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THE PRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTION OF WOMEN
KNIT OUTERWEAR AND LINGERIE BY FIRMS IN
THE READING-BERKS COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA

MARKET AREA

By Andrea Ruth Desjardin-

 

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Michigan State
University

 

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MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY
COLLEGE OF HOME ECOI‘IOMICS
EAST LANSING, MICHIGAN

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ABSTRACT

THE PRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTION OF WOMEN'S KNIT OUTERWEAR
AND LINGERIE BY FIRMS IN THE READING-BERKS COUNTY,
PENNSYLVANIA MARKET AREA

By Andrea RuTh Desjardins

PrompTed by The emphasis placed upon kniT fashions Today,
This sTudy was underTaken To describe The women's kniT ouTerwear and
lingerie indusTry in The Reading-Berks CounTy, Pennsylvania markeT
area. Heads of Ten selecTed kniTwear firms were inTervlewed regarding
The sTrucTure and organizaTion, meThod of producTion, sources of maTerials,
disTribuTion, and Type of garmenTs produced by represenTaTive firms.
Designers from Three of The kniTwear firms were also inTerviewed To
obTain lnformaTion regarding Their parT in The produchon of kniTwear.

The findings of This sTudy indicaTe a recenT increase in The
number of kniTwear firms. The majoriTy of The firms realize a yearly
sales volume beTween Three and four million dollars, and draw an
average of beTween Two and Three hundred employees from The local supply
of highly skilled laborers. The firms are primarily manufacTuring
operaTions, wiTh a few performing as conTracTors; all firms uTillze
The progressive bundling sysTem for Their producTion of kniTwear.

Raw maTerials are obTained from EasTern sTaTes. All of The
firms disTribuTe Their merchandise naTionaily and six of The firms
disTrlbuTe inTernaTionally. MosT of The firms exhibiT Their kniTwear

in all of The major Trade cenTers ThroughouT The UniTed STaTes. The

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Andrea RuTh Desjardins
majoriTy of The firms disTribuTe direchy To deparTmenT sTores, chain
sTores, and mail order houses.

AlThough mosT of The kniTwear firms specialize in The manu-
facTure of one specific Type of kniTwear, TogeTher They produce a
varieTy of kniT sTyles in a wide range of sizes and prices. Unique
problems are frequenle encounTered in The producTion of kniTwear, however,
of mosT concern were problems relaTed To characTerisTics of The kniT
fabrics.

The kniTwear designers selecTed for inTerviews had received
professional Training and have been designing for Their firms for
approximaTely l0 years. The mosT significanT inspiraTional sources
for original designs menTioned by The designers were European magazines,
cusTomers, and ready-To-wear; while previous designs, presenT fashion
Trends, and compeTiTors were Their main sources of adapTaTion. MeThods
of creaTion ranged from skeTching and draping To paTTern making. The
designers felT ThaT designing for kniT fabrics presenTed a challenge
wiTh unique problems, unlike any encounTered wiTh woven fabrics.

During The pasT I5 years expansion has occurred in The Reading-
Berks CounTy kniTwear indusTry in The form of planT faciliTies,
employmenT, and diversificaTion of producTs. lmprovemenT of machinery,
fibers, and fabrics were also menTioned as exTending facTors. AlThough
plans for fuTure growTh are being made by mosT of The firms, There was
general agreemenT ThaT a decrease in The available labor supply will

be The major drawback To fuTure growTh of The indusTry.

ei'iu'E-i'gis? ' ' ‘
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Andrea RuTh Desjardins
The Reading-Berks CounTy kniTwear firms and designers view
Their major conTribuTion To The apparel indusTry of The UniTed STaTes
as superior qualiTy kniTwear, well cuT and designed in youThful,

fashionable sTyles.

THE PRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTION OF WOMEN'S KNIT OUTERWEAR
AND LINGERIE BY FIRMS IN THE READING-BERKS COUNTY,

PENNSYLVANIA MARKET AREA

By

Andrea RuTh Desjardins

A PROBLEM

SubmiTTed To
Michigan STaTe UniversiTy
in parTial fulfillmenT of The requiremenTs
for The degree of

MASTER OF ARTS

DeparTmenT of TexTiles, CloThing and RelaTed ArTs

I967

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The wriTer wishes To express her sincere appreciaTion To
Dr. Elinor NugenT for her guidance, encouragemenT, and undersTanding
in direcTing This sTudy. The auThor graTefulIy acknowledges
Dr. Mary GepharT, deparTmenT chairman, and Dr. GerTrude Nygren for
Their conTinued inTeresT and helpful suggesTions ThroughouT This
sTudy.

GraTiTude is expressed To The Reading-Berks CounTy, Pennsylvania
Chamber of Commerce for Their kind assisTance in selecTing The sample.
The wriTer is also indebTed To The individual members of The sample,
all of whom were mosT generous in giving of Their Time. Special
appreciaTion is expressed To Miss Elaine STauber for her help and
advice during The preparaTion of This sTudy.

Finally, The auThor is graTeful for The conTinued encouragemenT
expressed by The faculTy, friends, and especially her family ThroughouT

The preparaTion of This sTudy.

ii

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .................................. ..... .....
LIST OF TABLES ....................................... ......
ChapTer
I. INTRODUCT'ON... ........ .0... ........ ......OOOOOOOO.
STaTemenT of The Problem ........ ............ .....
Review of The LiTeraTure....... ............. .....
DefiniTion of Terms........ ....... .... ........ ...
ImporTance of The STudy........ ........... . ..... .
'| METHODOLmYOIOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO O. ......
SelecTion of The MeThod .......... . .............. .
DevelopmenT of The InsTrumenT....... ........ .....
SelecTion and DescripTion of
KniTwear Firms... ....... . ..... . ......... . ......
MeThod of PresenTaTion....... ....... ... ....... ...
lll. WOMEN'S KNIT OUTERWEAR AND LINGERIE FIRMS

IN THE READING-BERKS COUNTY MARKET AREA ...........
STrucTure and OrganizaTion ...................... .
MeThod of ProducTion.... .......... . .......... ....
Sources of MaTerials..... ........ .... ..... .. .....
PresenTaTion and DisTribuTion ......... . ...... ....
Summary .......... .. ............. ........ .........

WOMEN'S KNIT OUTERWEAR AND LINGERIE PRODUCED

IN THE READING-BERKS COUNTY MARKET AREA... ........
Type of KniTwear...... ...........................
Size Range..... ................ . .................
Price Range......................................
Seasonal Lines........... ............ ............
Summary........ ....................... ... ........

Page

(DON-

l0
IO

I2
l2

I3
20
2|
2|
24

26

26
27
29
30
30

ChapTer Page

V. THE DESIGNER WITHIN THE KNITWEAR INDUSTRY ......... . 32
Experience, EmploymenT, and EducaTion ......... ... 32

Sources of Design InspiraTion and Ideas.. ....... . 33

MeThod of Design ......... ............... ......... 35
Summary................................... ....... 36

VI. THE IMPORTANCE OF THE KNITWEAR INDUSTRY.... ...... .. 38
GrowTh and FuTure.............. .................. 38
ConTribuTions of The KniTwear IndusTry ....... .... 40
ConTribuTions of The Designers............ ....... 4|
Summary.......................... ...... . ......... 42

VII. SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS .................... .... 43
Summary ............................ .. ........ .... 43
RecommendaTions ....... . .......... . ...... ......... 46
APPENDIX A. lnTerview Schedule......... ....... .... ..... ... 48

APPENDIX B. lnTroducTory LeTTer........................... 56

BIBLIOGRAPHY........................................ ...... . 57

Table

LIST OF TABLES

Periods of EsTablishmenT, Original FuncTion
and ProducT, and PresenT FuncTion and

PrOdUC+000000000000000 ...... 0 ........... 000000 .....

Yearly Dollar Volume of Reading-Berks CounTy

KniTwear Firms by Number of Firms ..................

Number of Full Time Employees by Number

Of Fir-ms 0000000000 0 ..... 000000000000 000000000000 000

PercenTages of Sales MeThods Used by The

KniTwear Firms.... .................................

Number of KniTwear Firms Using DirecT and
Wholesale AgenTs for DisTribuTion To

RoTail OuTIeTs........ .............................

Types of KniTwear Produced, Size Range,

and Wholesale Price Range by Each Firm .............

23

24

28

 

 

 

 

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CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

STaTemenT 9:_The Problem

 

KniTwear has become The focus of fashion emphasis Today.
Aside from The fashionable aspecT, kniT fashions are comforTable,
easy To care for, and versaTile. Technological advances in machinery
as well as developmenTs and improvemenTs in fibers and fabrics have
greale conTribuTed To This currenT expansion in kniTwear. The kniT-
wear indusTry has recenle wiTnessed specTacuIar increases in sales
producTion and fuTure poTenTial for The indusTry appears To be limiTIess.

AT The presenT Time There are many kniTwear indusTries Through-
ouT The UniTed STaTes manufacTuring apparel for all ages, sizes and
prices, from underwear To ouTerwear. A number of These prosperous
kniTwear indusTries are locaTed in The SouTheasTern porTion of Pennsyl-
vania, specifically--Reading-Berks CounTy. AlThough Reading-Berks
CounTy is a minor markeT area, over IOO of iTs various indusTrial

esTablishmenTs manufacTure fabrics or apparel; approximaTely 35 firms

produce kniT fabrics and/or kniTwear.l

A few sTudies have been made concerning The apparel indusTry
in regional markeT areas; however, There has been no research specifically

concerned wiTh The kniTwear indusTry of a regional markeT area.

