Slowly but surely I think modern mass manufacturing is going to move towards personalised mass manufacture. I think in the meantime the clothes industry needs to do a better job of sizing, that is providing more detailed measurements so they can be selected better. At some point I ought to be able to buy a pair of trousers where I have defined more than just waist and length and especially true for tops based on chest or generic sizing. We can do this a lot better, its not intrinsic to suits they are just worn enough that bespoke services exist in quantity.
It sounds like I would like more personalised but I would like to know how you imagine it working.
Years ago the a custom shoe maker opened with a laser scan of the feet in their ‘shop’ (no products) and then choosing shoes online that they made to fit. They couldn’t fit my feet (I don’t know why). They no longer exist as a company.
I had some shirts from an online custom fit shirt maker, send your measurements and they make shirts. Taking my own measurements without the skill of a tailor is hard and the results were okay-ish but not great. Doubtless if I had kept doing it I would have improved - at great expense and waste.
I know someone who buys several pairs of the same jeans online at once, expecting that “the same” measurements will vary a lot because mass-manufacture of clothes doesn’t do fine tolerances, and has the intention to send most of them back. (And I stress this isn’t buying multiple sizes to choose the best, it’s buying multiple same-size expecting they will actually be noticeably different fits).
I can’t see that industry turning into significantly better ‘custom’ while still being ‘mass’.
The problem is that mass-produced clothing is not really machine-manufactured, it's assembly-lined and streamlined but most of the work is done by rooms of women with sewing machines (try designing a shirt or pants that can be 100% machine made). We can automate parts like the pattern cutting but the whole system is set up for 1 big order and there's no existing logistics chain to handle 1000 individual orders in many different styles.
PaulKeeble · · focus · HN ↗
jodrellblank · · focus · HN ↗
Years ago the a custom shoe maker opened with a laser scan of the feet in their ‘shop’ (no products) and then choosing shoes online that they made to fit. They couldn’t fit my feet (I don’t know why). They no longer exist as a company.
I had some shirts from an online custom fit shirt maker, send your measurements and they make shirts. Taking my own measurements without the skill of a tailor is hard and the results were okay-ish but not great. Doubtless if I had kept doing it I would have improved - at great expense and waste.
I know someone who buys several pairs of the same jeans online at once, expecting that “the same” measurements will vary a lot because mass-manufacture of clothes doesn’t do fine tolerances, and has the intention to send most of them back. (And I stress this isn’t buying multiple sizes to choose the best, it’s buying multiple same-size expecting they will actually be noticeably different fits).
I can’t see that industry turning into significantly better ‘custom’ while still being ‘mass’.
t-3 · · focus · HN ↗