Is the artisan fashion’s most misunderstood figure?

Artisan is a broad term that has become hip even as its definition has become increasingly meaningless. Co-opted by everyone from tortilla chip manufacturers to pizza chains the word suggests nobility of craft, but in the fashion industry it is often little more than a marketing buzzword that can mask a grim reality of homeworkers operating in countries torn apart by war, climate change, lack of opportunity and migration. In the luxury space, artisanal craftsmanship is better understood by those consumers because it’s intrinsically obvious––expensive products which spotlight special techniques, painstakingly hand-crafted in small batches, the opposite of assembly line supply. But how do we bring all consumers to a better understanding of what the term means especially when we have been conditioned to prioritize price above all else? Perhaps by describing the life of the person toiling away unseen who is unaware of being represented by this catchall term.