 

lThe Chamber of Commerce of Reading and Berks CounTy, Pa.,
lndusTriaI Guide 19_Readi g and Berks CounTy, Pa., (I966), p. 54.

 

 

 

2
Therefore, The purpose of This sTudy is To invesTigaTe The conTribuTions
of The Berks CounTy, Pennsylvania markeT area as a minor markeT in The
producTion and disTribuTion of women's kniT ouTerwear and lingerie.
This sTudy supporTs Golly in her research of The Dallas Women's Apparel
MarkeT, in which she suggesTed ThaT "FurTher sTudies of oTher regional
markeTs of imporTance would lead To an appraisal of noT only Those
regional markeTs, buT an evaluaTion of Their parT in The naTional

apparel indusTry."'

Review 9:_The LiTeraTure

 

Much emphasis has been placed upon kniTwear and lingerie Today
by leading fashion magazines and newspapers. NeiTher kniTwear nor
lingerie are new To The field of women's apparel, however, Through
recenT developmenTs in fabric and machinery and as a resulT of a comforT-
seeking, leisure-orienTed and mobile socieTy, kniTs have become an
imporTanT segmenT of The apparel indusTry. AlThough There has been an
upsurge in kniTwear and lingerie, There is relaTively liTTle documenTed
informaTion wriTTen concerning These specific indusTries.

An exTensive Technical sTudy of selecTed kniTwear indusTries
ThroughouT The UniTed STaTes was underTaken by The Anglo-American

Council on ProducTiviTy.2 The Council analyzed facTory adminisTraTion,

 

'Jeanne Marie Golly, "A STudy of The PresenT STaTus of The
Dallas Women's Apparel MarkeT" (Unpublished MasTer's Thesis, DeparTmenT
of TexTiles, CloThing and RelaTed ArTs, Michigan STaTe UniversiTy, l966),
p. Ill.

2ProducTiviTy Team ReporT, Hosiery and KniTwear (New York:
Anglo-American Council on ProduciTiviTy, l95l).

 

113$

3
organizaTion, layouT, meThods and operaTing condiTions of hosiery
and kniTwear indusTries in order To compare kniTwear indusTries in
The UniTed STaTes To Those in The UniTed Kingdom for The purpose
of improving upon The laTTer.

Regional markeTs producing women's apparel have undergone
some exploraTion in The pasT. Griffin invesTigaTed a number of
regional markeTs producing women's and misses apparel in The IaTe
l940's. However, each markeT was TreaTed in a general manner due
To The comprehensiveness of The sTudy.I

Individual regional markeTs have also been sTudied. Drake
and Glasser surveyed Trends in The New York CiTy garmenT indusTry To
deTermine wheTher iT was growing or declining.2 A laTer sTudy by
Hall, recognized a decenTralizaTion of The New York apparel indusTry
and endeavored To examine all responsible facTors leading To The

decline of acTiviTies in The New York CiTy markeT cenTer.3

 

'Tira w. Griffin, "A Survey of SelecTed Regional MarkeTs
Producing Women's and Misses" Apparel' (Unpublished MasTer's Thesis,
DeparTmenT of TexTiIes, CloThing and RelaTed ArTs, Michigan STaTe
UniversiTy, I949).

2Leonard A. Drake and Carrie Glasser, Trends i£_The New York
CloThing IndusTry (New York: lnsTiTuTe of Public AdminisTraTTOn, I942).

 

3Max Hall (ed.), Made ifl_New York (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard
UniversiTy Press, l959).

 

4

The developmenT and sTaTus of The Dallas women's apparel
markeT have been researched by Gano,I Johnson,2 and Golly.3 Goodman
summarized apparel manufacTuring and markeTing facillTies in California.4
The growTh and sTaTus of The apparel indusTry in Florida was examined
by Hersker.5 Bourne analyzed The developmenT of The apparel indusTry
in Alabama.6

There are a few good books offering background informaTion
of The apparel indusTry. Jarnow's TexT is a compilaTion of inTeresTing
readings concerning The producTion, disTribuTion, design, eTc. of

The apparel indusTry.7 An early review of The hisTory of The apparel

indusTry is presenTed by NysTrom.8 Arnold and WhiTe's book also

 

ILowell R. Gano, "The Women's and Misses' Apparel IndusTry

in Dallas, Texas" (Unpublished MasTer's Thesis, SouThern MeThodisT
UniversiTy, I949).

2ElTon Davis Johnson, "Women's OuTerwear IndusTry in Texas"
(Unpublished DocToral disserTaTion, The UniversiTy of Texas, I954).

3Jeanne Marie Golly, "A STudy of The PresenT STaTus of The
Dallas Women's Apparel MarkeT" (Unpublished MasTer's Thesis, DeparTmenT
of TexTiIes, CloThing and RelaTed ArTs, Michigan STaTe UniversiTy, I966).

4Charles S. Goodman, "The LocaTion of Fashion lndusTrles WiTh
Special Reference To The California Apparel MarkeT," Michigan Business
STudies, Vol. X, No. 2 (Ann Arbor, Michigan: UniversiTy Press, I959).

 

5Barry Jay Hersker, "The Women's Apparel ManufacTuring IndusTry
in Florida" (Unpublished DocToral disserTaTion, The UniversiTy of
Florida, I962).

6JudiTh MayTon Bourne, "An Analysis of The DevelopmenT of The
Fashion IndusTry in Alabama, l949-I962" (Unpublished MasTer's Thesis,
Auburn UniversiTy, I962).

7JeaneTTe Jarnow and BeaTrice Judelle, Inside The Fashion
Business (New York: John Wiley and Sons, Inc., I965).

 

8Paul NysTrom, Economics 9:_Fashion (New York! The Ronald
Press CO., I928).

—‘- <

5

describes The apparel indusTry and briefly Touches on The kniTwear

indusTry.'

Periodicals frequenTIy devoTe secTions or arTicles To Trends
in kniT fashions and kniTTing indusTries. TexTile lndusTrles2 and

TexTile Research Journal3 are Technical magazines and are parTicularly

 

informaTive To The people in The Trade. While oThers such as American

Fabrics4 and Apparel MarkeTs,5 are also informaTive, inTeresTing and

 

enjoyable To The consumer.

Women's Wear Daily newspaper is sTill anoTher source of in-

 

formaTion covering The impacT of kniT fashion Trends To boTh indusTry
and consumer.6 ForecasTs of The fuTure for kniT ouTerwear and lingerie

fashions are predicTed and illusTraTed.

lPauline Arnold and Percival WhiTe, CloThes gn_CloTh (New York:
Holiday House, l96l).

2TexTile lndusTries, Vol. l3l, No. 4 (April, I967).

 

3TexTile Research Journal, Vol. 37, No. 5 (May, I967).

 

4American Fabrics, No. 75 (Spring, I967).

 

5"OTher Apparel MarkeTs," AppareI MarkeTs (I948), p. 220.
6

 

refer To:

"Fall Lingerie and Loungewear," Women's Wear Daily, Vol. Il4,
No. 92 (May ll, I967), SecTion 2.

"Technology in KniT Fashions," Women's Wear Daily, Vol. ll4,
No. 89 (May 8, I967), SecTion 2.

6
Few hisTorical accounTs of indusTry in Berks CounTy have been
published. Books by AlbrighT' and Graefi2 discuss The hisTory of The
kniTTing and kniTwear indusTries in Berks CounTy. The Chamber of
Commerce of Berks CounTy conTinually publishes pamphleTs providing

summaries and sTaTisTics of Berks CounTy indusTries.3

DefiniTion 9:_Terms

 

Various Terms are used in discussing kniTwear and The kniTwear
firms in The Reading-Berks CounTy MarkeT area. These Terms need To
be defined To promoTe a beTTer undersTanding of Their usage in This
sTudy.

KniTwea£_refers To cloThing which is consTrucTed by means of
The kniTTing process. OuTerwear refers To cloThing such as dresses,
coaTs, suiTs, sweaTers, cardigans, and slacks. Lingerie refers To

women's undercloThlng, specifically, slips, peTTicoaTs, peTTipanTs,

 

'Raymond W. AlbrighT, Two CenTuries 9:_Reading, Pennsylvania
(Reading, Pa.: The Reading Eagle Press, l948).

 

2ArThur o. Graeff (ed.), lndusTrial Berks CounTy_(Reading, Pa.:
TexTile Machine Works, Berkshire KniTTing Mills, Narrow Fabric 00., I948).

 

3refer To:

Reading-Berks CounTy, Pa. Chamber of Commerce, FacTs AbouT
Reading and Berks CounTy, I967.

 

 

Reading-Berks CounTy, Pa. Chamber of Commerce, Berks CounTy
l§_A_CommuniTy A:_Work, I967.

 

Reading-Berks CounTy, Pa. Chamber of Commerce, Where Progress
12 TradiTion, I967.

 

 

7
panTies, and sleepwear. Underwear refers To undercloThing for men
and boys usually made of coTTon kniT. KniTwear manufacTuring firms

or kniTwear firms are Those firms which produce kniT ouTerwear and

 

lingerie.

In This sTudy, fashion refers To "The prevailing or accepTed
sTyle or group of sTyles in dress or personal decoraTion esTablished
or adopTed during a parTicular Time or season."l Siylg_refers To The
specific characTerisTics which disTinguish one producT from anoTher.2
Design refers To individual variaTions in maTerials and deTails of line
and decoraTion which disTinguish specific garmenTs.3 The designer is
The person who designs a line of kniTwear by means of skeTches, creaTes
in fabric, or boTh.4

A markeT conslsTs of The manufacTurers in each specific class-

ificaTion of apparel; while a regional markeT refers To The geographic

 

locaTion of The markeT.5 Reading-Berks CounTy MarkeT Area idenTifies

 

a minor markeT area, manufacTuring kniTwear, locaTed in SouTheasTern
Pennsylvania. This markeT area will be referred To as eiTher Reading

or Berks CounTy.

