Ready-to-wear

Main article: Ready-to-wear

Ready-to-wear clothes are a cross between haute couture and mass market. They are not made for individual customers, but great care is taken in the choice and cut of the fabric. Clothes are made in small quantities to guarantee exclusivity, so they are rather expensive. Ready-to-wear collections are usually presented by fashion houses each season during a period known as Fashion Week. This takes place on a city-wide basis and occurs twice a year.

Main article: Mass market

Currently the fashion industry relies more on mass market sales. The mass market caters for a wide range of customers, producing ready-to-wear clothes in large quantities and standard sizes. Cheap materials, creatively used, produce affordable fashion. Mass market designers generally adapt the trends set by the famous names in fashion. They often wait around a season to make sure a style is going to catch on before producing their own versions of the original look. In order to save money and time, they use cheaper fabrics and simpler production techniques which can easily be done by machine. The end product can therefore be sold much more cheaply.

There is a type of design called "kitsch" design. . . originated from the German word "kitschen" meaning ugly or not aesthetically pleasing. Another way to describe the term "kitsch" is "wearing or displaying something that has passed its fashion date and is therefore no longer in fashion. so if you are seen wearing a pair of pants that was once worn in the 80's it is seen to be known as a "kitsch" fashion statement.[1]