Orslow

[sussi]

This is what orSlow has to say about it. Note that only the sewing is conducted in China. All the fabrics and hardware, washing are still done in Japan.

"Due to the labor shortage in domestic sewing factories and the resulting reduction in production capacity,
it has become extremely difficult to maintain domestic production.

The situation is expected to become even more serious in the future.
For several years, the labor force in sewing factories and other factories in Japan has been supported by foreign workers,
but due to the depreciation of the yen, the quality of workers coming to Japan is also getting poor.

The definition of "made in Japan" means that the products are made in Japan, but in reality, most of the workers in sewing factories in Japan are foreign workers from China, Vietnam, Myanmar, Indonesia, and other countries.
What we believe is important is to provide high-quality products made under the supervision of Japanese people.

As for production in China, only the sewing will be done there.
Materials such as fabrics and buttons are all produced in Japan, and the final washing process and inspection are conducted also in Japan.

The sewing factory we are working with is a reliable factory that is run by Japanese.
The sewing technology in China is maintained at the same level as that of domestic production, and there is no difference in quality."

The sad reality is that made in USA and Japan clothes are only going to become more expensive and harder to do as factories close and or are unable to find workers.

That is very long way to say we want more profit that is why we moving production to China. But ok. I will not buy any MiC stuff and will move on to other brands.

 

[Hanto]

yeah yeah we get it, you're superior

Glad I read that the same way. It seemed unecessarily flippant.

 

[Waldo Jeffers]

Orslow has been my favorite brand for years now. I hope this is not just a money grab and they will focus on maintaining quality. We can get cheap MIC basics from jcrew. The quality has to be even more of an emphasis now if they aren’t hanging their hat on MIJ or the brand will be dead

 

[mak1277]

@shopcanoeclub have you all noticed any quality differences in the MiC stuff? Any concerns on the retailer side?

 

[leephil]

Lmao @ thinking you'll get an honest take from a retailer

 

[Peter1]

The real question is whether you’d be able to tell it wasn’t MiJ if there wasn’t a label.

Likely not, but I am willing to pay extra money for clothes made in Japan, the US and the EU. I have very little clothing that is made in China, because I try to support manufacturing in those countries. That's just my own personal philosophy and I back it up with my wallet.

 

[shopcanoeclub]

@leephil lol

@mak1277 no, not in my experience have a noticed any change or lack of quality. for the record, as mentioned by someone on the last page, the Rose Grey French Work Pants were a staff favorite this year, and they're long, long, long gone.

I also have to say, the whole like... complaining about Made in China is silly to me. I understand there is tension because I suppose it was one way and now it's a different way. I would be very very surprised that Ichiro is willingly sacrificing quality for a "money grab".

This also screams denim/boot guy on reddit. Everyone on the internet knows better, and certainly they know better than the brand themselves... can you believe it!?

In my experience from the buying side, and with conversations with other MiJ companies (not specifically talking orSlow here, but it's relevant), MiJ has been dwindling rapidly since Covid. The workforce can't support it, factories are closing, and the ones that are open are severely overloaded. Like it or not, it's going to become even MORE niche, expensive, and uncommon. As mentioned above, it'll be reflected in the price.

Anyway, my opinion is only worth so much but for a bunch of guys who are concerned about where their stuff is made, especially when the difference is just the words on the tag, it just seems silly to me. Y'all know where Visvim makes a lot of their products, right? Or is that different?

I fuckin' love orSlow. It has been a staple of Canoe Club for the last 6+ years and is engrained in our DNA.

All to say, I'm not engaging with anyone here in particular, this is just a debate I've (we've) seen for years.

 

[0ldb0y]

Bruh Japan has been manufacturing in China for years. Only folks upset are those who put these Japanese brands on a pedestal like it must come straight from Mt Fuji or something. Whether MIJ or MIC, the average American thinks u got your loopwheel sweatshirt at Goodwill

 

[Watty]

Bruh

This was all you actually needed to post.
😂

 

[Peter1]

@leephil lol

@mak1277 no, not in my experience have a noticed any change or lack of quality. for the record, as mentioned by someone on the last page, the Rose Grey French Work Pants were a staff favorite this year, and they're long, long, long gone.

I also have to say, the whole like... complaining about Made in China is silly to me. I understand there is tension because I suppose it was one way and now it's a different way. I would be very very surprised that Ichiro is willingly sacrificing quality for a "money grab".

This also screams denim/boot guy on reddit. Everyone on the internet knows better, and certainly they know better than the brand themselves... can you believe it!?

In my experience from the buying side, and with conversations with other MiJ companies (not specifically talking orSlow here, but it's relevant), MiJ has been dwindling rapidly since Covid. The workforce can't support it, factories are closing, and the ones that are open are severely overloaded. Like it or not, it's going to become even MORE niche, expensive, and uncommon. As mentioned above, it'll be reflected in the price.

Anyway, my opinion is only worth so much but for a bunch of guys who are concerned about where their stuff is made, especially when the difference is just the words on the tag, it just seems silly to me. Y'all know where Visvim makes a lot of their products, right? Or is that different?

I fuckin' love orSlow. It has been a staple of Canoe Club for the last 6+ years and is engrained in our DNA.

All to say, I'm not engaging with anyone here in particular, this is just a debate I've (we've) seen for years.

I appreciate your perspective. I disagree with some of it. But I'm not running a clothing store, either.

In the end, I'm fortunate to have the choice of where I can buy most of my clothes from.

 

[ScottyK]

Nothing worse than denim/boot guys!

 

[Junglejack]

Bruh Japan has been manufacturing in China for years. Only folks upset are those who put these Japanese brands on a pedestal like it must come straight from Mt Fuji or something. Whether MIJ or MIC, the average American thinks u got your loopwheel sweatshirt at Goodwill

That and these companies making really damn clear down to the prefecture where items are made in Japan.

I get the point being made, but good God is this also being part of many Japanese companies marketing.

 

[shopcanoeclub]

@ScottyK i don't know if you're being facetious but... you can't deny there is a certain level of "unhappiness" i have only found in denim/boot guys. no product is ever good enough lol

also again, i'm not attacking anyone or even saying i'm 100% right. as a consumer, buy literally whatever you want if it makes you feel good. i just personally love orslow and figured i'd weigh in.

 

[ScottyK]

The problem is that all of these jobs in factories are actually skilled labor that takes a while to train up, but they're paid like they're an entry level fast food worker (or worse). To make the career more enticing, wages need to go up. But then the clothes would get even more expensive.

I do wonder what their balance sheets look like when they move stuff to lowe cost of labor places though. Making clothes is suuuuper low margin in the first place, so it's possible they only moved after being in the red.

I mean, I think it’s more about unions. Japan has strong unions so they would offshore parts of the process to save on labor.

FUJI/Epson printers actually outsources labor to the US because it’s far cheaper than paying a Japanese worker. Think about that for a second.

 

[ScottyK]

@ScottyK i don't know if you're being facetious but... you can't deny there is a certain level of "unhappiness" i have only found in denim/boot guys. no product is ever good enough lol

also again, i'm not attacking anyone or even saying i'm 100% right. as a consumer, buy literally whatever you want if it makes you feel good. i just personally love orslow and figured i'd weigh in.

They drive me nuts. They won’t wear straight leg pants because it will cover up their boot and everyone has to see ALL of the boot at all times!