Shopping for clothes in China- will I have much trouble?

[earthtojess]

I'm really sorry if this has been asked already. I'm coming to China for about 3 months later in the year and I'm planning on buying most of my clothes there.. I'm just wondering if it will be harder than it should to find clothes for a teen to find clothes.

I'm about an 8-10 Australian, or 4-6 american women's size. I don't exactly consider myself huge, but I'm thinking it may be quite an effort in China? Or will it be do-able?

My shoe size is quite small , so I'm not anticipating any issues.

thanks heaps!

[malanting]

I'm not familiar with clothes size in Australia or America, so I have no idea what the number means. But I don't think it's going to be hard for you to find suitable clothes.

[liuzhou]

No problem. There are many women in China much bigger than you! The tiny, slim stereotype of Chinese women is just a load of nonsense.

Of course, where you are going to be based may make a bit of a difference to availability, but, in the unlikely event that you can't find anything to fit, every city, town and village has people who will make you clothes to measure at very reasonable prices.

What is much more likely is that the ready to wear stuff may not be to your taste. Then the locals tailors really come into their own. Show them a picture of what you want and they'll come up with something close.

[大肚男]

I'm assuming you will be going to Beijing or some big city. In that case, you should find some markets that cater mostly to foreigners, i.e. silk market, and they do have all sizes.

[jbradfor]

Size won't be an issue. However, one other issue you may encounter is a lack of middle-of-the-road quality clothing.

You'll be able to find no end of cheaply made clothing, made for the local market. Shop right, and it will be so cheap you won't care that it doesn't fit well and doesn't last long.

You'll also be able to find higher-end and high-end international brands as well. If that is what you usually buy, great. If that's out of your price range (as it is for me....), it won't do you a bit of good.

What most people complain about is the mid-range stuff, as in $30-60 for a decent pair of pants or a top.

[keitha]

Just go to one of the big malls, they have many the international brands. For the mid range stuff I would say:

http://www.uniqlo.com/us/

and

http://www.hm.com/entrance.ahtml?orguri=/

I prefer Uniqlo even though I'm a swede. You get good quality for the price and a clean look (not a big fan of big prints on shirts etc.). Do not expect the big brands to be that cheap here though. Or you could just go to the Beijing zoo market and buy some clothes. If you are in Beijing that is. It is fun and the prices are good after some haggling. Silk market is just .. I went there once and I don't plan on going back.. hehe.

[earthtojess]

Okay, thanks everyone! I'm not worried about not being able to find suitable clothes any-more.