The apparel industry is the same as the fashion, garment or clothing industry. These are variable names for the same industry. If we want to summarize, we can say that the industry covers the design, manufacturing, wholesaling and retailing of clothes, footwear and fashion accessories. With the said, this is just the tip of the iceberg. Establishments in the apparel manufacturing industry produce many knitted clothing products, such as hosiery and socks, shirts, sweaters, and underwear. They also produce many cut-and-sew clothing items like dresses, suits, shirts, and trousers.
Also in the trade, “apparel” often means a company that deals in wholesale or retail trade of finished garments whereas “garment” companies are relatively more involved in the manufacturing and fabrication sides. Clearly the scope of the apparel industry goes well beyond these primary categories. We should not forget the industry has numerous other sub-categories such as modeling, fashion photography, hair styling, makeup artistry, etc. Issues such as logistics, transportation, warehousing are also relevant parts to consider. The Apparel Industry consists of companies that design and sell clothing, footwear and accessories.
Traditionally, apparel companies were wholesalers, selling large quantities of goods to retailers, which then marked-up items and sold them to consumers at a profit. The apparel and textile industry can be broken down into two major segments: the production of textiles and fabric from raw materials and the transformation of these fabrics into clothing and other accessories. The textile section of the industry involves taking raw material, converting that material to yarn, and then dyeing and finishing the fabric made from the yarn.
