Why Students Aren’t Fighting Forever 21

Last month, the retailer Forever 21, known for producing trendy, ephemeral clothing for young women, opened a store outside Los Angeles that surprised even some people familiar with the chain’s improbably low prices. The test store is called F21 Red. It has a slick, industrial floor and harsh overhead lighting that highlights prominent pricing signs. Jeans cost $7.80; tank tops are $4.80; camisoles are $1.80. Every tag looks like it’s missing a digit.

This isn’t the first time Forever 21 has sold clothes so cheap. You can find the same items in its regular stores and online, in the “not so basic” section. Yet, by gathering all the least-expensive items in one place, and by stocking them in such volume, F21 Red sets a new standard for how little shoppers can expect to pay to get dressed. It flouts the warnings about the hidden costs of disposable fashion—the waste of making clothes that might survive only a few washings, and the pressure on factories to suppress wages for garment workers.

See the rest of the story at newyorker.com