 

 

IJarnow, 22: ciT., p. 2.

2lbid.
3lbid.

 

4Mary Brooks Picken, The Fashion DicTionary (New York: Funk
and Wagnall Company, l957), p. 96.

 

5ibid., p. 220.

_,..,__4..__,-_“~_.- ...‘v-_.-a.‘__ rh—“‘ .- ‘ --: A A. A -_‘_. - ...A ...—b A

8
There are differenT Types of manufacTuring planTs wiThin The

indusTry. The manufacTurer produces The garmenT from beginning To

 

end; The jobber Takes care of everyThing buT The acTual sewing, which

is done by ouTside shops referred To as conTracTors.'

 

ImporTance gi_The STudy

 

Research in The field of kniTwear indusTries in regional markeT
areas has been very limiTed. WiTh The increasing emphasis placed upon
kniTs Today, a sTudy focusing on The kniTwear indusTries would prove
To be invaluable To educaTion, business, and indusTry. In a recenT issue

of American Fabrics, RoberT E. ProvosT, PresidenT of BurlingTon Nexus

 

Fabrics sTaTed:

The Time has come To evaluaTe The presenT posiTion and
fuTure prospecTs of The kniTTing indusTry, To Take noTe of
radical changes in iTs size and sTrucTure, and To record
The major role iT now plays in The fashion markeT. During
The pasT five years The producTion and use of kniTTed fabrics
has expanded beyond The mosT opTimisTic forecasTs of any
producer in The field. In Terms of fiber consumpTion, iT
is now operaTing aT The raTe of more Than I,300,000,000
pounds a year and iTs overall volume of business has more
Than Tripled since I960... Our evaluaTion of The kniTTing
scene leads us To conclude ThaT This is no Temporary phenomenon
responding To The whims of fashion, buT a logical hisToricaI
developmenT wiTh long-range implicaTion for The TexTile
indusTry as a whole.

4

'Jarnow,‘gp, ciT., p. 59.

2"The KniTTing IndusTry Comes of Age," American Fabrics,
No. 75 (Spring, I967), p. 83.

 

Arc_r-m’-.__._..-‘Azefi._kveh._-~¥, 77,# 7 ,,,A,__7._7¥ 7—.

9
The purpose of This sTudy is Therefore, To invesTigaTe The
design and producTion of women's kniT ouTerwear and lingerie indusTries
as well as The imporTance of kniTs To fashion. Also To obTain
informaTion regarding The conTribuTions of Reading-Berks CounTy as
a minor markeT area for kniTwear. This research will hopefully
supplemenT informaTion on oTher regional markeT sTudies and also

provide a basis for fuTure sTudies of kniTwear indusTries.

 

CHAPTER II

METHODOLOGY

SelecTion gi_The MeThod

 

For obTaining informaTion abouT The kniTwear indusTry,
meThods of daTa collecTion previously used for similar sTudies were
reviewed. The direcT inTerview Technique was Then selecTed To secure
informaTion for This descripTive sTudy. According To SelITiz,
inTerviews have an advanTage over quesTionnaires because of The
cerTainTy of response. The use of The lnTerview assures a much beTTer
represenTaTion for a selecTed group.l The direcT inTerview Technique
provides a beTTer opporTuniTy for compleTe conTrol over The maTerial
of The inTerview and Thus enables The inTerviewer To redirecT The
responses of The inTerviewees by keeping wiThin pre-deTermined IimiTs.2
Therefore, for The purposes of This research, The direcT inTerview

Technique seemed To be The mosT appropriaTe and saTisfacTory.

DevelopmenT gi_The lnsTrumenT

 

 

The inTerview schedule used for This sTudy was developed To

include boTh fixed-alTernaTive quesTions and open-ended quesTions, The

 

IClaire SellTiz, Marie Jahoda, MorTon DeuTsch, and STuarT W.
Cook, Research MeThods ig_$ocial RelaTions (New York: HolT, RineharT
and WinsTon, I963), p. 242.

 

2Ibid., p. 24l.

 

 

ll
majoriTy being fixed-alTernaTive. This Type of quesTion was more
frequenle used as iT limiTed The inTerviewee To sTaTed alTernaTives
and Therefore, was less Time-consuming To adminisTer. Open-ended
quesTions were also used since They did allow for free response which
was necessary in order To obTain various opinions and ideas. Such
responses were very helpful in esTablishing The conTribuTions which
The kniTwear firms make To The apparel indusTry.

The inTerview schedule was divided inTo Two parTs. ParT l was
To be adminisTered To The heads (manager, presidenT, or owner) of The
kniTwear firms and provided quesTions perTaining To STrucTure and
organizaTion of The firms, meThod of producTion, disTribuTion, and
Type of garmenT produced. The second parT was To be adminisTered To
The designer for each firm To deTermine his parT in The producTion of
kniTwear.

All inTerviews were Thus conducTed wiTh a fixed seT of quesTions
presenTed To The selecTed inTerviewee. Similar circumsTances for each
inTerview were mainTained as much as possible To increase reliabiliTy.
ValidiTy of The insTrumenT was checked Through a pre-TesT. The firsT
parT of The inTerview schedule was TesTed wiTh a co-owner of a men's
sweaTer firm and also wiTh a manager of a men's kniT underwear firm.
ParT ll of The inTerview schedule was TesTed wiTh a designer of women's
apparel. Through The pre-TesT and discussion wiTh The respondenTs,

a few minor revisions were made To improve The conTinuiTy and clariTy
of The inTerview schedule. The pre-TesT also provided experience for
The inTerviewer and helped To esTablish a more sTandardized procedure

To be used when adminisTering The lnsTrumenT.

 

 

l2

SelecTion and DescripTion g:_KniTwear Firms

 

A lisT including all of The kniTwear manufacTuring indusTries
locaTed in Berks CounTy was obTained from The Reading-Berks CounTy
Chamber of Commerce. This lisTing was supplemenTed wiTh addiTional
firms found in The Pennsylvania Bell Telephone DirecTory.

lnTroducTory leTTers briefly explaining The research and The
need for an inTerview were senT To all of The firms on The lisT. The
leTTers were followed by Telephone calls To schedule convenienT
appoinTmenTs for inTerviews. EighTeen leTTers were mailed To kniTwear
firms wiThin The counTy, Three of which would noT respond and five could
noT be used since They manufacTured men's kniTwear. The remaining Ten
used for The sample consisTed of four women's kniT ouTerwear firms, and
six lingerie firms. Two of The lingerie firms and one of The women's
kniT ouTerwear firms employed a full-Time designer locaTed wiTh The

firm in The Berks CounTy area.

MeThod gf_PresenTaTion

 

The informaTion collecTed from The inTerview schedule was
compiled and TabulaTed in order To achieve a form of presenTaTion.
This informaTion abouT The firms, Their sTrucTure and organizaTion,
Their meThods of producTion, disTribuTion, and Type of garmenTs produced
formed a basis for This descripTive sTudy. Tables were used To presenT
informaTion in visual form for quick review. Expressions of opinions
and ideas gained Through responses To open-ended quesTions were analyzed
To deTermine The conTribuTions of The firms To kniTwear and To The

ToTal apparel indusTry.

CHAPTER III

WOMEN'S KNIT OUTERWEAR AND LINGERIE FIRMS

IN THE READING-BERKS COUNTY MARKET AREA

Reading-Berks CounTy is an imporTanT manufacTuring cenTer which
will be considered as a minor markeT area. The kniTwear firms locaTed
wiThin This prosperous indusTrial area have played a prominenT parT in
iTs developmenT. In order To deTermine The conTribuTions of The kniT-
wear firms, specifically The women's kniT ouTerwear and lingerie firms,
an invesTigaTion was conducTed To examine The sTrucTure and organizaTion,
meThod of producTion, sources of maTerials, Types of garmenTs, and sysTems
of disTribuTion. The designer wiThin The firm was also asked To con-
TribuTe informaTion regarding his posiTion in The firm, background, and
meThod of work. The following chapTers presenT and discuss The findings

of This descripTive sTudy.

STrucTure and OrganizaTion

 

The sTrucTure and organizaTion of each of The firms was examined
in regard To The following facTors: esTablishmenT, funcTion, ownership,

locaTion, and size of The firms.

EsTablishmenT, FuncTion, and Ownership gi_The Firms

 

Background informaTion abouT The kniTwear firms was obTained

Through quesTions concerning The daTe of esTablishmenT and The funchon

l3

I4
of The firms when esTablished. This informaTion along wiTh informaTion
abouT The presenT funcTion of The firms, has been compiled in Table I
To show The periods of greaTesT developmenT as well as The TransformaTion
of producTs.

