a fraction of the retail price.

For those who have a budget to stick with, it can be intimidating seeing others around us in the latest fashions and in designer clothing. This is especially hard for teenagers to cope with when it is all about fitting in with everyone else. It would be nice to see our society focus on things other than designer clothing, but as long as the world remains fascinated with Hollywood, designer clothing is here to stay.

The G Unit Clothing line is by far one of the best selling clothing lines in hip hop genre. People who love the music of 50 Cent can own clothing that he helped to design. Within this line of clothing is a number of hot sellers and many of the coolest, phattest pieces out there. You know 50 Cent and you love him. So, it is reasonable then that you will love the clothes in this awesome line just as much. The G Unit Clothing line, if you can find it, is full of the hottest trends in hip hop clothing.

From denim to shoes, G Unit clothing is one of the fastest growing and in demand clothing lines out there. As fast as it is put up, it is sold. Perhaps it is the name behind them or it is the sheer great looks that are offered in this line that make them so well sought after.

In the making of the G Unit clothing line, G Unit’s foremost star, 50 Cent worked with Marc Ecko to create the line in 2003. The Ecko Unlimited company owner was in line to what 50 Cent had to offer. Their goal was to offer some of the best in urban fashion that was fast becoming a leader in the fashion markets. And, they did just that offering a line of clothing that any hip hop artist or fan could slip into.

For those looking for the best of the G Unit Clothing line, the best place to find it is right here on the web. With the line being so in demand, many people are finding it hard to wrap their hands on it. But, on the web, you will find a great selection of products to choose from within the line. The combination of Ecko Unlimited and 50 Cent is said to be comparable to the combination of Michael Jordan and Nike. In this winning combination, you, the individual purchasing the line is set up to gain the most.

Wholesale clothing distributors purchase cloth, apparel, trimmings, home furnishing and accessories from manufacturers in large lots and resell them in smaller lots to retailers. Wholesale distributors usually work from warehouses or offices with no display of their merchandise. They interact with their customers through salespeople, over the phone and using the Internet.

Wholesale clothing distributors sell either imported goods or locally manufactured goods or both. The clothes may include readymade apparel or cloth material. The product range not only includes garments for men, women, boys, girls and infants, but also includes accessories such as scarves, hats and gloves as well as some home furnishings. The industry is tightly integrated and many distributors often manufacture the goods themselves or get it contract manufactured from low cost locations such as China. This is because of the seasonal nature of the industry. There are also wholesalers who act purely as a distributor from manufacturers to retailers. Their customers include retailers and online merchants

There are basically three categories of customers in the clothing industry. They are upper, middle and budget sectors with the budget sectors accounting for the largest chunk. Generally wholesale clothing distributors do not specialize in a particular product or products for a specific category of customers since specialization has not been a major trend in this industry. However, some wholesale distributors focus on sub segments such as women’s clothing, children’s clothing or accessories.

The traditional distinctions between clothing manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers are slowly becoming a thing of the past. Some large retailers are bypassing the wholesale distributors and are dealing with manufacturers directly. This is often accomplished by setting up a subsidiary company that handles the purchasing and wholesaling activities for the retailer. On the other hand, some large whole sale distributors are venturing into retail by setting up their own retail outlets. The industry is dynamic and distribution systems are seeing improvements. Internet-based wholesale clothing distribution is also growing rapidly.

Used clothing has long been a staple segment of the flea market business. Vendors would either unload their no longer needed clothing, or buy it from a local Salvation Army thrift shop.

Flea market vendors could make good money selling used clothing, often working on profit margins of over 500%.

Many established businesses set themselves up to supply used clothing to flea market vendors, offering pieces of clothing for as low as .25 each.

Vendors could then resell the clothing for $1 to $2 each, enjoying great returns while saving their customers plenty of money.

So it’s only natural for prospective flea market vendors to consider selling used clothing.

The pros are pretty clear. High margins combined with low priced goods mean that anyone can easily buy profitable merchandise to sell.

But based on the market research I have done, I have determined that used clothing is no longer a good category for flea market vendors.

My reasons are the following:

Reason #1

The price of new clothing is dropping drastically. Customers can now buy brand new clothing at Wal Mart for around $5, or even less at many dollar stores. Why should they buy previously worn clothing when the savings become pennies?

