From Gawker: Unionmade: Retailer of Expensive Fashions That Are Not Union Made

Unionmade is an upscale men's clothing store, based in San Francisco and celebrated by GQ, that sells $258 "Vintage Styled Work Shirts" and $68 Cow Horn Combs and $565 "Vintage" Levi Jeans, and things of that nature. The company says that it "aims to improve the lives of our customers, community and suppliers by offering fairly priced products made from the best available materials." You might want to know, however, that Unionmade's products are notunion made.

We live in an age in which organized labor is on the decline—a fact that makes the remaining unions all the more important. The people who care about unions, labor, and workers rights know this. They make up quite a committed support base. If they think they have found a fellow traveler—a popular retailer that supports the cause—they will make it a point to support that retailer. Which brings us to Unionmade. We would never have heard of them, except for the fact that twice in the past few months we have gotten emails from people who were excited to finally go out and shop at a store that supports unions, only to have those illusions shattered.

First, we heard from a woman who emailed Unionmade saying that she wanted to buy a present for her dad, a Teamster. They informed her that, no, their goods are not actually union made—"The name UNIONMADE is an overarching concept and narrative for the store, signifying that we strive to carry well made and aesthetically timeless goods." A rather unsatisfying explanation for a term that already has a well understood explanation.

Full story: http://laborspains.blogspot.com/2012/11/from-gawker-unionmade-retailer-of.html

Originally published in gawker: http://gawker.com/5961169/unionmade-retailer-of-expensive-fashions-that-are-not-union-made