TABLE l.--Periods of esTablishmenT, original funcTion and producT, and
presenT funcTion and producT

 

 

———:_~
~_‘_;

 

 

 

 

 

 

Period of Firms Original PresenT
EsTablishmenT N FuncTion ProducT FuncTion ProducT
l896-I905 l ConTracT. Underwear ConTracT. Lingerie & Underwear
l ManufacT. SkirTs ManufacT. OuTerweara
l906-l9l5 I ManufacT. Underwear ConTracT. SweaTers & Underwear
l9l6-l925 l ManufacT. Underwear ManufacT. Lingerie & Underwear
& ConTracT.
l926-l935 O ---- —--- ---- ----
l936-l945 l ConTracT. CuT & Sewn ManufacT. Lingerie
Hosiery &
Lingerie
I ManufacT. ParachuTes ManufacT. Lingerie & Swimwear
l ManufacT. Full-Fash. ManufacT. OuTerwear
Hosiery
I946-l955 O ---- ---- ---- ----
l956-l965 l ManufacT. Hosiery ManufacT. Lingerie
| ManufacT. Lingerie ManufacT. Lingerie
I ConTracT. OuTerwear ConTracT. OuTerwear
ToTal l0

 

825% of The ouTerwear produced by This firm is kniTwear

IT can be seen readily from Table l, ThaT Two of The oldesT firms
were esTablished beTween l896 and I905. The periods l936-l945 and
l956-l965 show The greaTesT increase in The number of kniTwear firms

esTablished in The ReadingrBerks CounTy markeT area.

l5

All of The firms,wiTh The excepTion of Three, were esTablished
as manufacTuring operaTions. The Three excepTions were esTablished
as conTracTing operaTions, Two of These evenTually converTed To manu-
facTuring operaTions. Two oTher firms reversed The procedure and one
is presenle doing conTracT work while The oTher operaTes as boTh a
manufacTuring and conTracTing firm. Two of The newesT kniTwear firms
are presenle manufacTuring The same Type of producT as when originally
esTablished. All of The oTher firms have eiTher diversified Their
producTs or compleTely changed over To The producTion of kniTwear.

Half of The selecTed group of kniTwear firms inTerviewed
produce kniT ouTerwear or lingerie specifically for women, while The
remaining five produce kniTwear for boTh men and women. When The kniTTing
indusTry firsT goT under way in Berks CounTy, coTTon kniT underwear
for men accounTed for The major porTion of The kniTwear produced.
AlThough There are sTill firms in The area producing coTTon kniT
underwear for men and boys, many of The firms have expanded Their pro-
ducTion To include women's undercloThing which for The purposes of
This sTudy has been classified as lingerie To differenTiaTe from men's
and boy's underwear.

One firm was included in This sTudy, even Though 75 percenT of
iTs ToTal apparel producTion is noT cIassified as kniTwear, because TT
is a large operaTion making a significanT conTribuTion To The kniTwear
indusTry.

Inquiry was also made as To The presenT Type of ownership of
The firms. The IargesT kniTwear firm in Terms of number of employees,
operaTes as an open-corporaTion. The remaining nine firms are organized

as closed-corporaTions.

_. .;_ L-qkh_ ‘<‘_. x __ L. ' A _.. —— *‘v

LocaTion 2: Firms

The number of producTion planTs run by each of The firms and
Their locaTion may be considered imporTanT facTors in The evaluaTion
of Reading-Berks CounTy as a markeT area. QuesTlons 5 and 6 of The
inTerview schedule (Appendix A) were asked To obTain This informaTion.

Two of The firms inTerviewed are divisions of larger corporaTions
locaTed in New York CiTy, while The remaining eighT firms are The
parenT companies and operaTe one or more producTion planTs. Four
of These firms operaTe a single producTion uniT.

Of The remaining four firms which operaTe mulTiple uniTs, one
firm has Two planTs in Berks CounTy, Two planTs In ouT-lying counTies
as well as one planT in Maryland and one in ConnecTicuT. AnoTher firm
which operaTes Two planTs in Berks CounTy has an addiTional planT in
Oklahoma. One firm consisTing of four planTs in Berks CounTy has an
operaTion in a neighboring counTy in Pennsylvania. The remaining
firm operaTes Three planTs locaTed in The Reading-Berks CounTy markeT
area iTself.

Various reasons were given by The inTerviewees for The locaTion
of The kniTwear firms in The Berks CounTy area. These reasons which

were menTioned have been summarized as follows:

i7

Reasons for locaTion:
Number gf_MenTions

SuiTable labor supply 6
MaTerials easily accessible 3
Close To The EasTern markeT 3
Owner naTive of area 3
PlanT faciliTies available 2
TransporTaTion faciliTies 2
Financing available 2

Six of The inTerviewees menTioned more Than one reason for
The locaTion of Their firms. A suiTable labor supply was The mosT
frequenle menTioned as well as The mosT imporTanT reason for many of
The firms. Several of The inTerviewees remarked ThaT The Berks CounTy
area has a reliable Type of labor supply, wiTh a high degree of finger

dexTeriTy, which is conducive To superior qualiTy producTion.

Size f Firm

 

For This sTudy, The size of The firms was deTermined by The
yearly sales volume and The number of The employees for each firm.

The informaTion concerning The yearly sales volume obTained from
quesTion 24 of The inTerview schedule (Appendix A)is presenTed in
Table 2, page l8.

As can be seen from Table 2, more of The firms fall lnTo The
$3,000,000 - 3,999,999 range Than any oTher range. The largesT firm
in Terms of yearly dollar volume realizes a volume of over $5,000,000,
buT produces only 25% kniTwear. The oTher ranges are each represenTed

by one firm.

 

k 7 «, Ix, L _ _ . . . . _ _ _ ..e ...-,_._ .~,..__—._.-._, . - ..- ""‘AA‘ ‘_¢_-"

l8

TABLE 2.--Yearly dollar volume of Reading—Berks CounTy kniTwear firms
by number of firms

 

 

Yearly Dollar Volume Firms

Under $l,OO0,000 I

 

l,000,000 - l,999,999 I
2,000,000 - 2,999,999 I
3,000,000 - 3,999,999 3
4,000,000 - 4,999,999 I
Over 5,000,000 Ib
ToTal 8a

 

aTwo firms preferred noT To give This informaTion.

bToTal volume fer firm mfg. 25% kniTwear.

A second measure of size used in This sTudy is The ToTal
number of employees for each firm. According To Solinger, The number
of employees is a more valid measure of size Than dollar volume because
dollar volume is reIaTlve To Time.I Table 3, page l9, shows ThaT The
largesT firm employs beTween 500 and 599 producTion workers. Four
of The firms employ beTween 200 and 299 employees and almosT as many

firms employ IOO To I99 employees.

 

IJacob Solinger, Apparel ManufacTuring Analysis (New York:
TexTile Book Publishers, lnc., l96l), p. l2.

 

l9

TABLE 3.--Number of full Time employees by number of firms

 

 

 

 

Full Time Employees Firms
N u N
IOO - I99 3
200 - 299 4
300 - 399 l
400 - 499 l8
500 - 599 l
ToTaI l0

 

aFirm mfg. 25% kniTwear.

Four ouT of The Ten firms inTerviewed hire addiTional producTion
employees during peak seasons. Two of The firms hire beTween l0 and 20
producTion employees. AnoTher firm hires beTween 20 and 40 workers and
The largesT firm hires approximaTely 50 addiTional producTion employees
during peak seasons. None of The firms employ parT Time employees.

ApproximaTely 85 percenT of The ToTal number of producTion
employees for all of The firms are women. All of The producTion employees
for each of The firms live in local areas wiThin a radius of Ten miles.

Two of The inTerviewed firms were union affiliaTed wiTh The
lnTernaTionaI Ladies' GarmenT Workers' Union. One of The older firms
became unionized in I933, while a newer firm joined The union in I960.

Inquiry was also made concerning The meThod of wage paymenT

uTilized by The firms. The majoriTy of The producTion employees,

20
specifically The sewing machine operaTors, are paid by The piece by all
of The firms. A few of The employees, such as The cuTTers and packagers,

are paid on an hourly basis; The office personnel receive a salary.

MeThod p:_ProducTion

 

ProducTion, for all of The firms inTerviewed, is organized on
a progressive bundling sysTem. Much like an assembly line sysTem, The
operaTions To be performed on a garmenT are broken down inTo small
balanced segmenTs, each segmenT being carried ouT by one individual.
These segmenTs are Then combined inTo a work uniT. The cuTTer bundles
and numbers The garmenT pieces by dozen loTs To be disTribuTed by The
uniT supervisor To The firsT operaTive in each uniT. The bundles are
Then passed by hand from process To process unTil The garmenT is
compleTed.l

AlThough There are always problems involved in any Type of apparel
manufacTure, The inTerviewees were asked if There were any unique problems
encounTered in The producTion of kniTwear. EighT of The Ten firms in-
Terviewed felT ThaT The producTion of kniTwear did presenT unique problems.

These problems have been summarized as follows:

Problems:

Mpg; pf MenTions
CharacTerisTics of kniT fabrics 5
ConsTrucTion Techniques 3
CuTTing 2
STyling 2

 

IProducTiviTy Team ReporT, pp: ciT., p. l9.

-44——-+“ .L._, ..5 .... — A‘ -—---A-'..

 

 

2|

Several problems were menTioned, however, characTerisTics of
kniT fabrics appeared To be The major problem and also accounTed for
mosT of The oTher difficulTies. Fabrics, parTicularly synTheTic fabrics,
presenT a differenT problem. The variaTions in The kniT consTrucTion
along wiTh The weighT of The fabric and The amounT of desired sTreTch
increases The difficulTy in handling The fabrics. CuTTing, sewing,
pressing, and sizing Techniques are differenT for kniT garmenTs Then
for garmenTs made of woven fabrics. ConsTrucTion Techniques become more
difficulT due To The sTreTch facTor inherenT in kniTs. STyling also
was menTioned as a problem because of The limiTaTions presenTed by The
characTerisTics of kniTTed fabrics and The special equipmenT used in

The producTion of kniTwear.

