Squeezed Dry Report

Squeezed Dry focuses on one of the industry’s most basic products – the cotton T-shirt – to show how intense price pressure from global brands and retailers drains value from supply chains, with consequences for wages, working conditions and the credibility of sustainability claims.

Drawing on long-term trade data, company-specific sourcing information and interviews with merchandisers and factory managers in Bangladesh, the report unveils a clear pattern: while inflation and living costs have risen sharply, sourcing prices have barely increased – and in real terms, declined. It also shows how sourcing geography has shifted accordingly. As buyers have chased ever lower prices, production of basic items has become increasingly concentrated in low-cost hubs, with Bangladesh emerging as the dominant supplier.

The findings point to a business model built on persistently low prices, strong supplier dependency and structural downward pressure on labour costs. But the report goes beyond documenting the problem. From bottom-up pricing to minimum price targets, it outlines practical approaches for fairer purchasing in the fashion industry.

For readers seeking to understand the real cost of a cheap T-shirt – and the economic choices behind it – Squeezed Dry offers a timely and evidence-based account.