Articles by Simone Preuss
Simone Preuss is a freelance journalist specialising in apparel production, sustainability and social responsibility. She has been working with FashionUnited since 2012, gaining valuable insights into an ever-changing industry.
Exhibition: “The art of trademark in Indo-British textile trade” sheds light on the forgotten art of textile labels
The first thing you notice is the heat; it is all around, almost palpable. Then there are the sounds, deafening, each vendor trying to shout louder than the next. “Madam, here, here, Kashmiri silk, you won’t find anywhere.” “Come to my stall, please, I will show you the widest range.” Then there are the smells of course, some pleasant like the...
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The tariff trap: Why Lesotho’s “reciprocal" duties hand advantage to regional rivals
Lesotho’s garment industry, once a beacon of industrial growth in Southern Africa, is facing a collapse that unions describe as a “gendered supply chain shock.” Following the US administration’s imposition of “reciprocal” tariffs — which reached as high as 50 percent before settling at a 15 percent surcharge — the mountain kingdom’s largest...
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Mapped: the impact of the West Asia crisis on global textile trade routes
The ongoing West Asia crisis has thrown open the extreme vulnerability of supply chains, including those of the garment and textile industry. FashionUnited has taken a look at why the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait are such “jugular veins” of the textile trade between Asia and the West and what it means in terms of shipping times,...
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How the West Asia crisis is putting a tax on every garment moving east to west
The garment industry, a sector famously built on the “just-in-time” philosophy and razor-thin margins, is currently navigating one of its most complex periods of structural volatility. The West Asia crisis has evolved quickly from a regional concern into a systemic chokehold on global textile flows. The escalating conflict in the Middle East is...
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“Labour rights and climate justice are the bedrock of a functional economy and society” - Remake CMO on nonprofit’s closing
Who does not remember social impact initiatives like the #PayUp campaign or the #NoNewClothes challenge? Then there are the annual Fashion Accountability Reports and the “Made in…” film series, all initiatives by nonprofit Remake. Sadly, the organisation is forced to shut down at the end of the month after failing to secure the necessary funding...
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How useful are grievance mechanisms for garment workers? Insights from Bangladesh’s Amader Kotha helpline
After the Rana Plaza building collapse on 24th April 2013 in Savar near Dhaka in Bangladesh, two initiatives emerged that were tasked with improving situations in the country’s ready-made garment (RMG) sector: the Bangladesh Accord on Fire and Building Safety (Accord) and the Bangladesh Alliance for Worker Safety (Alliance). The loss of more...
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How Primark x Coleen Rooney benefits garment workers in Bangladesh
A high-profile partnership between Primark and Coleen Rooney as reported in the British press, is apparently worth millions. Media personality Rooney, wife of footballer Wayne Rooney, will be the face of a new athleisure collection by the Irish discounter that has been described as “stylish yet practical”. Rooney experienced a spike in...
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From words to measurable impact: OECD due diligence forum urges transition
The main sessions of the 2026 OECD Forum on Due Diligence in the Garment and Footwear Sector, which took place on 11 and 12 February, centred on the urgent transition from a culture of compliance to one of tangible impact, specifically focusing on how global brands must navigate an increasingly volatile geopolitical landscape. In his opening...
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What do the election results mean for Bangladesh’s garment and textile sector?
Following the unprecedented unrest of late 2024 and the subsequent interim administration, Bangladesh voted last Thursday and declared results on Friday: The BNP-led alliance won 209 seats and the Jamaat-led bloc secured 68 in the 297 constituencies for which results were declared. For the ready-made garment (RMG) sector—the very heartbeat of...
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Fashion’s best kept secret: home-based workers
They trim loose threads, stitch buttons, zippers and hooks and hem garments; they embroider and embellish with beads and sequins; they hand-paint fabrics, knot tassels and fold garments into polybags for shipment; they even do edge-painting or decorative stitching for accessories. There is hardly a supply chain in the textile, garment and...
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