Sources pf MaTerial

Raw maTerials, primarily fibers and fabrics used for The
manufacTure of kniTwear by firms in Berks CounTy, are secured from
sources ouTside of Pennsylvania. All of The firms indicaTed beTween
9G and I00 per cenT of Their raw maTerials are obTained from
New York CiTy, New England, and The SouThern STaTes. The firms
rarely imporT maTerials from abroad since They can obTain superior
qualiTy and less expensive raw maTerials from near-by areas wiThin The

UniTed STaTes.

PresenTaTion and DisTribuTion

 

lnformaTion regarding The presenTaTion and disTribuTion of

The kniTwear by firms in The Reading-Berks CounTy markeT area was

22

obTained from quesTions l6 Through 20 of The inTerview schedule
(Appendix A). The inTerviewees were firsT asked To name The apparel
Trade cenTers ThroughouT The UniTed STaTes in which They exhibiT Their
merchandise.

Responses from This quesTion showed ThaT eighT firms exhibiT
Their kniTwear in New York CiTy, and five of These firms also exhibiT
in Los Angeles and Dallas. Four of The firms exhibiT in Miami, and
Two exhibiT Their kniTwear in ST. Louis. OTher minor apparel Trade
cenTers, such as San Francisco, BosTon, PiTsturg, BalTimore, Philadelphia,
and WashingTon, D. C., were menTioned by one of The firms. Two firms

did noT sponsor exhibiTs of Their merchandise Themselves.

Table 4, page 23, shows The approximaTe percenTages of each sales
meThod used by The firms responding To quesTioning. Six firms used road
salesmen in percenTages varying from l0 To IOO. Four of These also
uTilized markeT showings. One firm depends primarily on Trade showings
held in ouleing ciTies for smaller firms wiThin a limiTed radius. Four
of The firms did noT respond To quesTioning, since The meThods They use

vary greale or They sell direchy To jobbers.

FurTher inquiry was direcTed To The disTribuTion of The kniTwear
produced. All of The selecTed kniTwear firms inTerviewed disTribuTe
Their producTs To The major apparel cenTers wiThin The UniTed STaTes.
Six of The firms disTribuTe inTernaTionally To cenTers in Europe, SouTh

America, PuerTo Rico, Canada, and The Phillipplnes.

 

 

23

TABLE 4.--PercenTages of sales meThods used by The kniTwear firms

 

 

 

 

Firmsa Sales MeThods
Road SaleSfien MarkeT Showings Trade Showings

A IO 90

B 50 50

C 50 50

D 75 25

E 90 IO

F IOO

 

aFour firms did noT respond.

The kniTwear manufacTurers were also quesTioned regarding Their
meThods of disTribuTion. Seven of The firms TransporT finished producTs
direchy To The reTail ouTleTs and Two of The firms deal direchy wiTh
wholesalers. The Types of reTail ouTleTs used by The firms direchy
or Through wholesale disTribuTion are presenTed in Table 5, page 24.

Table 5 shows ThaT mosT kniTwear firms disTribuTe Their
merchandise direchy To deparTmenT sTores, chain sTores, and mail—
order houses. MosT of The merchandise which is disTribuTed Through a

wholesale agenT is reTailed in deparTmenT sTores.

 

24

TABLE 5.--Number of kniTwear firms using direcT and wholesale agenTs
for disTribuTion To reTail ouTleTs

 

 

 

 

:3 A;
Type of ReTail OuTleT Number of Firms
DirecT Wholesale

DeparTmenT STores 5 3
Chain STores 6 '
Mail-Order Houses 5 '
SpecialTy Shops 5 l
DiscounT Houses 4

VarieTy STores 3

Summary

The selecTed group of kniTwear firms inTerviewed for This sTudy
consisTed of manufacTurers of kniT ouTerwear, lingerie, underwear, and
swimwear. Background informaTion concerning The kniTwear firms indicaTes
The periods of greaTesT growTh To be beTween I936 - I945, and beTween
I956 - I965. Six of The firms inTerviewed are presenle manufacTuring
operaTions, Three are conTracTing operaTions, and one does boTh. All
buT one of The firms are closed-corporaTions.

The mosT imporTanT reason for The locaTion of The firms in The
Reading-Berks CounTy area is The availabiliTy of a suiTable labor
supply. The majoriTy of The firms realize a yearly sales volume beTween
Three and four million dollars, and average beTween Two and Three

hundred employees.

 

 

25

Unique problems in The manufacTure of kniTwear are frequenle
encounTered, The greaTesT problem being in The variance of fabrics.
Raw maTerials are primarily obTained from sources on The EasTern sea-
board.

MosT of The firms exhibiT Their kniTwear in all of The major
Trade cenTers ThroughouT The UniTed STaTes and use road salesmen as
Their major meThod of selling. The majoriTy of The firms disTribuTe
Their merchandise direchy To deparTmenT sTores, chain sTores, and

mail order houses.

CHAPTER IV

WOMEN'S KNIT OUTERWEAR AND LINGERIE PRODUCED lN THE

READING-BERKS COUNTY MARKET AREA

The Reading-Berks CounTy markeT area, noTed for iTs excellenT
supply of highly skilled laborers, produces a varieTy of superior
qualiTy kniTwear. AlThough half of The firms inTerviewed manufacTure
boTh men's and women's apparel, The primary concern of This sTudy is
women's kniT ouTerwear and lingerie. In This chapTer The characTerisTics
of women's kniT wear will be described in Terms of Type, size range,

price range, and seasonal lines.

Type‘gf.KniTwear

The Type of kniTwear produced by The selecTed group of kniTwear
firms for This sTudy was divided inTo Two major caTegories: kniT
ouTerwear and lingerie. Three of The four kniT ouTerwear firms in-
Terviewed manufacTure sweaTers, Two of which produce full-fashioned
sweaTers, while The oTher produces cuT and sewn sweaTers. Three firms
manufacTure dresses and Two manufacTure Two piece and Three piece suiTs.
Two of The kniT ouTerwear firms manufacTure sweaTer and skirT co-ordinaTes
wiTh a wide range of sTer and color choices.

A greaT deal of specializaTion occurs in The field of lingerie.
Four of The inTerviewed firms,specializing in The producTion of panTies,

manufacTure simple basic sTyles and more elaboraTe fancy sTyles.

26

27

The very fashionable "Mod" sTyles such as fish-neT sTreTch panTies
were also included in Their producTion. The firms are frequenle
developing new ideas for panTies. One firm in parTicular, was ex-
perimenTing wiTh fabrics of various fiber conTenT in order To obTain
a lighT weighT, durable, machine washable, and inexpensive sTreTch
panTie. The firm was also TesTing a panTie wiTh a seamless full-
fashioned croTch.

SpecializaTion also occurs in The producTion of sleepwear.
Two firms reporTed ThaT Their sleep gowns were fashionable and luxurious
enough To be worn as evening or parTy cloThes. The Three firms
manufacTuring sleepwear produce primarily long and shorT gowns, some
wiTh maTching robes, sleep shifTs, robes, and relaTively few pajama
ensembles.

The specific kniT iTems manufacTured by each of The firms,
along wiTh The size and price ranges, have been TabulaTed and presenTed

in Table 6, page 28.

Size Range

 

The size ranges for The women's kniT ouTerwear varied liTTle
among The four firms. Two firms produce a smaller range of dress,
suiT, and co-ordinaTe sizes Than The oTher firm and Two firms produce
larger sweaTer sizes Than The Third firm.

Lingerie sizes varied according To The meThod of sizing used
by The firms. Two firms manufacTuring panTies used The Terms small,

medium, and large for size idenTificaTion, one of The firms used a

 

28

TABLE 6.--Types of kniTwear produced, size range, and wholesale price
range by each firm

 

 

 

 

 

Wholesale
Firm Types of KniTwear Size Range Price Range
GarmenT Dozen
KniT OuTerwear
l Full-Fash. SweaTers 36 - 42 $32.50-48.50
2 Full-Fash. SweaTers 34 - 42 $ 4.25-IO.75
Co-ordinaTes
(SkirTs & SweaTers) 8 - l8 S 6.75- 7.50
Dresses 8 — l8 $ 8.75-I0.75
3 SweaTers (CuT & Sewn) 34 - 42 $ 6.00- 9.00
Dresses 8 - I8 ------
SuiTs 8 - l8 ------
4 Dresses 6 ~ 20 $l0.00-39.00
SuiTs 6 - 20 $|6.00-50.00
Co-ordinaTes 6 - 20 $ 3.75-20.00
Lingerie
5 Sleepwear PeTiTe, S, M, L $55.00-285.00
PanTies S, M, L $ 7.50- l2.50
6 PanTies 5 - 7 S 3.50- 4.50
7 PanTies 36 - 50 S 5.00
8 PanTies S, M, L $ 8.00- l0.00
4 - 8 sTreTch
9 PanTies 5 - 8"
Slips, PeTTicoaTs,
PeTTipanTs 30 - 46 $ 7.00-l40.00
Sleepwear 30 - 46
IO PanTies 5 — 7 I
Slips, PeTTicoaTs 32 - 48 $ 3.50-l20.00
Sleepwear 32 - 48}

 

 

29
Tour To eighT size range for iTs sTreTch panTies. OTher firms
manufacTuring panTies used a five To seven or five To eighT range, while
anoTher firm used a 36 - 50 size range. PeTTicoaTs and sleepwear for
Two of The firms are made according To busT size. The size range for
The oTher firm producing sleepwear goes from peTiTe,Through small and

medium To large.

Price Range

 

The wholesale price range for The kniTwear varied from in-
expensive panTies aT $3.50 per dozen To suiTs aT $50 per suiT. The
producTs from Two of The kniT ouTerwear firms are sold wholesale per
garmenT. All of The oTher firms wholesale Their kniTs per dozen loTs.
The quoTed price ranges for The lasT Two lingerie firms lisTed in
Table 6, page 28, include all of Their kniT producTs.