Reason #2

Better quality clothing. Clothing manufacturers are producing better quality clothing which lasts longer. Customers know that it is worthwhile to spend a few dollars more for new clothing. Since the clothing will last them longer, they will save more money than if they had to replace the used clothing in a few months.

Reason #3

Rising incomes. With the overall per capita income rising in the United States, most people can easily afford new clothing. While there will always be poor consumers, their buying power will increase as clothing manufacturers reduce the price of new clothing. In other words, as the price of new clothing decreases, more people will buy new only.

SCOTLAND'S Barbie girl wowed hundreds of starstruck girls yesterday at her first appearance since she was signed up to pose as the famous doll.

Amanda-Jane Taylor, 24, signed autographs for fans at the Toymaster store in Stonehaven, Kincardineshire, while handing out free Barbie bags.

Amanda said: "I've had so much fun and have really got into the part. It's great wearing the same clothes as Barbie.

"It's all worked out so well because all the girls really do think I'm Barbie - they're all starstruck.

"I've even heard girls whispering to each other that they wish they were me - it's all really bizarre."

The Aberdeenshire beauty suffered years of torment because of her likeness to the toy figure. She was bullied at school and taunted by strangers.

But now she has used her looks to her advantage and has never looked back.

The dental assistant added: "So much luck has come my way now. I'm even representing Scotland in the Miss Commonwealth competition next month."

BY THE age of six, most girls are now dissatisfied with their bodies and want to be thinner, researchers have claimed; almost half believe they need to go on a diet to lose weight.

Research published today suggests that, within a year of starting school, most girls are being subjected to peer group pressure to lose weight. The authors, Hayley Dohnt and Marika Tiggemann from Flinders University, South Australia, said the girls' belief that "thin is beautiful" can stem from watching pop stars on television or comments made while trying on clothes. By the time they reached their second year of schooling, 71.5 per cent of the girls said they desired a slimmer body shape. In addition, 45.7 per cent said they would use dietary restraint if they gained weight.

"Previously, research has focused on adolescence as the likely time for the emergence of body dissatisfaction," said Ms Dohnt. "But clear evidence has accumulated that a substantial number of pre- adolescent girls are dissatisfied with their bodies and wish to be thinner."

The study showed that, of 81 five to eight-year-old girls at private schools in Adelaide, only 11 were, in fact, overweight and three obese. The researchers also found the girls had little concept of body dissatisfaction when they arrived in the reception class at the age of five.

"The major life event which occurs over the five-to-seven year age range, when body dissatisfaction begins, is the commencement of schooling," Ms Dohnt said. "Therefore, peer influence, which has been investigated extensively for adolescents but has been assumed as more or less irrelevant for young children, may be particularly salient for this age group."


The report, published in the British Journal of Developmental Psychology, concludes: "It seems that girls develop a desire to be thinner during the early years of schooling, somewhere around six to seven years of age. They also display an awareness of the definition and concept of what constitutes dieting."

The report's authors said most of the six and seven-year-olds rated their ideal figure as significantly thinner than they in fact were. They were able to suggest restrictive eating practices - for example, not eating fatty foods - as a means of achieving their ideal shape.

The girls were also shown the silhouettes of nine young female figures - and asked to point out which were most like them and which they would most like to look like. Most girls chose a thinner silhouette as their ideal shape.

They were also shown two pictures of a girl called Anne who had put on weight since starting school. "Girls seemed particularly aware of teasing and likeability on the basis of weight and shape," the report concluded. In all, 39 per cent of girls in the reception year thought Anne would face teasing as a result of her weight increase - while 72 per cent of year one girls (six-year-olds) believed she would.

The findings showed that most of the girls believed that being thin would "increase likeability". This has important implications for the development of early intervention programmes to teach youngsters about a healthy lifestyle, the authors suggest.

Sarah Schenkar, a dietician with the British Nutrition Foundation, said: "I think it stems from this obsession with celebrities and what they look like - which is obviously reaching youngsters at an early age.

"Normally, though, teachers would shy away from discussions about `Am I too fat or am I too thin?' for fear of stirring up a hornet's nest. It is something that - consistently - teachers try not to bring up because they don't want to put that kind of idea into their pupils."