Samenvatting

Essay based on a Presentation to International Stakeholder Forum, Convened by the Board of Directors of the Fair Labor Association, Washington D.C. June 26, 2009. There is much concern about the current crisis. Indeed the fall in consumption in developed countries is steep, anything between 15 to 25% over the first months of 2009 in most countries. This is double the decline of sales in previous recessions. However to this cyclical crisis and concerns two new concerns are being added. The first new concern to fashion, mainly amongst retailers and brands, is related to their impact on manufacturing in developing countries and to the employment and social conditions of workers. The second concern new to fashion, which is broadly shared amongst industries, is that after the crisis more structural changes in consumption will happen.