FurTher informaTion was obTained concerning The specific kniT
iTem manufacTured, which was mosT imporTanT in Terms of sales for
each firm. Three of The firms reporTed ThaT Their line of men's
underwear accounTed for Their highesT sales. One lingerie firm feiT
ThaT noT one iTem in parTicular was more imporTanT, as all of The iTems
conTribuTed equally To The ToTal sales volume.

Sleep shifTs were menTioned as an imporTanT iTem for one
lingerie firm because of The lower price range and also because simpler
sTyles are preferred To more elaboraTe ensembles. As a resulT of
presenT fashion Trends, Two of The kniT ouTerwear firms concenTraTe on

Their producTion of sweaTers, especially Their sweaTer and skirT

 

 

30
co-ordinaTes which have become Their largesT sales iTems. AnoTher
kniT ouTerwear firm felT ThaT Their line of dresses was mosT ImporTanT
in Terms of sales. The Two remaining firms specializing in The pro—
ducTion of panTies reporTed ThaT The simpler more basic sTyles were

Their mosT popular sales lTems.

Seasonal Lines

 

The inTerviewees were asked in quesTion 23 of The inTerview
schedule (Appendix A), if Their producTs were seasonal. Responses
from This quesTion indicaTed ThaT seven of The firms felT ThaT Their
producTs were seasonal. Four of These firms menTioned ThaT The
Holiday season was Their mosT imporTanT season In Terms of sales, as
kniTwear, especially lingerie, makes an excellenT gifT iTem. The
Fall was also noTed as an imporTanT season for five of The firms.
STudenTs reTurning To school, new colors and fabrics, and cooler
weaTher were reasons menTioned for higher sales in The Fall. Two firms
indicaTed Spring and Summer as imporTanT seasons because The use of less
expensive fabric permiTs a lower price range which caTers To a larger
number of people. Three firms did noT feel ThaT Their producTs were

seasonal; Their sales remain relaTively consTanT ThroughouT The year.

Summary

KniT ouTerwear and lingerie firms in The Reading-Berks CounTy
markeT area produce a varieTy of kniT fashions in a wide range of

sizes and prices. MosT of The firms inTerviewed specialize in a

3|
parTicular Type of kniTwear and, Therefore produce superior qualiTy
merchandise. The majoriTy of The firms felT ThaT Their kniTwear is
seasonal, and mosT of These firms indicaTed The Fall and Holiday seasons

To be mosT imporTanT in Terms of sales.

 

fi— —_¢—,__,«k‘1_‘ ;_‘. .
_._.._._.. a-un~__ . , -

CHAPTER V

THE DESIGNER WITHIN THE KNITWEAR INDUSTRY

DeTermining The role of The kniTwear designer wiThin The
kniTwear indusTry was a major objecTive of This sTudy. Upon obTaining
informaTion concerning The designer wiThin each firm, if was found
ThaT designers for Two of The firms are employed wiTh Their main
offices in New York CiTy. One firm employed The services of a
free-lance designer on a parT-Time basis. Four oTher firms did noT
have designers; new designs are creaTed by The heads of The firms, buT
noT as designers. The remaining Three firms employ full Time designers.
Therefore, This chapTer will be based on findings concerning The
posiTion, background, and meThod of work of The designers employed

by one kniT ouTerwear firm and Two lingerie firms.

Experience, EmploymenT, and EducaTion

 

 

Inquiry was made concerning The professional background of
The Three designers inTerviewed. All Three of The designers have
been designing for Their firms for approximaTely l0 years. One of
The designers had worked as a professional designer for five years
prior To his presenT posiTion.

Two of The designers have an addiTional inTeresT in The firm

oTher Than designing. The firsT designer inTerviewed is also a parTner

32

33

in The ownership of The firm. The second designer is The wife of
one of The owners of The firm where she is employed.

The design deparTmenT is a separaTe deparTmenT wiThin one of
The firms and is direcTed by The designer inTerviewed. One of The
oTher designers shares a large office wiTh his parTner (co-owner)
and does his designing There along wiTh his oTher business responsibil-
iTies. This parTicular firm also employs a sample maker. The Third
designer designs eiTher in her home or in The business offices of The
planT. Two free-lance designers, one aT a Time, are occasionally
employed by This firm.

QuesTioning concerning educaTionaI background and Training of
The designers inTerviewed revealed ThaT They all had compleTed high
school and aTTained degrees from design school. One designer had also
compleTed one year of college before going on To design school. Two
of The designers had aTTended design schools in New York CiTy. One
of The designers had graduaTed from The Fashion lnsTiTuTe of Technology

and anoTher designer had sTudied aT The Traphagen School of Fashion

 

Design.
Sources g:_Design InspiraTion and Ideas
The success of a kniTwear firm depends a greaT deal upon The
abiliTy of The designer To creaTe fashions which will receive popular

consumer accepTance. IT is Therefore, The designer who musT conTinually
find new ideas for kniT fashions. Various sources of inspiraTion are

used by designers for creaTing new designs. The following is a lisT

 

 

 

,-#..s_ —__. .e_~ ;._ nit-re -_ __-.‘ez- I v- sub-xv ‘— ..'.:': fig 7.4- 4.- 4 "

34
of sources menTioned by The designers in This sTudy:

Sources of InspiraTion:
Number gi_MenTions

French and oTher European magazines 2
CusTomers 2
Ready-To-Wear 2
Fabric I
ArT I
Museums l
Travel l

French and oTher European fashion magazines and cusTomers
were each menTioned Twice. BoTh designers of lingerie menTioned ThaT
Their designs are frequenle inspired by ready-To—wear ouTerwear. One
designer furTher explained This source of inspiraTion as The silouheTTe
of ouTerwear frequenle deTermines sTyles of undercloThing, such as
The creaTion of The mini-slip for mini-skirTs.

All Three of The kniTwear designers said ThaT They adapT or
copy designs from oTher sources. Designs from previous creaTions were
menTioned by The Three designers as a principal source of adapTaTion.
Five sources menTioned by The designers were:

Sources of AdapTaTion:
‘Npmpe£_pi__MenTions

Previous designs 3
PresenT fashion Trends 2
CompeTiTors 2

Fashion leaders I

Trade papers and magazines I

 

 

35

MeThod‘g:.Design

 

MeThods of design creaTion varied for The Three designers
inTerviewed. One designer used The flaT paTTern meThod and anoTher
used skeTching and draping in boTh fabric and muslin. The Third
designer preferred noT To indicaTe his meThod of design creaTion,
claiming ThaT all of his designs were presenTed for approval as
finished producTs.

When new designs are accepTed for producTion by all Three
firms, a basic sTandardized paTTern is made of leaTher and senT To
The cuTTer for Those garmenTs which will be cuT and sewn. Design

insTrucTions and oTher specificaTions are given To The kniTTers for

full-fashioned garmenTs.

The designers were furTher quesTioned concerning The number
of collecTions which They prepare. The designer of kniT ouTerwear
prepares Three collecTions per year. Each of his collecTions consisT
of approximaTely 40 numbers, of which 60 percenT represenT new sTyles and
40 percenT can be considered adapTaTions of previous sTyles. One of The
lingerie designers prepares Two collecTions, one in The Fall and one
in The Spring, and supplemenTs The collecTions ThroughouT The year.
BoTh collecTions consisT of abouT 60 numbers, half represenTing new
sTyles and The oTher half represenTing adapTaTions of previous sTyles.
The oTher lingerie designer inTerviewed said ThaT he does noT prepare
a collecTion as such. However, he designs one line for producTion which

remains consTanT ThroughouT The year.

36

Two of The Three designers indicaTed unique problems were
encounTered when designing kniTwear. One designer felT ThaT he was
handicapped by The capabiliTies of The machinery, especially when
creaTing new designs for full-fashioned garmenTs. The greaTesT problem
encounTered by The oTher kniTwear designer is achieving The proper
size wiTh The proper amounT of sTreTch and holding power in a garmenT.

Responses To quesTions concerning previous designing experience
showed ThaT Two of The designers had also designed for woven fabrics
and found designing for kniTs To be more challenging. One of The
designers felT The challenge in designing for kniTs was because of
The IimiTaTions of machinery. The second designer poinTed ouT ThaT
There are more possibiliTies wiTh designing kniTwear because There is
a wider varieTy of new synTheTics and kniT fabrics. H0 3'50 felT
ThaT new improvemenTs in machinery geared To kniTwear presenTed no
draw backs.

All of The designers design under The name of Their firm. Two
of The designers, however, menTioned ThaT They receive recogniTion

as a designer for Their designs.

Summary

This parT of The sTudy is based on informaTion obTained from
inTerviews wiTh Three full-Time designers employed by Three of The
kniTwear firms inTerviewed. Responses from various quesTions showed
ThaT all of The designers had aTTained degrees from a design school

and had been designing for Their firms for The pasT Ten years. Two

 

 

_._e-:<_._.1_—_-. - <.— :3 . .7 mg; -ug : A22" _.

37
designers have addiTional inTeresTs in Their firms oTher Than designing,
and only one firm mainTains The design deparTmenT as a separaTe deparT-
menT.

French and oTher European magazines, cusTomers, and ready—To-
wear were The mosT frequenle menTioned sources of inspiraTion for
The designers. Sources of adapTaTion frequenle menTioned were:
previous designs, presenT fashion Trends and compeTiTors.

One designer uses The flaT paTTern meThod of designing, while
anoTher uses skeTching and draping in muslin and fabric. One designer
prepares Three collecTions per year, while anoTher prepares Two
collecTions each year plus supplemenTary designs.

Unique problems are encounTered by Two of The designers when
creaTing kniTwear designs. Two designers find originaTing kniT fashions
To be more challenging Than oTher Types. All of The designers design

under The name of Their houses.

 

 

CHAPTER VI
THE IMPORTANCE OF THE KNITWEAR INDUSTRY

The UniTed STaTes fashion indusTry has recenle wiTnessed
vasT increases in The producTion of kniT fabrics and kniTwear. IT has
become evidenT ThaT minor markeT areas, such as The Reading-Berks
CounTy markeT area, have significanT roles in The producTion of
fashionable kniT garmenTs. BoTh The designers and The heads of The
kniTwear firms inTerviewed for This sTudy responded To a series of
quesTions concerning Their opinions regarding The sTaTus of The
Berks CounTy markeT area. The imporTance of The kniTwear indusTry
in The Reading-Berks CounTy markeT area, iTs growTh and fuTure poTenTial,
and The conTribuTions iT makes To The UniTed STaTes fashion indusTry

are discussed in The following chapTer.

GrowTh and FuTure

 

In an aTTempT To deTermine The sTaTus of The kniTwear indusTry
in The Reading-Berks CounTy markeT area, The selecTed firms were firsT
quesTioned abouT Their growTh over The pasT I5 years. Responses
indicaTed ThaT a greaT deal of expansion occurred during ThaT period.
Five firms menTioned Their planT faciliTies had expanded. MosT firms
had become Three or four Times larger and one firm was 20 Times greaTer
Than iT had been in I950. EmploymenT doubled and Tripled for four of

The firms. DiversificaTion of producTs, fibers, and fabrics accounTed

38

39

for major increases in producTion for eighT of The firms. Two firms
reporTed ThaT They had opened new planTs or expanded To include oTher
planTs ouTside of Pennsylvania. One firm could noT respond To
quesTioning as if had recenle been esTablished and no major develop-
menTs could be noTed aT This Time. AnoTher firm indicaTed There has
been a regression in Their producTion of lingerie.

BoTh The designers and The heads of The firms were asked if
Their firms had expansion plans for The nexT five years. Three of
The firms menTioned ThaT They planned To expand Their line of kniTwear
and possibly diversify Their producTs as much as possible wiThin The
line of women's kniTwear. Two firms explained They operaTe a conTrolled
Type of expansion; They plan To expand Their producTion by a cerTain
percenTage each year. Two oTher firms said They planned To expand
Their producTion To increase sales and To keep up wiTh currenT demands.
AnoTher firm has expansion plans for areas ouTside of Pennsylvania,
in The WesT and SouTh. Three firms sTaTed ThaT They had no immediaTe
developmenT plans, one of which indicaTed ThaT They planned To con-
cenTraTe on solidifying Their operaTion.

lnTeresTing responses were obTained from The inTerviewees when
They were asked for Their opinions concerning The fuTure growTh poTenTial
of The Reading—Berks CounTy markeT area in regard To women's kniTwear.
Three of The inTerviewees expressed The feeling ThaT alThough There
is an excellenT Type of labor supply In Berks CounTy, There has been
a Tremendous decrease in The availabiliTy of This supply. One firm

indicaTed ThaT This was due To The sTrong compeTiTion in The labor

 

40

markeT by elecTronic and heavy indusTry which have TradiTionally had
higher wage levels. AnoTher inTerviewee also felT ThaT increases in
heavy indusTry will resulT in decreases in The TexTiIe indusTry. Two
oTher firms merely menTioned The poTenTial To be low or non-exisTanT.

The opinion of The oTher four inTerviewees inplied ThaT There
was much poTenTial for fuTure growTh in The kniTwear indusTry. Two
of These firms felT ThaT increases in populaTion and reTail ouTleTs,
especially chain sTores, will necessiTaTe increases and growTh in The
kniTwear indusTry. One inTerviewee claimed ThaT employmenT and The
labor supply were unusually good and ThaT There is greaT poTenTial for
fuTure developmenT in This area. The oTher firm also reporTed good
poTenTlal and expecTs Their kniTwear producTion To double wiThin The

nexT few years.

ConTribuTions g: The KniTwear IndusTry

 

 

A major objecTive of This sTudy was To deTermine The conTribuTions

of The kniTwear indusTry in The Reading-Berks CounTy markeT area To

The UniTed STaTes fashion indusTry. The inTerviewees were asked To
express Their opinions concerning The kniTwear indusTry. Six of The
inTerviewed firms felT ThaT They do make a valuable conTribuTion To

The UniTed STaTes fashion indusTry. Several of These firms reporTed

ThaT The area is noTed for iTs number of apparel manufacTurers, many

of which manufacTure naTionally known brands. One inTerviewee

explained ThaT They conTribuTe superior qualiTy kniTwear because of

Their highly Skilled laborers. The machinery used in The producTion

4|
of kniTwear is also manufacTured in This area, which is as imporTanT
a conTribuTion as The kniTwear iTself.

The remaining four firms indicaTed ThaT The Berks CounTy
markeT area does noT make a unique conTribuTion To The UniTed STaTes
fashion indusTry, as The area is noT a sTyle cenTer; They mighT help
To influence sTer Trends, buT They do noT seT Them. These four firms
did feel, however, ThaT The conTribuTions of The area are primarily
ThaT of The crameanship of The labor force. They consider Themselves
To be an imporTanT manufacTuring cenTer, producing qualiTy apparel,

buT noT a fashion cenTer.

ConTribuTions g:_The Designers

 

 

The Three designers inTerviewed were asked whaT They as designers
felT They conTribuTe To The Berks CounTy markeT area and To The UniTed
STaTes fashion indusTry as a whole. Two of The designers felT ThaT
Their conTribuTions are exTremely imporTanT, The Third designer did
noT respond To quesTioning.

One of The designers sTaTed ThaT his creaTions caTered To The
younger women, The "misses of America". His ideal is To have women
well dressed in good TasTe, wearing sTaple, well cuT and designed
kniT cloThes. The oTher designer indicaTed she is designing whaT she
Termed "high sTyle lingerie" and "youThful sTyles of up—To-daTe
lingerie". She furTher explained ThaT as a designer she considers

herself To be an innovaTor of fashionable lingerie.

 

 

 

 

42

Summary

In The pasT I5 years a considerable amounT of expansion has
Taken place wiThin The kniTwear indusTry in The Reading-Berks CounTy
markeT area. NoTiceable expansion which has occurred in The way of planT
faciliTies, employmenT, diversificaTion of producTs, improvemenT of
machinery, fibers, and fabrics, accounTs for noTeworThy increases in
kniTwear producTion. Plans for fuTure expansion have been made by seven
of The Ten firms inTerviewed.

Over half of The inTerviewees expressed The feeling ThaT
poTenTial for fuTure growTh of The kniTwear indusTry in Berks CounTy
is noT very greaT. This feeling was mainly aTTribuTed To The compeTiTion
for labor from heavy indusTry.

The majoriTy of The inTerviewees feel ThaT The Reading-Berks
CounTy kniTwear indusTry definiTely makes a valuable conTribuTion To
The UniTed STaTes apparel indusTry. Their conTribuTion is, however,
in The form of a prominenT manufacTuring cenTer, buT noT as a fashion
cenTer. The designers, alThough few in number, also make noTeworThy

conTribuTions.

 

 

CHAPTER Vll

SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Summary

PrompTed by The emphasis placed upon kniT fashions Today,
This sTudy was underTaken To describe The women's kniT ouTerwear and
lingerie indusTry in The Reading-Berks CounTy, Pennsylvania markeT
area. This sTudy also involved examinaTion of The conTribuTions The
Berks CounTy kniTwear indusTry makes To The apparel indusTry of The
UniTed STaTes.

lnformaTion was obTained Through direcT inTerviews wiTh designers
and heads of The selecTed kniTwear firms. A sTrucTured inTerview
schedule, consisTing of Two parTs, was adminisTered To persons connecTed
wiTh Ten firms. ParT l secured informaTion from The heads of The firms,
concerning sTrucTure and organizaTion, meThod of producTion, sources of
maTerials, disTribuTion, and Type of garmenT produced. The second parT
was adminisTered To designers from Three of The firms To obTain in-
formaTion regarding Their parT in The producTion of kniTwear. BoTh
parTs included quesTions perTaining To growTh and fuTure developmenT
of The firms, fuTure poTenTial of The kniTwear indusTry, and The con-
TribuTions of The firms and designers To The UniTed STaTes fashion

indusTry.

The periods I936 - I945 and I956 - I965 show The greaTesT

increase in The number of kniTwear firms esTablished Six of The firms

43

 

 

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'~ W -
5..— _._L.-___._ _L.

44
are presenle manufacTuring operaTions, Three are conTracTing operaTions,
and one does boTh. A suiTable labor supply of highly skilled laborers
was The primary reason menTioned for The locaTion of The firms in The
Reading-Berks CounTy area. The majoriTy of The firms realize a yearly
sales volume beTween Three and four million dollars, and average beTween
Two and Three hundred employees.

The progressive bundling sysTem is The Type of operaTion used
by all of The firms. Unique problems in The manufacTure of kniTwear
are frequenle encounTered, The greaTesT problem being aTTribuTed To The
characTerisTics of kniT fabrics. MosT of The raw maTerials in The pro-
ducTion of kniTwear by The Reading—Berks CounTy firms are obTained from
New York CiTy, New England, and The SouThern STaTes.

All of The firms disTribuTe Their merchandise naTionally and
six of The firms disTribuTe inTernaTionally. MosT of The firms exhibiT
Their kniTwear in all of The major Trade cenTers ThroughouT The UniTed
STaTes. Road salesmen were used by The firms as Their major sales
meThod. The majoriTy of The firms disTribuTe direchy To deparTmenT
sTores, chain sTores, and mail order houses.

AlThough mosT of The kniTwear firms specialize in The manufacTure
of one specific Type of kniTwear, TogeTher They produce a varieTy of
kniT fashions in a wide range of sizes and prices. The firms producing
kniT ouTerwear manufacTure sweaTers, dresses, Two piece and Three piece
suiTs, and sweaTer and skirT co-ordinaTes. The lingerie firms manufacTure
panTies, slips, peTTicoaTs, peTTipanTs, and sleepwear. The majoriTy
of The firms reporTed Their kniTwear is seasonal; The Fall and Holiday

seasons being mosT imporTanT in Terms of sales.

45

lnformaTion regarding The role of The designer was based upon
inTerviews wiTh The full-Time designers from Three of The kniTwear
firms. The designers have aTTained degrees from design school and
have been designing for Their firms for approximaTely IO years. Two
of The designers have an addiTional inTeresT in Their firms, Through
parTnership and ownership. One firm mainTains a separaTe design deparT-
menT.

Designers considered Their besT sources of inspiraTion To be
French and oTher European magazines, cusTomers, and oTher ready-To-wear.
The designers also ciTed previous designs, presenT fashion Trends, and
compeTiTors as Their main sources of adapTaTion. Their meThods of
creaTion ranged from skeTching and draping To paTTernmaking. Only Two
of The designers prepared seasonal collecTions each year. The producTion
of designs for kniTs was considered more challenging Than designing for
woven fabrics. Designers also encounTered unique problems such as
Those presenTed by machinery and sizing, when designing for kniTwear.

During The pasT l5 years expansion has occurred in The Reading-
Berks CounTy kniTwear indusTry in The form of planT faciliTies, employ-
menT, diversificaTion of producTs, and improvemenT of machinery, fibers,
and fabrics. AlThough plans for fuTure growTh are being made by mosT
of The firms, There was general agreemenT ThaT a decrease in The available
labor supply will be The major drawback To fuTure growTh of The indusTry
as a whole.

The Reading-Berks CounTy kniTwear firms and designers view

Their major conTribuTion To The apparel indusTry of The UniTed STaTes

 

 

46
as superior qualiTy kniTwear, well cuT and designed in youThful,

fashionable sTyles.

RecommendaTions

 

This sTudy of The kniTwear indusTry in The Reading-Berks
CounTy markeT area invesTigaTes a relaTively unexplored field. There
has been no research specifically concerned wiTh The kniTwear indusTry
of a regional markeT area. Therefore, The following suggesTions for
furTher sTudy of The kniTwear indusTry in oTher regional markeT areas
may be made.

I. A survey of The kniTwear indusTry in oTher regional
markeTs To deTermine more compleTely The role of kniTwear producTion
wiThin The naTional apparel indusTry.

2. A sTudy of oTher minor markeT areas To deTermine The
conTribuTions of individual markeT areas To The naTional apparel
indusTry.

3. A more exTensive survey uTilizing a larger sample mighT
be done To achieve more conclusive resulTs.

4. A comparaTive sTudy of The qualiTy, design, and price
of imporTed kniTwear wiTh American made kniTwear.

5. A comparaTive sTudy of The producTion of kniTwear wiTh
The producTion of differenT Types of apparel.

6. A sTudy of The foreign markeTs and producTs for

inTernaTional disTribuTion.

7. A sTudy of men's kniTwear.

 

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47
AlThough The inTerview schedule developed for This sTudy
secured The desired informaTion, possible revision of The open-
ended quesTions would promoTe a beTTer undersTanding beTween The

inTerviewer and The inTerviewee.

 

 

 

 

APPENDIX A

 

 

APPENDIX B

__ Lac-xm‘gm "_ 5.

 

March 6, I967

Dear

Some of The regional markeT areas of The UniTed STaTes have been
selecTed for sTudy by Michigan STaTe UniversiTy. AlThough Reading
and Berks CounTy is presenle a minor markeT area, The indusTries

and Their progress have already made a conTribuTion To The producTion
of apparel Today.

I would like To include your firm in The presenT analysis of The
Reading-Berks CounTy markeT area which I am doing as a MasTer's

degree candidaTe in The DeparTmenT of TexTiIes, CloThing and RelaTed
ArTs. Your parTicipaTion will be of greaT value To The enTire projecT.

I will be in Reading unTil March 26, and would like To inTerview you
and a designer for your firm aT your convenience. These inTerviews

are compleTely confidenTial. Individual responses To various quesTions
will noT be idenTified. My quesTions should noT Take longer Than

20-30 minuTes. I will Telephone your office for an appoinTmenT.

Thank you for your consideraTion. I am looking forward To Talking
wiTh you.

sincerely yours,

Andrea R. Desjardins
|4l5 Alsace Road
Reading, Pennsylvania

56

 

.m; M'- £”n-?..’.‘.‘?"b- v t:

BIBLIOGRAPHY

 

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Books

 

AlbrighT, Raymond W. Two CenTuries gj_Reading, Pennsylvania.
Reading, Pa.: The Reading Eagle Press, I948.

 

 

Arnold, Pauline and WhiTe, Percival. CloThes and CloTh. New York:
Holiday House, l96l.

 

Graeff, ArThur 0. (ed.). lndusTrial Berks CounTy. Reading, Pa.:
TexTiIe Machine Works, Berkshire KniTTing Mills, Narrow
Fabric Company, I948.

 

Hall, Max (ed.). Made 11 New York. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard
UniversiTy Press, I959.

Jarnow, JeaneTTe A. and Judelle, BeaTrice. Inside The Fashion Business.
New York: John Wiley and Sons, lnc., I965.

 

NysTrom, Paul H. Economics gj_Fashion. New York: The Ronald Press
Company, I928.

Picken, Mary Brooks. 'The Fashion DicTionary. New York: Funk &
Wagnalls Company, I957.

 

SellTiz, Claire, Jahoda, Marie, DeuTsch, MorTon, and Cook, STuarT W.
Research MeThods ip_SociaI RelaTions. New York: HolT,
RineharT and WinsTon, I963.

 

 

Solinger, Jacob. Apparel ManufacTurlpg_Analysis. New York: TexTile
Book Publishers, lnc., l96l.

 

ArTlcles and Periodicals

 

American Fabrics, Number 75 (Spring, I967).

 

Goodman, Charles S. "The LocaTion of Fashion lndusTries wiTh Special
Reference To The California Apparel MarkeT," Michigan Business
STudies, X, No. 2. Ann Arbor, Michigan: UniversiTy Press, I959.

 

"OTher Apparel MarkeTs," Apparel MarkeTs (I948), p. 220.

 

57

. a” -. \_—:__ .:.-_, ‘1!) (_axln'fiu" '1“ '. _9_~V

58

Reading-Berks CounTy, Pa. Chamber of Commerce. FacTs AbouT Reading and
Berks Counjy, I967.

 

 

Reading-Berks CounTy, Pa. Chamber of Commerce. Berks CounTy _i_ 3
CommuniTy 2: Work, I967.

 

Reading-Berks CounTy, Pa. Chamber of Commerce. Where Progress_§§
TradiTion, I967.

 

 

TexTile lndusTries, Volume l3l, Number 4 (April, I967).

 

TexTile Research Journal, Volume 37, Number 5 (May, I967).

 

The Chamber of Commerce of Reading and Berks CounTy, Pa. IndusTrial
Guide 19 Reading and Berks CounTy, Pa., I966.

 

 

Newspapers

 

"Fall Lingerie and Loungewear." Women's Wear Daily, May ll, I967.

 

”Technology in KniT Fashions." Women's Wear Daily, May 8, I967.

 

ReporTs

Drake, Leonard A. and Glasser, Carrie. Trends _I_rl The New York CloThing
IndusTry. New York: lnsTiTuTe of Public AdminisTraTlon, I942.

 

ProducTiviTy Team ReporT. Hosiery and KniTwear. New York: Anglo-
American CounCil on ProducTiviTy, l95l.

 

Unpublished MaTerial

 

Bourne, JudiTh MayTon. "An Analysis of The DevelopmenT of The Fashion
IndusTry in Alabama, l949-l962." Unpublished MasTer's Thesis,
Auburn UniversiTy, I962.

Gano, Lowell R. "The Women's and Misses' Apparel IndusTry in Dallas,
Texas." Unpublished MasTer's Thesis, SouThern MeThodisT
UniversiTy, I949.

Golly, Jeanne Marie. "A STudy of The PresenT STaTus of The Dallas
Women's Apparel MarkeT." Unpublished MasTer's Thesis,
Michigan STaTe UniversiTy, I966.

Griffin,

Hersker,

Johnson,

59

Tira W. "A Survey of SelecTed Regional MarkeTs Producing
Women's and Misses' Apparel." Unpublished MasTer's Thesis,
Michigan STaTe UniversiTy, I949.

Barry Jay. "The Women's Apparel ManufacTuring indusTry in
Florida." Unpublished DocToral disserTaTion, UniversiTy
of Florida, I962.

ElTon Davis. "Women's OuTerwear IndusTry in Texas."
Unpublished DocToral disserTaTion, The UniversiTy of
Texas, I954.

 

MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY
COLLEGE OF HOME ECONOMICS
EAST LANSING, MICHIGAN

 

 

 

{I
.II

 

 

 

 
     

 

 

  

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